Southpa Posted March 3, 2004 Report Share Posted March 3, 2004 Yesterday was out searching for one of those router bits that have a shaft mounted bearing. I checked Home Depot and another place, both had a huge assortment of various shapes and sizes of router bits but none available for working off a template from above. What gives? Both places told me there wasn't a large demand for such equipment so no reason to stock them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devon Headen Posted March 3, 2004 Report Share Posted March 3, 2004 Lowes has them for 15 bucks. I didn't pay really close attention though. I think it was Bosch, 1/4" shank, 1/2 cutter (guess), 1 bearing, 1" deep though. That's why I didn't really look at it much. far too deep for one pass with my router. Devon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted March 3, 2004 Report Share Posted March 3, 2004 It must be the area you live in. Every Home Depot around me has them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southpa Posted March 3, 2004 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2004 OK, just picked one up at Lumberworld. Funny, they only had one size, luckily it was the one I was looking for, 1/2" top bearing flush trim bit. Cost was $21.99 Cdn and they have an "exchange-a-bit" policy where I can return it when it gets dull and replace for only $12.99... good deal . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devon Headen Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 how deep is the cutter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southpa Posted March 4, 2004 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 Cutter length is 3/4" juuuust right. I could manage a pickup cavity in 2 passes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveq Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 Cutter length is 3/4" juuuust right. I could manage a pickup cavity in 2 passes That will certainly work. I really prefer the shorter bits though so I can use the stewmac templates. For the longer bits, you need to either shim the templates up of build copies with thicker wood. Either way, it becomes a bit harder to be sure that they are lined up properly. These are $25.00. I understand though if you are in a hurry, this won't work. I will say that they are definitely worth the money in the long run. Check them out someday. Derek found some here that cost about $15.00 and look excellent. I haven't tried them yet though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krazyderek Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 i actually ordered 2 of those 15$ bits, and i have yet to open the second, the first one is still holding a good sharpe edge, i don't have the stew mac one to compare side by side, but i think i'll stick with MLCS for those bits 3/4" seems kinda way to deep for me, you're going to need some pretty tall templates, cause i've never trusted shimming templates personally.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MKGBass Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 Does everybody just bore through the wood when you cut your cavitities. I tend to worry about burning the wood and blowout so I go in shallow passes until I reach the desired depth. Should I reevaluate my method? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krazyderek Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 i pre drill as much as i can, then take a couple of passes... unless i chisel out after i've predrilled then i'll just do 1 or 2 passes to clean everything up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveq Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 I remove as much as possible using a forstner bit on the drill press. After that, I remove the pointy areas with a chisel, then route. If you do this it will save quite a bit of wear on your router bits. Just make sure you don't go to the full depth with the drilling - leave enough wood so that you end up with a nice flat surface after routing. If you go to the full depth, you might end up with marks from the tip of the forstner bit. Even if you don't do this, at least drill one hole bigger than your router bit to get things started. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southpa Posted March 4, 2004 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 3/4" seems kinda way to deep for me, you're going to need some pretty tall templates, cause i've never trusted shimming templates personally.. Good point derek, unfortunately thats the only size they had available. Its ok tho, I just happen to have some 3/4" thick scrap particle board material handy for making templates. I could make 2 passes with that then remove the template and use the area just cut as a template to finish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MKGBass Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 wow guys, haha, i guess that drilling thing was kind of a "Duh!" thing, no? Well thanks, I'll be saving myself some major time from now on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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