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Router lessons learned - first timer

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ericball:
(Well, second time, but I'd rather not talk about the first time...  The tool survived, the piece didn't.  But it did mean I did a little more reading before I fired it up this time.)

For anyone thinking of using a router when building a cabinet, it is a very cool and multi-purpose tool.  Grooves for T-molding and routing out insets for joysticks are two BYOC common uses, but that high-speed spinning cutter can make smooth straight and curved cuts.

I had two objectives today - route out an inset for a joystick and shave down a side which had gotten mangled by an off-course circular saw.  This was to be a practice piece using scrap material (3/4" plywood) before I risked the larger parts of my planned cabinet.  I'm using your basic Sears Craftsman fixed base router with a carbide tipped 3/4" straight bit.

Safety first!  Wear goggles!  A dust mask is also recommended, and maybe even ear protection.  Depending on the material, a router will kick up a lot of sawdust or wood shavings.  I got covered head to toe along with a good portion of the back yard.

The inset for the joystick worked well.  I adjusted the router to the desired depth while placing it against the edge of the wood, then set it in the hole and pulled the trigger.  I then tried to make a clockwise spiral to gradually cut away the wood.  A router bit spins clockwise, so you want to move in a clockwise direction for inside cuts and counter-clockwise for outside cuts.

Unfortunately, my attempt at trimming was less successful.  The big lesson is a router will try to pull into the material, so you need to have a fence to prevent this.

Any other words of wisdom from the router experts?  Or bad examples from the novices?

Apollo:
Practice on scrap first. Put the blade on the right way round ( slot cutting ).

DrewKaree:
Tighten down your bit.  Then, after you have done that, go back and check to see if you have tightened down your bit.  If you have, tighten down your bit.

These things spin ~20,000 RPM's, and trust me, from experience, you won't be able to tell WHERE it is if it comes out of your router, so don't think you're some macho guy who'll "just jump outta the way".

You'll be the lucky guy who gets to tell us all how it feels to stop a spinning router bit with your leg.....and how many stitches it takes to close that gaping wound.

If your router comes with a dust shield, use it.  If it comes with a vacuum attachment for your dust shield, use it.  If it comes with an "power on lock" for keeping it running with your finger off the power switch, DON'T USE IT.

And lastly, make sure you tighten down your router bit.

big daddy:
if you have a slotcutter bit, make sure the right side is facing up!  I'm pretty sure mine was upside down and I was cutting with the dull end.  By the time I flipped it around the original blade side was dull as well.  

Concur with the tighten the bit..mine came out during a practice run on some scrap...would have ruined the cabinet if was on the real one.   I thought it was tight, but apparantly not tight enough.  

Also do the cutting for the tmolding BEFORE assembly.  I know the BYOAC book says you can do either, but I had TREMENDOUS problems doing it once assembled.  Matter of fact, the cutting of the tmolding groove with a router should be one of the easiest things to do in your cabinet, but it was far and away my most difficult

KrawDaddy:
Buy a 4 foot piece of 2" steel angle iron from lowes and some C clamps.  Use this as a fence and always cut left to right.  and put the circular saw away.  There a material wasting nightmare.

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