Which Scroll Saw in the UK?

[Peter]

HI all,

I'm looking to buy my first scroll saw. I don't expect to make a living from this - my main interests are to priduce artistic pieces of work for my two young children, friend and family, so in that respect I don't think my requirements are too exacting. However, I do appreciate good tools, and to a certain extent, believe in the maxim, you get what you pay for (oft quoted on these forums it seems!)

Having done a little research I've realised that buying a scroll saw is not quite as easy as I thought. My thoughts at the moment are: 1) do I invest in an expensive Hegner scroll saw or 2) buy a cheap and cheerful one and buy a more expensive one later if I decide it's the hobby for me? Not an easy question to answer - I guess what I mean is at this stage it's not worth spending £1000 on a saw. Plus in 6 months time I might be moving to the States where I can buy a better quality one for half the price!

Also, I'm finding it difficult to source reputatable and fairly cheap suppliers. Can anyone give me a ball park figure that would buy me a reasonable saw or point me in the direction for a reputable site?

At the moment I'm leaning towards the following saws:

Hegner Multicut 1 Fretsaw @ £269 (a highly make of saw so it seems)

DELTA SCROLL SAW : 40-570 INT @ £215 (another good make)

Dremel Scrollstation @ £239 (all things to all men - but does it cut the mustard? Plus I've heard of reliability/QA problems so I would need a reliable source for this saw)

Can anyone recommend any of these or source a better price?

Finally, can anyone recommend (or not) any of the following sites?

http://www.diytools.co.uk/SearchResu...?kw=scroll+saw

http://www.alwayshobbies.com/products.asp?sid=137

As you can see, I'm not really decided on which saw, or which site to buy a saw from! I guess you can't really answer the first question until you've owned a saw and worked out what features are important to you. So, if anyone can lend a helping hand then I'd very much appreciate your input.

Thank you all very much for taking the time to read this,

regards Peter

[Rivari]

Peter, first welcome to the forum, it is good to see someone else from across the pond.

To answer your question of getting the right saw is basically in line with the question of "What is the Meaning of Life". There are many things to consider as you have already addressed. Cost is most important however the longevity and quality of cut are major factors. I know from previous discussions that scroll saws are not abundant in selection or inexpensive in the UK. With that said, if you are looking to move to the US in the near future you may want to hold off on the purchase until that time, whereas more reasonable (financially speaking) options may exist, especially considering the sliding US dollar versus the Euro.

Theere are a few good folks from the UK that lurk and post upon this forum and perhaps they can offer better advice.

[Gill]

Hi Peter

Happy New Year and welcome to the forum.

If there's the possibility that you'll be moving to the US, I would have thought the wise approach would be to wait a little before buying a saw. After all, UK electrical items are not directly compatible with US power systems.

The Hegner and Delta saws are both good machines but I don't have any knowledge of the Dremel so I can't comment. The Hegner 1 does not have a quick blade change mechanism or variable speed, both of which are available with the Delta and are especially desirable if you're going to do a lot of piercing work. However, it's a very comfortable, powerful, quiet and reliable workhorse.

You may also wish to consider the APTC AWFS18 which I should imagine Chris (who owns one of these beasties) will be happy to discuss further.

I've no knowledge of the DIY Tools website so I can't comment on it. However, Hobbies is a well-established reputable company and I'd have no qualms about trading with them online.

Gill

[stevebuk]

hi peter
i asked this very question only a week ago, i am new here too, but the responce and friendship is second to none.
i went through quite a few scrollsaws and was finally lead to this one :
http://www.diytools.co.uk/Product.aspx/!TB_DEL40540
i will be ordering it early in the new year.
hope you enjoy your time here.
steveb

[stevebuk]

hello peter
i will be buying this saw from this company very soon, i asked a similar question to you about a week ago, when i first joined, and through this forum it was narrowed down to this saw http://www.diytools.co.uk/Product.aspx/!TB_DEL40540 would be the best of the ones i looked at.
welcome to the forum and happy scrolling.
steveb

[MikeDingas]

Welcome to the best forum on the web, Peter. For my 2 cents worth, I wouldn't buy a saw I couldn't see. There are a lot of considerations in selecting a saw and only the potential buyer can prioritize that list: cost, accuracy, ease of changing blades, throat depth, vibration, speed control, table tilt. If you can find a local scrollsaw club, seek them out for advice.

[chrispuzzle]

Peter -

I recently bought the Axminster AWFS18

http://www.axminster.co.uk/product-A...tsaw-32495.htm

which is clearly trying to be a Hegner clone. I am delighted with it to date, I have had no problems using it most every day the past month, it is a big heavy machine with a good sized 18" throat and no significant vibration.

It uses Hegner-style V-clamps (but with an allen key) with a quick-release lever on the arm. I can't see any reason why the Hegner special quick release clamps wouldn't work with it, but I haven't got my hands on a pair yet to try. I mostly cut jigsaw puzzles so I don't need to make many closed inside cuts which is when you'd most want a quick blade-change facility. With my puzzles a blade lasts about 20-30 minutes by which time I am quite happy to take a minute or two time-out to change the blade, make coffee, etc. A proper Hegner of course would also require you to go and buy the quick-change clamps anyway, for the same reason.

My Ax cost £200 although I see that if you buy from Axminster via eBay UK they are offering it at about £180 which looks to me like a really good deal.

It has a slightly rough-and-ready look and feel to it compared to the sleek finish you'd get from the German Hegner saws but has been very well-behaved so far. Obviously one month is not long enough to make a judgment on long-term reliability and wear but it seems to be built like a brick outhouse. Axminster rate it for "trade" use as opposed to "hobby" use and that was a factor in my decision.

Hobbies are a good reputable company but obviously not cheap. I saw the DIYTools prices on the Delta 570 but then got seduced by the Axminster so I can't comment on them.

Obviously lots of people have done good work on the Delta machines and enjoy using them. Whatever you choose, have fun with it!

Chris

[PeteB]

Another UK member of the forum, chrispuzzle, bought an 18" Axminster saw recently, and it looks like a lot of saw for the money. You might want to search his posts for more information.

Welcome aboard!

Pete

Edit: Crossed posts with Chris, but I'll leave it stand just to add my 2 shekels that the saw looks like a winner.

[Gill]

Peter's first post got caught up in our anti-spam measures and as a result three separate threads were created. I've merged all three threads into this one for the sake of tidiness. If some some posts seem a bit out of synch, that's the reason why .

Gill

[Peter]

Thanks Gill. Sorry for the confusion - I posted twice originally because I didn't realise there was a delay between posting and the post appearing. I feel a bit dumb but no harm done,

cheers Peter