The picture should tell the story... This one piece took maybe twenty minutes or less to shape.

  So after I cut the outside away from the waste I then can put screws in next to the edges as I cut the waste away.  Can't install more screws along the edge till I cut away the area. It would be guessing where the screws go before I cut away all the waste material. As I am cutting away more waste I can then add more screws to that area before I continue cutting away more waste wood. Once I have all the waste wood discarded I should have all the screws installed holding the backer board to the carving .  Once all the pieces have been separated from each other I will then install all the screws again .  I then take out the piece I will carve..Once all the pieces are stained and finished after all the screws are installed for the last time only the gap of the scroll saw blade will remain and since all the edges have been shaped and tapered the gap will not be noticeable.

  I went back out to the shop and took another piece out and shaped it in about 15 minutes. Not near done with the them yet but just enough to so I can get each piece mating up with each other  so all will still look look one board when finished.  

  I always use a pilot hole for the screws so there will be no busting the wood causing more extra work... the correct size hole just hold a sheet metal screw behind the drill bit and only the tip of the threads should show.... I use a sheet metal screw type screw for there in no taper to the threads except at the tip...If I don't forget I will try to post more pictures as I get more wood shaped...

Its about 6;30 And I almost got the carving going my way. And this one I am smoothing as I go. Will still need a little. I should have it finished for the coloring tomorrow. I cut off the tops of two pieces so I wouldn't have as much grinding.

I thought my saw had a new blade but almost from the get go I could smell wood burning. And I just kept sawing till I could get to the edge...easier to change out of the wood!

2 days for the carving but I will have to do something about the burn area before I finish it.

What blade are you using and how thick is the wood?

Mike I buy ruff maple that is about 1 1/8" thick before planning which gives me at least 1" or more. Plus I use a backer board of at least 1/2" thick plywood. The backer board is because I scroll saw everything in to small sizes for I hold the pieces in my hand while using a Dremel and some very small angle air grinders which are small enough my open hand will cover up. Check Harbor Freight for the grinders are somewhere around 30 bucks. 

   First I put a few screws in the outside of the backer which will give me 1 1/2" to saw through then saw away the waste wood.. Now before I saw any single piece away I pre drill  a hole or two so I will have a place to put each piece back in to the same area it came out of using an Olson # 5 precision cut reverse tooth blade for it saws faster than the Flying Dutchman #5's I use for all the inside cuts.

   Once I saw the outside away, I take the backerboard off  so now I am ready to saw the pieces out in areas that won't be noticeable when the project is completed.  I

Important, before I cut any small piece away I first drill a counter sink hole and put in a screw.....I do this to all the small pieces for when I am through carving I have a place for all the pieces to go as they were before I sawed them out..This give me the same width slots as the blade between all the pieces.

  I use sheet metal screws for the threads are the same width from top to the bottom and I counter sink a hole the size needed for the hole. To get the drill bit size I hold a screw behind a drill bit and all I want to see is the very edges of the threads and only just the  very small part of the threads. Doing this I don't get any cracks in the wood..  Not always for            sometimes the hole I drill is too close to the edge of the piece.

 When all the carving and finishing has been completed I put glue down and screw down the pieces and after that I can take out the screws and use them later if need be on another project or leave them in!.  this project took less than a week as I was also mowing the lawns. Jess, smallpatch

Good to hear from you Patch. Hope all is well. Nice looking piece. I don't recall seeing this one before?

Thanks for the topic Jess! You are known as the "Master of the Grind!". And your creativity, I never tire of seeing your work Jess. Thanks for showing us what can be done with a grinder and dexterity.