Routing Downhill

glenn bradley

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I have seen and used the phrases "routing downhill" or "routing with the grain". In roughing out some shop made pulls I had a good example to show this and so here we go:

You can easily see the grain direction in these pieces. One piece is the master that I shaped by hand, It is double-stick taped to the rough blank to act as a template.

Routing Downhill (1).jpg

Because of the arc, in order to route downhill I would start at the inside tip and stop at the 'throat' where the grain changes. The bearing is riding on the template piece.

Routing Downhill (2).jpg . Routing Downhill (3).jpg

Likewise, I would start perpendicular to the grain and route towards the "throat" for the other arc stopping before I round the arc and start routing "uphill".

Routing Downhill (4).jpg . Routing Downhill (5).jpg

I then raise this top/bottom bearing bit and flip the pattern piece to the bottom and perform the same steps. Again the bearing is riding on the template piece which is then be on the bottom. Sorry, I just realized I got no pics with the bottom bearing in use, how embarrassing.

Lowering the bit I flip the template to the top and route half of the outer arc. I start in the center and route away and downhill toward the tip.

Routing Downhill (6).jpgRouting Downhill (7).jpg

I then raise the top/bottom bearing bit and flip the pattern piece to the bottom again and perform the same steps for the other half of the outer arc.. Again the bearing is riding on the template piece which is then be on the bottom. This gets me the rough blanks for these shop made pulls. the two long ones in the foreground for the drawers and the split pair in the rear for the doors.

Routing Downhill (8).jpg

If this makes no sense without the pictures of the lower bearing in use I would gladly simulate that action and take some extra pics.
 
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Glenn, it appears that you are basically "climb milling" which yields a better finish due to the geometry of the cut "chip" (thinner on the trailing edge of the chip), as opposed to conventional milling (thicker on the trailing edge). Although the bearing provides depth control, isn't there still a slight tendency for the bit to want to grab as it exits the cut on the tip or edge?
 
Glenn, it appears that you are basically "climb milling" which yields a better finish due to the geometry of the cut "chip" (thinner on the trailing edge of the chip), as opposed to conventional milling (thicker on the trailing edge). Although the bearing provides depth control, isn't there still a slight tendency for the bit to want to grab as it exits the cut on the tip or edge?

I am routing right to left but, realize the pictures may not be telling the story as well as I had intended with the arcs versus the grain direction and all that :eek:. Climb cutting would be left to right (on a table) and I do use that technique sometimes but, not here. The focus here is in cutting with the grain as opposed to against it. With mirrored shapes (or simply reversing grain patterns) you can be faced with routing into (against) the grain. A top/bottom bearing bit allows you to route with the grain nearly always.
 
Ooops, I had the cutter rotation backwards. I realized you were cutting right to left, but for some reason I had CW rotation in mind, not thinking that the router was bottom up. :huh:
 
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