...And then reality set in

[bubbaloo158]

Well... I'm happy to report that after doing a lot of practice cutting... and putting the blade in correctly... things are going much better on the saw.  I did one of Steve's easier cross patterns yesterday and it turned out pretty well.  However, I cut the pattern just for practice.  I used some scrap plywood instead of my favorite wood for cutting - Burch.  I figure there's no sense in wasting a good piece of wood.  I'll have some free time this afternoon so I'll spend it in the shop planning down and gluing up a few boards to get them ready for some projects.

I'm still not very fast.  I figured out that I would save myself a lot of time if I could just stop admiring each and every good cut I make.

Bobby

[Marcellarius]

good to see things are going the right way bobby, you will get the hang of it again!

[berighteous]

I have a question... how does everyone "practice?" 

I'm a newbie and I've done ok with 1/2" stuff so far, not great, but ok for a beginner with no skills, but today I tried cutting my first 1/4" piece of alder and the saw just ate it up.  no matter what speed I was on it just sucked it in and would go whichever way it wanted no matter how I tried to control it.  It was like cookie monster.  nomnomnom.  I tried to make my wife a key fob and it looked like it was already in a road accident. 

I think I need to do a lot of "practice" before I try another real project, but dunno where to start. I got this nice 3' alder piece to do some new projects based on the fun and "successes" before and now I'm totally discouraged. (ok, more embarrassed than anything)  I thought I was getting the hang of it, but nooo utter defeat.  lol.

[julief]

It sounds like your blade was in wrong, or you didn't have enough tension.  What kind of blades are you using?  Good blades will make all the difference in the world.

As far as practice, get a scrap piece of wood.  I've used everything from fence pickets to 2 X 4's to plywood.  Draw a series of lines on it.  Straight, wavy, zig-zag, loop de loop.  Try to cut them with accuracy.  You will see where you need to practice more.  I recommend this when you try a new style of blade also.  It will give you a feel of how the blade will cut.

Always look at the cull bin at the Home Depot.  You can buy practice boards for as little as 51 cents a piece.  You never know what you will find there.

[Billy in Va]

Julie,

I refer to the cull bin as the "Wood Dumpster".  Tell my wife I'm going dumpster diving when I go there.  Found some pretty good stuff too. Last year bought a sheet (4x8) of 1/4 oak ply for 51 cents. Plus they give two cuts for no charge and I had it cut into quaters. Had one small corner broken off.

[berighteous]

Ooo! I didn't know they had that at Home Depot.  Have to go looking.  Teeth are fine (I'm using 5R's so the teeth go in both directions) Tension is fine, the saw is shaking a bunch, but I just got a stand for it, so once I bolt it down I should be good to go.

[countryscroller]

Sorry to hear about your mom Bobby, you can put all of your stress in your life into your work and you will be making your best work that way. Devote each project with a meaning and it will be even more special.

[julief]

On a reverse tooth blade, the teeth only go in the opposite direction for a few teeth at the bottom.  This makes the bottom of your project much smooter requiring less sanding.  It also makes chatter a little worse. (That's when your wood jumps up and down as you cut)  Double check your blade and make sure the majority of the teeth are facing down.