# Good bit for flush trimming thick stock?



## jimgo (Mar 15, 2010)

I'm a new member, and as usual, have an odd problem. As I mentioned in my introductory thread, I've been turning wood for a few years, but finally have a shop big enough to start doing some flat work. My first project is bunk beds for my oldest son, and in exchange for getting the OK to start the project, I had to come up with something my wife considered sturdy. Ultimately, some of the pieces are constructed from glue-ups of three 1"x6" boards, resulting in approximately 2.25" thick "stock". Unfortunately, as I was selecting and cutting the boards, I didn't realize that they had come from different suppliers, and apparently the suppliers had different rulers. One supplier's boards are 5.5" wide (as expected), while the other supplier's boards are about 5 5/8" instead. Unfortunately, I have a decent amount of money sunk into the lumber, so I can't just run out and replace it. What I need to do is flush trim both 2.25" faces so everything will sit square. In thinking it through, I have essentially 4 solutions:
1) Hand plane (electric or manual)
2) Buy a powered planer table
3) Buy a table saw
4) Use a flush trim/straight router bit

I have an electric hand plane, and found out that it's going to be very difficult for me to keep everything square. I can practice some more and try using it, but I'm a little reluctant to rely on my sense of parallel. Same goes with the manual plane, though that one is certainly less "dangerous" from my stock's perspective!

A planer table is an interesting option, but as a single-use tool, I'm a little reluctant (actually very reluctant) to sink the money into it.

A table saw is certainly something I can see using over and over again, but I'm a little reluctant to sink the money into that, either. Ultimately, it may be the best/only option for me, but I'd really like to avoid the investment if I can.

All of that leads me to a router-based solution. I have a decent router table (shop-built by someone else), and can see where, if the flush/straight bit were long enough, I could get a nice surface. The problem is, I don't think I've seen a bit that will do my cutting "width" (I've seen the MLCS bits that go up to 2"), and I'm a little leery about my ability to accurately trim stock through multiple passes across the same face (hopefully that makes sense). 

Does anyone have any feedback/suggestions on how to flush trim my boards without me spending an arm and a leg?


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi, here's one that will do the trick 

1 pc 1/2" SH 3" Extra Long Flush Trim Router Bit - eBay (item 140391140202 end time Mar-21-10 10:06:39 PDT)

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jimgo said:


> I'm a new member, and as usual, have an odd problem. As I mentioned in my introductory thread, I've been turning wood for a few years, but finally have a shop big enough to start doing some flat work. My first project is bunk beds for my oldest son, and in exchange for getting the OK to start the project, I had to come up with something my wife considered sturdy. Ultimately, some of the pieces are constructed from glue-ups of three 1"x6" boards, resulting in approximately 2.25" thick "stock". Unfortunately, as I was selecting and cutting the boards, I didn't realize that they had come from different suppliers, and apparently the suppliers had different rulers. One supplier's boards are 5.5" wide (as expected), while the other supplier's boards are about 5 5/8" instead. Unfortunately, I have a decent amount of money sunk into the lumber, so I can't just run out and replace it. What I need to do is flush trim both 2.25" faces so everything will sit square. In thinking it through, I have essentially 4 solutions:
> 1) Hand plane (electric or manual)
> 2) Buy a powered planer table
> 3) Buy a table saw
> ...


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## kp91 (Sep 10, 2004)

Jim,

You could also see if there is a woodworking club or someone near you who has a jointer or planer you could "rent". I've seen a couple of requests on craigslist for guys who want to borrow a jointer for a couple of cuts.

I don't know whereabouts in the country you live, but maybe there's a sawmill or cabinet shop nearby that will help you with your milling.


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

jimgo said:


> I'm a new member, and as usual, have an odd problem. As I mentioned in my introductory thread, I've been turning wood for a few years, but finally have a shop big enough to start doing some flat work. My first project is bunk beds for my oldest son, and in exchange for getting the OK to start the project, I had to come up with something my wife considered sturdy. Ultimately, some of the pieces are constructed from glue-ups of three 1"x6" boards, resulting in approximately 2.25" thick "stock". Unfortunately, as I was selecting and cutting the boards, I didn't realize that they had come from different suppliers, and apparently the suppliers had different rulers. One supplier's boards are 5.5" wide (as expected), while the other supplier's boards are about 5 5/8" instead. Unfortunately, I have a decent amount of money sunk into the lumber, so I can't just run out and replace it. What I need to do is flush trim both 2.25" faces so everything will sit square. In thinking it through, I have essentially 4 solutions:
> 1) Hand plane (electric or manual)
> 2) Buy a powered planer table
> 3) Buy a table saw
> ...


Hi Jim - Welcome to the forum
Well, I have the bit Bj suggested and it will definetly do the job for you. The thing that concerns me is the size of the stock. You didn't say how large a table you had nor how long the pieces were. For bunk beds, I am guessing at least 6ft long x 5 1/2" x 2 1/4". Pretty good chunk of tree to be moving around unless the table is fairly large. My preferred tool for that kind of work is a table saw, but, next choice would be circular saw and straight edge. Problem there is the width of the stock minus the width of the straight edge would mean you would likely have to use the narrow side of the saw shoe. Not the best, but doable.
Good Luck


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## TWheels (May 26, 2006)

Jim, How are the 1 by 6 boards glued? Are the sides even on one long side? if so, use a flush trim bit with the bearing on the narrowest board on the other side and cut the widest. Then turn the board over and using the same idea, the bearing on the narrow boards and cut the third. If the two long sides are not even, then repeat the process on the other side. If the ends are already aligned the glued up boards *should* be square. With this idea, you would not need a bit with cutting blades longer than just over half the thickness of the boards.


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## jimgo (Mar 15, 2010)

Tom, Thanks, that is a good idea. I was a little reluctant to try that, though, because I'm just a big chicken and am afraid I'd get a seam down the middle because I didn't set something up perfectly. So, I wound up going with the 3" bit.

John, the side rails are 56" long, but those are 5/4 (same as are used on my King Size bed, in which 2 adults and 2 kids frequently sleep, so if it holds us, it will hold one 4 year old!) so I don't need to trim them. The bed is a twin over full, and the pieces I'm trimming are for the headboard and footboard. So the longest ones are for the footboard, and of course now I can't remember the exact length of those, but they are manageable on the table I have. Thanks for the word of warning, though; that's a very important point that I would likely have overlooked.

Doug, thanks for the suggestion, I'll have to look into that. My old town used to have a public wood shop that was open 2 days a week; I haven't looked into whether there's anything like that around here.

And, of course, Bob thanks for the pointer; the bit is on order!


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

jimgo said:


> Tom, Thanks, that is a good idea. I was a little reluctant to try that, though, because I'm just a big chicken and am afraid I'd get a seam down the middle because I didn't set something up perfectly. So, I wound up going with the 3" bit.
> 
> John, the side rails are 56" long, but those are 5/4 (same as are used on my King Size bed, in which 2 adults and 2 kids frequently sleep, so if it holds us, it will hold one 4 year old!) so I don't need to trim them. The bed is a twin over full, and the pieces I'm trimming are for the headboard and footboard. So the longest ones are for the footboard, and of course now I can't remember the exact length of those, but they are manageable on the table I have. Thanks for the word of warning, though; that's a very important point that I would likely have overlooked.
> 
> ...


Hi Jim - Sounds like you have a plan
Couple of other things I would like you to be aware of:
Even though the bit is only 1/2" OD, it still needs to be run at a reduced speed, about 16K. MLCS has a speed chart posted showing speeds relative to cutting length. Only place I have seen one of those, most are speed relative to diameter. 
The other thing is to check the bearing on the bit for concentricity. I have ordered several bits from George with no problems, Except that particular bit. The bearing was off-center. :sad:Raised a real ruckus and took me awhile to figure out what the problem was. Just check and test it, if there is a problem George will take care of you but don't need to mess up your good stock finding it. 
Good Luck


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## DerekO (Jan 20, 2010)

jimgo said:


> My old town used to have a public wood shop that was open 2 days a week; I haven't looked into whether there's anything like that around here.


That would be a nice thing to have. I haven't heard of those before, unless it was something you needed to be a member of a group to use, but have heard of tool libraries in various places. 

I wonder if it would be possible to use the local school's wood shop? (if they even have one in these days of budget cuts)


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## Cochese (Jan 12, 2010)

A public wood shop? That would be awesome.


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## sourdough (Jan 31, 2010)

RE: Public wood shops. There are several small towns in Minnesota where (generally) the old farts get a location and then scrounge basic tools i.e. drill press, table saw,miter saw and other stuff as they canb find it. They set aside a day a week, sometimes two in the winter, and whoever wants to do a "project" shows up. I have not participated in one (live too far away) but it sure seems like a great idea to me.
I'll have to wait a few decades until I am a certifiable OF before I apply for membership.
Thought I'd toss it out there.


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## kp91 (Sep 10, 2004)

some of the woodcraft stores have one, I don't know how they charge for time usage.


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## DerekO (Jan 20, 2010)

Both my Wife's and my families come from small towns in southern Minnesota. Will have to ask some of the relatives when we go down for Easter or Mother's day if there is anything like that around there (blue earth county area for this bunch). 

Not a real OF yet, but my Wife says I turned into one around age 30, except for the times she says I still act like a teenager.


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## jimgo (Mar 15, 2010)

The public wood shop was an amazing find! We re-did our kitchen, and used Ikea cabinets (I had a VERY small townhouse, there was no way I was building my own cabinets there!). The ceilings in the house weren't your typical 8', so we had to cut down the high cabinets to be able to have enough room to work under them. It was REALLY nice to have well-tuned tools to make the cuts, and someone who worked there who could help give me guidance.

I ordered the bit, and it worked great! My only issue now is that for some reason, the stock itself isn't coming out dead flat (i.e. planed) - it's actually bowed outward in the middle slightly. The only think I can figure out is that I must be putting more downward pressure (I'm using a horizontal router arrangement) on the front and back as I feed it into the bit, causing it to sink into the bit some. The table has at lest 12" on the infeed side, and 18" on the outfeed, so I would have thought that I would be OK (especially since I was trying to be careful about how I lined everything up. In the end, it's only about 1/8" of bowing, and I don't think it will impact me too badly. But it's still an odd thing to see since I had thought I'd be getting a flatter board!

The inconsistency on that face lead me to not be able to use the horizontal arrangement for my 1/4" round-over bit. As I mentioned, this is my first time playing with a router, and I thought I'd get a more consistent edge with the round-over bit if I used the table. Much to my surprise, doing it free-hand was actually pretty easy, and because the bearing was the only surface that actually contacted the boards, I was able to get a nice, consistent edge. It surprised me, because it's counter-intuitive for me. I always think of me doing something "freehand" as being more likely to have problems (and generally, that's still the case!).

Thanks again everyone for your help and feedback!


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