[Woodcarver] Question about plunge routers

[Donna Menke]

I was relieved to see you recommend upward spirals, Bill. They pull the chips away from the tip and towards the router. It seems to be a better way than the downward spirals they were talking about, imho.
Donna Menke
http://www.woodworks-by-donna.com 
Author: The Ultimate Band Saw Box Book

----- Original Message ----
From: Bill Judt <bjudt at sasktel.net>
To: [Woodcarver] <woodcarver at six.pairlist.net>
Sent: Wednesday, December 5, 2007 7:41:43 PM
Subject: Re: [Woodcarver] Question about plunge routers


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About router bits:

The spiral router bits sold by Lee Valley tools (Onsrud bits) are excellent for wood removal in relief carvings, up to 1-1/2" depth. Take a look at these bits at:


http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=42891&cat=1,46168,46171


These are upward spiral bits, available in both Carbide and HSS. They are far and away superior to conventional single and double flute router bits.


Believe me, I have gone the full route with router bits for relief carving applications over the years, and these spiral bits are EXCELLENT... so much so that I even sent a note to Lee Valley Tools stating the same.


BTW, for relief carving choose bits that are either 5/16" diameter or 3/8" diameter. Smaller bits fatigue and twist off, and don't have the speed at the cutting edge that the larger bits offer. Bits that are larger than 3/8" are too wide to fit into the smaller spaces.
For each of these sizes you will likely have to purchase... at nominal cost... the appropriate collet for your router and the bit. These too are available at LVT. 


Hope this helps,

 Blessings and Peace,

Bill

My books are for sale at: http://wwwoodcarver.com/Books/index.html
W.F. Judt,
46 Harvard Cres,
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan,
S7H3R1
PH: 306-373-6649
bjudt at sasktel.net
Website: http://www.wwwoodcarver.com










 

On 5-Dec-07, at 12:40 PM, Byron wrote:

I'm with Donna here.  Bigger isn't necessarily better.  A smaller router that easier to handle would be my choice for removing waste for relief carving.   Speaking of smaller, I have the router attachment for my Dremel, it works quite well for many things that don't require dragging out the bigger router.

Byron