Templates needed?

[Homietheclown]

Using Martijn's cab as an example, i am trying to make pine holder's template for the arcade's side pieces. (Check out the pic below)

My questions are:

1) How do I cut out these perfect rectangles using a router? I understand a router can't do corners because of the round bits, but how did Martijn get these long perfect rectangles? Did he have to use a plunge router or fixed base?

2) Same thing with joystick inlays. Do we have to use templates for that too? What's a newb to do? 

I'm still checking out the forums for answers. I know these questions have been asked before.....somewhere.

[bfauska]

A plunge router is going to best for both those holes in the template and any joystick recesses.
For the template with holes for pine battens you don't actually need the holes to be the exact size or shape of the pine boards, you just need enough points of contact to get the boards in the same place.

That system was also used because he needed to rout "pockets" into the sides so that he could glue his pine battens in place after laminating the side panels. If you don't laminate the inside panel you don't need to rout pockets. If you are trying to make this template of your sides with placement for the pine battens then I think there are easier ways to go. Say you know that you are using 3/4" MDF for your various face panels and you want them to be 1/4" from the edge of the side panels. You could cut a few 1" strips of pine to use as spacers when installing your battens. Clamp the 1" strip flush to the edge of the cabinet and then when you screw your batten in place you just need to hold it tight to the spacer to get it in the right spot. If your battens aren't the full length of each face panel then you only need to worry about the distance from the edge of the side panel and make sure that matches on both side panels the other spacing isn't nearly as critical.

This is all difficult for me to describe textually so hopefully I'm not just making it more confusing. I don't have AutoCAD to draw any examples of what I'm talking about at home.

Let me know if I need to clarify this jibber jabber or if you'd rather I just shut my confusing mouth.

[Homietheclown]

Thx Dude,

Your explanations were great. Too bad I already took the time yesterday to painstakingly measure everything over and over to draw mine battens.

I do plan on laminating the inside of the cabinet. I don't understand why it is necessary to rout out the laminate for the pine batans. Is it because the pine will not adhere to the laminate with the contact cement?

Also do I need to be exact when making the joystick recesses or is just like battens? (just need enough points of contact)

Also do I need to use a straight edge bit. I think its also called a Mortise bit?

[bfauska]

Thx Dude,

Your explanations were great. Too bad I already took the time yesterday to painstakingly measure everything over and over to draw mine battens.

I do plan on laminating the inside of the cabinet. I don't understand why it is necessary to rout out the laminate for the pine batans. Is it because the pine will not adhere to the laminate with the contact cement?

Also do I need to be exact when making the joystick recesses or is just like battens? (just need enough points of contact)

Also do I need to use a straight edge bit. I think its also called a Mortise bit?

Drawing the battens in jig accurately is good, and if you are going to cut recesses into the laminated inner walls of the cabinet to put the battens in then cutting the jig carefully and accurately is good too. The purpose of routing recessed pockets into the cabinet for the battens is exactly what you thought. Laminate is only meant to be glued on one side so the smooth side that is meant to be seen doesn't take adhesive well. You could just screw the battens in place without cutting away the laminate but in most projects the glue is actually more important than screws so routing away the laminate and then gluing and screwing the battens would be the best bet. With that in mind, now cutting the jig cleanly becomes more important because you will end up cutting the exact shape of the jig holes into the cabinet and even if they are on the inside of the cabinet you will want them to look clean and fit the battens snugly.
The same logic applies to the joystick recess, it's part of the cabinet, not just a tool that you are done with once the cabinet is built so you might as well take the time to cut it nicely.

To do all these cuts I suggest that you carefully cut the shapes out of a jig (even for the joystick, cut a jig with the shape of the mounting plate) and then use that jig with a top-bearing router bit to cut your recesses. Here is a youtube vid that shows the process with a top-bearing bit that should help you get an idea of what I'm describing.

You can also use the top-bearing bit as a straight edge bit if you want to do some freehand routing of recesses so you shouldn't need straight cutting bit.

You have a few options to deal with the roundness of the router bit not allowing sharp corners. You can go in after the routing has been done and use a chisel to clean up the corners, you can round the corners of your battens so they fit into the rounded corners of the recess, or you can do what is called a dog-bone corner by cutting a notch at each corner of your jig that is big enough for the router bit to slip into it leaving room for the square block of wood to fit after the recess is cut. The last option is the least work if you are doing a bunch of parts like this but it does leave little unfilled curved bits at the corners. Dog-bones usually show up on things that have been CNC cut so that there is very little hand work required after the cuts but with a template it can be useful too. Here is what that looks like.

[wp34]

Bjauska has some great advice for you.   

I routed mine with a template similar to the one bfauska drew.  I made a large template and then just clamped a stop block in place to route the opening to the length I wanted. 

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,116519.msg1251506.html#msg1251506

[bfauska]

And that thread from wp34 is a link to some great images of a way to do what you are describing without doing a full size template, or at least some good ways to see how the rest of it works if you do the full size template.

[Homietheclown]

Good stuff.

Listen to this. This will show you how new I am to woodworking lol...

My brother in law just told me about how wood sizes aren't really what they are labeled as. For example. I bought some pine battens that were 2x2x8 (8 feet long)

Well he told me that they really aren't supposed to be 2 inches by 2 inches. I measured them and found out he was right. They were 1.5"x1.5"x8"!!! What the hell?  He showed me some of his 2x4 pieces and they were 1 3/4" by 3 1/2. I don't get it? So all the measurements I made last night were a waste. Luckily with the awesome information here that I learned from you guys, I can make some new measurements even faster.

I haven't google'd it yet, but it doesn't make sense why the sizes don't match up to the name of the wood size.

[harveybirdman]

Good stuff.

Listen to this. This will show you how new I am to woodworking lol...

My brother in law just told me about how wood sizes aren't really what they are labeled as. For example. I bought some pine battens that were 2x2x8 (8 feet long)

Well he told me that they really aren't supposed to be 2 inches by 2 inches. I measured them and found out he was right. They were 1.5"x1.5"x8"!!! What the hell?  He showed me some of his 2x4 pieces and they were 1 3/4" by 3 1/2. I don't get it? So all the measurements I made last night were a waste. Luckily with the awesome information here that I learned from you guys, I can make some new measurements even faster.

I haven't google'd it yet, but it doesn't make sense why the sizes don't match up to the name of the wood size.

A search for nominal lumber sizes should answer your question.  Has to do with the size of the wood before drying an planeing

[bfauska]

Used to have to do with the size before, now they don't even start that size. At work I just enlightened a co-worker that at 8" they get even further from the truth. *x4= 3-1/2, *x6= 5-1/2, but *x8=...7-1/4.
1x*=3/4 and one of the most fun ones is 5/4=1"