Congratulations to all the 2017 graduates. This pattern can be cut from a six inch wide board. It is a little over 8.5 inches long. Can be cut from 3/4 inch thick wood.

Thanks to everyone who sent me recommendations for a magnifier/lamp. I must have received over 100 emails and probably 30 different suggestions. I ended up making two decisions. The first decision was that I could not decide. The second decision was to buy the cheapest lamp that was suggested and just see what would happen. I can always buy a better one and move this to one of my other saws.

The reason I bought this lamp was because several people recommended it with high praise. When I first looked at it I was not impressed. It was too inexpensive to be any good. $39.99 had to mean cheap junk. After all you can easily spend $300 plus dollars for a high end magnifier/lamp. 

I wanted a large Lens, at least 5" preferably larger. I wanted LED lighting, 3 diopter and sturdy. 

I got three out of the four needs. This lens is 5". It is 3 diopter and it stays in place when I put it where I want it. I does have a fluorescent lamp instead of LED but it bright and although it does not say, my guess is that it is 5000K.

I bought this magnifier/lamp at Harbor Freight. They are not necessarily your go to source for high end tools.  I do buy some of my workshop supplies there and I have purchased tools there when I know they will not be abused. I almost always buy my quick clamps there. 

I looked it over pretty good before I bought it and the construction is as good as the lamp I am returning that costs nearly $100.  Will it hold up over the long haul? Time will tell. I'm going to use it for a while and see how it holds up. 

One immediate issue that came up was that the lens cover would not stay open at the angle I had the lens at. 3D printer and two magnets fixed that problem. The blue bracket was printed and two strong magnets were epoxied on. It stays open with no issue now. If you buy this mag/lamp you will probably have the same issue.   

Click this image to enlarge. 

This mag/lamp has a glass lens. I was expecting lots of distortion especially around the edges of the lens. I was wrong. The lens is not distortion free but it is very minimal. It is much better than the mag/lamp I purchased the other day. 

Several of you sent me the link to this mag/lamp. A few said they have had theirs for multiple years and it has held up well. For such a low price I thought it was worth a try. So far it feels like a bargain.

I will keep looking for one with a larger lens and LED lights but for now this is a nice addition. 

_______________

More and more people are moving away from desktop and laptop computers. Smart phones and tablets are slowly taking their place for many users. These device are great but they do have some limitations. 

My patterns are all in PDF format. PDF's are great for sharing documents online but they do not always print correctly from smart phones and tablets. 

For some of my patterns it is critical they print actual size. When you print from a desktop or laptop you have the option, when the print driver opens to select "Actual Size". The pattern will then print correctly. 

Unfortunately the "Actual Size" option is not available when printing from most of these mobile devices. Depending on the print on the pages they may be printed at a smaller size. For these patterns mobile printing is not supported. Most patterns will still print okay but you have to be aware and look for the ones that don't.

You don't want to cut a project only to find out the pieces do not fit together. I have looked for solutions but none I have found are perfect. At this point all I can recommend is that you use a non-mobile device to print my patterns. This same issue will be there for all patterns you find on the web.

Let me teach you to create a beautiful wooden portrait pattern. I will show you everything you need from start to finish. The video will show you the free software program you can download for Windows or Mac OS. I will show you how to install the program and configure it for best results. 

Then I will show you the technique to take your photograph and make a pattern from it. When the pattern is complete we will go in the shop and cut it.

The DVD is $10 plus shipping. This is a data DVD that you will use on your computer to watch the video tutorial  

This DVD has 1,964 patterns published from 2007 thru 2016.
The DVD is $20 plus shipping. Ships to 60 countries around the world.

You can view a video showing use of the DVD on a Windows PC and a MAC at this link

Click here to Order. 

Want to create beautiful wooden vases on the scroll saw?

My two "Wooden Vases on the Scroll Saw" books make it easy.

The books are $12 each and available for instant download after purchase. Click for Video Demonstration.