pinless blade conversion?

[vickyj]

Good morning all!

I was wondering if anyone has come across a good conversion kit that allows a pinned scroll saw (I have a ryobi sc160) to take pinless blades?

I have tried the ryobi "quick blade release" fittings, but didn't have much luck (& I managed to break one by overtightening it).

I've found a "scroll saw blade conversion kit" on the internet which looks like it would do the trick, but I'd have to order from the U.S. And I'm a bit impatient :-) and would rather get it quick from somewhere in Aus. Anyone seen this kit here?

Cheers!
Vicky

[oges]

I ordered two of these Hegner clamps and and a clock movement from these guys and managed to convert my GMC scrollsaw to accept pinless blades.
http://www.thewoodworks.com.au/details.html?eqskudata=S1101

Im not sure if it works the same for Ryobi but could be worth a try. I dont have experience with any other conversion kits.

[minis4meau]

Take my advice, Vicky........ Trade it for a Delta.......
I put up with one of the conversion thingys for 6 years and turned that little allen key thousands of times before I saw the light.
My dad actually cut the end off a screwdriver so that I could hold the adaptor nice and tight while I released and tightened the screw.
It took me 6 years but I eventually stripped the slot for the key. Then I had to make the decision, track down a better adaptor or go for the Delta.
If you plan on doing a lot of internal cuts, the quick release lever on the Delta is a dream.
Now I am in Scrollers Heaven.
Barbara

[vickyj]

Hi Brett!

Those hegner clamps look good quality, but unfortunately they won't be much good for my scrollsaw. The problem is that the pinless blades are the same length overall as between the 2 pins on a pinned blade. The ryobi is set up so that the pins are held in-line with the top of the arm (in a U-shaped bracket). So....... for the clamps to work, they have to reach down below the arms of the saw to get any grip on the blade at all (which is a bit of a problem).

The set I saw to fix this (in the US) can be seen here: http://www.tufftooth.com/index-scroll-acc.html

I think I'll just bite-the-bullet and order this from the States.

Thanks for your reply though!

Cheers!
Vicky :-)

[fxst]

Vicki try this site My brother just ordered a set for his GMC and I think they work with Ryobi too
http://www.timbecon.com.au/productsdetail.asp?sectid=12503&parentid=12471&prodid=27543
Pete:D

[oges]

I tried that clamp before the hegner one, unfortunately the tightening bolt was stripped by the allen key after a short time, may i wasnt putting the allen key in properly but the metal did appear soft

[vickyj]

Thanks Pete! Thanks Brett!

I saw this one on the net the other day, but I was a bit dubious. I didn't think think that the extra hang below the arm was going to be sufficient for the blade length.

I was also a bit worried because the blades seems to be clamped in at only one point by the grub screw. My experience with the original ryobi kit was that the blades will pivot around the grub screw under tension and the non-fixed clamp (the bottom one I assume has to be non-fixed?) will sit badly in the cradle.

Vic :-)

[fxst]

re the striped allan bolt SWAMB's makita had that problem so all I did was weld a 10mm nut onto the stripped head and now she uses a T handle socket and has had no further trouble. btw still having probs converting pics to patterns mainly human photos...like ur slim portratait btw ...thats what Im trying to achieve sorta.
Vicky ..u will find even the hegner uses a pinchbolt system it is sucessful and I dont have a prob with blades pulling out....
Delta???? wats a delta?? a river mouth??:D
Pete

[oges]

Im still learning the pattern making process myself, getting better as I go. Wont ever be as good as the ones you see out there for sale but im happy with how they turn out.

Where did you see my slim dusty pattern?

Anyway if you need any more help shoot us an email and i'll see if I can give you some more pointers.

[fxst]

in the scroll portrait site...Im antiqueOzScroller :)
as to portraits I cant seem to get the lines and face shadows right ...the others make it seem sooooo easy
btw I still reckon ur eagles are as good as those out there....dont sell urself short mate :D
Pete

[oges]

Yeah they do make it look easy, I have had better results doing animals and other things than i have had making people patterns. I know what you mean with the shadows and stuff.

I hope to one day get a nice collection of Aussie themed patterns out there, too many american themed ones out there I think.

Shoot me the pattern you have and i'll try workin on it so you can compares yours to mine, or submit it to the SSP site and see what they come up with. Helps a lot when you see one they have done and compare it to your own to see what you need to work on.

[minis4meau]

Sorry to butt into this private conversation, guys, but this is an aspect of scrollsawing that I have not looked at.......... can you give me a few clues as to what you are talking about!
I have only designed scrollsaw frames, shelves and such and have only seen "silhouette" type work. How DO you design them?
Barbara

[oges]

You arent butting in
What we are talking about is making a scrollsaw portrait pattern from a picture. I use Adobe Photoshop and run it through a set of filters so it sort of resembles a pattern, then you need to clean it up and work on it a fair bit till its something that can be scrolled.

so essentially you go from this:

[oges]

to this:

[oges]

to this done by FXST, hopefully will get one cut myself this weekend:

[fxst]

btwBrett it was given to my 13 yo nephew ..it now holds pride of place in his room ...I burnt the name of the designer(your handle) on the back
send me ur email via PM and Ill send u the photo
Pete

[minis4meau]

Thanks, Brett, that looks great.
I went into Adobe and pressed far too many buttons without achieving much. (Although I did learn how to superimpose one pic into another and feather the edges!!).
Without going into too much detail could you give me an idea where to start.
Thanks,
Barbara

[RETIRED]

Gooday you 3.

Pete I was impressed with the scrollsaw work that I saw at your place.

Interesting to see how you do it.

[fxst]

thanks I enjoy it which helps
Actually sold a couple portraits yesterday of horse and foal