Power tools

General topics of interest to racers and race coordinators alike.
User avatar
Noskills
Master Pine Head
Master Pine Head
Posts: 787
Joined: Tue Jan 31, 2012 12:37 pm
Location: Bellevue, WA

Power tools

Post by Noskills »

So many of you on DT have been suggesting that I buy some tools. I have been surfing the web and looking. My question is, if I plan to mostly make PWD cars and other small projects will tabletop versions of these tools ( band saws, scroll saws or drill presses) give me an OK result? Keep in mind I have no wood woodworking skills and don't plan on making cabinets etc.
Noskills
"Nunchuk skills... bowhunting skills... pinewood derby skills... Girls only want boyfriends who have great skills!"
Napoleon Dynamite
User avatar
Darin McGrew
Pine Head Legend
Pine Head Legend
Posts: 1825
Joined: Fri Jul 18, 2003 1:23 pm
Location: Knoxville, TN
Contact:

Re: Power tools

Post by Darin McGrew »

I've used only benchtop tools (bandsaws, drill presses, belt/disk sanders), handheld power tools (hand drills, rotary tools), and hand tools (rasps, saws, chisels). I've never used larger power tools. Of course, larger power tools would be much harder to transport to church for our workshops.
User avatar
gpraceman
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 4926
Joined: Fri Jun 20, 2003 12:46 am
Location: Highlands Ranch, CO
Contact:

Re: Power tools

Post by gpraceman »

Benchtop tools are great for PWD and for home projects.
Randy Lisano
Romans 5:8

Awana Grand Prix and Pinewood Derby racing - Where a child, an adult and a small block of wood combine for a lot of fun and memories.
User avatar
ciodude
Master Pine Head
Master Pine Head
Posts: 283
Joined: Wed Apr 04, 2007 1:34 pm
Location: Charleston, WV

Re: Power tools

Post by ciodude »

Noskills, I think you’d do just fine with tabletop tools. I have a Dremel, a bench top band saw and bench top drill press. I have an old drill powered sander and a hand belt sander I turn on its back. As soon as I can find some cheap sanding drums, I’ll be able to turn my drill press into a sander for the wheel wells of the fenders I do. I'm not as enamored of the band saw after using a friend’s scroll saw. If I had to do it over I’d get a scroll saw instead of a band saw. When I was in Lowes last (only to find out they were NOT doing Derby Days this year) there was a new Dremel multitool with a cutter blade that looked interesting.
User avatar
FatSebastian
Pine Head Legend
Pine Head Legend
Posts: 2804
Joined: Wed Jun 17, 2009 2:49 pm
Location: Boogerton, PA

Re: Power tools

Post by FatSebastian »

ciodude wrote:I'm not as enamored of the band saw after using a friend’s scroll saw. If I had to do it over I’d get a scroll saw instead of a band saw.
Interesting! We have both a Craftsman 10" bandsaw and a Craftsman scroll saw. We like the bandsaw and make better use of it than the scroll. But this may be because we build most cars now as planks and use simpler, straighter cuts. The scroll saw has a noticeably harder time cutting a block through the 1.75" direction, for example, but it is still very useful for cutting square holes through a body however.
ciodude wrote:there was a new Dremel multitool with a cutter blade that looked interesting
Here's a related link I think...
User avatar
drathbun
Master Pine Head
Master Pine Head
Posts: 195
Joined: Tue Jan 17, 2012 1:50 pm
Location: Carrollton, Texas

Re: Power tools

Post by drathbun »

I've done scroll saw and I've done band saw and for me there's no question in my mind that a band saw does the job easier. We tried to run a derby workshop at my house using the scroll saw and failed miserably. Maybe your friend has a better scroll saw than I do, because I've moved on and never looked back.

But I do agree that bench-top tools are fine, and probably much easier to store when it's not derby season. When I got my band saw I got one large enough to do other work, but even a smaller band saw can do an awful lot of cool tricks. If you want to sell your significant other on why you need a band saw, show them a series of band saw box pictures and say, "Look what I could do!" They're amazing.

Of course I've cut out probably over 200 derby cars over the past years, and only made one band saw box... ;)
BallBoy
Master Pine Head
Master Pine Head
Posts: 196
Joined: Sat Jan 08, 2011 8:46 pm
Location: SoJo, UT
Contact:

Re: Power tools

Post by BallBoy »

I will chime in and echo what most everyone has already said. Benchtop tools are more than adequate for pinewood derby car builds. Benchtop tools are also sufficient for many projects around the house. Last summer I loaned my bandsaw out to a relative for a couple of months. There were about a dozen times during those two months when I wished I had my bandsaw back - none of it for pinewood derby cars. If you are having a conundrum where you want both a bandsaw and a scrollsaw and can only buy one, I would choose the bandsaw without hesitation.
User avatar
ciodude
Master Pine Head
Master Pine Head
Posts: 283
Joined: Wed Apr 04, 2007 1:34 pm
Location: Charleston, WV

Re: Power tools

Post by ciodude »

I guess I should clarify some in saying that a band saw definitely will go through the wood block easier than a scroll saw. My band saw is actually out of commission at the moment because I broke the last blade I had. Last time my father-in-law was down visiting he told me I needed to get a thicker blade so that it won’t travel as much.

If all you cut is straight-ish lines, then the band saw works great. The more complex and curvy your cuts, the more I have found a scroll saw to be better. If you want to cut the center out of your car, you can’t do it with a band saw.

Funny, our AWANA Grand Prix workshops have been done for the past three years with two scroll saws. I took my band saw the first year and never took it back again. We’ve had very successful workshops. I’ve cut volcanos, French fry cars, cheetahs, mice, Yoshi racers, boats, bats, gerbils, dinosaurs, flip flops, bugs, swords, pencils and even a few cars!
User avatar
Darin McGrew
Pine Head Legend
Pine Head Legend
Posts: 1825
Joined: Fri Jul 18, 2003 1:23 pm
Location: Knoxville, TN
Contact:

Re: Power tools

Post by Darin McGrew »

ciodude wrote:If all you cut is straight-ish lines, then the band saw works great. The more complex and curvy your cuts, the more I have found a scroll saw to be better.
A lot depends on the blade you're using in your band saw. But it's a trade-off. Wider blades make straight cuts more easily, but can't make curved cuts well. Narrower blades make curved cuts easily, but tend to wander a bit when you're making straight cuts. Switching blades takes a while, so it can be helpful to have two band saws at a workshop, one with a wider blade for straight cuts, and the other with a narrower blade for curved cuts.

Also, there are techniques that can be used with a band saw to make curved cuts more easily. And there are other techniques that can be used with a band saw to make straight cuts more easily. But the real trick is to take a block with outlines drawn both on the top and on the side, and to make all the cuts without cutting of the part with the lines before you're done cutting along those lines.
User avatar
ciodude
Master Pine Head
Master Pine Head
Posts: 283
Joined: Wed Apr 04, 2007 1:34 pm
Location: Charleston, WV

Re: Power tools

Post by ciodude »

Darin, do you have a recommendation for a width blade for a bandsaw? After I broke the first blade, I just sort of bought the first one that fit, thinking a blade is pretty much a blade (aside from the teeth). I am sure I can learn more about my own tools. I've learned as I went along, experimenting and such. I feel like I have more control on the scroll saw than I do the band saw. Looks like I might be in the minority in that opinion though.
User avatar
FatSebastian
Pine Head Legend
Pine Head Legend
Posts: 2804
Joined: Wed Jun 17, 2009 2:49 pm
Location: Boogerton, PA

Re: Power tools

Post by FatSebastian »

ciodude wrote:...a recommendation for a width blade for a bandsaw?
FWIW, here's one resource.
ciodude wrote:I am sure I can learn more about my own tools.
Bandsaws require a certain level of adjustment to get good results. We found it helps to sit down and read the operating manual through once or twice. An improperly adjusted blade will wander, overheat, or break. Sawdust can get in the guide bearings for instance, causing issues. I have also come to realize that blades dull and stretch out a little faster than I might have first imagined, even when the machine is working properly. I recommend getting some blade wax and treating the teeth after every use to make them cut easier and last longer, and try refreshing the blades regularly to get a sense of how much better a fresh blade cuts versus a older, possibly dull blade.
User avatar
Darin McGrew
Pine Head Legend
Pine Head Legend
Posts: 1825
Joined: Fri Jul 18, 2003 1:23 pm
Location: Knoxville, TN
Contact:

Re: Power tools

Post by Darin McGrew »

Honestly, I forget what size I have on mine. I vaguely recall that some of the blades were described by the manufacturer as better for straight cuts, some as better for curved cuts, and some as intermediate. I chose one of the intermediate blades, so maybe it's 1/4" or 5/16". One of the other band saw owners has a 3-wheel band saw, which goes through blades more quickly than the 2-wheel band saws like mine. (His usually break before getting dull; mine usually get dull before breaking.) He buys blades in multi-packs, which usually include an assortment of widths. Sometimes he has a wide blade installed, sometimes he has a narrow blade installed, sometimes he has an intermediate blade installed, and sometimes the blade breaks during a workshop and he replaces it with a different width blade.
BallBoy
Master Pine Head
Master Pine Head
Posts: 196
Joined: Sat Jan 08, 2011 8:46 pm
Location: SoJo, UT
Contact:

Re: Power tools

Post by BallBoy »

I have a 1/4" blade on my bandsaw for general use. I also have an 1/8" blade for when I need to cut tight radii. When I'm in a pinch I'll pick up a blade from Lowes or Home Depot, but have never had good results from the blades sold there. When I'm not in a pinch I buy one from a woodworking supply store (e.g. Woodcraft or Rockler). The blades from woodworking suppliers are more expensive, but definately worth the cost in sharpness and longevity.
User avatar
Darin McGrew
Pine Head Legend
Pine Head Legend
Posts: 1825
Joined: Fri Jul 18, 2003 1:23 pm
Location: Knoxville, TN
Contact:

Re: Power tools

Post by Darin McGrew »

Oh, and for the record, I'm not saying that I have more control with a band saw than with a scroll saw. But I have good enough control with a band saw, and it's a lot faster when doing the rough cuts for lots of cars at a workshop. This year we had a small turnout with only 40 cars, but in past years, we've had up to 100 cars.
User avatar
whodathunkit
Pine Head Legend
Pine Head Legend
Posts: 2476
Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2009 5:56 pm
Location: Forgan, OK

Re: Power tools

Post by whodathunkit »

ciodude wrote: I feel like I have more control on the scroll saw than I do the band saw. Looks like I might be in the minority in that opinion though.
I also like the scroll saw. But i'll be the first to tell you it wasent made to cut woods up to 3'' thick. Where the bandsaw can walk through it faster.

However the bandsaw wasen't made to do tighter curved cuts or inside cuts
also.
But the two tools are very handy for cutting cars out with.
However like you ciodude I also fell I have more control on the scroll saw cutting the smaller size parts.
What type of automobile can be spelled the same forwards & backwards?
Post Reply