Which scroll saw?

[samson]

I now have two scroll saws:

Craftsman 236280 in very good shape Example only:

1671 in excellent shape Example only: would you keep? I like the Craftsman because it has variable speeds (the Dremel has 2 speeds), but I like the Dremel because the blade is easy to change and it's newer.

Thanks,

S.

[nailshooter41]

On Aug 26, 11:38=A0pm, samson wrote: This may be of no importance and little value since it is NOT first hand, hands on knowledge.

But I can tell you that the scroll sawyers in the local woodworking club were really excited about the Dremels when they came out.

Within about a year they had all sold them and moved on to DeWalts, Deltas, etc. A couple bought the Festool/Lamello of the scroll saw world, a Hegner, but the prices scared most off.

The biggest claim I heard (again, heard) was that the Dremels didn't hold up over a even a short period of time and vibrated like the dickens making it hard to do the fine work those guys like to do.

Just my 0.02.

Robert

[Bob AZ]

S

Everyone should have more than one. So your question should be which will be the third one!! And you do plan to eventually have one to lend out don't you?

But levity aside I would keep the Dremel to lend out and buy a nice cordless one.

Bob AZ

[J. Clarke]

Who makes a cordless scroll saw and why would one want such a thing?

[Chris]

I have a Dremel. It is about 10 years old now and I have never had any problems with it. I have used others that are better, but can not see laying out more money to replace something that works very well.

Chris

[Leon]

I bought a Delta scroll saw about 18 years ago and it saw very little use. I tossed it 4 or 5 years ago. Blades break, blades that are easier to change out will probably keep you from tossing your saw.

[Puckdropper]

"J. Clarke" wrote in news:g93fkk01ut5 @news3.newsguy.com:

All kinds of people do, but they're not sold under the name scroll saw. They also use The Matrix Batteries (tm) as their power source. They're usually a little harder to use, as the blade's movement cuts through the material all the time unlike electric models where the blade can move without cutting.

Here's an ASCII picture:

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:-)

Puckdropper

[Larry Blanchard]

I bought the DeWalt several years ago and, although I don't use it a lot, I'm happy with it. The reviews I read at the time said the DeWalt was about 90-95% as good as the high priced spread for a lot less money.

[krw]

Hmm, that looks just like my coping saw. ;-)

[Phil again-2]

Personally, neither one. You make your own choice. Use your own judgment.

Scroll saws (NOT JIG SAWS) have specific criteria.

- Table is flat all the way across, including the table insert.

- Can handle / use pinless blades. The better blades don't have pins.

- Easy to adjust table to perpendicular to blade. AND HOLDS ADJUSTMENT!

- Absolutely no left-to-right movement of blade / upper / lower arm during blade stroke!! NONE!

- Low vibration. Critical that the table vibrates as little as possible causing the work piece to transmit vibration to your finger tips.

- Blade installation:

----No tilt left or right

----Almost no tilt forward or backwards (NOTE: a few models are designed to "rock" the blade when cutting with a small forward and back motion during the up and down stroke. This is bad if it occurs with other saws.)

- Wide blade tension range.

- Can handle European blades. (some EU blades are a convenient whole number metric length, which makes them about 5.1 to 5.12 inches long.)

- Functional dust blower, or ability to connect a separate fish tank air pump to dust nozzle. (remember, it is low pressure, high air volume that makes the best scroll saw dust blower.)

- Quite. Low noise.

On the web based forums for scroll saws, it is common for users to report sitting at the scroll saw for up to 4 or 5 hours at a session. Users with saws like yours, the blades are braking at least every hour. With the DeWalt and better scroll saws, blades break only due to operator error, or get dull and are replaced before breaking.

[BillB]

Had a Craftsman, it made dust, noise and lots and lots of vibration. Cut rough. Didn't have the Craftsman long enough to break anything other than one blade clamp.

Got a Dremel, made dust, less noise, a little less vibration, a few breakdowns. Cuts were marginally better than the Craftsman.

Got a Dewalt and gave the Dremel to the FIL. Quiet. Almost no vibration, can leave parts I've cut out laying on the table while I continue cutting others. Cuts are smooth and require no sanding. Zero breakdowns in 5 years of somewhat constant use (if I'm not turning, I'm scrolling). One of the biggest improvements is being able to easily cut

3/4 material without burning and breaking lots of blades.

FIL trashed the Dremel after a couple more breakdowns and got a 26" Hawk. He now is retired and scrolls full time, and sells lots of nicknacks in tourist traps throughout Northern Colorado. No noise, no vibration, no breakdowns.

Bottom line is as my saws have improved, the quality of my scrolling has improved too. Better quality = more enjoyment.

[samson]

Thanks for all the good info on this. I'm not a heavy duty scroll saw user, so I'm going to keep the Dremel. It also came with a light and a magnifying glass, which is useful. It's a marginally better with noise and cut, but better is better.

S.