My New Router Bit

[fookgub]

2" cutting length by 1" diameter. I bought it for jointing body blanks in my router table and planing in a jig similar to this one. I'm wondering if anyone can tell me what sort of speeds I should run this bit at. Some of the references I've found online say 22-24k RPM, but that seems pretty fast to me.

[CrazyManAndy]

Might find this article helpful (I did): http://www.newwoodworker.com/rtrbitspds.html

I look at those speed charts as well, but they don't take into account bit length. Given that yours is rather long, it would probably be a good idea to use a slower speed than that.

CMA

Edited February 16, 2008 by CrazyManAndy

[fookgub]

Interesting reading, thanks! I'm hoping to give the bit a try this weekend with some soft maple I bought today.

[MescaBug]

Bloody hell. Now that's a nasty slug.

[Berserker]

I have a similar bit for template routing. Just be very careful. Use your table pins, make multiple passes and take of small amounts off at a time. These big bits can really take a chunk out of your blank......not to mention your hand. The only time I run into problems is when I try to make my router table into a shaper.....which it is not. Good luck, be careful.

Gil

[fookgub]

I have a similar bit for template routing. Just be very careful. Use your table pins, make multiple passes and take of small amounts off at a time. These big bits can really take a chunk out of your blank......not to mention your hand. The only time I run into problems is when I try to make my router table into a shaper.....which it is not. Good luck, be careful.

Gil

Good advice, though I don't really intend to use this as a pattern bit. I bought it for jointing and planing. I just finished up jointing some test pieces, and I have to say I'm very pleased so far. I found that 16k RPM seems to be about optimal... it starts to vibrate beyond that. I rarely have the need to joint anything beyond 2" thick, so this little setup should be pretty helpful.

[Woodenspoke]

I would mot worry about speed changes on a Small 1" wide bit. Yes I am saying its small. If you do a good job cutting out your body, since I am assuming you need a bit that deep only for routing the profile of the body, you will be removing just a small amount of material.

When you start using wide cabinet bits then worry about speed.Length is not an issue here just width.

[Mattia]

What spoke said: full speed, maybe a tiny bit slower.

[fookgub]

Thanks 'spoke & Mattia. It's nice to be getting all this advice from people that know their stuff cold. I guess I need to look into my setup a bit, though, because something starts to vibrate at about 18k RPM. It might just be a small part somewhere that I need to lock down.

Anyway, I got a body blank jointed and glued yesterday. Even at 16k RPM, the bit produced a very clean cut. It was pretty fiddly getting the fence and everything set up right. Took over an hour to really get it dialed in to my liking (much of this time was spent pacing back and forth in the shop). But it beats buying a jointer that would spend 99% of its time collecting dust.

This discussion reminds me of a Ken Smith factory tour video I saw a while ago (unfortunately, I can't seem to find the link now). I was always amazed by how quickly and fearlessly the guy at the shaper trims the body profile. He does it straight off the bandsaw in one deep, full-width pass, with no tearout. I almost always have problems with tearout around the upper horn. How does he get away with this?

[Setch]

This discussion reminds me of a Ken Smith factory tour video I saw a while ago (unfortunately, I can't seem to find the link now). I was always amazed by how quickly and fearlessly the guy at the shaper trims the body profile. He does it straight off the bandsaw in one deep, full-width pass, with no tearout. I almost always have problems with tearout around the upper horn. How does he get away with this?

If he's running a spiral cutter on the shaper, it'll make a huge difference to the tearout - that and practice, so that your feed rate and pressure are exactly right.

[fookgub]

If he's running a spiral cutter on the shaper, it'll make a huge difference to the tearout - that and practice, so that your feed rate and pressure are exactly right.

Found the video: http://www.webcastgroup.com/webcast/window...l=&r=&i

It's pretty long, but I thought it was worthwhile. The shaper bit happens around 23 minutes in. I can't really tell what sort of bit they're using, but it doesn't look like a spiral to me. It looks like the guy at the bandsaw did a nice job cutting close to the line, though.

Edited February 18, 2008 by fookgub

[Supernova9]

If he's running a spiral cutter on the shaper, it'll make a huge difference to the tearout - that and practice, so that your feed rate and pressure are exactly right.

Found the video: http://www.webcastgroup.com/webcast/window...l=&r=&i

It's pretty long, but I thought it was worthwhile. The shaper bit happens around 23 minutes in. I can't really tell what sort of bit they're using, but it doesn't look like a spiral to me. It looks like the guy at the bandsaw did a nice job cutting close to the line, though.

Hard to see, but the way the blade flickers during cutting I'd say it's a spiral blade.