# Axminster fretsaw APTC FS 23 Manual or help wanted



## GaryD (13 Mar 2009)

Hi All,

as always I'm asking for help 

in the past thirty odd years I've done very little fret work and what I have done was always done by hand. 
I now have a small project that calls for a number of 25mm thick oak panels to be "What's the word", "Fretted". 

so I bought an old second-hand Axminster fretsaw APTC FS 23 to help me out ,,, just one small problem no Manual came with it 

so dose anyone know this old fretsaw and if so do you know the best way to set it up and also what type of blade would be best suited for working on 25mm thick Oak..


as always 

Many thanks for any help 


Gary


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## TRUSTINGGIBBSIE (16 Mar 2009)

Gday Gary...........can you post a pic of the saw? I have a feeling it is the same as the Trupro that is sold down here. (Au). If it is I can tell you where to get your hands on a manual. 
Noel


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## GaryD (16 Mar 2009)

Hi Noel,

thanks for your help mate,,

not sure why i can't post this picture of my fretsaw ,,,when i find out i'll be back 

Gary







*There you go I fixed it for you, DaveL with his MOD hat on.*


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## Gill (17 Mar 2009)

Sorry, I can't help you with the manual - if you find one, I hope you can get it translated from the original Latin  . If you can't get one, setting it up should be quite simple (famous last words :roll: ) so we should be able to talk you through it anyway.

Actually, it looks like a very solid saw despite its age. I bet there's very little vibration with it. You may find that the shield and hold-down arm impede you when sawing - most fretsaws come equipped with these sorts of features and most scrollers eventually get so annoyed with them that they are removed.

It's difficult to know which blade to suggest for 25mm oak because much will depend on how tight the curves are that you wish to cut. Nevertheless, 25mm is quite thick and oak can be tough, so I suggest using a skip tooth blade because it will be more effective than a normal blade in clearing away the dust/swarf produced as you cut. I wouldn't like to go smaller than a #3 and you'll probably find a #5 blade will meet your needs, although be prepared to use a larger size. Your blades won't last very long so be prepared to change them often, probably after twenty minutes but possibly even less.

Gill


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## GaryD (17 Mar 2009)

Wow,,,, Thanks DaveL,,,

How did you do that??? 
or more to the point what was I doing wrong,,?,?,?,? Goodbuddy???


Gill,

I think the machine could be older then the written word, and your right it is heavy 36k

I have not had time to play with the old beast other then switch her on for two or three seconds....no vibration,,, but it did make one hell of a banging sound ,,,Knock Knock knock,, it sounds and looked like the top blade arm (the arm that hold the top part of the blade) was hitting the upper arm (the the arm that holds the shield and air pipe) I will get to know the terminology of this old fretsaw one day!!! 

it is old but doesn't look like its been abused in anyway.

the guy I brought it from knew nothing of the tool, he got it from house clearance 

I'm guessing he had a little play as it had an old hacksaw blade fitted.

i also know nothing about fret saws but am hoping that someone at ukworkshop will help..

next weekend, I plan to strip her down and give her a good clean and a little TLC....and see what's making all that RACKET!!!!! unless someone already knows ,,,,i hope,,,,


thanks for being there 

Gary


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## Gill (17 Mar 2009)

I wouldn't worry too much about the noise at this stage. The chances are that the tension is set incorrectly. How long is the hacksaw blade currently in the machine? Something is telling me that most hacksaw blades are about 7" long whereas scroll saws are typically designed to hold fretsaw blades that are 5" long. Assuming you now have a 5" blade fitted, I suggest you look to the back of the machine and see if there's a knob which raises the upper arm when it is tightened and lowers it when it is loosened. If you need to change a blade, loosen the knob the release the tension and tighten it again when the appropriate blade is in place. The proper tension is achieved when you have a millimetre or two's lateral movement on the blade if you press it gently with your finger from the side.

Hopefully, this will eliminate the knocking sound when you switch the machine on.

Gill


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## DaveL (17 Mar 2009)

GaryD":xzdpzhmq said:


> How did you do that???
> or more to the point what was I doing wrong,,?,?,?,? Goodbuddy???


You had a mixture of TAGS but not quite the right ones for the picture to be displayed, if you click on the edit button on your post, you can see what I changed it to. There is more help on picture posting here.


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## TRUSTINGGIBBSIE (17 Mar 2009)

Sorry Gary. I thought the Axminster was similar to the Trupro but it is nothing like it. But I agree that the noise problem is blade tension. Your explanation sure sounds as if it is. 

Noel


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## GaryD (14 Apr 2009)

Hi All,,

just a quickie !!!

where is the best place to buy scroll saw blades over the internet
i am looking for skip blades 

thanks


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## Gill (14 Apr 2009)

I take it the saw's up and running then  .

You can get Olson skip toothed blades from Shesto in the UK, or Flying Dutchman skip toothed blades from Mike Moorlach in the USA. I like FD blades because they're more aggresive than standard blades and they seem to last longer, so my preference would be to order from Mike and wait a couple of weeks for delivery.

There may be other suppliers too...  .

Gill


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