I finally have time to start checking out all my extra scroll saws. I started taking off the black plastic bags to start giving all of them a good going over and tear them all down for cleaning and greasing all moving parts and replacing any missing or worn pieces. Been keeping them in those large trash bags and I did remove all the heavy table tops and stored them in a different place for one to handle a complete machine was getting to where this old man could not handle that much for some strange reason. 

   Had 7 resting in those big black bags so I would not think of them 24 hours a day..

  Buying woodworking equipment from a high school in my mind would have the least amount of use no matter how long they sat in the woodworking classes...  Just remembering when I was in a woodworking class and the things I built and knowing all teenage kids have other important things to occupy their little brains all the time no matter where they were at any given time. So, I been going to school auctions for over 20 years now and acquired many expensive things that I would have never bought new no matter what I needed.

   I have found hardly any wear in the movable parts of the saws...Things missing or broken are where the cost will be to replace them, speed setting knob, a few upper and lower blade holders, and the black swivel air lines were all missing from the 6 machines  from a high school and a few screws is about all that I have found so few.  All the fuse holders had to be replaced and I change over to a regular fuse holder and s can the ones that came with the 788. The 7th saw came from another school but it was for kids after they got out of high school.  It was here in Breckenridge and they closed down for lack of wanting to learn nothing but cell phones as they have taken over the kids minds.
 I am taking each one completely apart and using wheel bearing grease on all the moving parts. The sleeve bearings don't have as much movement as the roller bearings but all do need grease at all times.  There happens to be only one left handed bolt and nut inside the 788 so take it easy until you find it then make a marks- so- lot note in that area somewhere for the next time in there.

    Sawing for hours at a time running the saw I have come to know them pretty good. Expert, who knows but the first thing I learned the spiral blades does not teach any one how to control the cutting line when sawing for perfection. Hours and hours is needed to actually know what is happening and what to do to correct the terrible crocked lines the saw makes.

   I have also decide the scroll saw if a person has limited work area and a low budget can give a person more types of projects than any other tool can offer in a wood working shop. 

   My saw came with the three legged stand and it took about one hours use of the saw standing all that time leaning over trying to watch where the line and the blade is at all times is impossible and becomes not worth operating that machine.

I removed that stand and threw it in the trash and built a 20 inch high table and an old swivel office chair made it where I did enjoy using the scroll saw.

   I had an old square box fan I had used in a cockatiel building, so I built a square holder on the intake side so my used house air conditioner filters would slide in and out, I was all set for many years of enjoyment.

    I was given a jig saw, almost like todays scroll saws for Christmas when I was in the fourth grade and was a woodworker from then on.  Only thing was, I had very little wood back then to saw on. World War 11 was still raging, and the only place dad could find wood, .the free type or store bought either one was hard to come by back then. The lumber yard did give me some old containers that nails were shipped in but they were just like a whiskey barrel but just smaller in size depending on the size of the nails. So I had lots of warped or curved strips that looked like the under side of a small fishing boat... The top and bottom of those nail cags you can see the branding the nail company stamped on the wood but being on just one side was very rewarding  and I never noticed that until I retired and moved here and set up a better shop. My mother saved all my things I had built over the years right after I left to visit uncle Sam. She also had my first jig saw as they were called back then but I let her give it to a cousin.    But now I would like to have it back and I bet he never used it.

  I think the scroll saw is the hardest to learn to be good at over all the other machines in any shop and most guys or girls won't take the time to start enjoying it..

  Wow, I can't even remember what it was I was going to tell you.

 after some thought, I did find some of the blade holders on these 7 saws did have signs of some type of large cheater knob or wrench or pliers were used to tighten the blade holder..... the blade holders on some were spread apart more than normal and once that happens the blade is almost impossible to keep tightened enough to saw for a while without stopping and having to reinsert the blade again then having to put even more pressure on the knob which just makes it even harder each time they do this.  The two pieces that tightens against the blade has to remain exactly in line with the blade  so the whole area is against the blade.

  I usually use a medium grit sand paper and run it over both sides of the blade and I think this helps.

The main thing that has me still happy to use my scroll saw is I happen to buy one that that has all the controls up front where I never have to get up to tighten the tension or any other thing to make the saw to run smooth and quite..will take both types of blades and like I said earlier, the spiral blade  in my mind is a no no. It removes any learning time on the Scroll Saw for what it was meant to do.

   I did do lots of reading up on saws before buying and I was more impressed with the Hegnar as I got to use a few brands of saws at a yearly woodworking show. The price was what scared me away.  The Hegner, both types of spelling has much fewer parts to ware out.   

  This friend told me a week or so ago to watch this video of two guys who are experts on scroll saws and tell me what I thought of their time spent teaching us idiots all about the 788. I called him up after seeing it and told him they are a couple of smart idiots for a person should never us a power tool to remove and install the many screws a 788 has to be removed to service the entire machine... The machine is aluminum and a couple of holes are just holes now with no threads on the machine they worked on. They never attempted to repair those two holes,  they just shrugged their shoulders.. I never saw either guy applying oil or grease but they sure used lots of thread lock which in my mind it's not necessary for there is no crashing and banging as the saw just sits there and most of the good saw runs with a quite smooth action all the time.

  Any saw that only uses pinned end blades to me is not worth being in my shop and I would not be surprised for the owner of one to  take their scroll saw as far back in their shop as they can to hide it from the general public....

 

Hey this is all just my opinion so don't loose any sleep if you disagree.

 

I just hope some of my thought sticks in your head and you will become someone who will give good advice to others after finding out these machines are actually fun to operate!!

Thanks, Jess!

Thanks Patch for the story. Appreciate it every bit as much as seeing your work. Bringing old tools back to life and use is very rewarding...maybe not in a financial sense but certainly a personal satisfaction of accomplishment. At least for me it is.

 

BTW, your work has progressed to amazing heights from the nail keg days although fun to see those too.

Dave, I am just now seeing how great I could control the sawing back then.  Now it makes me think I must have been trying to make zig sag edges all round my sea monster. But that just goes to show how I keep saying learning to scroll saw might just take a few years of practice and maybe I have a few more years to keep on trying.

1 hour ago, Smallpatch said:

Dave, I am just now seeing how great I could control the sawing back then.  Now it makes me think I must have been trying to make zig sag edges all round my sea monster. But that just goes to show how I keep saying learning to scroll saw might just take a few years of practice and maybe I have a few more years to keep on trying.

That technique is called "rustic" today. Adds extra to the selling price.