Advice for scroll saw newby

[marcus]

Hi there, just wondering if anyone can give me some advice. I recently bought a scroll saw as I am going to be doing a lot of inlay in the near future, but I'm pretty disappointed at how slow it is. It's an axminster awsf 18, so not exactly cheap! I'm mostly cutting .9mm pewter and brass, but the saw is so painfully slow I've ended up cutting by hand again because it's quicker!

Something doesn't seem right about this. I'm using standard axminster blades (tried a variety of tooth sizes), and tried different speeds but nothing made much difference. Am I expecting too much from the saw or is there some other explanation?

Cheers,

Marcus

 

[hawkinob]

Hi Marcus,
I've never tried cutting metal (so why am I answering you? - just trying to help!).
I'm very surprised to read that hand cutting is faster than with the Axminster saw, which I believe is a 'Hegner look a like'. There are blades made for cutting metal which I would use rather than 'all in type'. Try:-
http://www.mikesworkshop.com/blades.htm
and email Mike, I think he reads this forum so he might reply anyway - USA - so a time difference.

Best of luck.

Bob H.
p.s. Was your 'hand' blade similar to the one used in the Axminster?

 

[Mouse]

Hi Marcus,
You need metal cutting blades.
I cut a lot of copper and use the Flying Dutchman blades from Mike
http://www.mikesworkshop.com/ His prices are very good and he only charges shipping at cost ( about $3 ). Takes about 5 to 7 working days from time of ordering. There is a lot of good information on blades on Mikes site and he is always willing to answer any email queries.

 

[puzzler]

I have cut 1/8" brass using a metal blade
you need a slow speed and a steady feed ie let the saw do the cutting
I buy my blades in the UK as mentioned in my last post
I suggest you use safety glasses hope this helps
Regards puzzler

 

[marcus]

Sorry it's taken a while to get back to this, I've been away. Thanks both for your suggestions, I will try some different types of blades and see how it goes.

Marcus