I haven't tried the Perform myself so all I can do is offer general advice. Let's hope the saw proves to be a winner
!
According to the picture on the APTC website, the saw is equipped with a hold-down arm. I'd suggest you remove it if at all possible - it'll only get in the way.
The names
fretsaw,
fret saw,
scrollsaw and
scroll saw seem to be interchangeable nowadays.
Scrolling is technically when you cut curved shapes on the outer edges of boards, such as outlines.
Fretwork (also known as
piercing work) is when you drill a pilot hole in the centre of a board, then insert the saw blade through the hole and make an internal cut. Nobody seems to worry much about the distinction nowadays.
I'm pleased you've asked about blade suppliers; good blades are critical to good scrolling. It might seem a lot of trouble to order from the USA but I'd urge you to ask Mike Moorlach to send you a free sample pack. His
Flying Dutchman (FD) blades are the first choice of many scrollers throughout the world. It usually only takes a couple of weeks for orders to be delivered to the UK.
Although FDs are the blades that I normally choose,
Hegner UKalso sells very good quality blades. The last time I ordered from them, my order was delivered in only 2 days.
You can also get blades from
Hobbies of Dereham but I've never done so.
Don't worry if your first attempts to use a scrollsaw aren't successful - most people find it takes a fair amount of practice (and some broken blades :roll: ) before they can produce anything they're willing to proclaim as their own
. You might find the video tips on
Rick Hutcheson's sitequite useful.
I hope you're aware that all scrollsaw blades cut with a bias, so if you feed your board in straight, the blade will naturally wander to the right. Unfortunately, this is down to the way the blades are produced and all you can do is get used to it.
Hope this helps.
Gill