Scroll saw blades-----which ones are decent?

[Peter Quinn]

I picked up a 1940's 18" craftsman scroll saw at an estate sale last weekend, I got it cleaned up and lubed today, seems to work fine, all the parts are there. $25' so there's a stealth gloat in there somewhere , though I have no pics yet. I've read a lot about BS blades over the years, never even considered scroll saw blades before. Which brands do people prefer, and what tooth patterns are popular? I have none presently.

[Peter Kuhlman]

First question will be - does the saw require the cross-pin ends on the blades or does it accept the better flat ends that go into clamps?

[Peter Quinn]

It takes the kind with flat ends that clamp in. No pins.

[mreza Salav]

I've been happy with Olson blades. Get a pack with different thickness/tpi's for different kinds of work.

[Jim Finn]

I like flying Duchman blades best. I use FD Polar #5 and #7 for general cutting and inlays.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Peter...in May my wife and I took a scroll saw class at Woodcraft. The guy teaching the class was extremely talented and knowledgable. He recommended buying the bandsaw blades by the gross at this website: http://www.woodenteddybearonline.com/x/home.php . Note they will mix and match for your gross, so that you can get different styles of blades for different uses.

[Mike Henderson]

I've bought Olson scroll saw blades from Sloan (http://www.sloanwoodshop.com/)'s Woodshop (http://www.sloanwoodshop.com/).

Mike

[johnny means]

Peter, I, personally, prefer the spiral type blade. They are very forgiving of less than perfect technique and allow for larger work peices. The trade off though, is & little rougher cut.

[Peter Quinn]

Thanks for the info guys. I ordered some olsons "thick cut" blades, because most of what I envision doing with this is 3/4" material, decorative bracket feet on FF cabinetry or similar. My 20" BS has a lower limit of 5/16" blades and is almost always set up for rip/ resaw. So for me this estate sale special is going to play the role of small BS more than doing any delicate fret work. I also got a variety pack from the Borg, ryobi brand, made in Germany, only thing on the shelf. This includes 13 tooth skip tooth blades, 40 th spirals, and reverse tooth for plywood. I played with a piece of BB ply this morning, the 13 th leaves a glassy smooth finish. Slow but real fun! I'm thinking pattern work , maybe roughing out dovetails?

[Michael Moscicki]

http://mikesworkshop.com/

Best blades around. The real upside is the price. You can get 1 gross(144) of blades from $28-$49.50 depending on what type of blade you buy.

As for starting off, the assortment pack is a nice way to go:

http://mikesworkshop.com/AssrtPk.htm

[paul vechart]

I also like the Flying Dutchman blades sold by http://mikesworkshop.com/ . Mike is a great guy to deal with and his service is also very good.

[Peter Quinn]

Paul and Michael, wow, thanks guys, that looks like the way to go for blades. And he offers a free sample trial!

[Kevin Groenke]

+1 on the Flying Dutchmen form Mike

Don't assume that a heavier blade is better for cutting thick stock. You may be very surprised at the cuts that you can get from a blade the doesn't look like much. As with most tooling, the performance difference between home center stock and quality product designed for the task at hand can be remarkable.

[Peter Quinn]

+1 on the Flying Dutchmen form Mike

Don't assume that a heavier blade is better for cutting thick stock. You may be very surprised at the cuts that you can get from a blade the doesn't look like much. As with most tooling, the performance difference between home center stock and quality product designed for the task at hand can be remarkable.


I'm not sure who makes these Ryobi blades, they are stamped "Made in germany". I have a dim whited fantasy that they are somehow renamed dutchman blades, but the realist in my says no way. In any event I am amazed thus far at the surface quality left by this tickety old saw and these Borg blades. For curiosity sake I was cutting some poplar scraps, 7/8" thickness into odd ogee type shapes, just winging it free hand. It sure leaves a smooth finish. The time spent cutting verus a BS is more than made up for in the time saved by not sanding. And whats more I vastly prefer cutting to sanding anyway.

Is there a preferred size or configuration for cutting 3/4"-1" medium density to dense domestic hardwoods with a scroll saw? I'm thinking mahogany, poplar, soft maple, maybe the occasional piece of QSWO. I'd like to maybe order a 1/2 gross of the flying dutchman blades but I've no idea which size is appropriate for the purpose. I generally stay away from variety packs as I find much of whats in them I never use.

[Larry Frank]

The Flying Dutchman are the best I have used and I got them from Mike.

I tried the ones called ultra reverse and they are really good.

[Lori Kleinberg]

Flying Dutchman blades @mikesworkshop. IIRC he use to offer a free sample pack of different FD blades. You need to check out his web site, he has all sorts of free paterns for the scroll saw.