Offset Base on Plunge Router

glenn bradley

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Some gift items I have been making lately made me wish for an offset base plate on a plunge base. I had made an offset base plate and it fit this model router base but, was oriented wrong for what I wanted. I was going to drill an additional set of holes but, picked up this Rockler base on the cheap as it was missing a couple pieces that didn't matter to me.

Offset Plunge Base (1).jpg

The insert on this base sits over 1/32" shy of the base face(?) so I shimmed it out with some tape and an pieces of an old frequent flyer card.

Offset Plunge Base (2).jpg

These machined centering pins can really take your guided routing up a notch on detail work.

Offset Plunge Base (3).jpg

I center the base plate over the pin and mark the holes. I then drill a through hole and a counter bore to accept the screwhead.

Offset Plunge Base (4).jpg

The through hole and counter bore are over-sized to allow adjustment. Using the centering pin again I screw the base in place.

Offset Plunge Base (5).jpg

Now I can lower the motor with the usual grips and then move my right hand to the outboard handle position for better control over tipping. Any of you who have routed a juice groove in a cutting board or a piercing in the end of an A&C bookcase panel know that even a small tilt of the router spells disaster (or at least a very clever cover up). :D

Offset Plunge Base (6).jpg

The moral here is don't hesitate to make a modification if it will help you do things better, safer and more reliably. Most of all, have fun.
 
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where did you get the center tool glenn? to get the base centered is key on dovetails and in other applications as well

That is a Whiteside Machine product. I have a couple of them that came as "precision sets" with the collar and the centering pin packed as a set that I got at one of the woodworking shows. Woodcraft and others carry them though. I use the 5/8" collar more than most. Not real expensive; especially after you booger up that one perfectly figured piece of material you were working on :rofl:. So here's a juice groove, quick and easy with a good confident feel to the router as I was moving through it.

Cut-Brd-O-I (1).jpg

The board looks kinda freaky though the farther you step back from it :eek:

Cut-Brd-O-I (2).jpg
 
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Yeah, I really like the pattern on that board. :thumb:

I've got a centering pin for my routers. Both ends are pointed; one is 1/2" diameter and the other is 1/4". I think it came from Peachtree, but I don't remember for sure.
 
I love the look of that board. So far, I have been afraid to try a juice groove for fear I would mess up my board. Handles are another 'I'm skeered' thing too.
 
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People don't really use these beautiful boards I keep seeing, do they? I mean they don't cut things on those and put wet stuff on them?! They are for hanging on the wall, right? That is one super cutting board.
 
Very cool breadboard Glenn. I too wonder if people actually get down to using a board like this. Do you also soak tour boards in mineral oil?

I got a centering pin included in my milescraft sign kit i purchased from LV its needed for that use for sure but its plastic. I like those whiteside bits and like whiteside even more after that video of theirs. Looks like good old fashioned American quality we used to know the USA for. :thumbup:

Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk 2
 
I do use mineral oil. I also have a collection of the cast metal and plastic centering tools/pins. None of these actually pass through the opening but rather, rely on a cove to kind of "seat" into the opening. They're fine for many things but, as Larry pointed out, if you find your router joinery coming out 'not quite right', check your bushings/guides. An alternative is to mark a point on the router base and always keep that point against the template. This becomes impractical when routing completely around something or when following more involved patterns. Machined guides and pins are not a requirement but, for fussy things a well machined and well centered guide can make things easier.
 
Glenn... I'm not seeing it, how you do that juice groove. Are you really freehanding it?

Yep, freehand. They call me ole steady-hands Bradley. I can also shoot the rear leg off a flea at 20 paces with a snub-nosed 38 . . . . Oh, wait! None of that is true :doh:.

I am using a Trend Vari-Jig as discussed (somewhat) here.
 
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Glenn made his mom (Myrna) a fancy cutting board. He bet that we could not get her to actually use it.

Well she has it on the counter in the kitchen. I can attest to the fact that it has never seen steel in spite of what Glenn and I say to her.

The other day Glenn commented, "Well I'm glad I didn't give her the big one. It would have just taken up more space on the counter." He had decided not to give her the big one because of the weight and her arthritis. Oh well. You know how parents are with their kids art.

Enjoy,
JimB

Myrna really does enjoy the cutting board. Quite often she mentions how pretty it is.
 
My dad has two cutting boards I've made...one is a large end grain maple board that gets daily use, and the other is a curly maple board with a Pete Simmons laser inlay. That one is hanging on the wall. ;)
 
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