Molder heads?

Dom DiCara

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Just curious if anyone uses molding heads on their table saw...like Magic Molder or the Corob type.

http://corobcutters.com/

The wife needs a stocking stuffer for me. I always use me Dewalt router and table for any edges. But I am thinking that this might be one of those tools I get and put in a box and forget about.

Thoughts?
 
dom, i used a similar version to this many years ago and done a complete kitchen with it.. the one i had was a craftsman brand,, back when they were better than now days.. had no complaints with it at all.. the other one yu mention will be in my drawer someday, its pricey but built very well.. as for your use and will it collect dust.. well yu need to look at what you like making and what yu have to make in the future..and then look at the cutters that it has that could help you out in the process of making it..
 
I've got a Magic Moulder, and a Magic shaper head from LRH. Both work pretty darn well.

I bought the shaper head for making a really dumb panel profile for raised panels. That's actually the only thing I've used it for, and it was just one job. I did buy a plug for making a small trim for doors, but have yet to use it.

The moulder head for the tablesaw I use all the time for making beads for cabinet backs. Works really well, but I end up doing it in MDF alot and it dulls them quickly. Just like anything else I guess.
 
Great timing. I need to make some molding for going around the base of the cabinets int the kitchent. Haven't been happy with any of the router bits I've seen and it seems to me it'd be easier to rig up the table saw to run the molding through than the router table...

Thanks!
 
Thanks to all. The Commander in Chief has her marching orders. A lot of the furniture I build needs VERY intricate moldings for mirror trim, Door trim etc. And trying to get Router or shaper bits to do it is like a treasure hunt. The nice thing that I see with the Corob head is that adjusting depths will give you a different cut, as well as the fact that you can make multiple passes with different cutters to get exactly what you want. The cost on the Corob is not bad, so thinking about Karl said about dulling, either sharpening or replacement should not break the bank.

Looks like it is a go.

Thanks again guys
 
those inserts on the corbid can be made alot places dom and yu can get custom profiles to match what yu are after..as for depth changing the profile, so does tilt as well!!!
 
molder heads

Dom, I don't have either one of those that you show in your post...but I do have the Craftsman brand, and it works well with no trouble. It is like the one
shown to the left side of the picture instead of the other one.

I have used it with great results and will use it again as needed. Some folks on another site that I frequent, say things like " it scares the the bejeebers out of me"
or is "sounds like an airplane fixing to take off" or something like that, true it is
noisier than a standard saw blade...but it does have more physical mass
spinning around than a saw blade does too! Remember to expose only a small
amount of the cutters above the saw table (1/4" or so) and use fingerboards, hold downs,
and push sticks when making moldings on the table saw and you should have no trouble....I haven't...common sense goes a long way with these tools!:thumb:
 
I have the Delta version for my saw and as others have said, it sits and collects dust. But, it's there when I need it and usually a life saver! Like running bead on panels and such.
If you have a shaper and use it quite often you should think about getting a molding head for that. The come in several sizes to accomodate whatever height knife you need and you can get any profile you want cut.
I have 2" and 5" high molding heads that I use. What ever profile I need I have a company I deal with in Maryland that cuts them for me very reasonably and I usually have the knife inside of a week from when I order it.
With those two heads I can run anything from a simple bead or cope and rails to a 5" crown and everything in between.
 
I have the Delta version for my saw and as others have said, it sits and collects dust. But, it's there when I need it and usually a life saver! Like running bead on panels and such.
If you have a shaper and use it quite often you should think about getting a molding head for that. The come in several sizes to accomodate whatever height knife you need and you can get any profile you want cut.
I have 2" and 5" high molding heads that I use. What ever profile I need I have a company I deal with in Maryland that cuts them for me very reasonably and I usually have the knife inside of a week from when I order it.
With those two heads I can run anything from a simple bead or cope and rails to a 5" crown and everything in between.

Thanks Rich for the good advice....Frank was good enough to let have a go at his set.....The beading is what I am most interested in right now.....And a big thanks to Frank:thumb:
 
I own several of the Craftsman ones. In my business, I sometimes have to make some replacement siding, and they usually do the trick. Sometimes, I will use one horizontally in the RAS to create a profile that otherwise I couldn't make. I picked up my heads at yard sales, flea markets, when Sears dumped them a few years back. Never paid more than $20 for any of them, including several sets of different profile cutters. The 1" round nose cutter make a slick cove cutting bit. Very little sanding required. Yeah they are noisey but so is my planer.
 
Hi Bruce, Welcome to the Family!

To the others, can someone give this to me in little words. These cutters mount on the spindle normally used for a TS blade? And it will cut moldings? I'm having a hard time understanding this because routers and shapers have spindles that are usually vertical right? And the TS spindle is horizontal, right? Sorry if it's a stupid question.........:)
 
Hi Bruce, Welcome to the Family!

To the others, can someone give this to me in little words. These cutters mount on the spindle normally used for a TS blade? And it will cut moldings? I'm having a hard time understanding this because routers and shapers have spindles that are usually vertical right? And the TS spindle is horizontal, right? Sorry if it's a stupid question.........:)

it is a disc mounted to your T/s. the disc will hold 2-3 cutters that act lie a shaper when you run the stock through. Can also be used as a jointer.

The nice thing is that with the right metal working tools, you cam make your own cuts....comes in handy if you have to match old molding
 
Cynthia, here's a photo of a molding head and a few different cutters than can be put into the three slots. (Each slot gets a matching cutter. Each cutter you can see in the photo is actually a stack of three matching cutters.)

large


The whole contraption goes on your tablesaw like a blade (think of a dado blade), with just a little bit of it above the surface of the table. When you run a piece of lumber across the spinning cutter, you get a profile that matches the cutter. (Actually, it's the reverse - or negative - of the cutter.) Very similar to how a shaper or router works, just turned 90º into a vertical orientation. And being tablesaw mounted, it's limited to about an inch or less in width.

[Edited to add...]

Doh! I just realized Dom pretty much explained it, and in a lot fewer words. :doh:
 
Cynthia, here's a photo of a molding head and a few different cutters than can be put into the three slots. (Each slot gets a matching cutter. Each cutter you can see in the photo is actually a stack of three matching cutters.)

large


The whole contraption goes on your tablesaw like a blade (think of a dado blade), with just a little bit of it above the surface of the table. When you run a piece of lumber across the spinning cutter, you get a profile that matches the cutter. (Actually, it's the reverse - or negative - of the cutter.) Very similar to how a shaper or router works, just turned 90º into a vertical orientation. And being tablesaw mounted, it's limited to about an inch or less in width.

[Edited to add...]

Doh! I just realized Dom pretty much explained it, and in a lot fewer words. :doh:


No Problem Vaughn:)
 
I have the Craftsman head, + a shaper head from another company. It's been a long time since the last time I used them. I have re ground a set of cutters a few times, so I could make matching trim for someone.:rolleyes:
Heres one I made , so I could re produce window trim of a 100+ year old house. This made a triple bead in the middle of the trim, it's 1/2 the pattern. I did mount the power feeder on the table saw, made making the few hundred ft of trim easy, but still time consuming.
IMG_4721.JPG

IMG_4726.JPG
 
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