[hawkeye10]

I have been routing with my new Whiteside 1/4" spiral flush trim bit. At full speed "23,000 RPM" it seemed to not be cutting all that good. Don't get me wrong it doing okay I just thought it might do better at a slower speed. So I slowed it down to around 18,000 or 20,000 RPM. I seemed to get a better cut. My question is do you play around with the router speeds to get a better cut?

 

[Stick486]

My question is do you play around with the router speeds to get a better cut?

yes...

 

[CharleyL]

Some things do cut better at slower speeds. Some do better at higher speeds. I also slow my router speeds when using any bit larger than 3/4". The larger the bit, the slower I run it for safety more than cutting quality. I have a large Freud Shaker style panel raising bit that I worry about when I run it at 11,000 rpm. I would never dare to run it any faster, and I'm glad that I bought a good brand name bit for doing this. I don;t think I have the nerves to run a large Chinese bit at even this slow speed.

Charley

 

[hawkeye10]

I was just wondering if any one else adjusted their speed. When routing with the WS bit I just thought it could do better.

 

[kp91]

Feedrate and bit speed can go hand in hand. You might have been feeding the stock into the bit a little slow for full speed.

My old 690 is single speed, and you can see a difference in cut quality on some patterns, especially red oak, when you slow down for inside corners

 

[Quillman]

If the router shakes or if the cutter is out of balance, slow it down.
I suspect that one of the 2 was your problem.
A 1/4 (short, <3/4" long) cutter should be run to the max.