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end mills

EPC said:
After reading Terry's posts on ball nose end mills & flat bottom bits I started looking at a book in my shop KBC tools & machinery(www.kbctools.com). Talk about choices. At least Terry narrowed it down on what to use/buy. Before I ordered or checked Harbor Freight, I wondered.
Has anyone ever used the dremel with its router attachment for free hand lettering? Dremel does have many high speed cutting bits.
EPC
Thanks Terry,
I'll check e-bay.
Ed
 
just a quick summary question,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

is the trim router nothing more than a baby sized "big" router? is it the same thing, just smaller? iv'e purchased one through www.homier.com (thanks to terry) and have actually never used one before (trim router).

besides, the price for a 15 piece router bit set along with the router only came to 26 dollars and some change (including tax/shipping) not bad at all, especially when it's a nice hit or miss!!!!!! :sold:

shawn
 
Discussion starter · #24 ·
You got it, Shawn... just a small router,, used for light duty routing jobs, when using a full sized router is maybe just too bulky

That little bugger you ordered should give you a good chance to get your feet wet as far as using small routers,,, use it for a while and you will get a feel for the times when the job calls for a larger router.. but with the right attachments, you will be supprised how much you might find yourself using the smaller one,, and the great thing is,,, you spent practically nothing to get started.
 
if i knew that,,,,,,,,i could have used it on the shadow box that im making right now. i used the big router and the project is so small that it was difficult to use the router. made it a big struggle. now i can't wait to get this trim router!!!!!!!!!! i wish i would have known!!!!!!!

shawn
 
Hello Terry,

The trim router came in handy today since I forgot to round over the legs to the new cedar table I am building before gluing them into place. It now sports a small round over bit but will soon have a small corebox bit mounted and used for some signs I am going to try my luck at free hanging them. Trying to get a load of stuff made to take to family in Texas. If gas prices will drop a little lower soon then I can make the trip.

I have a piece of Pretty Oak Pallet wood that I am going to make a Office door sign for my sister after I try my luck on some scrap.

Thanks for the suggestion of the trim Router. I may purchase another one from HF soon. LOL
 
Hi Randy.....

yes, those little routers have their place in the world,,, I used one of mine to round over the whole arch way around the room I am redoing now, and also the molding around the edge of the dormer on the other side of the room,,, With a 1 inch round over bit,,, I thought, maybe I was asking it to do a bit more then it would handle,,, but it worked like a charm,,, Its not a full sized,, heavy duty router,, but they will still do an amazing amount of work,,,

Reds21 ordered one of those small routers from a company that I think, Pop Pop posted up here,,, they were selling a trim router for just $9.99 !!!! ,,,, not sure if he pluged it in yet but when he spins it,,, maybe he will tell us how it worked and if its going to work for what we want it to,,

He said he got the order in just one day !!! so I ordered some stuff to see if the shipping was that fast for real,,,, and I was amazed,,, I ordered it on the net a little past midnight when I got home from work and it was just dropped off by the UPS truck a few minutes ago,,, so it really does take only 1 day to get your stuff,,, amazing company !!!

Oh yeah I almost forgot to say the name, hahahah its www.homier.com


When ya get the sign done,,, post a picture of it,,, I would get a kick out of seeing it...
 
yes, i have received the trim router but have yet to put it to the test. i turned it on but thats about it. i am hoping to run into some wood with it this weekend!!!!! i will most definately keep you updated on the quality!!!!

shawn
:D
 
Thanks Shawn for the link I couldn't believe the prices incrediable. Dirt cheap yeah keep us informed of the quality might go there and do some shopping.
 
Hello Glenmore,

I have already been to Homier and have built myself a wish list. I can send it too you if you are placing a order soon. LOL ;) :D I wish they were here in my area. It would be great to be able to shop at both HF and Homier.

I just finished building my second table and now time for a little light sanding and then the Liquid Iron stain.
 
Hi vagabon1

You can get a small router from 25.oo dollars to about 100.oo dollars, you don't need a high end router to make signs BUT I do recommend the Bosch Colt....

here's some links for just some of thems :)

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=44914
http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/smarthtml/pages/marvel_3in1_router.html
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_hi?url=search-alias=tools&field-keywords=bosch+colt&x=15&y=23

=========

how much do these small routers cost if you don,t mine.thanks they sound like they would be easier to use for my signs, thanks again.
 
Im new to this magical forum I was admiring your work & just thought I would add my appreciation & where do you guys come up with these hysterical quotes?even if were only rubbing virtual shoulders it really motivates me to greater things..thank you & agood weekahead to you & yours..Charlie(CdG) France
 
Hello Terry,

my name is albert, living in cologne (germany). So, i'm a new member in this forum an my hobb's are woodworking. First of all, sorry my english. I have read your thread and it is very cool what you made. But my question is:

What kind of router and bits you used and if you like can you give me tips about modification for the router (like Plexglas Plate.."

thank you so much

Albert
 
Discussion starter · #37 ·
Hi Albert,, nice to hear from you,,, Actually you can use just about any router for making a sign,, but I like to use just a small, trim router, smaller the better. just because its not so tiring, manuvering it around. The base plates on these things are maybe only about 3 or so inches square, so it works better if you make a much larger base plate for it. I would make it at least 10 or 12 inches square, even larger if your making a very large sign wouldn't hurt. The reason for the large foot print of your base is, as the spaces between your letters or images, get farther apart,, the large base plate will span that space and not let the router tip into the sign, as it would if you just used the small origonal base plate.

It works well if you attach 2 handles so you can control the router,,, put them oposing each other at two oposite edges of the plate. so you can rest your palms on the work piece and just use your thumb and forfinger to hold and move the router.

As far as the bits go. I like to use end mills, from the metal working trade. They look about like router bits and do about the same thing. My job involves machining metals so I have access to them and just started to use em and they have worked out well for me. You can buy them on Ebay for very good prices, but you can buy them right from tooling catalogs just as easy and like I said, they work well and are priced right. I usually use 3/8 inch solid carbide, 2 flute, either ball or flat end, endmills. Regular router bits will also work for this. and actually if you wanted to use smaller cutters then 3/8's inch, its easier to just use router bits.

These links show that base plate,, I was looking for an old post that showed more pictures but could not find it ,, but its on here,, there are several pictures of signs others made also,, but if you get stuck,, just post the question up here and some one will come up with an answer for you. Looking forward to seeing your signs, Albert,, once ya get going on them,, you will see they are pretty easy to make after all, then get ready for the request ya will be getting from your friends for signs they would like to have.

http://www.routerforums.com/show-n-tell/2960-free-hand-router-sign-2.html

http://www.routerforums.com/portable-routing/3724-free-hand-sign-2.html
 
Hello,

thank you so much for the fast answer Terry and Dr. Zook,

Here a little more details about me. As already said, my name
is Albert. I living in Kerpen-Buir (a smal Village near Cologne). My occupation
was Network - Administrator (Gerling - Insurance at Cologne). My
hobby are Woodworking. I love Woodworking. My Hardware - Tools
are all of Festool. Which however still gladly to learn Signcarving with the Router.
And there, i have still another Question to Terry or dlane6110.

1. Terry, from which manufacturer is your router, or if there another good and
cheap Router. The reason for this question is, can i get
the Router in Germany (you now, Germany has 220 V)
2. Terry or dlane6110 (Please can you help me to make the Plate...)


Thank's all so much

Albert
 
Discussion starter · #40 ·
Hi Albert, Sorry,, I did not see your post, The small routers I like to use , I got from a company here,, called Harbor freight. The prices seem to fluctuate and I think I have bought them for as cheap as $14.99. And there is another company here called Homier, that sells em for as little as $9.99. I had to get a couple of them just to see if they worked,,, hahaha,, they did,, of course, they may not run for years,, but they did what I asked em to do. But they are !10 volt and 60 cycles,, I am thinking you maybe work on 220 volts and 50 cycles over there ? But again, I have not looked at any of them in maybe a year or two now, so maybe those prices have went up, with the increase in oil prices and what that does to shipping and manufacturing cost.

But really, any router will work for you. Its just that smaller ones are easier to handle and move around your work piece.

Best way I found to make a big plate is to take off the plate from your router and tape it to the piece of plexiglass you are going to use to make your new big plate. Make sure its taped down so it DOES NOT MOVE... and then carefully drill down though the 4 holes that the screws go through that mount the orgional plate to your router. Then remove the orgional plate. MAKE SURE you know what side the router will attach to, and then either counter bore or counter sink the other side so the screw heads will not stick up above the surface of the new plate,, put a router bit in your router and then attach the new big plate to the router. Once ya are all tightened down,, place the router on a piece of scrap wood,, and turn it on, and slowly lower the router down till it cuts a hole through the new big plate. You will want that hole larger then the router bit you will end up using to carve out your sign. I most of the time. use a 1/4 inch dia. bit. But here again,, there are no rules,, use what ever makes the most sense for you at the time, depending on how large your sign is. I usually end up just drilling the center hole out to the same size as the orgional base plate hole and be done with it. Also, dont forget to drill a hole near 2 opposing edges, counter sink the bottom side of that hole and use a flat head screw and screw it into a wooden dowl to make a couple of handles so you can control the router.

If you have any more questions, I or any one else on this forum will be glad to try and answer them for you. Do you use the comunication program called "Skype", Albert ? A bunch of us use that program and get on there quite a bit to just chat and shoot the breeze. Its free and a great way to comunicate and you can get your questions answered right away.
 
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