Scroll fret work cheating with laser??

[randyrls]

I know some of the members here do scroll work and I was watching a demo this week at the local Woodcraft with a CNC router

As I watched a thought hit me that a laser engraver can be used to do scroll fretwork. Has anyone tried this??? It seems like cheating.

 

[Cmiles1985]

A coworker of mine mentioned it. He built a CNC plasma cutter/table and said that swapping out the plasma tip for a laser engraver/cutter would be easy and make an efficient "scroll saw." I told him that was indeed cheating and bypasses the whole reason I enjoy fretwork. I love fretwork because watching the blade and moving my workpiece completely removes my mind from every day stress.

 

[Band Saw Box]

I for one would say yes it is cheating. With a scroll saw it the skill of the operator that give you the finished product. Now you tell me is that true with a laser. If you selling these fretwork items you can make more in less time with a laser but can you really taking pride in what the computer and the laser did at the same level as if you did the work yourself.

 

[Dan Masshardt]

I look a friend from church to the woodworking show a couple of weeks ago. He is a scroller. There was a demo there of someone doing scroll work of sorts with a lazer.

He said something about that taking all the fun out of it. Or the artistic component. Or something.

Maybe it would take potential swearing out of it. Haha.

 

[ianjwebster]

I say each to his (or her) own. If you enjoy the hand work (as I do) then go for it. But if you enjoy the 'computer work' and take pleasure / make sales from the end result then good for you.

 

[Ed McDonnell]

The way I see it.

Assuming flawless execution with whatever tools are used, if the artistic vision is more important than the creative process, then the tools used don't matter.

If the creative process is more important than the artistic vision, then the tools used make all the difference.

Using a laser (or cnc router) to create an entry to a scroll saw competition would be cheating. Using a laser (or cnc router) to make a one of a kind masterpiece for sale in an art gallery would not be cheating. Representing any piece of work, no matter how it was created, as having been created by methods / tools other than those actually used would be cheating / fraud.

Using a laser to create a display full of fretwork to sell at a craft show isn't cheating. But the mass produced aspect of the laser work will almost certainly diminish its value (selling one of dozens vs one of a kind). It will almost certainly diminsh the value of the fretwork produced by hand scroll sawing at the same show.

Is using mass produced components (fittings, blanks, refills...) to make a pen cheating? I would say no. Is using a CNC (router, mill or laser) to make you own pen components cheating? I would say no. It's not the same as hand forging / casting each element of a pen, but not being the same isn't cheating. It's just different.

Really nice work can be done by hand. Really nice work can be done using the most technically advanced tools available. Really lousy work can be done by hand. Really lousy work can be done using the most technically advanced tools available.

At the end of the day, the work has to stand on it's own and people will make their own determination of its value based on their own relative value of process vs vision.

Ed