Newbie to router

1256 Views 12 Replies 6 Participants Last post by Ken26, Oct 16, 2021

Ken26

Discussion Starter · Oct 11, 2021

Hello everyone,

Need to ask a question. I am making a charcuterie board out of glued 3 x 2 inch wood strips (total dimensions 24 x 16 x 2 inches) and want to use my router to dig out 3/4 inch of the depth leaving a rim of 1/2 inch around the circumference of the rectangle. Do I have to use a plunge router or can you get by without by just drilling a circle and chiseling or can you slowly lower the router thru a gig template and then follow the template.

Thanks,

Ken

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jw2170

· #2 · Oct 11, 2021

Welcome to the forum, Ken.

If I am picturing correctly what you want, I would use a router bowl cutter, in a guide bushing and with a template...

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old55

· #3 · Oct 12, 2021

Welcome to the forum Ken.

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Ken26

Discussion Starter · #4 · Oct 12, 2021

Ken26 said:
Hello everyone,

Need to ask a question. I am making a charcuterie board out of glued 3 x 2 inch wood strips (total dimensions 24 x 16 x 2 inches) and want to use my router to dig out 3/4 inch of the depth leaving a rim of 1/2 inch around the circumference of the rectangle. Do I have to use a plunge router or can you get by without by just drilling a circle and chiseling or can you slowly lower the router thru a gig template and then follow the template.

Thanks,

Ken

Thank you for your reply. Why do you need

jw2170 said:
Welcome to the forum, Ken.

If I am picturing correctly what you want, I would use a router bowl cutter, in a guide bushing and with a template...

Thank you for your help but your answer creates another question... why do I need a guide bushing? Wouldn't a bowl cutter and template work?

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roxanne562001

· #5 · Oct 12, 2021

Welcome to the forum

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TenGees

· #6 · Oct 12, 2021

You could use a bowl cutter bit with a guide bearing. What James has suggested is if you use a bit without a bearing.

Using a guide bushing requires you to allow for the difference in width between the bushing and the bit when making your template. The guide bushing method saves money because a guide bushing set can be used for many different bits and the bearing bits are more costly.

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John Smith_

· #7 · Oct 12, 2021

Ken - do you want the recessed area to look all straight and true like it was store bought or CNC made ?
or - have you thought about having that "Hand-Crafted" look where the lines aren't exactly straight and true.
I recently made a similar board for processing spare ribs (not serving hors devours). it had a rather large plexiglass baseplate and 2 different router bits. I guess it depends on your design of what the final product will look like.

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jw2170

· #8 · Oct 13, 2021

Thanks for making that clearer, Paul.

Neither of my bowl cutting bits have a bearing. My bad assumption was they are all like that......

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Ken26

Discussion Starter · #9 · Oct 13, 2021

Thank you John and Paul.

So, with the bearing I can just use a template. Do I need to switch from the bowl and tray bit to a bottom cleaning bit after I have cut the circumference of the tray?

By the way... I'm originally from Kansas City (best smoked barbeque on Earth... in my humble opinion). John, I hope your ribs came out well!

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John Smith_

· #10 · Oct 13, 2021

Ken - in my projects with a recessed bottom, a large flat cleaning bit will speed things up a bit.
just by comparing the flat surface area, you can see how large projects can benefit in time saving.
one very important thing is to create the edges first the best you can to obtain a large border area before using the flat bottom bit. if you run the flat bit into the rounded bottom, well, you can imagine the predicament you'll be in.
I intentionally mis-cut this project as I used a lot of hand chisels and gouges to make it look "hand-crafted" and rustic.
templates always make for a good finish.

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Ken26

Discussion Starter · #11 · Oct 16, 2021

Thanks for your help... I am starting my project today!

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John Smith_

· #12 · Oct 16, 2021

Ken - taking small bites of the wood and progressively going deeper in steps will get you the best results.
keep us in the loop !!
photos - we love photos !!

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Ken26

Discussion Starter · #13 · Oct 16, 2021

John Smith_ said:
Ken - taking small bites of the wood and progressively going deeper in steps will get you the best results.
keep us in the loop !!
photos - we love photos !!

Will do! I am first making my "prototype" with pine to seen how it goes and will graduate to hardwoods after I see how it comes out. Hardwood, I have found, is very expensive. I live in Fort Myers, Florida and have to travel to Sarasota (90 min) to find a lumber yard with an adequate selection and better pricing.

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