Thread: Leda Scroll Saw question.

I suggest you contact LEDA . They are in South Australia.

Charl ...... is that the very same second hand scroll saw that you outbid in the last few seconds a very highly respected member of this woodwork community on recently????? Ok who am I kidding I am not at all highly respected anywhere.

Good buy ..... I would have gone higher however when I asked the seller a few basic questions, such as the brand, they failed to give any decent reply saying it was in the garage and all to hard to find out. If I come across a seller like that there is no way I am going to bid too much. They might be great people but when putting your confidence in somebody you don't know the quality of the listing details is all you can go on. Before the photos went up (still limited information) I would have thought it would have been a GMC which shouldn't sell for more than $15. Oh well their loss.

As for your questions:

New - $484 for the current model although it looks as if it has changed quite a bit over the years. That saw seems to be a step up from the GMC and Ryobi.
Leda Machinery Catalogue

I don't think that there were pinless blade adapters for the saw however you can purchase aftermarket guides that fit most saws for around $40, try Jim and Irene at CWS Store - Olson Scrollsaw Conversion kit | Carroll's Woodcraft Supplies. Get some new blades while you are at it .... get them from a specialist and not just the big hardware store.

You do not really need a manual. It will not tell you anything. You are best getting a few books from the library.

The air pump is used to blow the dust away from the blade so you can see where you are cutting. The compression bag system is used as the blade arm is going up and down anyway and can be used as the pump. A very viable alternative would be a fish tank air pump and do away with the compression bag altogether. The fish tank pump is used by a lot of scroll saw people.

Remove the rust from the table with a little sand paper and then buff with some wax paste to stop it coming back.

If it is all too much work I know a potential buyer

Jchappo: I did send LEDA an email and they were nice enough to send a copy of the manual for the scroll saw and they have replacement bellows for the scroll saw for $6.50!!


Sir Stinkalot: I am sorry to say that yes, I am the sniper that stuck in the dying seconds of the auction! But I can tell you I don't regret it!

I asked the seller a bunch of questions as well and got the same vague answers. I just wanted a second scroll saw and this one seemed pretty good so i did what i had to... As far as the pin-less blade adapters are concerned, ill be sure to check out the store you linked to. I reckon if i can find the fish tank pump cheaper than the replacement bellows ill give that a go instead. As far as literature for scroll sawing and woodwork is concerned, Ive definitely got that covered!

Ill give the table a sand on sunday, would bees wax be ok to use on it? I dont want to use anything that will end up affecting the wood i use in any negative way.


Now all i need is to know where to buy wood from that is a little nicer than pine from the "big green shed" and Ill be set!

Originally Posted by Charl

I am sorry to say that yes, I am the sniper that stuck in the dying seconds of the auction! But I can tell you I don't regret it!

No real regrets ..... part of the fun is the hunt and trying to snag a bargain. I already have a scroll saw (well a crappy GMC that I paid $50 for new) and whilst it would be far from my first choice if is was into scrolling it just scrapes by as ok for basic stuff. You did get a good deal this time!

For $6.50 I would replace the bellows part. As for the table the bees wax will be ok, just buff it off and it will not damage your timber. Another option would be Inox (not RP-7).

Cant really help with a good timber supplier ...... Adelaide seems to be a bit of a ghost town when it comes to timber suppliers.

Cheers

Stinky

G'Day Charl,
Also check out Harris for the blades
Helen is excellent on customer service.
Cheers, Crowie

ScrollSaw blades - Book list. May 2009.xls

ScrollSaw blades - A..letter to email.doc

ScrollSaw blades - AAA..INVOICE REVERSE.doc

ScrollSaw blades - WHAT BLADE SHOULD I USE v2.doc

Thanks, ill be sure to check them out. So if Adelaide is a ghost town for timber suppliers where do all you adelaideians get yours from?

Leda Scroll Saw. I have been offered an identical one for the princely sum of $150. Have already seen it, and tried it out. This particular Leda Scroll Saw has a 24 inch throat, and is set up for the plain end blades, although the blade, & blade clamps are missing, but since the current owner kindly brought it round to my place, and allowed me to try it out in my workshop, using my spare pair of Hegner blade clamps, & a No.9 pebco blade, which fitted perfectly, I had the opportunity of testing it out. The current owner is not a woodworker, but a retired mechanic and, " plays with old motorcycles," in his spare time, therefore I have no idea as to how, or where he obtained the scroll saw.
** Question being,- Do you guys consider the $150. to be a reasonable price for this type of Scroll Saw ?

Sir Stinkalot;- Quality timber in Adelaide,- Have you tried Otto & Co, out at Stepney, and, Baltic, & European Timber, down at Port Adelaide ?
If you require cheap, but decent timber which is guaranteed to be well seasoned,-
Salvage yards,- Adelaide & Rural Salvage, or if you wish to travel a bit,- Wallaroo Salvage, - also there used to be a guy down at Yorketown who had a heap of 30mm thick Old Red Baltic Flooring stored in his workshop,- several hundred metres of it, which I think is still there. Demolishion sites are another source,- especially old houses. Have a read through the Adelaide Trader / Saturday Advertiser Ads.
Another excellent source is Old Wooden Furniture,- scored an old genuine timber Wardrobe on Tuesday from a mate of mine, who is a secondhand dealer. Wardrobe was one of those with the mirror in the center door, and a large drawer in the bottom section. Unfortunately the wardrobe got knocked over, smashing both the door and the mirror,- result I now have it here to very carefully dismantle & salvage the beautifully grained timber in it, which I am looking forward to doing.

Roger

Roger ......

I would have thought that for $150 it sounds like a decent buy. Even a cheapie will be $200 plus. Having purchased a GMC for $50 new and used a Hegner there is a big difference between entry level and the upper end of the range. My $50 GMC was an ok buy even though it has shaken itself to death, certainly wouldn't have been happy I had paid the original $100-$150.

In relation to the timber I haven't tried Otto yet but I have heard that they have a very good range provided you are happy to pay. As this advice was given by non woodworkers I am not sure if the price really is that bad without visiting. I have been to Adelaide Salvage a few times and they have a good range of floorboards but not much else. There is a demo yard in the Hills that I will check out one day. Other than that as you said I just keep an eye out.

cheers

Stinky.

Stinky Ottos is pretty good to buy from. I have purchased from them before and the range & quality of veneers & timber was great. I don't find a problem paying for quality beats bunning hands down but then what timber merchant wouldn't.
Pete

Stinky,- Thanks for the recommendation on the S/h Leda. Have taken your advice and placed a hold on it.

TIMBER,- What exactly are you looking for as might be able to help you ?
Got an assortment of old time 1/4" and 3/8" thick Red pine; NZ Kauri; Blackwood, etc., from some real old 4 panel doors, & parts of an old wooden wardrobe which I received partly wrecked from someone else who was cutting them up for, ( shock ! Horror ! ),- Firewood.
Roger

I am not really after anything at the minute ..... I just like to know where it is if I need it

My projects vary quite a bit (if I get anything done) so I like to know in advance what I am likely to find and where. Otto's is just down the road so I will drop by one day to have a poke around. I do want to make some end grain chopping boards soon and I think I will be able to get what I want from Otto. Their species list looks impressive enough.

There isn't much at Bunnies that tickles my fancy. I did have to buy some MDF the other day for some jigs and I nearly feel over backwards at the price. I blame all of those DIY shows for pushing up the price . I did buy some decking boards a few weeks ago from Bunnies to make some platforms to support some planters. To be honest the quality was quite good. All boards were straight and true and the price wasn't too bad ..... I don't want to make it a regular thing however!

Hi Guys
I have regularly bought timber from Ottos. The quality is good and they have had a monopoly on the market for some time, but there is another player that I stumbled accross only yesterday. A1 timbers at Hahndorf. They operate out of an opal shop No 77 Main Street so you would not know. They are on the web
www.bukartilla.com.au/timber (Seems to be under construction)
Harold Gallasch is his name and he is overseas at present but I am going to give him a try.

Hi guys

Its been a while! I was looking at the leda today and wondering if you think it would be possible to drill a small hole where the blade goes and tap it the put a screw in there to convert the scroll saw into a pinless bladed scroll saw? there is plenty of meat there for the idea, im just wondering how well you guys think it would work?

Hi,
Timbecon have an adapter that might be worth a try
Catalogue - Sawing - Scroll Saws & Accessories
$14.90 plus postage I guess.
Bob H.