# router bit



## doitmyselfer (Jul 1, 2016)

So I'm new to this awesome tool known as the router. I'm in the works of flipping my house to help pay off my massive grad school loans and instead of forking over a grand to a cabinet maker, I'm trying to make new cabinet doors for my old kitchen cabinets to match my "new" craigslist cabinets. I'm stuck though trying to figure out what bit to use. It's just one simple bevelled edge cut around a flat panel door (Super plain but I lucked out on Craigslist finding solid oak cabinet doors).

The nice guy at Lowes tried to help, but he didn't get it right and I can't afford to keep buying the wrong bits.

I would attach pictures but the forum rules don't seem to like the idea (not sure what I should do if I can't post pictures). Any advice?

Thanks for your help in advance.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

welcome to the forums oh nameless one...
if you could be a tad more descriptive that would help...
and..
if the pictures are on the drive of the computer you are posting from you can post pictures....


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## 163481 (Jul 8, 2015)

What bit did you buy at Lowes that is not doing the job? A simple 45 degree beveling bit should get you where you want to go. In a hand-held router, you should first have a guide fence (a simple straightedge clamped to the door) set to the distance from the edge that will remove just the amount of material you want. And the height of the bit should be set so that it takes the same amount off the face of the door that it does off the side of the rail/stile. In a table-mounted router, set the bit height to the appropriate height and set the table's fence to trim the same amount off. Hand-held routers should be operated in a counter-clockwise direction around the workpiece (some people like to trim the rails first and then the stiles to minimize any end-grain tearout. In table-mounted router the workpiece should be moved from right to left. That may seem to be a contradiction but remember that the bit is in the opposite orientation so it's moving in the same direction relative to the workpiece.


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## doitmyselfer (Jul 1, 2016)

These might help
These are the Craigslist doors I'm trying to mimic. I've cut down 3/4 oak to size, routed out the inset (not sure if that is the correct term- but it's the inside of the door). Just need to figure out the correct bit for the outside edge which is ~1/2 inch thick.

The bit I tried and was unsuccessful with was a 3/16" roundover bit. The guy from lowes thought if I adjusted this bit to the right height I could achieve the edge I was looking for. I tried, but can't see it.

Erin


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## doitmyselfer (Jul 1, 2016)

Yes thank you. I'm quite the master of making do, been using a level and a couple of clamps for my straight edge. Not ideal (I've had a few oops moments, but most of them have been fixable.), but it has been getting the job done.

The wood that I'm using are the inserts you can get for dining room tables. My dad snagged them years ago from someone's trash pile for which I'm super grateful. 

Erin


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

so we make it official...
welcome to the forums Erin....

that notch is called a rabbet...
the entire cut is called a dust lip...
you cut that notch w/ either a straight bit or rabbeting bit...
depth of cut is controlled by bearing diameter...
or with a straight guide and bit w/o a bearing...
there are cabinet door edge treatment router bits sets that do those cuts in one pass...
but the price just may hurt your brain...

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a true dust rabbit is cut w/ a bit that looks like this...

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that slight radius is is done w/ a thumbnail bit...

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.


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## CharleyL (Feb 28, 2009)

+1 . Stick has suggested the best way to do this. It requires multiple bits and several passes, but the rabbet could also be cut on a table saw with a dado blade. I've made many cabinets with door edges like this, including many in my own house.

To get the bits set just right, use scrap wood and make test cuts until the shape of the cut perfectly matches the profile that you are looking for. This is especially true with the thumbnail bit. You can sometimes match the curve on older doors using just part of a large radius rounding bit instead of the thumbnail bit, but for new work that doesn't have to match old work, I think the thumbnail bit makes a nicer edge curve. Once the bit position produces just the right curve on the scrap, then cut the edges of your doors.

Charley


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Save the scrap piece that you get right so that you can reset the bit quicker if needed. They are called "dummy sticks".


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## billyjim (Feb 11, 2012)

+2 for Stick's advice. And if the first bit you bought wasn't the right one, I would take it back to Lowes. They are usually pretty good about returns.

Welcome to the forum Erin.


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