How do I use a router and what does it do
I thought I'd research the word router and this originates from a verb to rout. Rout is also a noun but this doesn't relate to our woodworking router. The definition of the verb appears to be to rummage or to hollow out or furrow, as with a scoop, gouge, or machine. So perhaps my definition of a woodworking router would be to gouge out or machine out some part of a piece of wood. This could simply be to make a groove or round the edges of a piece of timber.
The first routers were of course hand operated and were similar in appearance to a flat wood plane but having interchangeable narrow blades rather than the large flat blade. These blades would be shaped to make a grove or round the edge of the timber. A company called Elu developed some of the first electric products and I remember having a quality Elu router myself. I believe Elu is now part of the Makita power tool and Makita router range of products. The electric router was introduced in the first half of the last century but in fact was a very different product for achieving similar results and relied on a spinning cutter and was known as the spindle router.
There are two basic modes of operation for a router. The first is where we move the wood and maintain the router in a fixed position - usually to the underside of a fixed router table or bench. This mode lends itself to the larger workshop environments with the additional safety features and dust extraction systems. The alternative mode - more familiar to the DIYer - is the hand held power router or cordless router. The portable router is moved across the face of the timber, secured in a fixed position - normally with help of a guide.
The are two basic 'settings' you need to make before you switching on your router. Firts you must specify where the cut is to be made. If you are to cut a groove along the length of a board then you can either use a fence or guide attached to the base of the router or you can clamp straight edges to your board which will ensure the groove is in the position you require. This latter mode is the only suitable mode if the groove is beyond the few inches (or cm) of the router guide. The second control is to set the depth of the cut to be made and this is usually achieved by a depth guage on the body of the router.
Router cutters or router bits come in many different shapes. The different shapes allow you to use your router to cut square, vee and rounded grooves. There are more router bits to enable round, angular and decorative edge finishing. An edge finishing router bit has a spinning guide at the base of the cutter that prevents the blade cutting deeper into the timber. Generally speaking buying router bits can be a little of a lottery because you want the best bits but don't want to spend a fortune. Unless you need a large selection of router bits for professional work I'd suggest buying a set of router bits with most of the shapes you could ever envisage using. You'll probably also require 1 or 2 straight cutting bits and you may wish to pay a little more money to get the best you can afford if you are to use these bits frequently. For example you may wish to have a 3-4 mm straight cutting blade for groves and rebating edges of your chosen timber. A larger 8-10mm is always useful for taking a little timber off a wider area. Cheaper blades will soon lose their cutting edge and could scorch or burn the timer if you are not careful.
Most of the well known manufacturers have a range of routers and they include Dewalt, Makita, Bosch, Milwaukee, Porter-Cable and Ryobi. At the moment there are very few cordless router and it is understandable that many jobs are continuous and would demand a powerful battery system. Porter Cable have a 19.2 Volt Cordless Router for lighter jobs. You can also take a look at factory reconditioned routers to give you more more router for your $.
Once you've mastered the use of a router you'll be amazed how many tasks can be improved by using a router.
I thought I'd research the word router and this originates from a verb to rout. Rout is also a noun but this doesn't relate to our woodworking router. The definition of the verb appears to be to rummage or to hollow out or furrow, as with a scoop, gouge, or machine. So perhaps my definition of a woodworking router would be to gouge out or machine out some part of a piece of wood. This could simply be to make a groove or round the edges of a piece of timber.
The first routers were of course hand operated and were similar in appearance to a flat wood plane but having interchangeable narrow blades rather than the large flat blade. These blades would be shaped to make a grove or round the edge of the timber. A company called Elu developed some of the first electric products and I remember having a quality Elu router myself. I believe Elu is now part of the Makita power tool and Makita router range of products. The electric router was introduced in the first half of the last century but in fact was a very different product for achieving similar results and relied on a spinning cutter and was known as the spindle router.
There are two basic modes of operation for a router. The first is where we move the wood and maintain the router in a fixed position - usually to the underside of a fixed router table or bench. This mode lends itself to the larger workshop environments with the additional safety features and dust extraction systems. The alternative mode - more familiar to the DIYer - is the hand held power router or cordless router. The portable router is moved across the face of the timber, secured in a fixed position - normally with help of a guide.
The are two basic 'settings' you need to make before you switching on your router. Firts you must specify where the cut is to be made. If you are to cut a groove along the length of a board then you can either use a fence or guide attached to the base of the router or you can clamp straight edges to your board which will ensure the groove is in the position you require. This latter mode is the only suitable mode if the groove is beyond the few inches (or cm) of the router guide. The second control is to set the depth of the cut to be made and this is usually achieved by a depth guage on the body of the router.
Router cutters or router bits come in many different shapes. The different shapes allow you to use your router to cut square, vee and rounded grooves. There are more router bits to enable round, angular and decorative edge finishing. An edge finishing router bit has a spinning guide at the base of the cutter that prevents the blade cutting deeper into the timber. Generally speaking buying router bits can be a little of a lottery because you want the best bits but don't want to spend a fortune. Unless you need a large selection of router bits for professional work I'd suggest buying a set of router bits with most of the shapes you could ever envisage using. You'll probably also require 1 or 2 straight cutting bits and you may wish to pay a little more money to get the best you can afford if you are to use these bits frequently. For example you may wish to have a 3-4 mm straight cutting blade for groves and rebating edges of your chosen timber. A larger 8-10mm is always useful for taking a little timber off a wider area. Cheaper blades will soon lose their cutting edge and could scorch or burn the timer if you are not careful.
Most of the well known manufacturers have a range of routers and they include Dewalt, Makita, Bosch, Milwaukee, Porter-Cable and Ryobi. At the moment there are very few cordless router and it is understandable that many jobs are continuous and would demand a powerful battery system. Porter Cable have a 19.2 Volt Cordless Router for lighter jobs. You can also take a look at factory reconditioned routers to give you more more router for your $.
Once you've mastered the use of a router you'll be amazed how many tasks can be improved by using a router.
About the Author:
A wood working router is a tool capable of providing a professional looking finish to almost any wood working project. Take a look at our Video clip about Don't hurt yourself with a router. You may also want to browse around thepowertoolbox.com web where we have links to great bargains and many Manufacturer Reconditioned Cordless Power Tools
