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Bowl routing set

Roger Tulk

Roger Tulk

Member
Messages
3,018
Location
St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada
I've a hankering to try some routed bowls this year, perhaps 2" deep for various purposes like keeping coins and cufflinks on a dresser, or putting out nuts or candy for guests. I have an 11amp fixed and plunge router, and ¼", ½", and 3/4" template guides. So, what would be the minimum set of router bits I would need to hollow out the bowls, clean the bottoms, and smooth the edges? Please?
 
I have a 3/4" diameter and a 1-1/8"(?) diameter bit. Both are Whitesides and are bearing guided; they work very well. The reach of the router is an issue here. Bit extenders are required for bowl depths beyond what your router will reach on its own.

I tried an MLCS extender and it worked OK but left me with a lot of sanding to do as it was less than perfect and caused a reasonable amount of vibration. A very similar extender did a better job but, of course the two cheap ones cost me what a good one would have had I bought one in the first place :eek:. A sanding attachment like the "new wave" sort of offerings makes the finish sanding a breeze. A few suppliers carry them and offer different densities and sizes. I found the medium pad to work best for the domestic hardwoods I use. Although there are an array of expensive "better" ones out there, I have used this one quite a bit and it shows little signs of wear.
 
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Glenn, thatks very much. Do I need a bottom-cleaning bit, or just use a bowl bit? I think I can get a lot of this stuff at LV.

Carol, I have a lathe, but I want to make square and odd-shaped boxes first. I got the lathe to make spindles, and I'm not ready to take on bowls yet.
 
Roger Tulk said:
Do I need a bottom-cleaning bit, or just use a bowl bit?
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If I am making a bowl that has sharp turns (like a chili pepper) I will use the 3/4" bit for the outer lip and the 1-1/8" bit for bottom cleaning. If the bowl is round or smoothly free-form, I use the 1-1/8" bit for everything. I do use a forstner to hog out the bulk of the waste. This eases the load on the router/bit. Do take the center spur into account and dill no deeper than 1/16" shy of that point. Then the bowl bit smoothes everything out and the sanding is minimal. I do use an auxiliary router plate that is plenty big enough to avoid falling into the bowl ;-) Plastic is nice so you can sort of see whats going on but, I have used plywood as well.

P.s. Lathes are for sissies :rofl:
 
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Roger Tulk said:
Well, if I go visit my daughter in Toronto, I can just walk a couple of street over from her place, or I can stop in Burlington on the way. I dropped into the Toronto store yesterday, after the baseball game which the Jays lost.
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OK . . . Its official . . . I hate you :D
 
I've done it with the CMT extender and a Freud 2 1/4 HP router. I used Brazilian Cherry. Never again, the bowl is good looking but it was hard work. Be sure to check the extender bit in the collet often, mine wanted to come loose and needed tightening often. Like I said, there are better things to do in life.

DKT
 
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