Scrollers, what do you think of this?

That model is the old workhorse of school shops, Every shop I have taught in , visited in, went to school in, had that model. Strong sun of a gun, But limited in the ability to grip blades. Especially the tiny ones I use. the jaws are anchored in a thin square brass tubing (chrome plated on most) the tension is adjusted with either a clamping thumb screw that won't hold plus a spring inside. It runs in oil and most have never been changed, I believe you can find a super modern saw for far less moneys and will be better suited for fine detail scrolling. This is called a scroll saw but it its creation it was referred to as a Jig Saw and was used primary for those tasks until the Saber Saw which is now called the Jig saw was invented. With that this became a scroll saw, But Rockwell called the brute a Jig Saw for doing Scroll work. It is a dandy for learners and basic curved cuts and can do up to 2" thick material w/o a problem and can handle 1/4" blades with ease, but the smaller diameter scroll blade slip in the jaws.

Or at least that is my experience.
 
Normally I am a true lover of old woodworking tools, but when it comes to scrollsaws, the love kind of stops. Paul Hubbman can give you better advice on this then me, but the older scrollsaws relied heavily on cast iron and sheer weight to control the vibration. That only worked up to a point. The newer models of today use better balancing to achieve the same goal...that being less vibration. They do a 10 times better job at it too.
 
I had one of those. You will be better off with a new, variable speed Delta for about the same money. That old saw had a poor grip system as said above, but the big killer was it ate blades like candy. The system has the spring on top and the arm on the bottom. With this setup, the blade is always going from tension to relaxed which causes metal fatigue. You wouldn't think it with the spring on top, but it is there. I went from this one to the 16" Delta variable speed to the DeWalt 20". The Delta was a good saw but didn't have the capacity I was looking for. On the plus side of the old Delta, it is a brut and weighed a ton.
Dale
 
I have one similar, used it 3 or 4 times. But that price is WAY to high. Old scroll saws bring NOTHING! I was over at Redmond's in Atlanta this spring and had littlerly 40+ old iron scroll saws shoved to one side. Many different brands and states of repair or disrpair. $25, take your pick.
 
I do have empathy for you guys.

I admit that I live in a woodworkers paradise, from having tons of opportunities for woodworking careers in building wooden boats and stuff, to having a pretty big woodlot, to even have a few sawmills on the ol family farm. I'll be honest with you though. I am not sure I would be into woodworking..or ever got into woodworking...if I had to buy hardwood lumber at such high prices. I am not saying its unreasonable what you spent, but being able to walk up the hill and pick out my boards from the old sawmill has made woodworking a fairly inexpensive hobby to get into.

Even boughten lumber here is pretty cheap. I know White Pine is not the best wood, but I can get s4s #3 White Pine delivered to the house for .40 cents aboard foot. Sometimes I go that route just because it saves a lot of work with the planer and jointer. If I had to buy all my lumber....I don't know if I would have gotten into this hobby. :dunno:For you guys that have to put a lot of money into your wood, and into woodworking machines, I have the utmost respect for you. You really have determination and drive.
 
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