Due to their fairly specialized use, routers are one of those tools that you may or may not see in the shop. They are used for detail work primarily on wood, but are also used on soft metals and plastics. There are 2 main types of routers: fixed base and plunge. The former comes with a stationary base plate whose height can be adjusted for the depth of the drill, and the latter can “sink” into the workpiece by sliding vertically on 2 cylindrical axes.
Fixed base routers
Due to the design, fixed base routers are often the router of choice for mounting on router tables. They are also often made with larger and more powerful motors to suit various profiles. Personally, I find fixed base routers easier to use when doing even work, like putting a bevel on a lot of trim pieces. D-Handle Fixed Base Routers are one of my favorites for doing repetitive corner detailing, as the shape of the handle gives you more power and control when pushing along the workpiece.
plunge routers
The obvious strong point of plunge routers is that they can go both ways. – In other words, they are plunge routers, but they can also be locked to be a fixed base. The main drawback is that the handles are designed to push and pull, away and towards you, not side to side. So while they’re great for intricate detail work, like routing freehand lettering or other freehand designs, plunge routers are probably not the best choice for, say, routing long trim runs.
Having said that though, with more and more new designs coming out each year with new features, you can’t really put anything in a box.
Routers can be used for just about anything, stopping only at the limits of your imagination…and your selection of bits, of course. What used to cost you a lot with a chisel and hammer can probably be done easily with a few hits from a router. For example, I remember spending literally hours trying to mortise door hinges with a chisel, but soon discovered that I could accomplish this task with a router in a few minutes, and with much better results.
In the art department, routers are used extensively for carving letters and other artistic designs out of wood and can do so using a variety of methods. There are inlay kits with various shapes, French curves, and letter templates that your router can follow for amazing detail and accuracy. Routers often come with what’s called a “jig guide bushing,” which is basically a metal sleeve that mounts to the base plate that partially covers the bit from above, which it then pushes against the template or embedment. for greater precision.
Other devices that help accuracy are the “straight guide” and the “guide bearing”. The former is simply a guide that attaches to the base plate and is raised against the workpiece to guide it (much like a saw guide), and the latter is a bearing that is built into the bit itself, either below of the cutter or above depending on the bit. This bearing is pushed against the workpiece and rolls as the cutting section of the bit does the routing.
Some tips and things to keep in mind:
– Be aware of the direction the bit is turning relative to the direction the router is pushing. This is crucial for edge and corner work where you are pushing the router along the edge or corner of a trim piece or other finishing board. The bit should enter the workpiece by turning from the back and removing material as it exits the front. Doing this the opposite way will result in disaster. Instead of doing what it’s supposed to do, the bit will try to “jump” across the workpiece, likely causing irreparable damage. Watch out!
– Make sure you tighten the bit tight enough, for obvious reasons! Loose bits are not only extremely dangerous, but even if they are not completely loose, they can partially change the depth of the bit. I’ve had this happen to me and it wasn’t fun having to redo the job just because I couldn’t tighten it up a bit.
– If you are using a collet adapter sleeve, it can sometimes be difficult to remove the bit from the sleeve. This may seem like a no-brainer, but spray a little grease on the problem areas and this will quickly solve your problem.
– When trimming or routing thin boards that don’t allow your router to sit on them stably, you’ll want to align an identical board of equal height next to it to provide a wider seat. This will ensure that your router maintains an even level throughout the cut, which is very important. And on a similar note, you need to secure your workpiece so it doesn’t move during the cut. It is usually sufficient to place the work piece between 2 suitable boards fastened or screwed to the work table.
– Make sure your router has enough power to perform the task you have in store for it. Driving an underpowered router outside of reasonable limits will result in wasted time, ugly burns and blunt parts at best, and possibly even a broken and overheated tool. An alternative if this is all you have is to make several shallow passes instead of one or two deep ones. This is much more time consuming, but better than what is sure to come if you persist in the nonsense mentioned above. Trust me, it’s not worth it.
– Having a wide base plate is beneficial when a wider area needs to be excavated and you don’t want the base plate to slide into the section you already routed. Doing the two ends first and leaving the middle for last will often work, but it’s much less of a headache if you just have a wide base plate to start with. Many manufacturers make wide base plates that can be attached to an existing one or mounted in place of one. Just make sure it fits your model before you buy.