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slot cutting bit

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13K views 28 replies 9 participants last post by  jschaben  
#1 ·
I'm looking for a slot cutting bit that will cut a slot 1/16 wide by 1/16 deep. Ive tried to find many different combination's of bearing widths and slot cutting diameters but cant come up with anything that will give me a 1/16 inch deep cut. Id appreciate any help I could get with this problem Thanks Dave
 
#2 ·
Hi Dave - Welcome to the forum:)
Not much info to go on. Hand held or table work?
If table, use the fence to guide any depth you want. Hand held, would likely need a jig of some kind but not enough info to tangle with that.
 
#3 ·
Try padding it out so the bearing rides on the added material. This would lesson the depth of the cut. If your cut is 1/4" deep then add 3/16" material to the surface for the bearing to ride on to leave 1/16" for the depth of cut.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Hi Dave


Easy stuff with the right setup, just pickup the arbor below and a saw blade that is 3 3/8" in diam and 1/16" wide, put the blade on the arbor ,set the fence on your router table to cut 1/16" deep..it's just that easy..
The 2nd snap shot, is the blades stack up to put in some deep spline slots....on the router table.

You can get the blade from HD or Lowes for about 10.oo bucks..

G1438 Slitting Saw Arbor

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#6 ·
Thanks for all the excellent information on the slot cutting bit. I guess I should have explained that I'm cutting the slot in the side of a fly fishing net that has tight curves. I hope to do this on my router table and find the right diameter bearing to to go with the slot cutter. Thanks again Dave
 
#9 ·
Bob, thanks for the info. Im still having trouble finding a cutter smaller then 1 7/8 " O.D. or a bearing larger then 1 3/4 " O.D. If you know of any places that carry them id appreciate the Info. Thanks Dave
 
#10 · (Edited)
Hi Dave

Very easy to get around this one, pickup the slot cutter below than pull out your hole saw and make a bearing out some UHMW ...

1/16" #301
3 Wing Slot Cutter Router Bits
MLCS Slot Cutter Router Bits and Stackable Slot Cutter Set

hole saw kit â–Ľ
18 Piece Hole Saw Set


UHMW Plastic Sheets and Strips

What Is UHMW?
(Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene)

"Use this UHMW to make jigs and fixtures for your table saw , router table, etc.
UHMW Polymer (plastic) is a linear polyethylene with a molecular weight in the range of 3,000,000 to 6,000,000. This value represents the "average molecular weight". Therefore UHMW is 10 times heavier than regular high density polyethylene.

Characteristics:

* The highest abrasion resistance
* Outstanding impact strength even at low temperatures
* Excellent sliding material due to low coefficient of friction
* Self-lubricating
* Easily machined with common woodworking tools "

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#15 · (Edited)
#13 ·
Thanks Bob, interesting idea just curious how the plastic bearing would work clamped in the slot cutting arbor. Will the bearing face be slippery enough not to burn the wood, or would I have to cut the plastic to fit over the original bearing. Thanks Dave
 
#14 · (Edited)
Hi Dave

The UHMW stuff is VERY slick stuff,,I would take off the bearing and put the UHMW ring in it's place, you may need a small washer under it to keep it off the cutter and drill the hole out to 5/16" that's just over 8mm and it should be just right to let it spin on the arbor and not burn/mark the stock...

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#16 ·
Hi Dave

I was out in the shop and I said lets make one just for kicks, never know if I will need one down the road also :),,it's about 15 min.job, it will not spin on the arbor but that stuff is so slick it's not a big deal,,I use the little jig to get the disk dead on round after the disk was cut out with the hole saw and then taped the disk down on some scrap stock to get the center hole dead on center and to drill the 5/16" hole for the bit arbor,,
it must be dead on center..I was surprise no marks on the stock..so to say it's a go..

here's some snapshots below, hope it helps...

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#18 · (Edited)
Hi

1st. of all it's not plastic it's UHMW stock and it's only cutting a 1/16" deep slot about the same as a knife cut , I did it with no problems but he can use a lock nut if he wants and if it came lose it would just spin and not come off.. :) I would only run the router a 8,000 rpm's no need to run it at 20k..
BUT to make it real safe he could drill out a hole for a 3/4" OD bearing and press it in place but it's not a must have item for a real small job...



I do it all the time with a 3 3/8" saw blade without a bearing to cut off the tops on boxes.. :)


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#22 · (Edited)

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#23 ·
I want to Thank everyone for all the good comments and ideas. I especially want to thank Bob for all the work he put into doing set ups and taking pictures. I have ordered some of the UHMW plastic and had all ready decided to press it on a bearing, so it was nice to see that application. I had also thought about using two larger diameter spacers above and below the the bearing with the pressed on UHMW plastic bushing to keep that from sliding up or down. Id be interested in your thoughts on this idea. Thanks Again Dave
 
#24 ·
Hi Dave

You are welcome for my small part ,,,I tried the back up washers and it didn't work,it locked up the disk and would not let the disk spin, I also tried the shim washers to get it off the disk and bearing but the arbor was a bit to short to do all the stacking..the error can into play because the nut on the arbor must be tight to lock up the cutter to the arbor ..but still let the disk(bearing) spin free..


If you get it worked out pls.post some snapshots..I'm sure others would like to know how to make it..

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#26 ·
#27 · (Edited)
Hi Bob - Yeah, I was looking at eagleamerica but they stated somewhere, I think under the 10 piece slotting set that ALL slot cutters were 1-7/8" large diameter. That's what the OP already had which is why he's looking for the 1-3/4 bearing.
Found the Freud cutter with a 2" large diameter here:
cripedistributing.com : Freud Carbide 1/16" 3-Wing Slotting Cutter #56-100 [56-100] - $9.00
He could couple that with the 1-7/8" bearing from eagleamerica to get his 1/16" cut depth. Just don't know if he can use a shank mounted bearing with his setup though. :confused:

PS - that cutter is also available on Amazon, about double the $$ though...
 
#29 ·
Hi Ronnie, Welcome to the forum:)
As I understand it, you need to cut 1/16" wide and 1/2" deep.
MLCS Slot Cutter Router Bits and Stackable Slot Cutter Set

Scroll down to the 3 wing cutters, Item #301 for the cutter only. You can get the arbor and bearing as a set. As the set comes, it's supposed to give a 1/2" cut. :)