routing 101

[patl]

I have a feeling I'm asking a question that has a very obvious answer, but I can't see it If I need to rout a straight line, I can use batons to ensure the router's lateral position, but positioning the batons always ends up being trial and error. I really need a way of initially positioning the router bang on a centre line. All I can think of is to use a 45 degree bit to establish the centre point or is there a better way?

 

[foxhunter]

How long are these straight lines?
Look up the Wealden web site and check out Ron Fox's tips. http://www.wealdentool.eu/rf_tips/rf_tips_05.html

 

[AndyT]

I'm assuming you are doing something like cutting housings across a board and can't just use the fence to get your straight line.

With the cutter you want to use installed in the router, butt two strips of thin ply or mdf against a straight batten, which should be fixed down, behind them. Set the depth of cut just over the thickness of one piece and rout all the way along it.
You will then have a strip which is exactly the same width as the offset between your cutter and the batten you want to work against.
Mark this piece so you don't throw it out, noting the cutter size it relates to. Use it to position your battens for the other cuts.

(The second strip was just a sacrificial piece so you could cut right through.)

 

[barkwindjammer]

With the router unplugged, put a V grooving bit (or a suitable size drill bit, 1/4, 1/2 ) in the collet, place the router on top of a piece of paper or card, mark the edge of your base plate on the paper/card with a pen/pencil, press the router down (still unplugged ) this will mark a dot at the centre point on the paper/card (this is your template), place the router at start of cut with the V bit (or drill) on the centre of the cut line, take the paper/card (template) to the other end of your cut line and use it to place your straight edge.

 

[carlb40]

Have a watch of this

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/videos/adju ... t-jig.html

 

[patl]

thanks all. It's establishing the centre point of the routed hole that I was having problems with really but barkwindjammer has the answer, thankyou, a 1/2 inch drill bit. I didn't think of that.

 

[andersonec]

If you have a look here at about 2 minutes in http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cb6hcr86ke4 it will explain (in video) what AndyT is tying to tell you.

Andy

 

[WellsWood]

thanks all. It's establishing the centre point of the routed hole that I was having problems with really but barkwindjammer has the answer, thankyou, a 1/2 inch drill bit. I didn't think of that.

I may be missing something here (wouldn't be the first time), but what's wrong with measuring the diameter of the base and dividing by 2?

 

[Eric The Viking]

thanks all. It's establishing the centre point of the routed hole that I was having problems with really but barkwindjammer has the answer, thankyou, a 1/2 inch drill bit. I didn't think of that.

I may be missing something here (wouldn't be the first time), but what's wrong with measuring the diameter of the base and dividing by 2?

In theory you're dead right, the trouble is that so many of these things now are built down to a price that the rim of the base is only approximately round and the cutter approx. central. It's OK until you twist the router in use, then the cut line wobbles. Steve Maskery mentioned this recently, comparing old Elu routers to their modern copies. The Elu apparently was dead-on but the modern ones aren't.

I think you're better off with the sort of router that has a flat on one side of the base (or grind your own!). That way, once you've established the distance from the axis to the flat, you're pretty safe. The approach of cutting the reference edge (a sort of auto-jig), only works IF either the router base is concentric with the cutter axis or you don't rotate the machine in use.

Of course it all depends on how much accuracy you need. Experimention is probably the key to this.

E.

PS: I've got a feeling this is one reason why commercial worktop jigs use a guide bush rather than the edge of the router base. You should centre the bush on the axis as part of the setup (my Trend came with an alignment tool for doing exactly this with the standard 30mm bush, although I've not yet needed to use it this way).

 

[AndyT]

That's an interesting but sad bit of information Eric. I don't do much electric routing and my only router is a 1/4" Bosch that I bought some time ago. It would be so annoying if the base was not properly a circle, centred on the cutter! I'm not the sort of person who loves to build a jig if I can manage just as well by clamping a bit of batten to the work.

 

[Eric The Viking]

I have to say my little Bosch POF500 and 600 are both pretty good. It's the 1/2" one that is a bit, er, approximate. The problem I have with the older Bosch is that I used the flat on the base so much it got a bit rounded. I bought a new base from Miles tools, which is fine (couldn't bear to chuck it out, as the motor is still excellent, after 20 years or so of use). I ought to use a sacrificial base really, but I'm lazy, too!