Scrollsaw Fretwork Techniques--cutting spirals

The Cottage Clock-Cutting the Fretwork

Since I can't cut a straight line and my curves wave all over the place, what I try to do is make my corners clean and my points sharp. The last two holes where mostly sharp and wide corners. This next hole has a point. Since most of the techniques are the same, a lot of the time I'll be keeping my keyboard mostly silent and let the pictures do the talkin'.

The way I do points is to cut from the point to the base on both sides. I've found if you cut from the base to the point for the final cut, you get a lot of frayed wood fibers. It's OK to do the first cut base-to-point, but the second one needs to start from the point to keep it clean and sharp. After you thread the blade through the hole, cut down to the point. Since we're starting at the point, you need to decide which way to start first. I was a little hesitant, but decided to go counter-clockwise around the hole.
	So if I'm going counter-clockwise, why did I start clockwise? Well, since I'm starting at the point and don't want the final cut to be base-to-point on this part, I need to go ahead and make that cut first so I'll end at the base. The first picture in this frame is a sideways shot. If you notice I left a shoulder that I can brace the blade against to start the second point-to-base cut. It's rather small; I try to have a longer shoulder. With the movement of the blade back and forth, it's easy to catch the front of the blade on the shoulder instead of the side, sometimes causing it to bite into the wood you want to keep. Anyway, make the first point-to-base cut, stopping at the corner.
After the first cut, back the blade to the tip of the point and then brace it against the shoulder. The blade should be aimed straight down the other side; the shoulder should steady the blade, making it easier to bite into the wood the direction you want. The result: a nice clean, sharp point.
	Finish the cut down to the corner.

On the next page, a change of heart about this hole!

Page 6 Page 8

Cottage Clock
- Introduction
- Cutting the blank for the crest
- Cutting a teardrop hole
- Cutting a spiral hole (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3)
- A hole with points (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3)
- Small triangular holes (Part 1) (Part 2)
- A more complex hole (Part 1) (Part 2)
- Cutting the crest's outside (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4)

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