Thursday, March 28, 2024

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frontpage “Cutting a Straight Edge” Use the router with a pattern bit.

I don't have a track saw and my table saw sled is only about 24" wide so cutting a straight edge on a glued up solid wood piece wider than 24" can be a real challenge. Even those less than 24" that are very long are difficult to cut straight with the sled. I found the solution in my router. When I wanted to cut a curved piece I would put the pattern bit in the router and trim the rough cut piece to the exact curve with a pattern piece – why not do the same with straight cut using a straight edge as a pattern. I have a jig for my circular saw to make rough cuts when cutting out pieces from a large panel stock, so I used that to rough cut the straight edge. I left it about 1/16" proud of my final dimension. I then secured the straight edge to the end and ran the trim router along the edge for a perfectly straight and square edge.

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frontpage "Zero Clearance Insert" creates sharp precision cut.

First thing I did was cut six pieces of ½” MDF to the exact width and length of the original throat plate. Then I used the stock throat plate to trace around the MDF pieces and with the band saw I cut about 1/16” proud of the line. I set up my trim router with a flush trim bit (a router table with a pattern bit works great too). I secured the stock plate firmly to my MDF using double stick tape, and I trimmed the insert to the exact size. The test fit was perfect.

Read more: 11 Oct 2013 - Giving the Jet a new Insert

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frontpage "Buy the Tool and Build the Jig" Buy the right tool for the job and build the jig to make the job easier.

Woodworking provides a wide spectrum of challenges depending on you experience and training. If you are new to woodworking a basic mortise and tenon joint can provide an adequate challenge. If you are an experienced woodworker a free-hand cut inlay might be a good challenge; there are hundreds. For me, while I consider myself a pretty good woodworker, there are many basic woodworking techniques that still provide a challenge; even the perfect fitting tenon is occasionally elusive.

Read more: 12 July 2013 Woodworking Challenges

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