# Cutting 45 degree with chamfering bit?



## bakerscookin (Jan 14, 2011)

is it proper procedure to use a 45 degree chamfering bit to miter the corners for a small decorative box? better on a miter saw, or table saw rather than a router table? thanks


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## Speyerer (Aug 21, 2009)

Wood Magazine had an article on this technique awhile back. Google "Wood Magazine router techniques chamfering bits" It should take you to the article. Hope this helps.

Note: I am not allowed to post the URL because I do not have 10 posts.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

HI Frank

Here's your link

Chamfer Bits

Just a note if you drop the URL call than you can post your URL links. 
see below
(http://???) just use the address ▼
woodmagazine.com/woodworking-tips/techniques/routing/chamfer-bits/

Your browser will do it for you (auto) ,when you paste and copy the address to the line..


Just a note, the Chamfer Bits have a down fall, they are made for 3/4" thick stock the norm and as you know when you cut stock on a angle it gets longer so to speak..the thicker the stock the longer they are..that's why the MLCS bits work so well on any stock 



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## Gene Howe (Jul 10, 2007)

bobj3 said:


> HI Frank
> 
> Just a note, the Chamfer Bits have a down fall, they are made for 3/4" thick stock the norm and as you know when you cut stock on a angle it gets longer so to speak..the thicker the stock the longer they are..that's why the MLCS bits work so well on any stock
> 
> =======


Bob, I'm geometrically challenged! I don't understand why a 3/4" cutting length couldn't be used on 1/2 material. 
What am I missing?


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Gene

It can be but most use 3/4" thick stock the norm, most don't have 1/2" thick stock around the shop, a easy way to get the job done without buying any bits is with the joinery, most of them can do any angle (up to a 45*) and the cutting blades are 6" long the norm many forget the it can do many jobs.. 


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Gene Howe said:


> Bob, I'm geometrically challenged! I don't understand why a 3/4" cutting length couldn't be used on 1/2 material.
> What am I missing?


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## Ralph Barker (Dec 15, 2008)

bobj3 said:


> Hi Gene
> 
> It can be but most use 3/4" thick stock the norm, most don't have 1/2" thick stock around the shop, a easy way to get the job done without buying any bits is with the joinery, most of them can do any angle (up to a 45*) and the cutting blades are 6" long the norm many forget the it can do many jobs..
> 
> ...


Sorry, Bob, you've lost me on this one, too. You started talking about an MLCS bit, but in this post, it sounds like you're talking about doing the 45° chamfer on a jointer. Could you clarify, please?


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Ralph 

Sorry ,that's true I guess and than Frank posted the Chamfer Bits to do other angles on the router table and I than said the jointer can do all the angles you need...not just the 45 deg.cut.

Ralph,,,Do you have a jointer ?

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Ralph Barker said:


> Sorry, Bob, you've lost me on this one, too. You started talking about an MLCS bit, but in this post, it sounds like you're talking about doing the 45° chamfer on a jointer. Could you clarify, please?


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## Ralph Barker (Dec 15, 2008)

Gene Howe said:


> Bob, I'm geometrically challenged! I don't understand *why a 3/4" cutting length couldn't be used on 1/2 material. *
> What am I missing?


It could, barely. The 45° chamfer cuts away what would be a right triangle, so you need to be sure that the "cutting length" listed for the bit is equal to or greater than the length of the hypotenuse of that triangle. For 1/2" stock, that's 0.70711, so a .75" cutting length would be OK. For 3/4" stock, the hypotenuse would be 1.0607", so a 1" cutting length would fall a touch short. 

RIGHT TRIANGLE CALCULATOR


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## RJM (Apr 11, 2010)

My jointer does 45° cuts. The fence has a stop at 90° and 45°.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Ralph

Say what ?

The fence on a jointer can be set both ways.. pos. and neg cut..

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Ralph Barker said:


> It could, barely. The 45° chamfer cuts away what would be a right triangle, so you need to be sure that the "cutting length" listed for the bit is equal to or greater than the length of the hypotenuse of that triangle. For 1/2" stock, that's 0.70711, so a .75" cutting length would be OK. For 3/4" stock, the hypotenuse would be 1.0607", so a 1" cutting length would fall a touch short.
> 
> RIGHT TRIANGLE CALCULATOR


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## Ralph Barker (Dec 15, 2008)

*End-grain 45s on a jointer*

Although theoretically possible, I don't think I'd recommend trying to cut 45° angles on the ends of narrow boards on a jointer. At least not without an auxiliary fence that could accommodate a jig to hold the work piece at 90° to the jointer blades, and that would keep the old pinkies well away from said blades, as well.


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## RJM (Apr 11, 2010)

RJM60 said:


> My jointer does 45° cuts. The fence has a stop at 90° and 45°.


I find it easier to do 45° cuts on the table saw. The problem with doing them on the router table is that you end up with as knife edge against the fence. This makes it difficult to control if you're doing the whole edge.

One work around for the router table is to leave a short flat at both the beginning and and of an oversize workiece then cut it to size. This won't work for if you're mitering adjacent edges.

On the table saw, you're cutting the edge opposite the fence, so there's no knife edge issue but you have the same problem as with the router when mitering three adjacent sides; however, I found this simple tool that alleviates this. This fits over a miter and adds 1 inch to the length. You adjust the fence to compensate for the fixture. This will keep you from mucking up the miter knife edge and will give you a flat surface to ride the fence. The fixture is dimensioned for 3/4" thick stock but you can adjust the dimensions for thinner stock (or metric); however, it doesn't work well for thicknesses below 1/2". The fixture doesn't touch the table top; it rides just shy of it. You can make it any length you need. I usually cut the 90° first, that way I'm set up to do miter cuts when I finish the fixture. Depth of the 90° cut is about 3/4". I usually adjust the depth of the miter cut by eye, just make sure you have enough thickness on top to hold it together.

I am planning on making a sled for cutting miters on 4 edges using the router table. It will use stops with this feature built into it.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

HI

" ends of narrow boards ' 

No big deal on the jointer, just mill them and rip the parts to size after..


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Ralph Barker said:


> Although theoretically possible, I don't think I'd recommend trying to cut 45° angles on the ends of narrow boards on a jointer. At least not without an auxiliary fence that could accommodate a jig to hold the work piece at 90° to the jointer blades, and that would keep the old pinkies well away from said blades, as well.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Ralph

" accommodate a jig "
A board is clamp to the stock so it can ride on the top edge of the fence and a push block to push it by the cutters, very safe and it keeps your pinkies out of the blades..

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Ralph Barker said:


> Although theoretically possible, I don't think I'd recommend trying to cut 45° angles on the ends of narrow boards on a jointer. At least not without an auxiliary fence that could accommodate a jig to hold the work piece at 90° to the jointer blades, and that would keep the old pinkies well away from said blades, as well.


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## Speyerer (Aug 21, 2009)

Maybe it's me, but has the original question been answered? I am throughly confused at this point.
"is it proper procedure to use a 45 degree chamfering bit to miter the corners for a small decorative box?"


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## gav (Oct 12, 2009)

Don't know about proper procedure, but I've done it, woodworking articles suggest it, and it turns out well.
Go for it.


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## bakerscookin (Jan 14, 2011)

thanks guys...... i think?


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## jlord (Nov 16, 2009)

bakerscookin said:


> is it proper procedure to use a 45 degree chamfering bit to miter the corners for a small decorative box? better on a miter saw, or table saw rather than a router table? thanks


You can use either method. I prefer to use a table saw with a crosscut sled.


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## Ralph Barker (Dec 15, 2008)

bakerscookin said:


> is it proper procedure to use a 45 degree chamfering bit *to miter the corners for a small decorative box*? better on a miter saw, or table saw rather than a router table? thanks


To re-address the original question, Yes. I'd do it in multiple passes, however, using a backer board and a sled or push block. Fence positioning is critical on the last pass, though, so as not to over-cut the resulting "knife edge". A feather board mounted to the fence can help to keep the stock tight against the RT surface.

Naturally, you also will want to make sure that the corresponding sides of the box are still exactly the same length after the miters are cut. Otherwise, the miters won't fit well, and the box will be out of square.


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

bakerscookin said:


> is it proper procedure to use a 45 degree chamfering bit to miter the corners for a small decorative box? better on a miter saw, or table saw rather than a router table? thanks


I sure hope so,:blink:

i recently bought a 45degree cutter and a plate with a larger hole for just that purpose,

I have seen this method used on the forum. I believe Harry has a photoshoot.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

bakerscookin said:


> is it proper procedure to use a 45 degree chamfering bit to miter the corners for a small decorative box? better on a miter saw, or table saw rather than a router table? thanks


You can do a very good job on a router table. You will need to get the bit depth perfect first. I would then use a piece of scrap mdf or ply wood at least six inches square (i.e. perfectly square) and place my work piece agaist it and use the scrap block to push the drawer piece past the bit. The scrap block will help keep the work piece square, help prevent blowout, and by holding the workpiece tight to the scrap block it won't have a tendency to dive into the bit when entering or exiting the cut.

Some handy math for calculating diagonals in squares. The diagonal is 1.414 times the length of a side. (The square root of 2 = 1.414) Any 45 degree diagonal is the diagonal of a square. I've always found this worth remembering as it comes up often.


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## OPG3 (Jan 9, 2011)

I was never too fond of chunks of wood pretending to be Frisbee's. "Small" projects need special handling. I would not even consider using anything other than a nice table saw sled for this cut - *EVERYTIME*. Routers are great, but when an accident occurs with a router, there are no parts to sew back on - just soup on the floor. Not a pretty sight.


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## gunit1400 (May 30, 2010)

OPG3 said:


> I was never too fond of chunks of wood pretending to be Frisbee's. "Small" projects need special handling. I would not even consider using anything other than a nice table saw sled for this cut - *EVERYTIME*. Routers are great, but when an accident occurs with a router, there are no parts to sew back on - just soup on the floor. Not a pretty sight.



Nice mental picture, point well made! I may be inclined to agree with you on that one.


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