Dale For what you are cutting I would use my table saw. I have never used a straight edge guide. I prefer my table saw. There were a few projects where I needed a dado about 4" from the edge and my router table worked great for this For the last blind dado I cheated. I ran straight through then glued in a small piece at the end. It saved a lot of setting up time and no one knows, that is until now. If I were going to make a lot of dado cuts there is a jig that I thought about making. This may work for both your and Max's projects. Hope I can explain correctly. I first planned to take a 2'x4' piece of plywood and fasten a wood guide along the 4' edge. Now from that edge screw a squared 2' piece with a 5/8" stop near the other end Now you should be able to slide in a scrap 3/4" piece of stock and a c clamp at the far end will secure it. using the 2' guide, run your router through the jig cutting a small dado and You now have a jig that is set up for your particular router. By using the clamp to hold your good stock in place you will have a consistent way to line up and cut your dados. The reason for the 5/8" is to allow the 2' clamp to move down enough to secure your stock. I thought about this every time I made a dado cut maybe this will give me the incentive to actually build the jig. Lenny
----- Original Message ----- From: "Dale Leavens" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, December 29, 2006 1:50 PM Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] A router for Christmas. Lenny, Debate is healthy and you are correct for very small pieces. You only get a few inches between the table fence and the bit. Where this is all the room you need it works wonderfully well. If, as in the case of his radio desk or in the case of the dados I am cutting for this router station carcass, you require dados in long wide pieces then a router table can't do it. As Max got a router and not a router table I expect he will be requiring a straight edge guide I will be cutting dados 23 inches long and 17 inches from the closest end in two pieces, two more the same length and 15 inches from the nearest end in some horizontal pieces. There is no way I could use my router table for this even with the fence removed and using a miter gauge, it would require a router table at least 4 feet long and if using the fence a minimum of 17 inches plus the width of the base of the fence to just one side of the bit. Even the much larger station I am building won't accommodate that sort of table mounted dado cutting. If cutting for something like floor to ceiling book shelves just supporting the gables while pushing through a router table would be challenging. I will be very surprised in deed if max would be able to cut dados for shelves in a desk with a router table. Of course I could be mistaken. I was wrong once before I think it was 1983. Dale Leavens, Cochrane Ontario Canada [EMAIL PROTECTED] Skype DaleLeavens Come and meet Aurora, Nakita and Nanook at our polar bear habitat. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Lenny McHugh" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, December 29, 2006 11:44 AM Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] A router for Christmas. > Max, I can not agree with Dale. > Most of my dado cuts are made with a stacked dado blade in my table saw. > However I do make some with my router table. It is easy to set up the > router table fence as opposed to clamping a guide to the stock. > Lenny > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Dale Leavens" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Friday, December 29, 2006 9:52 AM > Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] A router for Christmas. > > > Hi Max, > > You will find a router to be a very useful and quite versatile woodworking > tool. There are many who believe it to be the superior way to cut dados, > certainly they can do a very good job, particularly cutting blind dados > and > sliding dovetails. I am not sure I always agree, I really like a dado > blade > in my table saw for a lot of that work too, the table is larger and the > rip > fence makes set-up very quick but a router forms a perfectly flat bottomed > groove although there are those who claim the double groove at each edge > of > a properly dado blade cut provides some space for the glue. > > If ever I have a problem with cutting dados with a router it is only in > keeping it tracking absolutely straight. There are many ways of > accomplishing that, the most important is moving in the direction of the > cutter. When cutting a dado one side of the cutter is moving against the > direction of the cut while the other edge is moving in the other > direction. > The point is that you are pushing the cutter against the direction of the > cut so it tends not to pull the router along and therefor out of control. > > I prefer to use guide bushings inserted into the router base just because > it > is easier to get the cut positioned. The collar is like a short tube > projecting below the baseplate through which your bit protrudes. If you > are > cutting a three quarter dado you fit a collar a little better than three > quarters inside diameter the outside diameter will probably be 14 16ths so > you can clamp a straight piece of quarter inch or half inch plywood within > a > sixteenth of an inch from the true location of the dado and set the router > on that guide and follow the edge with the collar. > > The other way to do it is to include the width of the router base divided > by > two and minus half the diameter of the bit and clamp your straight edge > there. I have done this many times too but getting the location exact can > be > a little frustrating. For example, if the dado is to be 3 quarters of an > inch and the router base is 7 inches in diameter then you will offset the > straight edge guide half the diameter of the base = 3.5 inches minus half > the diameter of the router bit which is 3 8ths so you will place the > straight edge three and one eighth inches from the desired edge of the > dado. > If you want a stopped dado say three quarters from the edge of your board > that all gets a lot harder but much easier using a collar. > > I have made up templates for cutting the stringers for stairs and cut them > with a router. > This is the only way to go in my view. > > If you will be doing any amount of wood working you will also soon want a > router table. > > I now have three routers, a monster plunge router from Australia, a > 'D'-handled one from sears and a nice little porter-Cab;e. They all have > their strengths and weaknesses. Just now the sears is mounted in a router > table and I had to remove a handle to get it there, it isn't my favorite. > I > really like the little Porter-Cable it seems to take all my collars and > such > but requires two wrenches to remove the bits and the switch is a toggle > switch, not ideal. > > The big Triton is a variable speed with two position plunge but, as it > stands I don't see how to instal collars, it is big and heavy and the > switch, though very safe is difficult to manipulate. It is behind a > sliding > door, you slide the door then press the rocker switch with your thumb. > when > you press it off the door springs over it so you cannot accidentally turn > it > on but believe me, deliberately turning it on is something of a > production. > It does come with a very nice combination circle guide and a fence out to > about 7 inches which is easily attached and removed and wonderful for > cutting dados out to that distance. It is a pretty expensive router and > very > powerful. > > I would like a really small one for trimming and such and maybe a small > plunge router but I can't imagine Janet allowing me five or six of them. I > have destroyed a cheap Black & Decker router and a rather valuable Sears > electronic variable speed router over the past 25 years or so. > > Yesterday I began cutting plywood in preparation for building a router > table > of more decent size. I began recording bits of the process however the > recorder I have isn't doing a wonderful job, I have another better one and > will get some batteries for it today and maybe a cheap separate mike. I > sent > the last mike I had to my daughter for her Skype. As I began cutting up > the > plywood I discovered it to be warped, maybe because it has been standing > in > my shed too long, I will probably use a router to cut the dados in that > because it will sit flatter on the panels than I will get with my table > saw, > the saw though will permit much more rapid set-up. > > Do have fun with your new router and if I can be of any help just let me > know. > > > > Dale Leavens, Cochrane Ontario Canada > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Skype DaleLeavens > Come and meet Aurora, Nakita and Nanook at our polar bear habitat. > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Max Robinson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: "Blind Handyman" <[email protected]> > Sent: Friday, December 29, 2006 12:26 AM > Subject: [BlindHandyMan] A router for Christmas. > > >> Hi all. Sue gave me a Ridgid router for Christmas. I used the article >> about >> routers to pick it out but now I would like some hints, dos and don'ts of >> using it. The radio desk has been started. I intend to use the router >> to >> make the dados. >> >> Regards. >> >> Max. K 4 O D S. >> >> Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> >> Transistor site http://www.funwithtransistors.net >> Vacuum tube site: http://www.funwithtubes.net >> Music site: http://www.maxsmusicplace.com >> >> To subscribe to the fun with tubes group send an email to, >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> >> >> >> To listen to the show archives go to link >> http://acbradio.org/handyman.html >> or >> ftp://ftp.acbradio.org/acbradio-archives/handyman/ >> >> The Pod Cast address for the Blind Handy Man Show is. >> http://www.acbradio.org/news/xml/podcast.php?pgm=saturday >> >> The Pod Cast address for the Cooking In The Dark Show is. >> http://www.gcast.com/u/cookingindark/main.xml >> >> Visit the new archives page at the following address >> http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ >> For a complete list of email commands pertaining to the Blind Handy Man >> list just send a blank message to: >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> Yahoo! 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Groups Links > > > > > > > To listen to the show archives go to link > http://acbradio.org/handyman.html > or > ftp://ftp.acbradio.org/acbradio-archives/handyman/ > > The Pod Cast address for the Blind Handy Man Show is. > http://www.acbradio.org/news/xml/podcast.php?pgm=saturday > > The Pod Cast address for the Cooking In The Dark Show is. > http://www.gcast.com/u/cookingindark/main.xml > > Visit the new archives page at the following address > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > For a complete list of email commands pertaining to the Blind Handy Man > list just send a blank message to: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Yahoo! 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