This little church is only 3.5" long. It is illuminated with two electric tea light candles. All the parts are 1/18" Baltic birch plywood.
Click the links above to get everything you need to make several of these mini church candle holders delivered to your door from Amazon. Using the links above the cost of each church including two electric candles is about $3.50.
One of these days everyone will be able to attend churches in person again. I know that around the country many have had to worship remote or from their cars. We all hope that ends soon.
You may want to give a gift to friends who you miss at church. Maybe this little mini church will be just the project.
Cutting thin wood on a scroll saw can be difficult.
One of the most difficult cuts on a scroll saw is when the material is very thin. 1/8" Baltic birch plywood is a good example of difficult material to cut accurately.
You may think that makes no sense. The scroll saw blade should cut thin wood like butter. Your correct, it cuts it like butter but that is the problem. The wood offers so little resistance to the blade that it is easy for the blade to get away from you. Stopping the blade at turns is more difficult, Staying on a pattern line is more difficult.
The easiest solution to this problem is to stack cut thin material. Tape up two or more boards and cut more than one of each part. The thicker stack offers more resistance and makes cutting much easier.
Sometimes you just don't want multiple projects and don't want to waste good wood. So how can you make it easier to cut a single thin board?
I never use a blade larger than a #3 when cutting a single sheet of 1/8" wood. The smaller blade is just less aggressive so you gain a little more control.
I have a video named "The most important scroll saw technique". This important technique is even more critical when cutting thin wood. It takes practice but it will improve you cuts and accuracy.
Believe it or not, this is a good place for dull scroll saw blades. Keep your old blades that are worn out. Use them when you have to cut single sheets of thin wood. They cut way less aggressive but are more than capable of still working on very thin stock.
And of course, the one thing we all want to ignore is speed. Thin wood is one place where you really do not want to speed cut. Just resolve that you need to go slow.
Update to yesterday's video to correct problems.
As part of yesterday's pattern I did a video tutorial. The tutorial does not work on all the letters correctly. Because of issues with the way Inkscape imports PDF's some of the letters did not led together with the name.
After the Unios command, you would get a letter that looks like the B in the image above. This video shows an extra step that is needed to correct this problem.
If you are having trouble or plan to use the pattern in the future you may want to watch this update video.
$12 per sheet of 12 coins plus $3.50 shipping
Inlay with a 1" Forstner Bit.
The perfect way to sign your work.
Email Newsletter Readers: Remember that the Newsletter is just a copy of the daily blog post. To see the post in its proper formatting click this link. If you ever misplace a pattern or any item you see here you can always find it on the blog. Everything stays on the blog forever.
Products for your consideration:
Every Scrollsaw Workshop Pattern from 2007-2019 on DVD
This DVD has over 2,900 patterns published from 2007 thru 2019.
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 in an easy to use 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 in an easy to use thumb drive. The USB thumb drive option is $23 plus shipping.
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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WEN 3922 16-inch Variable Speed Scroll Saw with Easy-Access Blade Changes
This is the updated version of the WEN 3921 that I reviewed. They made some nice changes. If you need to get started in the hobby on a very tight budget then the WEN 3922 is a good choice. It has compromises but hey, it only costs $115.
Here is a link to my review of the 3921. Most of it is still relevant to this saw.
- Unique side panel flips open for easy-access blade changes
- Variable speed goes from 550 to 1600 strokes per minute
- Spacious 16-by-10-inch table bevels up to 45 degrees for angled cuts
- Cuts wood up to 2 inches thick with a 16-inch throat depth
- Features a thumb screw blade adapter for tool-free blade changes, a cast iron base, an air pump, a dust port, a foot lock clamp, and three 5-inch blades