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General Category => General Scroll Saw Talk => Topic started by: rob12 on May 31, 2013, 06:51:38 am
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I received 2/0 blades and I m having a hard time staying on the line Im cutting 1/4 baltic birch contacted Mike and he suggested that my tension wasnt high enough tried that and still cant stay on the line any other suggestion would be greatly appreciated thanks.
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Rob--I have never used 2/0 blades but I have noticed that if I sit just to the right of the blade I have better control. I know that might sound funny but it works for me on my hand /eye coordination-- just a thought -- Richard
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spirals are very hard to control i found that i had to slow down the saw and slow down my feed rate and practice practice practice
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I use F D 2/0 blades all the time, and don't have a problem, did you try and stack cut, that usually helps, sometimes I turn the speed down, just my thoughts. edward
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A problem I have experienced is when I don't have enough contrast between the blade and the pattern. A red line pattern is a big help. A filled-in sillouette pattern is sometimes hard to follow, especially black.
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Spirals are not really meant to keep a straight line - they are best used where there is a lot of side-to-side movement. Having teeth in all directions, they don't have a shape that would help them keep moving along a line. But when I have a long, straight-ish line on a portrait cut, I turn the material so I am cutting into the blade as if it were a straight blade. I find it easier to stay on the line that way. When the odd shapes come up, I find the spirals are a big help with sideways cuts.
The biggest problem I have with spirals is on long, thin lines where one pass of the blade is too thin but the line is not wide enough to get another full cut on the other side of the line. I wind up chewing away on the 2nd cut to widen the line and it does not go smoothly.
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The FD-SR is not a spiral blade. It is the Scroll Reverse blade. I love most of the FD blades that I have tried except the SR 2/0. I ordered a gross of the SR 2/0 a couple of years ago. I tried every combination of saw speed, feed rate wood thickness and wood type. I could not get it to track properly. I could not stay on the line even with the highest tension possible on my DeWalt DW788. So I gave them away to a member on this forum. Again, I use mostly FD blades, but when I need a 2/0 blade, I use Olson blades.
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My preferred blade for portrait cutting is the FD NS 2/0 and now I have started using the 3/0 also. I tried the Spiral Reverse and put them aside! You are going to get 'fuzzies' so learn to live with that fact and put a 'throw away' piece on the bottom of your stack! (I almost always am able to get rid of those fuzzies but sanding the back side with my ROS and judicious use of needle files and salvage the 'throw away'.)
For long straight cuts I change to FLAT blades!!!
It is virtually impossible to get a true straight line cut with a spiral blade.
If you are cutting 1/4" plywood or other wood it is too thin to really control a spiral blade. My configuration is that I NEVER cut a stack that is less than 3/8" thick and most often it is 1/2 to 5/8.
As to saw speed...I personally find that the faster the saw is running the better control I have of everything. BUT I have trained myself to not 'feed' the wood but simply GUIDE it. Also Mike is right on...If your tension is not at the absolute maximum limit you will wander all over the place and you will experience more vibration on your saw!
Once again my mantra is..."Speed-fast, Tension-Tight and Extremely Slow Feed!"
~~~GB~~~
Just finished and cut with 2/0 & 3/0 spirals....
Splinter! remember her?
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I use nothing but spiral blades, even for straight cuts. GB is right on!
I use a mop sander to deal with fuzzies.
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I believe that Rob is talking about the FD-SR what is not a spiral blade.
Rob, the SR has a burr on the right side what makes it cut to the right. You have to move the wood some degree to the right to stay on the line. If you force the blade to stay on the line and holding the wood straight you will break blades.
FD Mike
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Might want to keep the Jack Daniels a little further from the saw...it works for me. Pete
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Your tension may still not be tight. It should really ping when plucked like a guitar.
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I find tension with the 2/0 blades not easy to handle.
they brake quit easy, but guess thats due to the small width.
I have the Hegner with the quick clamp and pushing the lever over the bump will brake the blade sometimes.
so I adjust tension with the knob ant the back using 2/0 blades.
once with the tension right they cut as good as the other FD blades.