So Jeff, you are saying my circle and star would be two pieces and I guess that's groovy, but for stability would one piece be better or would the two sided tape hold fine? For a one piece jig I am guessing I would have to take the time to really do one exactly perfect.
I am pumped about finding this site, I am a long standing member of a music BBS, but it got too political for my tastes and everybody forgot about the art they started going there for in the first place and just wanted to argue with each other.
My mentor (a master luthier) used plexi for a lot of his really fine work jigs and would build the jig big enough to clamp outside the area he intended to use the router. He would clamp the workpiece, then clamp the jig. For the circle and star, I can see him using a very small router (even a Dremel) and a plexi jig with the jig clamped flat to a much larger work area with other blocks built for the purpose. I don't think you can overrate the design of your work area for this kind of stuff and since moving, I just haven't built one.
He would drill a hole, insert the bit and get after it with grace I wish I possessed. He was the man, but he is no longer with us and I miss his direction. I can see I need to start by figuring out what I will be building the most of and take the time up front to create the jigs I will use again and again. I figured as much, but everybody has too little time and with this as anything, if you want it nice, it takes time. If I am off base, please slap me.
Can anyone recommend 4 or 5 must have bits? At $8-25 a pop, I don't want to miss.
thanks
Trav