# Bushings-Bits-Router Plate inlay



## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

Ok I must be learning a lot as the making of my RP template will be attempt #3 here shortly.

First attempt I used 1/2" ply as the template......... short version is the ply was to thick for my liking......... the 3/8" bushing housed the 1/4" bit which had to be raised more and more from the collet. I wasn't far from breaking through th other side of the ply and decided to side with caution and stop before the bit might be pressured into becoming a problem.

Second attempt I used Plyveneer? Very similar to Luan. It was 3/16". The 3/8" bushing with 1/4" bit made a lovely template. I was thrilled with how well it looked when finished.............. Ugh well when I went to make a practice inlay on scrap ply, the 1" bushing was much taller than the 3/8" bushing. So I double sided taped pieces of Luan to the router base until the router was flat/level......... What I didn't keep in mind while making the practice cut was how little edge of template there was to keep the bushing in line........ Yes the pretty little template got good and gouged.

Attempt#3 will be back to the 1/2" ply as the template material and pull the 1/4" bit just far enough out.

BTW I did use a spring washer on the bushing locking nut and was very pleased on how well it works.


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Marco said:


> Ok I must be learning a lot as the making of my RP template will be attempt #3 here shortly.
> 
> First attempt I used 1/2" ply as the template......... short version is the ply was to thick for my liking......... the 3/8" bushing housed the 1/4" bit which had to be raised more and more from the collet. I wasn't far from breaking through th other side of the ply and decided to side with caution and stop before the bit might be pressured into becoming a problem.
> 
> ...


Hi Marco - Why not just cut down the barrel of the 1" bushing? I have three 1" bushings and none have a barrel longer than 1/4".


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## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

Well I thought about cutting down the barrell but dang man it seems like every time I turn around it's to do 8 other things to do just one task! I wish I could get paid by the hour for the time spent fixing little glitches that always seem to pop up. If memory recalls simply using a hacksaw and some sand paper on the barrel will do the trick? .......... At the time I thought of sawing on the barrell but wondered about what glitch could come up with a barrell modification on the new set of bushings bought specifically for the 1" bushing so opted for the 1/2' template material instead.

An hour here, 2 hours there and occasionally a half day is all the time I can get in the shop. You plan your work and estimate the time for each task and when you get to work your plan, the glitches eat up all your time and then some......... Since drinking and drugs aren't the answer pitching a fit with screaming cuss words, flying tools and man made holes in walls are possible in the near future!!! lol Sometimes wood needs an attitude adjustment.......

I feel better now


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Easy way to cut down the barrell ,pull your copper pipe cutter out around a time or two and you done  you need to use the small one not the one make for 2" pipe..

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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Marco said:


> Well I thought about cutting down the barrell but dang man it seems like every time I turn around it's to do 8 other things to do just one task! I wish I could get paid by the hour for the time spent fixing little glitches that always seem to pop up. If memory recalls simply using a hacksaw and some sand paper on the barrel will do the trick? .......... At the time I thought of sawing on the barrell but wondered about what glitch could come up with a barrell modification on the new set of bushings bought specifically for the 1" bushing so opted for the 1/2' template material instead.
> 
> An hour here, 2 hours there and occasionally a half day is all the time I can get in the shop. You plan your work and estimate the time for each task and when you get to work your plan, the glitches eat up all your time and then some......... Since drinking and drugs aren't the answer pitching a fit with screaming cuss words, flying tools and man made holes in walls are possible in the near future!!! lol Sometimes wood needs an attitude adjustment.......
> 
> I feel better now


hehehe,, sounds like the way my projects typically go. Masked off 18 windows last evening in prep for spray painting them today. Got my coffee and walked out this morning and the painters tape fell off 14 of 'emh34r:
I've come to believe that Murphy was an optimist


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## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

Thanks for the tip Bob....... I remember when I had a pipe cutter.... don't remember throwing it away though.... must be time for a new one

John.. I've almost been there....... did watch a few months ago the plastic I taped to the Living room walls come down. It went right back up quick enough...... I hope your painting went well and that you didn't half to go to the store 5 times to get the parts to fix the sprayer and rig it a few different ways just to get the job done before it rained


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## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

bought a pipe cutter today........... that ain't gonna work....... won't take but maybe a 16th off a 3/8" barrell and that would be a crooked cut......... went back to look at the other tube/pipe cutters and they are all the same when it comes to how much you can cut off clean..........

of well


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Marco said:


> bought a pipe cutter today........... that ain't gonna work....... won't take but maybe a 16th off a 3/8" barrell and that would be a crooked cut......... went back to look at the other tube/pipe cutters and they are all the same when it comes to how much you can cut off clean..........
> 
> of well


Well, you have a couple more options. I've had good luck with a bandsaw. Drill a hole the size of the bushing through some scrap stock, I used 1/4" MDF but luan would work pretty well. Put the bushing through the hole and use the scrap to control the depth. Belt sander with some 50 or 80 grit will also make pretty short work of brass. If all else fails, EagleAmerica has an entire bushing set with .201(?) barrel lengths. Also, Hartville tool will sell short barrel bushings individually. If you go the Hartville route, best order a locknut with it. All threads are not created equal on those things.:sad: I don't know which brand cutter Bob uses but neither of my pipe cutters would work either. I have a full size and a mini cutter.


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## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

Well I'm a type of person who you can explain something to all day long but until I actually do it and do it succesfully then I don't really have it. I am also a person who sometimes when they can't do something has to get determined/mad/p##%$ off and keep on doing it until I have success............ I wonder if that is the definition of a dumb a##$

Any way on the female template for the Router Plate I finaly got it to work at least one time....... I went back and made another luan female template leveled out the router base as best I could and let her fly on scrap...... first try the Router plate wouldn't fit....really close but no...so I lightly sanded the template where it was tight made another pass and with acouple of love taps she went in with smooth edges.

My lovely wife let me have her old Cannon digital camera today so will take a shot of the Router PLate installed in the table's top hopefully and good Lord willing tomorrow. It's my first router table (how did you guess) and am way passed ready for it to be complete. I wanted to save some money and have the satifaction of building my own. Lately I have been thinking of the bench top Bosch I could have bought for $185 6 monyhs ago........ all of the wood for the cabinet is cut and the only items left are the edge for the top, bracing for the top and wood for a basic fence


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

HI Guys

I went out to the shop to put my hands on the small pipe cutter and take a snapshot of it and it was not in the box with other pipe cutters but I use the lathe most of the time anyway most of the time so say it's not a big lost 

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jschaben said:


> Well, you have a couple more options. I've had good luck with a bandsaw. Drill a hole the size of the bushing through some scrap stock, I used 1/4" MDF but luan would work pretty well. Put the bushing through the hole and use the scrap to control the depth. Belt sander with some 50 or 80 grit will also make pretty short work of brass. If all else fails, EagleAmerica has an entire bushing set with .201(?) barrel lengths. Also, Hartville tool will sell short barrel bushings individually. If you go the Hartville route, best order a locknut with it. All threads are not created equal on those things.:sad: I don't know which brand cutter Bob uses but neither of my pipe cutters would work either. I have a full size and a mini cutter.


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## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

Eagle America's Template guide bushing set with the short barrels are what should be a standard in my oppinion........ guide bushings should have the same length barrels...... far less hassles for the users.

Don't have a band saw though it is on the list (Long List)........... Belt Sander is on the short list actually looked at one today so thin stock and a belt sander may come in to play shortly.

As for pipe/ttube cutters the one I can't find would have probably worked as I believe it was shaped more on the narrow side of a c-clamp with one roller on the bottom.

My man at the local hardware store is an ex plumber and ex Navy machinist and didn't have a cutter that could cut a clean level cut. The mini cutters were close but the double rollers on the bottom made it to high. The only way he could think of was a lathe.

Off topic..... If your not familiar with using acid for clogged drains see your hardware man about their type of sulfuric acid? that they sell......... many different brand names but it's the acid that does the trick.....cleared one out in 10 minutes the other day.............. would have saved me an easy 500 dollars over the years


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Marco said:


> Off topic..... If your not familiar with using acid for clogged drains see your hardware man about their type of sulfuric acid? that they sell......... many different brand names but it's the acid that does the trick.....cleared one out in 10 minutes the other day.............. would have saved me an easy 500 dollars over the years


Hi Marco - Longer barrels have their place also, for instance tracing around an object of varying heights. All kinds of applications although I do use the short barrels the most. 

For your off topic. You are probably thinking of Muriatic acid, a weaker form of hydrochloric acid. Weaker is a strictly relative term, muriatic will put a hurting on you. Key here I think is that if you aren't familiar with using acid, don't. Better yet, find someone who is to show you how to do it. Things can go real wrong, real fast with that stuff. JMHO.


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## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

Well if there was ever any doubt, God still performs miracles! Through his power and several posts of guidance on this forum I was able to inlay my Router Plate in my Router Table Top!......... I guess laying off the cussing and pitching of fits in the shop has payed off!!! lol

I'll try to post these 8 pic's as thumbnails. They'll have some explanation so that those like me who don't know might get something out of it....... for those that do know how, it's ok to laugh but please NO POINTING!!!

Pic #1 is the test cut to make sure the female template was correct. it is sitting on top of the template and the Router table top

Pic #2 is of 2 female templates. The one taped to the table is a template that I gouged when trying to make a test cut on scrap wood. The main reason for the gouging was that the 1" Guide Bushings Barrel was 3/8" long and the template was 3/16" high. To get the router base level I had to doublesided tape pieces of luan to 4 sides of the base. 2 pieces of luan to the 3 sides that sit on the template and 3 pieces of luan to the side of the base that sits on the inside of the template. With all that luan raising up the router, there was very little of the guide bushings barrel and template to make contact and it was very easy for the barrel of the bushing to slide on top of the template and for the bit to eat away at the template....... The Template standing up is smooth and will be taped to the gouged template creating a thicker template and less luan to be taped the routers base

Pic #3 ........ bottom left corner is where the botom template was gouged

Pic #4 The 2 female templates taped together

Pic #5 The router with just one section of the router base having to have luan doublesided taped to it. The section has 2 pieces of luan taped to it and it is the side that sits on the inside of the template....... Take note of the length of the luan going from one side of the router plate to the other. It provided extra balance but caused a problem when approaching a corner. The luan would hit the corner of the template while the guide bushing was a couple of inches from the corner. If the router base, while keeping the guide bushing pressed against the template, was not turned before the luan hit the templates corner, you would end up with a rough corner and a bit wanting to run to the inside of the cut out.

Pic #6 Hard to tell on this shot but the bottom right corner of the formica is rough and needed to be routed again.............. also you can see going up the right side that some dumb #$$^ started off routing in the wrong direction.......Outside counter clockwise... Inside clockwise

Pic #7 a side shot of the cut out

Pic #8 after a little bit of sanding and a couple of love taps the router plate is now inlayed


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

It looks pretty good from here, Marco... Time to make some sawdust? <g>


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## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

Good Lord willing the dust will be flying from the RT this week........ need to mount the router...... make a simple fence....... and box up the base.

Plan to keep it simple to start and add to it as needed. I have 2 Track kits from Rockler I bought over a year ago and have read plenty of cons for installing them on the table itself so won't worry about the add ons and extras until I get it running......... Part of my problem is fretting the small stuff when I just need to make a plan and *Do It!*


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## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

Boxed up the base earlier today unfortunately that's all the time I had for it. GLW Tomorrow I'll have the time for a hardware run and time to get the router mounted in the plate... hardwood on the sides of the table top....... the door hinged........ the top hinged and a brace on the side for bracing the table top when raised...... oh and the start of a basic fence. Ok I'll be lucky to get the hardware run and the router mounted done but can't I dream? lol.

The 3 pic's show that I'm not worried about how well it looks as I purposely put the pocket holes on the outside (no joints are glued) knowing that after a period of time I will be modifying the cabinet as well as the top to some degree


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