This wolf under the moon pattern is 11" wide and 10.5" tall. The pattern prints on two sheets of paper. I used 1/4" thick Baltic birch plywood for both the cutting and the backer board. I painted the backer board black. It took just under two hours to cut. I used a flat blade but the pattern is large enough that some of you may want to use a spiral blade.
When I print a pattern on two pages that needs to be reassembled to cut I only cut on the dotted line of one of the sheets. This lets me overlap the pages. I use small pieces of tape to temporarily hold the two sheets together. I then lif the overlap and spray glue in the seam. This holds the pages together. If you don't do this you will get lifting of the pattern where the overlap is while you cut in that area.
Wixey Drill Press Laser Quick Review:
I am always looking for accessories that make my time in the shop more efficient. One job that can be very time consuming is drilling interior holes for complex scroll saw patterns. I purchased the Wixey Drill Press Laser to see if it would make the boring job easier.
Lining up the drill press when there are dozens of tiny interior holes to drill can add time to the process and is prone to mistake. I have many times been in a hurry and drilled outside the line of a pattern. A hand drill is actually less prone to error but it is way slower.
Having a pointer that could guide me sounded like a good idea so I jumped on Amazon and purchased the Wixey laser. It showed up today so I installed it and used it to drill the holes in today's wolf pattern. The pattern is not overly complex but there were enough interior cuts to at least give the laser a workout.
I circled the Wixey laser in red so you could see it better. Installation is just about as simple as it can get. There are two studs on the laser. You wrap the included hose clamp around the studs and the center column of the drill press.
The bracket that holds the studs has two configurations. One setup is for larger drill presses and the other is for smaller drill presses. I had to readjust the bracket for my floor model drill press. It just takes minutes to install.
I read a couple reviews that said the laser would occasionally move on the center column from vibration. I did not see that problem but I have only used it for this one project. It seems very secure to me.
Once you get the laser installed you have a short setup procedure to get the lasers lined up with the position where the drill bit hits the wood. The design of the laser is such that no matter where the height of the chuck is the laser always point at the center. This means that once adjusted the first time it should not need to be moved. That is assuming it does not vibrate and slip.
The adjustment of the lasers is pretty simple but it took a few minutes to get it as perfectly lined up as possible. There are two adjustments. One is made with a small screwdriver and the other by turning plastic dials on the laser. The plastic dials worked but the accuracy was a little rough. I had to use two hands on the dials to get it perfect.
Look at the picture above. See the red arrow. It is pointing to the light of my drill press. The Wixey Drill Press Laser covers the light on my machine. This makes using the light impossible. I had to attach an external magnetic light to the drill press to make up for this loss. That was disappointing but not a deal killer.
The lasers form a crosshair to mark the point. The laser lines are crisp and bright. There are some situations where you might block the laser line with your hands but that does not cause a problem because you just need the laser to line up the bit.
So how well does it work? How accurate is it?
I used a pencil and made several small dots on a piece of scrap wood. Even moving fairly rapidly I was able to hit each mark accurately.
My goal for this device is to be able to move around a pattern and drill inside the interior cuts. That gives some wiggle room. So for me close would be good enough. When I want mission-critical holes drilled in an exact spot I normally use an awl to mark the hole and give the bit something to guide it. I'm not sure yet if this laser is accurate enough to eliminate that step or not. I'll have to use it longer to know.
For what I wanted out of the Wixey Drill Press Laser I am pleased. This is a luxury accessory. You do not need a laser pointer to drill holes. The luxury, in this case, is the ability to drill a large number of holes more quickly and with accuracy and making a boring job a bit easier.
$12 per sheet of 12 coins plus $3.50 shipping
Inlay with a 1" Forstner Bit.
The perfect way to sign your work.
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Products for your consideration:
Every Scrollsaw Workshop Pattern from 2007-2018 in DVD
This DVD has over 2,600 patterns published from 2007 thru 2018.
The DVD is $20 plus shipping. Ships to 60 countries around the world.
The DVD is $20 plus shipping. Ships to 60 countries around the world.
If you use the DVD on a Windows PC there is a simple viewer program to browse through the patterns.
The DVD also works fine on a MAC. The viewer program is not MAC compatible but there is an included PDF with all the patterns shown as thumbnails for easy viewing.
All the same file but on an easy to use a thumb drive. The USB thumb drive option is $23 plus shipping.
Now Available on USB Thumb Drive
Don't have a DVD drive on your new computer. No problem. Buy the catalog on a USB thumb drive.All the same file but on an easy to use a thumb drive. The USB thumb drive option is $23 plus shipping.
Scroll Saw Pattern Design Tutorial: DVD
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.
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
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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