ring fence or bearing guides

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johnnyb

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I've got a juicy job coming up that got an arch top( it's a door see photo)
my previous spindle had a good solid ring fence. this one did not come with one. am I better buying a ring fence off the bay there's a kity one that's looks flimsy and overpriced at the minute. or making a sturdy one..
I could also buy a bearing with a 30mm bore and make some followers in ally( I've got a myford 7). the radius in the arches corners is fairly small ( maybe 4inch) so a ring fence may not follow it accurately.
I'm thinking I'd need an 82mm 81mm and 80mm follower to get the patterns. as my planer block is 80mm.
and 2 smaller than my 125mm rebate block. to give a 1/2 inch rebate so 6mm and then 12 1/2 mm rebate steps.
does all this sound sensible.
anything I've missed apart from such a tight rad may work easier with a router.
 

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I would just use a router for that, would be quicker and easier.

I'm not sure on the design of the door though, it looks like an off the peg door that has had the corners cut off to make it fit the opening?

If you are starting from scratch it might be nice to make something that looks a bit more original, for example having the top of the glazing follow the shape of the frame instead of the half circle shape?
 
I would just use a router for that, would be quicker and easier.

I'm not sure on the design of the door though, it looks like an off the peg door that has had the corners cut off to make it fit the opening?

If you are starting from scratch it might be nice to make something that looks a bit more original, for example having the top of the glazing follow the shape of the frame instead of the half circle shape?
Yes it's a very ugly door and frame. Track down some old photos and find out what was there before?
Not difficult to make up a ring fence with 18mm birch ply etc as long as you can fasten it down solidly to the machine.
 
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sorry your all correct that is one ugly door. she wants one with no glass based on a pre approved architects drawing( basically a framed ledge and brace with the arch.)its listed.I've found one down the road made by the same masons/ joiners but she's not sure on the stripes!
 

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I reckon 95% that's what it looked like. no doubt very fashionable in 1850.( around here anyway) but I can see her reluctance. I'm very familiar with that style having seen it many times growing up. it's basically framed ledge and brace with the addition of raised beading covering the gaps? I have made arches like that in 1 piece. that one looks to be 2 though.
 
Advantage of using a bearing is that it cuts the rebate/profile in one cut this is also the disadvantage as it can be a big cut!
If you make your own ring fence it can be any diameter and using a diameter larger than the cutter block means you take several passes until you get to the full depth cut in the sweet spot or 12 o'clock centre position.

Cheers

Peter
 
This looks like another positive for the spindle moulder, having never owned one I was not sure what the ring fence was but having watched this video



I was impressed by the fact that it cut a large profile in a single pass, not something a router would do. When I had to make a large curved piece I had to make it from several layers and in several passes.
 
I find ring fences are good but can be limited once the radius gets small enough.
I recently had a job with small curves in the top rail and so I had to get a bearing.
Quite cheap from Wealdon ( cheaper than a ring fence anyway) and you can get different collars to change the size.

I always trim the curves close with a bandsaw to avoid taking a giant cut.

Ollie
 
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I’ve used custom size turned MDF “bearings” on the shaft before, it’s not ideal and it can burn the work a bit as they rub against the workpiece but it can get you out of a pinch if you’re careful. Better yet are the bearing rings that allow for a custom sized wooden/MDF ring to be screwed to them but I haven’t seen one of those for a long time.

The most critical thing with using bearing rings and to an extent, the ring fence, is to have either a good amount of lead-in and lead-out on your templates, or a lead-in piece on the infeed side of the ring fence to help support the piece as you make the initial contact with the cutter, without this there is a high risk of kickback.
 
I've had a close up look at the original door and it's got a slightly mysterious construction. mainly because I can't access the inside. the planks on the outside are arranged thus
 

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here's the hardware. has anyone made anything similar?
It looks a bit of a fake. Having the door latch so close to the frame is a very modern knuckle crunching feature for starters. I'd look for some old photos.
 
it's not a fake well only in the sense it's a fake medieval castle door. it's from 1850 it's not a private house it's an old school made by the same builders.
 
the only way I can imagine of constructing a door like this is on a central ladder frame. so the board intersections align with the ladder frame rails maybe even a similar frame inside. the ladder frame edges need to be oak. anyone else seen this before? or got ant ideas
 
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