FINGERS flying, master craftsman Dave Evans cut his way to what he hopes will be a world speed record.

Watched by well-wishers at Poole’s Dolphin Shopping Centre, he was attempting to hand-cut an A4 sized jigsaw into 1,000 pieces in his fastest time to set a new record.

In keeping with the time of year and to raise awareness of the Poppy Appeal, the picture showed a poppy and wartime scene with “Never Forget 1914-1918” etched on it.

Dave, who owns a shop on Brewers Quay, Weymouth, and first cut jigsaws at the age of 15, said: “I’m fairly confident. I don’t think anyone can cut faster than me.”

This is his second attempt at a Guinness World Record – his first in 2013 at his Weymouth workshop made headlines.

“Although my last attempt at creating the largest wooden jigsaw collapsed, it created more interest in the subject and the video went viral,” he said.

He spent 35 days cutting the 40,763 parts of a giant Queen’s Diamond Jubilee jigsaw, measuring 6m by 2.5m, setting a new world record for the largest hand-cut wooden jigsaw puzzle. However, the next day it slipped onto the floor, shattering into pieces. “Very few people know I actually did it. It has gone down more as the jigsaw that collapsed if anything,” he said.

After two hours, 26 minutes and 45 seconds hunched over his 21-inch scroll saw and breaking numerous blades, he completed the scrutinised and videoed attempt, which will now be submitted as a Guinness World Record.

“The chances of anyone trying to beat me with the 40,000 pieces – it’s so big – are slightly remote,” he said. “There are other people in the world who can cut a 1,000 piece jigsaw, mostly in the US.”

He puts his phenomenal cutting speed down to his training as a teenager in Bournemouth. “We were on piecework. The faster we cut, the more we earned,” he said.