On this page I hope to offer any hints and tips or other useful stuff to assist anyone starting the hobby of fretwork.
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My very first piece of advice is to buy a book, not just any book, but one that I learnt so much from myself many years ago.
The book in question is the much acclaimed manual by the most respected scrollsaw expert Patrick Spielman.
There are two versions to look for, the first was published in 1978 and is only available as a second-hand copy. It is readily available on Ebay and other booksellers at very low prices. The updated version is available both new or second hand from many booksellers or Ebay.
If you only buy one scroll saw book I would heartily recommend either of these two books. They both offer excellent contents.
ISBN No 0806947705
ISBN No 0806978775
The book I mention above is in my opinion the No 1 book to buy but having said that there are also very many other excellent books dedicated to fretwork or scroll-sawing. I show a few covers below but there are far too many to mention and a simple search will allow you to find hundreds of titles, many available cheaply as paperbacks or as second-hand copies.
One person who has helped with the resurgence and interest in Fretwork is the late Patrick Spielman.
Patrick was born in 1936 and in 1960 at age 24 he wrote his first book. At the time of his death he was working on two more books. Most of Patrick's books are available either new or second-hand, they are well worth buying.
Sadly Patrick passed away in 2004 at the young age of 68yrs, but during his life Patrick wrote more than 65 books on the subject of Woodworking many of them on the subject of Fretwork/scrollsawing. Indeed I have many of his books on my bookshelf.
Just a small selection of some of the many books written by Patrick Spielman on the subject of Scroll-sawing.
The Scrollsaw ceased publication in 2000
Scrollsaw Magazines.
There is only one magazine dedicated to the scrollsaw that I am aware of, that is Scrollsaw Woodworking & crafts it is published by Fox Chapel in the USA.
We did have a superb magazine dedicated to the hobby here in the UK but unfortunately
it ceased publication due to poor interest.
Published in USA it is available in UK.
Here are the answers to some of the common questions asked by beginners to the scrollsawing hobby:
(Please note that these are my opinions gained from my many years of fretworking, others may have a different view.)
How safe are scrollsaws?
It is possible to have an accident with any machine but of all woodworking machinery the Scrollsaw has got to be the safest machine one can use. Obviously any moving blade can cut fingers, but at least with a scrollsaw any damage is likely to be minimal. Shown to the right is my 10yr old grandson Ben using a Hegner fretsaw quite safely. He is by the way very expert at using tools and a very experienced scrollsaw user.
Which scrollsaw should I buy?
This is one of the most asked questions from beginners in the various scrollsaw forums and other groups so much so that a few years ago I made a set of two Youtube videos to guide people on which saw might be best for them. The links to the videos are on the "Buying a Saw" page. The page also contains information on the various types of scrollsaw.
Personally I can recommend the Hegner machines, I have had one for over 25 years, it's still working perfectly and I have always been happy with it. (I have no connection to the Hegner company, there is a page discussing the Hegner saws here).
It is fair to say that these days there are many makes of good quality saws available but I have no experience on them other than things others have said about them. Do be aware that you cannot always assume that a well known name on a machine makes it a quality saw, some companies offer machines with their name on that they have not manufactured themselves and sometimes they are little better than a cheap brand. It's called Badge engineering! In my opinion you are better to buy a second hand saw from a decent maker than a new cheap brand. I discuss economy saws here.
What sort of wood should I use?
Well of course it does not have to be wood quite a few people create things from plastics and metal, for example some people cut their designs out on old LP records or even cd's, but in the main most use some sort of wood, but what sort of wood is best?
Plywood. Plywood is excellent for the job for several reasons, one is that it is readily available. Another reason is that because it is made from several layers of wood with the grain running at right angles in each layer it is very strong and less prone to breakage as with solid wood. Plywood for scroll-saw work is usually of three layers for 3/16inch (4.78mm) and under and five layers or more for 1/4inch (6.35mm) and over.
When buying plywood for the job make sure you buy the good quality ply often known as Birch plywood, usually in good quality plywood all of the layers are of the same thickness, whereas in the cheap plywood you often find thin layers on the outside with a thicker poor quality layer sandwiched between them. If you use the cheaper inferior ply the cut edges of your work will be rough and splintery with pieces chipping off.
Solid timber. Here we have two choices - Hardwood or softwood. Don't be deceived by the name, some hardwoods are soft such as Balsa wood whereas some softwoods are hard such as Pitch Pine which is as hard as oak!
We shall deal with softwoods first, now for most fretwork softwoods are poor for two reasons - one is that it is not strong and it breaks and chips easily especially on small projections etc and secondly the cut edges tend to be very splintery and will require lots of extra sanding work later. You can cut down on the splintering by using reverse tooth blades (see the page on Blades) or by using a sacrificial layer underneath the work (see the section on Stack cutting).
Softwoods can be used when making thicker items where breakages are less likely such as pull along toys, however, do be aware when making items for children to play in softwood that as mentioned it does suffer from splintering during cutting and is more likely to splinter during play!
Now we come to hardwood. Hardwoods are excellent for fretwork/scrollsaw work for many reasons. Firstly most hardwood is much stronger than most softwood and a lot less prone to breakage - also most people look upon items made from hardwood as better quality especially as far as finish is concerned. When cutting with a fretsaw there is much less splintering than you get with softwood and if you use reverse tooth blades you will often find the edges do not even require sanding.
Generally hardwoods are better for thinner work, once you get to very thick work it becomes very much harder to cut and will blunt blades a lot more quickly. Hardwoods are also more difficult to obtain and cost more to buy, however there is a way around this.
Rather than buy expensive hardwood look out for old discarded furniture that people often throw out and replace with more modern stuff made from MDF! Often old chests of drawers etc have drawers made from quality hardwood even oak. Also ideal are those drawers used in shops for clothing etc they almost always are made of oak and are often an ideal thickness for fretwork. Charity shops are often glad to get rid of old furniture that has been given to them. Every single piece of fretwork I have made is from discarded stuff.
NOTE. I would strongly advise against using MDF for fretwork, I know some scrollsawers use it but it is not very nice stuff and there has always been the suggestion that the dust emitted when cutting contains Formaldehyde in the glue used to bond it together. Although Health and safety say the risk is insignificant, personally I just don't like MDF it is cheap to buy but it always looks cheap and mass produced in my opinion.
Another much asked question is - What sort of blade should I use?
This is not an easy question to answer as it depends entirely on what you are using it for. For example if cutting very thick work then you are best to use a coarse blade whilst for very delicate work obviously a thinner blade is desirable. There are three types of blade available in various thicknesses, They are plain blades, reverse tooth blades (often called modified geometry blades) and spiral blades.
For the beginner I would advise using either the plain or reverse tooth blades in sizes 3 to 9 avoiding the use of the thinner blades such as sizes 00, 0, 1 and 2 until one is more experienced in the hobby. I would most strongly advise using spiral blades as the beginner will find them uncontrollable in use.
You will find a lot more information about blades on this page.
What is stack cutting?
Stack cutting is a process where one or more pieces of work (wood) are held together firmly whilst the cutting is carried out, this can be done to make several copies of your work at the same time or to act as a sacrificial backing to avoid splintering on the main piece. The number of copies you can cut at the same time depends on the thickness each piece and the hardness of the wood. For example with 3/16inch (4.78mm) plywood you can quite easily stack and cut five pieces at the same time. You must ensure that your saw blade is set exactly at 90 degrees to the table or you may get a slight bevel cut giving a different cut to the back compared to the front. Note there is a process called bevel cutting (Hobbies once called the process Antofret which they named after the inventor - Priest Monsignor Antonini) I have described the process on this page. You will also find my video link on the page where I show how to do bevel cutting.
In this video I explain the various principles of stack cutting & the process of pasting the patterns on the work piece.
How do I do stack cutting?
As described above Stack cutting saves time by cutting out several pieces of wood at the same time, many beginners ask how do they hold the pieces together? Well there are several methods you can use - perhaps the easiest method is to hold the pieces together around the edges with clear adhesive tape such as Sellotape, you have to place the tape firmly to stop the work moving plus make sure the work is dust free otherwise the tape will come adrift during the cutting. As you cut around the pattern you may need to tape the cut edges as the previously applied tape is cut away.
Another method is to hold the pieces together with double sided tape, you only need small pieces placed carefully to hold the wood together. The main disadvantage of this method is that it is sometimes difficult to prise the work apart after cutting risking breaking the work.
The other method that I use is holding the pieces together with small veneer pins (or panel pins), pins are driven through all layers around the outside of the object being cut plus where you have internal cuts some of the pins can go through the 'waste' areas.
When using this method there are a few things to be aware of, the first is that if the ends of the pins protrude through the bottom of the work piece this will not only scratch your saw work table it will cause the work to catch making it difficult to cut accurately. You can either carefully tap the ends over with a hammer so they are flush with the work or grind the ends off. if using thicker wood then just make sure the pins are not too long and don't protrude.
The other thing to bear in mind with this method is that sharp pins may split solid wood especially near the outside edges, blunting the ends of the pins to remove the sharp point will in most cases prevent splitting. (a sharp point splits the wood fibres a blunt one will 'punch' a hole through without splitting.
A push pin makes inserting the pins easier.
How do I fix the patterns to the work piece?
This is a question I often see asked. In the old days before computers and copiers one would simply paste the original pattern on to the work piece using old fashioned gum or starch paste, cut it out and sand off the pattern, thus sacrificing the pattern, with simple designs it was possible to trace around the design with the use of carbon paper, allowing one to reuse the pattern. Today of course we just print the patterns on our own printers.
There are many ways of fixing the pattern to the work piece. The simplest is to just paste the pattern on to the work with cheap gum or similar water based adhesive then once the object has been cut out sand off the old pattern. This is the old style method and works well but you do have the trouble of sanding off the old pattern which can sometimes be tricky with delicate designs. Do not under any circumstances use sticky adhesive such as UHU or Bostick clear as you will never get rid of it.
Another method employed by many is to simply cover the work with masking tape then stick the pattern on top of the tape which makes it a lot easier to remove when the cutting is done and cuts down on the amount of sanding required.
Spray mount such as that made by the 3M company can also be used to attach the pattern to the work, however do make sure that you use only the slow drying re-positional one which will allow removal before it dries permanently.
Do not use the thick quick drying spray adhesive, it will leave a horrible sticky mess when you try to remove the pattern and drive you mad.
Probably the best method of all is to purchase some A4 self adhesive labels (make sure you get the 'peel-able' ones) Print your pattern on one of these, then after cutting you can then easily and cleanly remove the remains of the old pattern with minimal effort. The only drawback to this method is that the labels are not cheap!
How do I prevent splintering or feathering on the back of the work?
This is another question that is frequently asked, the simple answer is that you can't, in all forms of woodwork where sawing is involved the bottom or back of the work where the saw exits the wood will tend to splinter which looks unsightly and spoils the work. Sanding the work after sawing will help remove the splintering but its extra work and it may still leave rough edges.
Don't despair though as there are ways to mitigate the splintering, firstly consider the wood you are using - softwoods are the worst offenders as far as splintering (sometimes called cut out) is concerned, the softer the wood the worse it is. If possible when using solid wood use hardwoods, with a right blade the cut can be so free of splintering that only a very light sanding is required if any.
As mentioned above Plywood varies in quality, the cheap stuff one buys in DIY stores is useless for doing fretwork and the splintering will drive you mad! Where possible use decent quality birch plywood, obtainable from bespoke timber merchants or from the many independant hobby shops in the UK. Decent plywood is also available online - albeit in small sheets from many sellers on Ebay or companies such as Hobbies Ltd.
Using the right blade will also enable you to cut splintering to a minimum, firstly a coarse blade will create more splintering than a finer one with many teeth. Secondly using the so called reverse tooth blade often results in far less splintering than a plain blade. I won't say more on blade use as I have devoted the subject of blades to it's own page Here.
Another thing that will help minimise splintering is to reduce the opening in the saw table where the blade goes through. The smaller the blade hole the more support it gives to the work piece. It always a good idea to reduce the hole size anyway, many of the cheaper machines have a blade opening that is far to large for fretwork, some have an inset in which case you can fashion your own insert with a smaller opening. However the very best way is to make a supplementary table to fit over the existing table, always a good idea anyway as it protects your existing table - see article below.
One method that will help reduce splintering is to use a supplementary or auxiliary table behind your actual saw's existing table, as I mention above this is a very worthwhile thing to do anyway as it will protect your machines table and you can create one with a much smaller blade hole to suit. when making a table consider the thickness, if for example you use reverse tooth blades then too thick a table will prevent the bottom reverse teeth doing any work making their use irrelevant.
You do however need the table to be perfectly flat, I would suggest using a maximum thickness of 6mm. I made my table from a spare piece of 6mm MDF that was languishing in my workshop. I am not a fan of MDF but it's ideal for this job being smooth and flat. Once you have made the table give it a few coats of wax polish and every so often just give it a quick polish this will enable smooth movement when doing your fretwork.
The images upper right show the auxiliary table fitted whilst the image; bottom right shows the underside revealing the strips to keep it attached firmly whilst being easy to remove. You can also see my supplementary table in my video here.
One final thing you can do to minimise splintering is to use a sacrificial piece behind the main work piece (see stack cutting above) if you do this you can in many cases almost eliminate splintering completely and in many cases you do not need to do any edge sanding. In fact when I am cutting out a design I often place some 3/16 inch plywood on top and bottom of my main work thus sandwiching the item. This serves several purposes, firstly on the main piece you eliminate splintering plus there is no pattern to remove and little sanding is required. Secondly you often end up with two more decent pieces once you remove the pattern from the top one. Unless I am using very thick wood I always stack cut.
What is bevel sawing?
This is a process where the work is cut with the saw table at a slight angle to produce a decorative effect to the work. The process was originally devised by the Hobbies company back in 1920. Hobbies called the process Anto-Fret in honour of the Italian priest who first developed the process, his name was Monsignor Antonini.
Bevel cutting involves the saw table being angled slightly (typically by about 5 degrees) so that when the internal piece is cut out it can be pushed through the work but due to the bevel will not go fall through (see B in the illustration) whereas a cut at right angles the piece falls through ( see A in the illustration). The result give the appearance of a carved effect so the on one side you have a recessed look (D in image) whilst viewed from the other side you have a protruding effect (C in image).
One thing you must remember is that you can only do the cutting in one direction for each piece that you cut out, you cannot reverse the blade in tight corners and cut in the opposite direction. I have not completed any proper Anto-Fret designs - I have just done a few experimental things and I think it takes a lot of patience and concentration to do some of the complex old Hobbies Anto-Fret designs.
There is a little more about Anto-Fret on my Hobbies History page (1884) there is also a link there to my video where I discuss the process.
A few examples of Anto-Fret designs Hobbies Ltd offered in their 1922 catalogue.
Where do I get designs and patterns from?
Another often asked question.Well to start with there are some patterns on the design page on this website but they are mainly very old style fretwork patterns some over a 100 years old and although I like the patterns many of you may be looking for more modern designs.
There are very many books containing all sorts of patterns available and many are listed as second-hand on ebay and other booksellers for not much money. There are lot's of websites offering patterns some are free - others you have to pay for.
The other way is to create your own from various line drawings (often called clipart) there are lots of places online that offer free clipart which can easily be converted into designs to cut out. But be mindful of copyright if you plan to sell your work. Many large companies clamp down hard on people using their products or products name to sell items they make. Companies such as Disney and film & TV companies are particularly tough on this and you could easily find your self being sued for a huge amount of money for infringing their stuff. (more information on copyright is below)
What is the best way to store Fretsaw blades?
If you are new to the hobby you are going to need quite a good stock of fretsaw blades because at first you will be breaking many, don't despair as everyone breaks blades when learning. If you are experienced you will still need plenty of blades because even you don't break many they will go dull and need changing.
So what is the best way to store your blades? Some people keep them in little drawers, some drill holes in a block of wood and store them by the saw. Some people buy little tall tubes via Ebay which do the job nicely however if you have friend with dentures they may use those effervescent cleaning tablets that are supplied in ideal plastic lidded containers that you can scrounge. For myself I made a fretwork cabinet which you can see in the image to the left which has main blade storage in the doors with some of the tablet containers inside plus little drawers for extra supplies and odds and ends.
Setting the blade correctly.
One thing you really must do with your scroll-saw fairly regularly is to check that your blade is set at exactly 90 degrees to the work table - this is especially important after you have done any bevel cutting, it is very common to alter the setting to do a little bevel cutting then forget to reset the adjustment so that next time you do any cutting the blade will not be square to the table.
Most saws have some sort of adjustment mechanism that involves loosening a knob and moving the table up to around 45 degrees to the table. Some saws have a mechanism where the adjustment alters the angle of the saws body whilst always keeping the table parallel to the ground. The makers of these types of saws claim it makes it easier to work on an angle with the table level, this is true if you are working on big angles but with 5% as with normal bevel cutting I don't think it would make a great deal of difference.
The easiest way to check the adjustment of the blade to table is exactly 90 degrees is to use a simple set square or if you don't have one anything that has two 90 degree edges such as a wood or metal block.
What about sanding my work?
The best advice I can give about sanding is “do everything you possibly can to avoid doing it”! Sanding your work is not only time consuming it is also very tedious. So the minimum you have to do the better.
Of course you will need to sand down the front and perhaps the back faces of your work but the bit that takes the most time and patience to do is the cut edges. So how can you cut down on the sanding? Their are several ways you can minimise the effort of sanding the edges of your work and the first and probably the most important is one is to use decent wood to start with, as I mentioned above using cheap plywood or many softwoods will result in a lot more feathering resulting in more sanding required, hardwoods and quality ply are much better in this respect.
Using reverse tooth blades help as does stack cutting (both discussed above), using all three methods together will reduce the amount of sanding required to a minimum – you may even find you can avoid sanding completely in some cases.
When sanding small delicate parts it is better to place a sheet of abrasive on a flat surface and move the work over it rather than trying to hold and sand the parts. You can buy or even make sanding strips that you fit in between the blade holders of your saw and do some edge sanding that way thus motorising your sanding but I admit I have never tried this method.
Some folk do the edge sanding with small files or even those abrasive covered cardboard nail files or perhaps a small rotary craft drill such as a Dremel fitted with various sanding attachments.
If you are lucky enough to have a fixed belt sander and fit it with a fine grade abrasive belt you can use this to sand the faces of the work but be careful with any delicate projections. A belt sander is also good at removing patterns from your work if you have glued them on to the wood.
But in conclusion sandwiching your work between two sacrificial pieces (as described in stack cutting above) is the best way to minimise on having to do a lot of tedious sanding.
How do I cut long lengths on a Scrollsaw?
Sometimes it is necessary to make long cuts but this is limited by the depth of the saw. There are several ways to do this, some saws allow the blade clamps to rotate by 90 degrees thus allowing sawing across the table. Another method is to twist the top and bottom of the blade by 90 degrees as shown in the image to the left thus allowing cutting across the table.
The other way is to use a spiral blade which will cut in any direction, however most users find them almost impossible to use and worse still at cutting a straight line. You can read about spiral blades on the blade page.
Selling your work.
Many scrollsawers decide to make a little money from their work by selling the items that they have made and this is not always as straight forward as it seems. Obviously your selling ‘rights’ vary according to where you live, below I list the issues in the UK - other countries will be different.
Firstly you have to be aware of copyright issues. This depends on whether the item you make is all your own work from your own design or whether you used another persons design.
If the design is all your own work then copyright will not be an issue for you. Next we come to items you make from a plan or design created or owned by someone else, in which case it is a bit of a ‘minefield’ and it depends on permissions given by the owners of the design. Books and magazines will often state what their conditions are, some may state that you are allowed to make a certain number of copies of the design for your own personal use but that you must not give them to others. They may state that you can sell any items you make providing you do so as an individual rather than a business.
Making stuff and selling as a business is on a different level as you would need to seek permission from the owner of the design if you intend selling stuff in bulk so to speak.
Furthermore some copyright owners are very restrictive and insist that you do sell any items you make from their designs.
Be aware that some big brand names such as Disney and film and TV companies are often very protective of their brands and it is unwise to sell stuff you make under their brands. You could even as an individual find your self facing legal proceedings for infringement of copyright.
The next item to be aware of is safety. obviously you must ensure that anything you make to sell should be safe for the buyer but this is even more important when we come to selling toys and things for children. As with copyright issues regulations will be different according to where one lives.
In much of Europe and the UK toys have to carry a CE marking (or UK CA marking) to certify their safety. If you are selling as an individual on a small scale then you can certify the toys you make yourself ensuring of course that the items you make are 100% safe, if you are selling as a business then your items will have to be certified by an approved body.
Please note this is just an outline of my understanding of selling. I am not qualified to give accurate or legal advice on the subject. If in doubt seek a professional person.
Other Sources of Help and Information.
One forum well worth a visit is UKWorkshop
This forum covers all aspects of Woodworking and in particular has an excellent section called Scrolling, the Scrolling section is frequented by many experienced and very helpful people who are more than happy to answer any questions that you might have about the hobby. You can also show off your work and experiences there or ask for advice on the subject. I am a member of this forum myself. It is well worth joining for any aspect of Woodworking.
Another website well worth a visit is Scroll Saw Village, this was established in 2009 and contains a Huge amount of useful information to anyone interested in the scrollsawing/fretworking hobby.
The website has a huge amount of stuff all pertaining to scrollsawing. There are sections where you can show your work, a very active community forum in which you can voice your opinions and ask any questions that you might have about the hobby. There is even a pattern library where you can download the many free patterns within. It is well worth becoming a member.
Scrollsaw Workshop created and run by Steve Good is another very useful website to visit. The site contains a plethora of information for the Scrollsaw enthusiast plus Steve offers a huge amount of patterns that you can download for free. Practically every day Steve offers a free pattern for you to download not only that the patterns are really well presented with full instructions. If you subscribe with your email address you will receive regular newsletters and patterns. Steve's website also has a useful Community forum where you can ask questions etc.
Scrollsaw woodworking and crafts has a very active forum that contains much useful help, advice and information for the scrollsawer.
In the forum you can ask questions on many subjects and learn much by reading the comments of others. You will find the forum here
There are also many groups dedicated to scrollsawing on Facebook that you can join, Although I am a member of Facebook I am not overly keen on the way that it functions, lots of adverts and many other annoyances plus I find posts will disappear for no particular reason then you spend ages trying to find them again. In my opinion, the good old-fashioned community forms such as UKWorkshop or Scroll Saw Village and Scrollsaw Workshop are far better, they are 'laid out' better, posts are in proper 'threads' so that you can easily find them and the forums are usually frequented by fellow members who are very experienced and pleased to offer you their helpful advice and friendly discussion.
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