Popular Woodworking 2004-08 № 142, страница 43

WOODWORKING

ESSENTIALS

BY NICK ENGLER

Advanced Techniques For the Router

The router is an amazing tool that can mimic many of the other tools in your shop, including the table saw, the shaper, the jointer and even the planer. But it's also capable of amazingly delicate profile work, complicated joinery for any type of furniture you can imagine and shaping perfect circles and ovals. For the truly creative woodworker, the router is an excellent tool for making intricate inlay work normally performed by skilled hands alone.

Two things make these and other advanced router techniques possible: jigs and specialty bits. I've devoted more space than normal in this chapter

PRO TIP:

Rattle-free Doors

With a solid-wood raised-panel door such as the one shown here, it's important to leave a little room in the grooved frame to allow for panel expansion because of changes in humidity. That's smart, but the extra space can make the door rattle. By adding a strip of rubber tubing or weather-stripping foam in the groove prior to glue-up, the panel won't shift unnecessarily, but the tubing will compress, allowing the panel to expand.

some of my favorite router jigs because of this. Spending the time to make one (or all) of these fixtures will open up a new world of opportunities for you. I'm sure you can quickly think of many other ways to use these jigs for your woodworking than just the techniques I've mentioned here.

The specialty bits are a different story. In many cases they can be expensive, such as with a rail-and-stile set for making raised-panel doors. Each set often creates only one style of door profile. But if you think about the effort involved to create those profiles in a way other than

with a router, you'll quickly see the benefit to purchasing this pricey bit set.

There are other specialty bits that can create multiple profiles with a single bit, and I've listed some to consider in the "A Bit of Advice" section. These also will be able to adapt to your specific woodworking applications.

But please - feel free to try new ideas. If you combine the tilting router table shown with any of the specialty bits, you've made it easier to change the bits, and added a new dimension to your woodworking.