User Guide

RipSaw ScrollForge Help

Everything you need to use RipSaw ScrollForge. Scroll Saw · Fretwork · Sign Making · Windows 10 / 11

1. Getting Started

When RipSaw opens, you start at the Shop Door, a “what are we building?” launcher. It has four workshop doors plus a way back into earlier work:

• Scroll Saw — cut a design out of wood: fretwork, silhouettes, portraits, decorative cutouts. Covered in this section and in Canvas Tools.
• Sign Making — lettering and scrollwork. These live in the Scroll Saw workspace. See Section 6.
• Intarsia — a picture built from separate pieces of different real woods. See Section 7.
• Segmentation — the same piece-by-piece approach, but the pieces are cut from one board and stained or painted in different shades. See Section 7.
• Open Existing — reopen a saved .forge project. The Shop Door also lists your last five projects for one-click reopening.

Pick a door and that workshop opens. Closing the Shop Door without picking one closes RipSaw. You can return to the Shop Door at any time with File › New (Ctrl+N); if you have unsaved changes, RipSaw asks to save first.

1.1 The Scroll Saw Workshop

Pick Scroll Saw at the Shop Door to open the Scroll Saw workshop. Sign making lives inside the same workspace — you don’t switch modes. Add cutouts, cut lines, and sign text in the same design.

Scroll Saw / Fretwork: Fretwork, silhouettes, portraits, or decorative cutting — any project where you remove wood to create a design.

Sign Making: Place and style text on your board, combine it with scrollwork if the design calls for it, then convert it to scroll saw cut geometry when it’s ready to cut.

First required step: When you start a new project, only Create Board is active. You must create the board/material boundary before drawing cutouts, adding text, or running Pattern Check. Pattern Check shows “Requires a Board” until the board exists.

1.2 Creating Your Board

The board is your physical material blank — the wood you are cutting from. Island Detection and Pattern Check use the board as the outside material boundary.

How to create a board:

• Click Create Board in the left panel.
• RipSaw opens the Choose Board Shape popup.
• Select a shape tile. RipSaw creates the board centered on the canvas.
• Cancel or close the popup to leave the document unchanged.

Available board shapes:

• Rectangle — A standard rectangular material boundary. Good for most sign and fretwork projects.
• Circle — A circular material boundary for round signs and circular patterns.
• Oval — An oval material boundary for oval sign blanks.

Note: Each project has one board. If a board already exists, Create Board is blocked — RipSaw will not create a second board or silently replace the existing one. The board can be selected and resized after creation.

1.3 Choosing Your Blade

Select your blade from the dropdown in the top cutting setup bar. RipSaw uses your blade selection as the foundation for every calculation in your project: cut-line width, bridge minimums, and entry hole sizing.

Available blade sizes: #3/0, #2/0, #1, #3, #5, #7, #9 · Spiral 3, Spiral 5, Spiral 7, Spiral 9 · Custom (enter a manual width if your blade isn’t listed)

Note: You can change blades as you work. New geometry uses the current blade selection. Existing shapes are not silently rewritten when you switch.

1.4 Opening an Existing Project

To continue a previous project, choose Open and select a .forge file. The canvas opens with your image, shapes, sign text, and settings exactly as you left them.

1.5 Starting a New Project During a Session

Use File › New (Ctrl+N) at any time to return to the Shop Door and start a different project. If you have unsaved changes, you will be prompted to save first.

2. Reference Image

The reference image is your tracing guide. It sits behind your shapes and never appears in the preview or PDF.

2.1 Importing an Image

Supported formats: PNG, JPG/JPEG, WebP. Images over 5 MB are automatically downscaled.

What happens on import:

• Canvas shows the full image
• Image appears at 50% opacity by default
• The existing board stays in place — image import does not resize or replace it

2.2 Adjusting Opacity

Use the Opacity control in the top bar to adjust how visible the reference image is while you trace. Lower opacity makes your shapes easier to see; higher opacity keeps the reference detail clear.

2.3 Replacing an Image

Importing a second image prompts you to confirm replacement. Confirm removes the old image and loads the new one. Sign text and shapes on the canvas are cleared. Undo restores the previous state.

3. Canvas Tools

3.1 Cutout Tool

In scroll saw work, each cutout is a piece of wood you’re removing. Draw the shape, and RipSaw tracks it for island detection and entry hole placement.

Drawing

• Click to place points — an anchor dot appears
• Click the first point again to close the shape (minimum 3 points)
• Shift+Click for smooth curve anchors
• Esc to discard in-progress points

Note: Crossing lines are rejected. RipSaw will not commit a self-intersecting shape.

Transforming — Switch to the Select tool, then click a shape.

Action	How
Move	Drag the shape
Duplicate	Ctrl+D
Delete	Delete key
Flip horizontal	Ctrl+H
Flip vertical	Ctrl+Shift+H
Rotate 15°	Ctrl+Left / Ctrl+Right Arrow
Nudge 1 unit	Arrow keys
Nudge 10 units	Shift+Arrow keys

Node Editing — Select the shape first, then switch to the Node tool.

• Drag nodes to reshape
• Double-click a node to insert a new node after it
• Press Delete to remove a node
• Self-intersecting edits are rejected

3.2 Circle Cutout Tool

Creates perfect circular cutouts. The circle interior is treated as removed material. Click for center, drag outward to set the radius. Release to commit, Esc to cancel. Select the circle, then the Node tool to adjust if needed.

3.3 Circle Outline Tool

Creates a circular cut path for outside-profile and perimeter cuts. Unlike Circle Cutout, Circle Outline is an open stroke — it does not remove the center of the circle. Use it for circular borders, decorative ring cuts, or the outside profile of a round design.

• Click for center, drag outward to set the radius
• Release to commit, Esc to cancel
• Circle Outline does not create a filled cutout and does not participate in Island Detection as a closed shape
• Exports as a stroked line, not a filled cutout outline

Note: Circle Outline creates a cut path only. If you need a circular frame or ring where the band of wood between two circles is the design element, use the Cutout tool for the outer circle and design inside it.

3.4 Cut Line Tool

Draws cuts for fretwork and decorative interior lines. A cut line is an open path — not a closed cutout — sized to your current blade selection.

• Click to place guide points along the path
• Enter to commit, Esc to cancel
• After committing, select the cut line and use the Node tool to bend and shape it
• Cut lines export as stroked lines with no fill

Note: Use the Cut Line tool for narrow interior cuts. If you need to remove a larger area of wood, use the Cutout tool instead.

3.5 Entry Hole Tool

Places a drill hole marker calculated at the correct bit size for your blade selection. Click inside any cutout to place. Each cutout holds one entry hole. Entry holes export as black circle outlines on the PDF.

3.6 Bridge Tool

Bridges connect floating islands to the surrounding wood, preventing them from falling through when cut. Click to place guide points — blend the bridge into the design’s natural lines. Enter or double-click to commit. Nodes can be edited with the Node tool once selected.

Note: RipSaw does not auto-place bridges. Where you put them — and how you shape them — affects the look of the finished piece. That’s a craft decision.

3.7 Select Tool (V)

The most widely used tool. Any shape must be selected before it can be moved, transformed, or edited.

3.8 Node Tool (N)

Edit individual anchor points on any selected shape or cut line. Drag nodes to reshape. Double-click a node to insert a new node after it. Crossing lines are rejected.

4. Island Detection

An island is a piece of wood with no connection to the surrounding board — it would fall through when cut. RipSaw detects islands automatically, highlighting them live in orange on the canvas before you export.

Island Detection uses the board as the material boundary and does not run until a board exists. Pattern Check shows “Requires a Board” until you create your board.

Island detection works across your entire design — scroll saw cutouts, fretwork, and converted sign text shapes all participate. If a converted letter creates a floating piece (common with A, B, D, O, P, Q, R, and similar), it will be flagged the same as any other island.

When an island is highlighted: draw a bridge connecting the floating piece to the surrounding wood. Island detection updates — the highlight clears when the bridge resolves it.

Note: You cannot export a PDF while unresolved islands exist.

5. Pattern Check

The Pattern Check panel runs before export and confirms your design is ready to cut. Checks appear in the lower left panel.

• Requires a Board — No board/material boundary exists. Create Board must be completed before other checks run.
• Islands / Fallout — Detects any piece not connected to the surrounding board.
• Missing Bridges — Flags islands that exist without a bridge resolving them.
• Missing Drill Holes — Identifies closed cutouts without an entry hole placed.
• Open Paths — Finds cut lines or shapes that aren’t properly closed or terminated.
• Export Readiness — Confirms all checks pass and the design is ready for PDF export. Also warns if visible sign text has not been converted to cut paths before exporting.

Note: Pattern Check reports problems and lets you fix them. It never auto-corrects your design.

6. Sign Making

Sign making tools live in the right panel under Sign Making. They work inside the same Scroll Saw workspace — you can combine lettering with cutouts, fretwork, and scroll designs in a single pattern.

Note: A board is required before you can add text. If no board exists, Add Text is blocked and the status bar directs you to Create Board first.

6.1 Adding Text

Type your text in the Text field, choose a font from the installed system fonts, and set your preferences. Click Add Text to place it on the board at the center.

Text controls:

• Text — what you’re placing. For Straight and Arc layouts, press Shift+Enter to insert a new line for multiline text.
• Font — installed system fonts. Install more fonts through Windows if needed.
• Bold / Italic / Outline — style the editable text before or after placement
• Size — letter height in inches. Default 1.25 in. Range: 0.25 in to 12 in in 0.125 in steps.
• Letter Spacing — percentage of normal spacing. Default 100%. Range: 50%–200% in 5% steps.
• Line Spacing — percentage of normal line height. Default 100%. Range: 50%–250% in 5% steps.
• Alignment — Left, Center, or Right. Controls appear under Line Spacing.

Note: Size is measured in real inches on the board — not font points. 1.25 in means the letters will be 1.25 inches tall on your printed pattern.

6.2 Layout Modes

Choose how text sits on the board before or after placement. Select your text, then choose a layout from the panel.

• Straight — Normal horizontal text. Supports multiline (Shift+Enter). The baseline for most sign work.
• Vertical — Characters stacked top to bottom. Single-line only.
• Arc — Text follows an open arc curve. Supports multiline.
• Circle — Text follows a circular path. The text length determines the circle size. Single-line only.

Note: Circle and Vertical are single-line layouts. Shift+Enter for multiline is available in Straight and Arc layouts only. Arc and Circle render as live editable text previews and do not create circle guide/frame geometry or Scroll Saw cut geometry.

6.3 Text to Selected Shape

Fit your text inside any closed shape already on the canvas. Select one editable text object and one closed shape, then click Text to Selected Shape. RipSaw centers and scales the text to fit inside the shape with padding. The shape is not changed — only the text position and scale update. The text remains editable until you convert it. Undo restores the prior text position and scale.

Note: Straight and Vertical layouts work inside Text to Selected Shape. Arc and Circle normalize to Straight for the fit. The fit is one-shot — if you move or edit the target shape afterward, re-run the fit to reposition the text.

6.4 Weld / Join Letters

For script fonts or any design where letters touch or overlap, Weld / Join combines them into a single connected shape. Place your text and convert it to cut paths first. Select the converted letter shapes you want to join (Shift+click to select multiple), then click Weld / Join Letters. The overlapping outlines merge into one connected cutout. The result participates in island detection and bridge placement like any other cutout.

Note: Weld is an explicit action — RipSaw never automatically merges shapes just because they overlap. Editable sign text must be converted to cut paths before it can participate in Weld / Join.

6.5 Converting Text to Cut Paths

When your text is positioned and styled the way you want it, convert it to scroll saw cut geometry. Select the editable text on the canvas and click Convert to Cut Paths, then choose a conversion mode:

With Interiors — Letter counters (the enclosed spaces in A, B, D, O, P, Q, R, and similar) become separate island shapes. Island Detection will flag them so you can add bridges. Best for designs where you want the full letter interior visible.

Without Interiors — Letter counters are stored as holes owned by the parent letter shape. The interior is treated as an intentional void. Use when you don’t want letter counters to appear as separate islands.

The letters become filled cutout shapes — the same geometry as any hand-drawn cutout. The editable text source is kept hidden and linked — select it and use Undo to restore if needed. Converted shapes participate in island detection, bridge placement, Pattern Check, and PDF export.

Note: Island detection runs on converted letters. Letters like A, B, D, O, P, Q, and R commonly create interior islands that need bridges before export. Sign text that has not been converted does not appear in the exported PDF — export readiness will warn you if visible unconverted text exists.

6.6 Add Letter Bridges

After converting text to cut paths, use the standard Bridge tool to add bridges to any letter islands flagged by island detection. Letter bridges work the same as all other bridges — you place them, shape them, and blend them into the design.

6.7 Show Text Bridge Preview

The Show Text Bridge Preview toggle in the Sign Making panel switches the canvas to a view-only preview that shows how your bridges interact with the converted text cut paths.

• Toggle is available only when converted sign text exists on the canvas
• Preview shows converted text outlines with white masks where bridges interrupt the cut path — these white gaps are where retained wood holds the letter together
• Preview geometry is view-only — it cannot be selected, edited, or exported as document geometry
• Toggle turns off automatically when you undo conversion, delete converted text, open a different project, or start a new project
• The PDF pattern page uses the same preview route as the canvas preview

Note: Text Bridge Preview shows you the result of your bridge placement. Use it to check that your bridges land where you intend before exporting.

6.8 Combining Sign Text and Scrollwork

Sign making and scroll saw drawing tools work together in the same workspace. Common combinations:

• A name or phrase with a decorative scrolled border drawn around it
• A welcome sign with fretwork detail cut into the background
• Lettering fitted inside a scrolled oval or decorative shape
• A portrait or animal design with a title or name underneath

There’s no mode switch. Draw scroll saw shapes and add sign text in whatever order the design calls for. Island detection and Pattern Check run on everything together.

7. Intarsia & Segmentation

Intarsia and Segmentation are two ways to build a picture out of separate pieces instead of cutting one fretwork panel. Inside RipSaw they share one workspace and one set of tools. The only real difference is what you put on each piece:

• Intarsia — every piece is a different real wood. You assign a wood species to each piece, and grain direction matters.
• Segmentation — every piece is cut from the same board, then stained or painted a different shade. You assign a flat color/stain to each piece instead of a wood.

Because they share a workspace, the same tools (pieces, the material palette, grain arrows, piece numbers, meld seams, and etch lines) are available to both. Where a tool matters for only one of them, it is called out below.

First step: Intarsia and Segmentation need a reference image to trace, not a board. Import your picture first (see Section 2). The Intarsia tools stay locked until an image is loaded, a kerf is set from the blade control, and at least one closed piece exists.

7.1 Starting an Intarsia or Segmentation Project

At the Shop Door, pick Intarsia or Segmentation. Both open the same workspace, with the INTARSIA TOOLS panel in the right sidebar. Import your reference image, then trace each region of your picture as a closed piece with the Cutout tool (Section 3.1). Each closed piece becomes one cut piece of wood.

7.2 Wood Species and Segmentation Colors

The material palette lives in the INTARSIA TOOLS panel in the right sidebar. It holds two sets of swatches:

• Wood Species — 15 wood textures for intarsia: walnut, maple, cherry, oak, cedar, pine, mahogany, ash, birch, poplar, yellowheart, purpleheart, ebony, padauk, and aspen.
• Segmentation Colors — 15 flat color/stain swatches for segmentation (listed in 7.3).

To assign a material, select a closed piece, then click a swatch. The piece fills with that wood texture or flat color. Click a different swatch to change it.

• A piece can hold either a wood species or a segmentation color, never both. Assigning one clears the other.
• Wood species show as a repeating wood-grain texture. Segmentation colors show as a flat solid fill. Both appear on the canvas and in the preview.
• Rotate the grain: in Intarsia, double-click a piece that already has a wood texture to turn its grain 15 degrees (it steps 0, 15, 30, and so on, back around to 0). This rotates only the texture, not the piece, the grain arrow, or the piece number. A flat segmentation color has no grain, so double-clicking does nothing to it.
• Assigning or changing a material never deletes or damages the piece. Undo (Ctrl+Z) restores the previous material exactly.

Note: Clearing a material to make a piece blank again is not available yet. You can change a piece from one material to another, but you cannot reset it to unassigned.

Note: If you click a swatch with no piece selected, nothing is assigned and the status bar says “Select a shape first.”

7.3 Segmentation Colors and Their Stains

The 15 segmentation swatches are RipSaw’s own colors for on-screen work and the printed legend. They are not exact paint or stain formulas, but each one lists the nearest common stain family so you can match it at the store.

Swatch	Nearest stain family
Walnut Brown	Dark Walnut / Special Walnut
Maple Gold	Colonial Maple / Honey
Cherry Red	Cherry
Oak Amber	Golden Oak
Cedar Red	Red Oak / Early American
Pine Honey	Ipswich Pine / Puritan Pine
Mahogany Brown	Red Mahogany
Ash Gray	Weathered Oak / Classic Gray
Birch Cream	Natural / Honey
Poplar Sage	Custom green-gray solid stain
Yellowheart Gold	Honey / Golden Oak
Purpleheart Plum	Custom plum-brown solid stain
Ebony Black	Ebony
Padauk Orange	Sedona Red / Barn Red
Aspen Natural	Natural / Driftwood

Note: The nearest stain family is guidance only. The swatch is the true color RipSaw shows on screen and prints in the legend.

7.4 Grain Arrows (Intarsia)

A grain arrow marks which way the wood grain should run on a piece when you cut and assemble it. Grain arrows are an Intarsia aid. Segmentation pieces are a flat color and do not use them.

Select the Grain Arrow tool from the right sidebar, then:

• Click inside a piece to place a red arrow at its center.
• Click and drag inside a piece to point the arrow in the drag direction.
• Clicking a piece that already has an arrow updates that arrow instead of adding a second one. Each piece holds one grain arrow.
• A grain arrow can’t be selected or deleted once it is placed. To change one, click its piece again with the Grain Arrow tool to move it or point it a new way. You can hide all the arrows with the Show Numbers & Arrows toggle in the right sidebar, though a placed arrow still prints on the PDF.

Grain arrows are bright red on the canvas. They are hidden in the live preview, but they do print on the PDF, on both the assembly page and the part sheets, so you can match a cut piece’s grain back to the pattern.

Note: Clicking outside every piece places nothing. The status bar says “Click inside a shape to place arrow.”

7.5 Piece Numbers

In Intarsia and Segmentation, RipSaw numbers your pieces for you. Every closed piece gets a number, starting at 1 and counting up with no gaps, in the order the pieces were created.

• Numbering is automatic. There is no tool to run.
• Add, delete, duplicate, undo, or redo a piece and RipSaw renumbers the rest right away, so the highest number always equals your piece count.
• The right sidebar shows the current count as “Pieces: {count}”.
• Numbers are bright red on the canvas. They are hidden in the live preview, but they do print on the PDF, on both the assembly page and the part sheets.
• A piece number belongs to its piece. You cannot select or delete a number on its own. To remove a number, delete its piece.

7.6 Meld Seams

Meld is how Intarsia and Segmentation pieces get a perfect shared seam. Instead of trying to line up two separately drawn edges, you overlap the two pieces on purpose where they should meet, then meld them. RipSaw trims them to one shared cut line that both pieces inherit, so the seam fits by construction.

To meld:

1. Draw two pieces so they overlap where they meet.
2. Select both pieces (Shift+click to add the second).
3. Click Meld Seams in the INTARSIA TOOLS panel.

RipSaw trims the overlap to one seam and locks the pieces into a group:

• The larger piece is the one trimmed (or it gets a window-shaped hole if the smaller piece sits fully inside it). The smaller piece stays whole. Draw order does not matter.
• Melded pieces move as one unit, so a finished seam can never drift apart. Selecting or dragging one moves the whole group. Shift+click adds or removes the whole group from a selection.
• Melding more pieces onto a melded group grows the same group.
• Each piece keeps its own wood or color, grain arrow, number, and etch lines through the meld.
• No kerf is added at the seam. It is just one line to follow.

To undo a meld, press Undo (Ctrl+Z). Meld is a single undoable step; there is no separate un-meld button. To reshape a melded piece, undo the meld, edit the piece, then meld again. Node editing is blocked on a melded piece, with a message telling you to undo the meld first.

Seam markers: while you work, RipSaw watches your overlaps. If two pieces overlap by too little or too much to meld cleanly, it marks the overlap on the canvas so you can adjust. When the overlap is in the good range, the canvas stays quiet. Meld is forgiving: any real overlap will meld, and the markers are only guidance.

Note: Meld needs two pieces that truly overlap. If they only touch, RipSaw asks you to overlap them on purpose. If one piece completely covers the other so nothing would be left to cut, the meld is refused. Meld works on closed pieces only, not on cut lines, bridges, or sign text.

7.7 Etch Lines

An etch line is a decorative detail line that sits on top of a piece. It marks a burn, score, or paint reference, and it is never cut. Use it for feather lines on a bird, planks on a barn, or any surface detail.

Click the Etch Line button in the sidebar, then:

• Click on a piece to start the line. The first point must land on a piece, which then owns the line.
• Keep clicking to add points. Later points can run anywhere, even past the edge of the piece.
• Press Enter or double-click to finish. Press Esc to cancel. An etch line needs at least two points.
• After you finish, the line is handed straight to the Node tool so you can reshape it right away.

An etch line belongs to its piece and travels with it, including through a meld. It draws as a thin gray line on the canvas and prints as a thin gray reference line on the PDF, never as a cut. Undo removes it.

Note: Etch lines are different from cut lines. A cut line (Section 3.4) is cut by the saw. An etch line is surface decoration only.

7.8 Checking Seams Before Export

Intarsia and Segmentation patterns export the same way as scroll saw patterns (File › Export PDF, see Section 8), but the export looks at your seams. Resolve any flagged seam overlaps first, either by melding the pieces or by pulling them apart, and resolve any unconnected floating piece. You cannot export while a seam issue or a floating piece is unresolved.

7.9 The Intarsia and Segmentation Pattern Packet

When you export, RipSaw builds a pattern packet made for assembled work, not the single cut template a scroll saw project produces. Which packet you get follows the material on your pieces: wood species give the Intarsia packet, stain colors give the Segmentation packet.

Both packets include:

• A cover page with your reference image, the kerf, and the total piece count, plus a material legend that lists every wood (Intarsia) or every color/stain (Segmentation) and the piece numbers that use it.
• A whole-pattern assembly preview in black and white, with the red piece numbers, so you can see how the finished piece goes together.
• Full-scale part sheet pages that print every piece at true cut size. Large pieces stay larger than small ones; nothing is shrunk to equal tiles. Each piece carries its red number for matching back to the assembly preview.

The Intarsia packet also prints the red grain arrows on the assembly preview and the part sheets. The Segmentation packet has no grain arrows, because a flat color has no grain.

Note: A piece too narrow to hold its number prints the number just outside the piece, with a short red leader line pointing to it.

8. Preview & Export to PDF

The preview panel shows your pattern exactly as it will print — no reference image, no grid, no canvas clutter. Just the shapes, cut lines, and bridges. The preview updates immediately whenever you add, move, or delete a shape. Converted sign text appears in the preview as filled cutout shapes once converted.

Note: This section covers the Scroll Saw pattern packet. Intarsia and Segmentation export a different packet, with a material legend, an assembly preview, and full-scale numbered part sheets. See Section 7.9.

Export Dialog

Use File › Export PDF to generate a print-ready file at 1:1 scale.

• Finished Width / Height — The printed size. Aspect ratio is locked by default.
• Lock Aspect Ratio — Keep checked to preserve proportions.
• Page Orientation — Portrait or Landscape. Applies to all pages.

What the PDF Contains

• Cover page: blade selection, drill bit size, board dimensions
• Full-size cut template at the requested finished size
• Additional tiled pages when the pattern exceeds one page — with registration marks for alignment
• Closed cutout outlines, open cut lines, entry holes, and bridges
• Converted sign text shapes included as normal cutout geometry

Before You Export

Export will be blocked if no closed shapes exist on the board, unresolved islands are present, or the finished width or height is invalid. Export readiness also warns if visible sign text has not been converted to cut paths — unconverted text is canvas-only and will not appear in the printed pattern.

Printing Tips

• Always print at 100% / Actual Size — never Fit to Page
• When tiling, align registration marks carefully before taping pages together
• Attach the pattern to your board and cut — no resizing, no scaling

9. Saving & Files

The .forge Format

RipSaw saves projects as .forge files. This format stores everything: shapes, blade selection, board shape and dimensions, entry holes, bridges, sign text, image opacity, and tool state.

Note: Auto save writes a recovery file every 10 minutes.

What .forge Stores

• All cutouts, cut lines, circles, and bridges
• Sign text — both editable and converted states
• Board shape, dimensions and position
• Blade selection and cutting setup
• Reference image and opacity setting
• Entry hole placements
• Intarsia and Segmentation data — wood species or stain colors (and wood grain rotation), grain arrows, piece numbers, melded groups, and etch lines

10. Keyboard Shortcuts

Drawing

Shortcut	Action
Shift+Click	Place smooth curve anchor (Cutout tool)
Backspace	Remove last point placed (Cutout tool)
Enter	Commit cut line, bridge, or etch line
Double-click	Commit cut line/bridge/etch line — or add node when in Node tool
Esc	Cancel in-progress drawing

Selecting and Transforming

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl+D	Duplicate selected shape
Delete	Delete selected shape
Ctrl+H	Flip horizontally
Ctrl+Shift+H	Flip vertically
Ctrl+Left / Right	Rotate 15°
Arrow keys	Nudge 1 unit
Shift+Arrow	Nudge 10 units

Node Editing

Shortcut	Action
Double-click node	Insert new node after clicked node
Delete	Remove selected node
Ctrl+Z	Undo last node change

Bridges and Grain Arrows

Shortcut	Action
Delete (bridge selected)	Remove the selected bridge
Delete (grain arrow selected)	Remove the grain arrow only, keeping the shape
N (bridge selected)	Edit the bridge centerline with the Node tool

Sign Making

Shortcut	Action
Shift+Enter	Insert new line in text field (Straight and Arc layouts only)
Ctrl+Z	Undo text placement, edit, or conversion

Tools

Shortcut	Action
V	Activate Select tool
C	Activate Cutout tool
O	Activate Circle tool
L	Activate Cut Line tool
E	Activate Entry Hole tool
B	Activate Bridge tool
N	Activate Node tool

Circle Outline, Etch Line, and Create Board have no keyboard shortcut. Use the sidebar buttons.

Intarsia & Segmentation

Shortcut	Action
W	Activate the Wood Palette (wood species and segmentation colors)
A	Activate the Grain Arrow tool

Meld Seams and Etch Line are run from the INTARSIA TOOLS buttons in the right sidebar; they have no keyboard shortcut.

General

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl+N	New project
Ctrl+O	Open project
Ctrl+S	Save
Ctrl+Shift+S	Save As
Ctrl+Shift+I	Import reference image
Ctrl+Z	Undo
Ctrl+Y	Redo
Esc	Cancel in-progress action / return to current project

Mouse and Canvas

Action	How
Select a shape	Click it with the Select tool
Clear the selection	Click empty canvas with the Select tool
Move a shape	Drag it with the Select tool
Close a cutout	Click the first point again (minimum 3 points)
Reshape	Drag a node with the Node tool
Place an entry hole	Click inside a closed cutout with the Entry Hole tool
Place or aim a grain arrow	Click, or click-drag, inside a closed Intarsia shape with the Grain Arrow tool
Rotate a piece’s wood grain	Double-click a wood-textured Intarsia piece (turns the grain 15°)
Pan	Space+drag, or middle-mouse drag