Woodworker's Journal 1992-16-6, страница 70

Tool Review

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TABLE

BILLOWS

BLADE TENSION KNOB

Ins review is [he sequel to ihe one I did on scroll saws that sold for under $200 in llie September/ October 1991 issue.

If you now own one of these saws, or your present scroll saw isn'i giving you the cut you want, it might jusl he lime to move up to one of ihe precision machines covered in this review.

What Makes A Quality Saw? Nowadays, you can pav anywhere from $650 to over $1,90(1 for a precision

scroll saw. How much___

you spend depends on the feaiures you warn and how much capacity and mechanical precision you need. Naturally. the more you pay for a scroll saw. the better you can expect il to perform: at the very leasi, the machine should make smooth, precise cu(s that require litlle or no sanding. The blade should follow a line without excessive drifting to one side or another, and should noi bow in the cut when scrolling thick stock. And a precision scroll saw should operate Mitoolhlv with minimal noise and vibration.

Cutting capacity is a second consideration: the throat depth of the saw (measured from the

blade In the back arm of__

tin- saw i determines the largest workpicce >ou can cut on it. For example, .in IX in. saw will cut lo the center <>l i panel 16 in. wide. Cutting depih reikis in ihe thickest stock ihe saw will handle (typicallv I'A in. to i V-i in. see chart cm p,»jv 73). One thing (hat separali ili> Iviui s.tws from the cheaper ones, h >w< i is how well the saw can cui thick stock w ithoul breaking blades, bowing in ihe cut. or hunting the wood. A good scroll saw should be able to make reasonably clean, accurate, tight-radius cuts in I'/- in, pine, or 1 in.

7(1

High-End Scroll Saws

Are You Ready To Move Up To A Better Machine?

bv Jim Barrett

CLAMP

RETAINER

KNOB

UPPER BLADE CLAMP

FINGER GUARD

HOLD DOWN FOOT

PP

1)1

\RM

PIN

O

BUOWEI NOZZLE

PO N

I S

TENSION ROD

LOWER ARM

DUST PORT

TABLE

TILT

KNOB

hardwoods, for instance.

Beyond these basic size and perform ance characteristics, (lie single most important feature lo most pntduciion-oriented scroll-sawyers is how quickly the blades can be changed and tensioned. Each machine operates a bii differently in this respect. I'll discuss ihese and other features in more detail later.

Which Saws Do the Experts Use? In the world of precision scroll saws, four names immediately come to the

minds of veteran scroll-sawyers: Delta. Cxcaliber. Hegner. and RBI. These lour manufacturers have the reputation of making quality "high-end" saws, w ith price tags to match. For this review. I asked each company lo send me their best-selling model. These turned out to be 18 in. to 20 in. saws (RBI also senl me their 16 in. saw): the makers agree that this size range is the mosi practical for doing most scrolling projects. Fach model I reviewed has variable speed control, along with a complement of

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