scroll saw recommendation?

[Admin]

I'm looking for a high quality desktop scroll saw. I've read how most scroll saws have really bad vibration making cuts very poor.

This is the best I can find, but I can't find any reviews to know if its good or not:
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=10394-46922-3335-01&lpage=none

Anyone use this before?

Price doesn't matter.

(fyi, scroll saw is not a band saw! I need something for small non-precise things that fits on a table )

[GearMotion]

I have a Ryobi in the same class as that. I have never had any vibration problem. And a Delta (that belongs to my 13-year-old) that is smaller, but weighs as much as a car. Perhaps mass is the key.

[Joker94]

the only problem i have is bouncing my table around and knocking tools of my bench. If that is an issue with the saw your looking at you may want make sidetable to avoide the vibrating on your main work bench. It may only be that is my saw is quite old.

[Admin]

I found this review of 6 of them:
http://www.popularmechanics.com/home_journal/workshop/1274521.html?page=1

I've been looking up more reviews, such as for the Ryobi, and unfortunately most people refer to the one they tried as the company name, leaving out the model name.

People would say 'my Ryobi sucks for such and such reason', but not say which model it was . . . Quite a lot of reviews complete contradict each other: 'Ryobi has no vibration at all' and 'Ryobi had so much vibration I hated it and returned it'.

I think I'll cap my budget at $350, leaving out the ultra expensive types. I'm now thinking of getting a Delta:

[GearMotion]

'Ryobi has no vibration at all' and 'Ryobi had so much vibration I hated it and returned it'.

I'll admit that my Ryobi has both of these conditions. When the switch is clicked to '0' it has no vibration at all. When clicked to '1' it has a tremendous amount of vibration. In fact it has so much that I dare say that if you were to affix a ragged metal piece to the vibrating parts that you could very well cut through something.



Most of the complaints about vibration are likely because the user drops the tool onto an uneven bench or uses it in their lap (not seriously). There is a good reason that good models come with a way to secure it to a surface with some mass. It is a power tool that works by "jiggling". It vibrates by nature. Mounted and adjusted correctly, only low-end crap would vibrate.

(That's my opinion.)

[Admin]

I unfortunately don't have a place to bolt the tool down. As I work in a bio-chemistry lab, all the tabletops are built for chemical spills and washdown applications (like hard marble-like surfaces). None of it can be drilled in to, and especially not without getting the building management angry with me . . .

Hence my concern for vibration!

[Admin]

Hmmmm for the life of me I can't figure out where to buy a Delta scroll saw. Not even on the Delta website can I find one:
http://www.deltaportercable.com/Products/Tools.aspx

Basically any model that looks like the above image is fine.

[GearMotion]

Hmmmm for the life of me I can't figure out where to buy a Delta scroll saw. Not even on the Delta website can I find one:
http://www.deltaportercable.com/Products/Tools.aspx

Basically any model that looks like the above image is fine.

Sears? Is my feeble old head telling me that sears sells Delta?

[madchimp]

Well if the delta scroll saw is of the same quality as the Delta drill press and belt sander I have I would not buy it. The drill press has had multiple issues first was the switch then one of the pulleys I've fixed both and haven't had any more problems but it hasn't been used much and definitely doesn't get abused. Now the Belt sander well it is still down. The motor blew on it before I had to replace either the belt or the disc and of course since i use it soooo much the warranty had expired. I hate nothing more than having to fix my equipment just so i can start the job i was working on and with my Deltas that's what I get so for me I will never buy delta again! And a suggestion for bolting a scroll saw down you could either make a heavy plate to attache it to to add mass or attach it to a plate that you can then clamp to the bench you are working on.

[GearMotion]

And a suggestion for bolting a scroll saw down you could either make a heavy plate to attache it to to add mass or attach it to a plate that you can then clamp to the bench you are working on.

Very good suggestion. It doesn't have to be a "heavy" plate - an appropriate size of 3/4 plywood would be OK - as long as the plate can be firmly attached to your lab surface.

Perhaps the plate can be sized to specifically fit the lab table surface? A little engineering done to make it easiest to clamp?

[Joker94]

how long have you had your delta tools for and how long was the warranty, I would shoot myself if that happened to both of my tools. Did you buy them at the same time and if not did one blow or brake before you bought the other.

[Metal Slug 2]

hey Admin, about that skil scroll saw you mentioned in the first post.  The workshop in my school has that one, and it works great and cuts cleanly.  I dont know about vibration because it was mounted on a stand.

[madchimp]

how long have you had your delta tools for and how long was the warranty, I would shoot myself if that happened to both of my tools. Did you buy them at the same time and if not did one blow or brake before you bought the other.

The drill press was first I've had it around 5 years now pretty light use. Both problems with the drill press I made minor modifications and haven't had the problems again. I assumed it was just the luck of the draw. Then I got the belt sander warranty 2 years motor blew at about 2.5 years. The belt sander saw very little use and wasn't abused in anyway. It still has the original sanding belt and disk on it and both look almost new. Probably not even 8 hours total use before the motor blew and yes I know the motor blew because I took it apart to check and half a dozen wires on the commutator were burnt in half. Now I have to wait till I can afford to buy a replacement motor. The delta replacement is around $80 but that's probably a piece of crap so I'm going to buy a good motor probably twice the price or more and modify the belt sander to accept the new motor.

[Joker94]

be careful when playing with mains power, you may blow the new motor if you don't repair it exactly

[Soeren]

I unfortunately don't have a place to bolt the tool down. As I work in a bio-chemistry lab, all the tabletops are built for chemical spills and washdown applications (like hard marble-like surfaces). None of it can be drilled in to, and especially not without getting the building management angry with me . . .

Hence my concern for vibration!

It might be Corian (a Dupont trademark material based on acrylic and aluminum oxide).
Did you consider the kinds of suction cups used for carrying large panes of glass and similar - I'm sure you could make a nice stand that way. I have a work table (the kind where you can clamp down a work piece when sawing etc.) only about 4"..6" high, which is clamped on to another table that way and it's very stable.

Personally, I have been quite happy about my Proxxon scroll saw for a couple of decades - this is how they look today http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0017NN7X6/ref=asc_df_B0017NN7X6865283?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&tag=googlecom09c9-20&linkCode=asn