# Compound Cut Christmas Decoration



## Gill (28 Aug 2006)

Here's my first ever scrolled compound cut . It's from a magazine pattern, cut from ash (yes, I do work with wood sometimes :roll: ), and measures approximately 7 cm high. One coat of Danish oil has been applied and it'll get another in a couple of days.







This was great fun to cut, although it took a lot longer than I'd anticipated. The aim is to cut lots more so that by Christmas I'll be able to decorate a tree with them.

Gill


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## DaveL (28 Aug 2006)

Gill":2t2englv said:


> Here's my first ever scrolled compound cut .


Well if you hadn't mentioned it I would not of known. :roll: Looks pretty good to me.  



Gill":2t2englv said:


> although it took a lot longer than I'd anticipated.


You just need a bit more practise, how long did it take? 
Whats the time you had in your head? 



Gill":2t2englv said:


> The aim is to cut lots more so that by Christmas I'll be able to decorate a tree with them.


Should look good, please post us a picture. 8)


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## CHJ (28 Aug 2006)

Well done *Gill*, a "I did it this way" would be appreciated next time round.

Did you scroll all that thickness? or did his Lordship part turn a form for you to work on.


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## Newbie_Neil (29 Aug 2006)

Hi Gill

Very impressive.

Cheers
Neil


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## Anonymous (29 Aug 2006)

Lovely work Gill, that tree will look gorgeous if you can make a few more


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## Gill (30 Aug 2006)

Thanks for the kind comments  .

I thought each decoration would only take half an hour or so, but ash is hard on the blades. My first took a couple of hours.

For my second, I took some WIP piccies but even with the encouragement of having its photograph taken and ensuing fame, the ash refused to let me cut it any quicker. Perhaps it knew I was a rotten photographer.

These decorations start off as a square cut block of wood. The pattern is fastened to it using spray mount adhesive so that the centre of the pattern falls across the corner of the block along a marked central line. The piccy shows it better than I can describe it:





(This pattern isn't the one I used for the rest of this post, not that it matters much. Nobody ever accused me of consistency  )

I also drilled pilot holes in the block so that I could pass my blade through to make the piercing cuts which would remove the inner parts of the decoration first. Some turns on the outer cuts are rather tight so I also drilled holes near those locations; it's easier to manoeuvre the wood in a drilled hole rather than having to cut one out as you go along  .






The inner parts were cut and removed first, then the outer cuts were made. Cutting and removing the inner parts is quite straight forward - they just drop out. However, after you've made all the outer cuts you'll find the workpiece tends to move about in the centre of the block, so you need to hold it in position. Sellotape seems to work okay for this, so I just wrapped some around the whole block.






Eventually all the cuts were completed and the pattern (plus sellotape) could be removed.






The wooden block was shaken gently and the decoration obligingly fell out of the middle, together with the waste wood that had been supporting the workpiece as it was cut.






This is the raw decoration, freshly cut and awaiting dips into finishing oil.

I hope you can see, Chas, why it wouldn't be possible to prepare a compound cut such as this on the lathe. You need to have a square block of wood throughout the production process to keep everything perfectly square to the blade. Of course, you also need to ensure that the blade is perfectly square to the table; an error of ¼º is noticeable and an error of ½º is fatal.

Gill


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## CHJ (30 Aug 2006)

*Gill *you are a star, took me some time to get my head around the 3D relationships of the design and the sequence of cuts.

I thought after I posted that it was not on to try and support a turned form adequately but had not even considered the need to semi support the sections with waste as the cut progressed.

You have also proved a point for me, that it is possible to cut that depth with a good saw and blade, a gentleman at westonbirt was adamant that a bandsaw was essential to tackle that sort of thickness when I suggested otherwise, maybe it was just that time was his master.


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## wizer (30 Aug 2006)

:tongue9: very clever Gill!


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## Gill (30 Aug 2006)

Hi Chas

The woodworker at Westonbirt was definitely wrong - I'm speaking from personal experience.

The ash for the Christmas decoration was a little over 1" thick and I used a #5 skip reverse blade but it was still hard work. In the past, I've cut a stack of maple 3" thick with a #5 blade and it was _really _hard work. I understand that a Diamond saw can cope with wood 4" thick but I wouldn't like to try it with a conventional blade. I think you'd have to use a section of bandsaw blade. What's more, a hard wood like ash would be a non-starter - possibly some of Mr B&Qs finest cotton wool pine might be suitable, though.

One of the problems cutting thick blocks of wood with a scroll saw is that the blade is very thin and is constantly in abrasive contact with the wood. As a result, heat builds up very quickly and you can easily scorch the wood or even find that the blade loses its tempering. All you can do is be patient and keep 'backing off' from the cut.

Gill


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## DaveL (30 Aug 2006)

Gill,

Thanks for taking the time to do these pictures.  I think I will look out the ends from making my ash bench. Its about time I used the SIP scroll saw for a real project. :roll:


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## CHJ (30 Aug 2006)

Yes, beginning to think I should have taken the opportunity to pick one up at the show when they were off-loading them so cheap.


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## gwaithcoed (3 Sep 2006)

Gill,
that is absolutely fantastic =D> =D> =D> =D> 


Alan.


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## dedee (4 Sep 2006)

Very nice Gill, I'd been wondering what you were up to.


Andy


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## wrightclan (4 Sep 2006)

Very nice. =D> 

Brad


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## Gill (4 Sep 2006)

dedee":1x7qt2ij said:


> I'd been wondering what you were up to


I've been trying to get the electricity reconnected to my workshop. An emergency electrician was called to look at a different circuit in the house but couldn't work out what was wrong so he decided to disconnect the workshop and give me a £1000 quote for re-wiring it.

Ever tried to get an electrician to correct another electrician's work? I found one in the end who sorted out the household circuit and reconnected the workshop for £30. It took a few months to find him, though.

I'm tending to work almost exclusively with MDF nowadays, which rather limits the projects that are suitable for posting here.

Gill


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## StevieB (4 Sep 2006)

> I'm tending to work almost exclusively with MDF nowadays, which rather limits the projects that are suitable for posting here.
> 
> Gill



I disagree, and for one would be interested in seeing what you are producing be it in MDF or otherwise. Just because it is not cut in real timber does not detract from the skill of the cutter!

Steve.


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## CHJ (4 Sep 2006)

StevieB":2qtqtr4h said:


> I disagree, and for one would be interested in seeing what you are producing be it in MDF or otherwise. Just because it is not cut in real timber does not detract from the skill of the cutter!
> 
> Steve.



Here Here :!:


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## dedee (5 Sep 2006)

CHJ":3lktuhn0 said:


> StevieB":3lktuhn0 said:
> 
> 
> > I disagree, and for one would be interested in seeing what you are producing be it in MDF or otherwise. Just because it is not cut in real timber does not detract from the skill of the cutter!
> ...




Here Here Here.

There are no forum rules that say projects in MDF are excluded.

Andy


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## DaveL (5 Sep 2006)

dedee":1s9fxg13 said:


> There are no forum rules that say projects in MDF are excluded.


Good thing too or we would have had to stop Jason posting pictures of that nice looking dresser. :shock: 

Gill, we like seeing what your making, it prompts some of us to have a go at different things. I have sorted out squared paper and a compass to try drawing out a decoration, don't hold your breath on me making any soon.


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## DaveL (6 Sep 2006)

Well I spent some time today abusing some ash with the scroll saw. My conclusion is Gill is a Master Scroller.  
Take a look at this and I think you will see what I mean.  


 
I cut the top one and it looked a bit chucky, so I adjusted my pattern and cut the second one. Well I know what happened, the glue on the tape I use to hold the bits together when I turned the blank by 90° melted. :x I had no idea how hot the wood was getting. #-o 
Well I have cut a scrap bit of beech to size and wiil give that a go next, I am sure this lot will start the woord burner real quick when needed.


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## Gill (7 Sep 2006)

Oh Dave - my heart goes out to you. You're so close to achieving a really wonderful cut!

Let's take it from step one. B&Q (and most good DIY retailers :roll: ) sell blue decorators masking tape which is great for lubricating blades as they cut. I'd suggest you wrap your ash (or beech) in some and _then _fasten your pattern to the block of wood. Artists spray mount adhesive is not cheap but you use very little so it's worth buying. Spray a little on the back of your pattern, leave it for 10 seconds or so, then apply it as you did before. You should find the pattern won't move when you next start to cut.

What blades are you using? Don't worry if you have to move up to #9 so long as you're able to keep the cutting action cool. I think it's more important that you should be using a skip-tooth blade than worrying about the size of the blade. Skip-tooth blades are so very efficient at clearing swarf from the cutting edge and thereby reducing friction.

Apart from these points to watch, I reckon you've got it sussed! Try again and amaze yourself.










Reverting to the subject of MDF, this is my latest segmentation WIP:







The final piece won't look too different from this (I know, I painted some bits chrome which should be green and vice versa :roll: ), but I'm having an awful time getting a decent chrome paint finish on the cheek. Blotchiness abounds!

Gill


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## StevieB (7 Sep 2006)

Thats an interesting take on the Mentora dragon Gill, very nice. I have also got hold of a pattern to have a go at that but since I found out yesterday that the house I just bought needs completely rewiring I think Mentora has slipped down the list a little :roll: 

Keep posting those pics!

Steve.


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## DaveL (7 Sep 2006)

Gill, 

Thanks for the advice. 8) I have some of the blue masking tape, I will try it on the beech. 
On the blade front I have a selection of blades that I bought from Axminster when they stopped selling scroll saw blades and now only list mixed bundles of fret saw blades. I will have to lay then out and try to decide which are which. #-o 

The dragon is magic, if this is the sort of thing you are doing, I wish to lodge a formal complaint that you are not posting pictures. :wink:


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## Gill (7 Sep 2006)

Steve - I didn't know you were a member of one of the forums involved with Mentora! Which one? And have you been quietly developing your scrollsaw techniques without showing anyone the fruits of your labours? You sneaky devil!

Dave - You might find it beneficial to ask Mike Moorlach in the US to send you a free sample of his blades. He's also got advice on blade selectionon his Flying Dutchman website. As with most tools, there are blades and there are blades. I'm wary of using own-brand because you're never sure what you're getting. I sometimes wonder how many people have been put off scrolling because they've relied on generic machines and sundries which don't perform to an acceptable standard. If you're interested in an English supplier of saw blades, those from Hegner are very good but I much prefer the Flying Dutchman Penguin Silver Reverse #9 for cutting my Christmas decorations.

Another website that novice (and even seasoned) scrollers often find useful is Rick Hutcheson'swhich now hosts brief video lessons.

Gill


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## StevieB (8 Sep 2006)

Hi Gill, I regularly read through scrollsaw workshop (or scrollsaw woodworking and crafts as it has now become) but have never posted. 

http://www.scrollsawer.com for those that are interested

I have been very tied up with moving into a new house lately which is in need of some TLC so sadly no, I have not been refining my technique at all. I still keep an eye out for patterns and do a little scrolling since it is something I can pick up and put down quite easily and fit in half an hour here and there. I will certainly try and have a go at Mentora before the deadline if I can!

Cheers,

Steve.


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## Gill (17 Dec 2006)

DaveL":3qxappx8 said:


> Gill":3qxappx8 said:
> 
> 
> > The aim is to cut lots more so that by Christmas I'll be able to decorate a tree with them.
> ...



I'm lousy at decorating Christmas trees, but I must say the decorations do look rather nice  . All the baubles on the tree and the snowflake on the top (which hasn't come out too clearly in the piccy  ) are home-made.






Gill


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## Waka (17 Dec 2006)

Gill

Thjey look really good, I didn't realise how small they were until I saw them on the tree. Are you going into mass production?


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## woodbloke (17 Dec 2006)

Gill - clever stuff - well done - Rob


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## DaveL (17 Dec 2006)

Gill,

Well done.  

I have cut a couple that did not fall to bits, :roll: I will try and post some pictures, don't think mine will be going on the tree.


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## JFC (17 Dec 2006)

That is very clever Gill !


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