3D box puzzle Scroll Saw Pattern. Pain in the read Clock inserts and we have winners.

We have winners!!!! Thank you Bear Woods.

The Bear Woods sponsored giveaway winners have been randomly drawn by my contest service Gleam.io.

Winner #1 receives 3 dozen Pegas scroll saw blades.

Winner #2 receives $25 worth your choice of clock parts.

Both prizes are supplied by Bear Woods.

Our first winner is....... Tara Sawyer from Kelowna, BC, Canada

Our Second winner is...Carl Clayton from Maryville, IL, USA

Congratulations to both winners. I will be contacting you both by email to let you know how to receive your gifts. 

We had 5,589 entries this month. There were several entries who had the qualifying question wrong. The question was to identify the new Bear Woods logo. The correct answer was a saw blade with a clock. There were a surprising number of entries who answered a "Bear in the Woods" :)

Correct

Wrong

  Thanks to all who entered.

This is a black box 3D maze puzzle. Put the steel ball in at the in arrow and run it through each level until it exits the out arrow. 

These can be made much more difficult than this one. I intentionally kept this one easy for the kids. You never have to turn this puzzle upside down to solve it. I can make one that the ball has to go down two levels then back up a level before going down again to get out. Those get very hard to solve.

As it is this one can be solved in just a few minutes but it's a nice little table puzzle.

 Here is the link to buy the steel balls.

 The wood blanks are 4" X 4".
Two blanks are 1/4" thick
four of the blanks are 1/2" Thick

Carefully apply the patterns.

I mark the orientation of each level before removing the patterns.

 Glue and clamp. Make sure the blanks are well aligned after clamping.

Sand the all sides and round over the edges so it is comfortable in the hand.

Let's talk mini Clock inserts:

There are many scroll saw patterns that use these mini clock inserts. I want to talk about a question I received today. Why are they so difficult to install? I get this question from time to time so I thought I would discuss it for everyone.

If you click the pictures they will show an enlarged view.

There are two styles of holding mechanics that I know of for these mini clocks. There are also several differences inside those styles. 

In the picture above the first three are the rubber gasket style and the last one is a plastic clip. The plastic clip like #4 are easy to install. You will see a few different style of plastic clip but they generally are all install easily. They also have tendency to come out sometimes. 

1, 2 and 3 show three different style of rubber gasket. I'll talk about them below.

This is a blow up of style #1. The three nibs are smaller and further apart. My experience has been that these are the hardest to install. The problem is that you never know which style of rubber gasket you will get. These have a tendency to bunch up and fold over easier. They can be a real pain.

This is rubber gasket #2. The nibs are larger and closer together. These are easier to install than #1.

 Rubber gasket #3 has equally spaced larger nibs. For me these are the easiest to install. Most of the time I can push these in without using the flat tip screwdriver show below.

This is the  plastic clip version. By far the easiest to install. These clip will get fragile and break after a few years. I guess the plastic deteriorates and breaks down. For some reason I have not had that problem with the rubber rings. They seem to stay soft and pliable for a long time. I just pulled one out of a project I have had on the shelf for maybe 10 years and it was fine. 

All of these 1 7/16" clock/picture frame inserts require a 1 3/8" diameter mounting hole. It is best drilled with a 1 3/8" fostner bit. I have used the scroll saw to cut the holes but you have to be extra careful to not oversize the hole. You want a snug fit.

 This is one of the rubber rings removed from the clock insert Notice that the nibs have a small end. That end goes into the hole first. I have seen these installed upside down. If they are it will be more difficult to force them into the hole. By the way the yellow cast is from the lighting of the photo. The rubber has not yellowed.

When I install a rubber gasket style insert I use a small flat tip screwdriver. I gently push down on the insert while I move the tip of the screwdriver around the gasket. I use the tip to gently push down on the gasket.  

It will reach a point where it will easily push the rest of the way in. 

The biggest problem is when someone who receives the clock tries to change the battery. They often have trouble getting the clock back in unless you have told them how to do it. Even then they may give up if it's the rubber gasket with the small nibs.(#1 above)

I use to worry about which one I used. To be honest I stopped worrying when I realized that almost no one ever actually replaces the batteries in these mini clocks. They tend to run for about a year then most people just let them sit on the shelf as a trinket item and not a clock they use. There are exceptions but I would bet 90 percent are sitting on shelves not running.

Take advantage of the free shipping offer and stock up on wood for the New Year.

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your source for Pegas scroll saw blades and craft supplies.

Let me teach you to create a beautiful wooden portrait pattern. I will show you everything you need from start to finish. The video will show you the free software program you can download for Windows or Mac OS. I will show you how to install the program and configure it for best results. 

Then I will show you the technique to take your photograph and make a pattern from it. When the pattern is complete we will go in the shop and cut it.

The DVD is $10 plus shipping. This is a data DVD that you will use on your computer to watch the video tutorial  

Purchase the entire Scrollsaw Workshop pattern catalog for offline access.

This DVD has 1,964 patterns published from 2007 thru 2016.
The DVD is $20 plus shipping. Ships to 60 countries around the world.

You can view a video showing use of the DVD on a Windows PC and a MAC at this link

Click here to Order. 

Want to create beautiful wooden vases on the scroll saw?

My two "Wooden Vases on the Scroll Saw" books make it easy.

The books are $12 each and available for instant download after purchase. Click for Video Demonstration.

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