# Skil lock miter bit



## Schechner (Oct 13, 2009)

I bought this last week and tried using it the other day...I say "tried" because it was a dismal failure. I'm using a Craftsman 1 3/4 hp router (mounted in a table, of course) on low speed, but the edges turned out ratty, and the cut was very uneven despite using a miter gauge. I don't have a coping sled.

Does anyone have any experience with this bit? What am I missing here? Do I need a more powerful router?


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi 
Check out the video on the web page below..
MLCS lock mitre router bits

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Schechner said:


> I bought this last week and tried using it the other day...I say "tried" because it was a dismal failure. I'm using a Craftsman 1 3/4 hp router (mounted in a table, of course) on low speed, but the edges turned out ratty, and the cut was very uneven despite using a miter gauge. I don't have a coping sled.
> 
> Does anyone have any experience with this bit? What am I missing here? Do I need a more powerful router?


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## Old_Chipper (Mar 30, 2009)

Hi and welcome,
Don't get too discouraged, the lock miter is very hard to get just right. Summerfield sells a gage to do the setup. But I found it only works with their bit. I don’t know how good skil bits are?? Guess that could be a problem too. I strongly suggest that once you get it setup to make a good miter. Make a sample and keep it with the bit, that way it won’t take so long next time.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Harry

The sommerfeld EZ SET gage will work with other bits as well you just need to know to use it 

But you are right, make one for the bit you have is always the best,,,Lock Miter, they are not made the same,I have one of the Grizzly,MLCS,CMT,WHITE,ELITE,EBAY all are diff.

ROUTER SET UP JIG-Sommerfeld's Tools For Wood

see video on the web page, note the sled they are using..
http://www.ptreeusa.com/freud_easy_set.htm


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Old_Chipper said:


> Hi and welcome,
> Don't get too discouraged, the lock miter is very hard to get just right. Summerfield sells a gage to do the setup. But I found it only works with their bit. I don’t know how good skil bits are?? Guess that could be a problem too. I strongly suggest that once you get it setup to make a good miter. Make a sample and keep it with the bit, that way it won’t take so long next time.


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## Old_Chipper (Mar 30, 2009)

Well Bob,
I know you know everything, but you just might be wrong this time. While I may have been quick to say the sommerfeld gage only works with their brand, it certain does not fit them all.
Two of the four bits I have are completely different in their profiles. Made my own for those two.
Cheers


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

HI Harry

Thanks,, but I wish I did ,but that's my job on the forum " Forum Contributor "  but when I run into a error like the EZ SET ,I call the guy that made it and he told me how to use it for other bits, it's corner cutter edge thing..

Marc Sommerfeld is a great guy and will share all he knows with just a phone call 

Cheers
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Old_Chipper said:


> Well Bob,
> I know you know everything, but you just might be wrong this time. While I may have been quick to say the sommerfeld gage only works with their brand, it certain does not fit them all.
> Two of the four bits I have are completely different in their profiles. Made my own for those two.
> Cheers


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## Mike Wingate (Apr 26, 2009)

Can you post more details please Bobj3. I have 3 lock mitre bits, all different sizes. I find it a great bit, except on plywood. I have gauges made for different thicknesses of timber, but a new thickness brings me back to square 1. Any quick tips for setting up would be greatly appreciated.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Mike

The best tip is watch the MLCS video a time or two and use a insert plate for the router table fence ...for each size of the lock miter bit you have..just about all have some scrap wood around the shop no need to buy the EZ SET jig..

http://www.woodshopdemos.com/cmt-lm5.htm
http://www.woodshopdemos.com/cmt-lm1.htm
http://www.woodshopdemos.com/clock-2.htm


see video on the web page, note the sled they are using
http://www.ptreeusa.com/freud_easy_set.htm
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Mike Wingate said:


> Can you post more details please Bobj3. I have 3 lock mitre bits, all different sizes. I find it a great bit, except on plywood. I have gauges made for different thicknesses of timber, but a new thickness brings me back to square 1. Any quick tips for setting up would be greatly appreciated.


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Adam..

trust me, it ain't you!!! I purchased the skil bit a few days ago. spent the afternoon setting it up. The setup was not that difficult, but the bit was junk. just barely made it through 3/4" walnut and performed even worse in hard maple. There is no way I could make a set of drawers with that thing. Now it might work well in popular or pine, but in the two hardwoods I was using, it performed dismally. I tried various speeds, miter guage and even a coping sled..all backed up by a 3 1/2hp Mil. router. Ya get what ya pay for I suppose. I paid 27 bucks at a big box store. should have saved up a few more pennies and got a good quality bit!!!


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## Drew Eckhardt (Aug 2, 2008)

Schechner said:


> I bought this last week and tried using it the other day...I say "tried" because it was a dismal failure. I'm using a Craftsman 1 3/4 hp router (mounted in a table, of course) on low speed, but the edges turned out ratty, and the cut was very uneven despite using a miter gauge. I don't have a coping sled.
> 
> Does anyone have any experience with this bit? What am I missing here? Do I need a more powerful router?


1) Get Lee Valley's instructions off the web. They're the only ones I've seen which are good.

2) You want to make the cut in 3 passes (the last one 1/16"). You can clamp scrap wood to your router table as stops and move the fence in from that for the incremental cuts.

3) You want to have a backing board behind the wood you run through to prevent tear-out at the end.

The lock miter wastes the entire height of the wood. Sticking a straight piece of wood to your work and the backing piece with double sided tape works great to keep everything square and together.

Use a fresh backing piece for each cut (trim the end off so you re-use the same wood).

(Note first attachment with two pieces of work one behind the other followed by a backing piece all taped to a straight piece on top)

4) The lock miter is not hard to setup, but requires measurement and arithmetic.

To get in the ball-park, you're looking to have the center of the bit (on the bottom left corner of the third attachment you can see that it's halfway down the mating edge of the male finger on each piece) line up with the center of the wood. Then set the fence so a straight edge laid across the top of the work intersects the bit.

Run one piece through face up and mark it "A". Run one through face down and mark it "B".

Mate them and measure with your dial caliper (I like a slightly bigger set where the jaws usually reach correspondingly farther) across the high parts and divide the measurement by 2. This is how far off your height setting is. If "A" is high the bit is low so raise it by that amount. If "B" is high the bit is high so lower it.

If you're setting based on measured bit height you'll get a perfect joint after two sets of pieces. Maybe another try or two if you have to hassle with backlash in the router height adjustment mechanism and read its scale.

Fence depth setup works the same as height. Use shim stock (note the brass sheets at the top left corner on the first attachment) or feeler gauges to space your fence out from the stop blocks or to move the stop blocks away from the fence. .005" matters. If you move just one end the fence will move half the distance from the bit.

5) Other lock miter bits work fine on plywood of uniform thickness (even Home Depot birch which really stinks (.010" face veneers, voids, bad glue, etc); see second attachment. The visible part of the joint is on the exit side of both pieces. I cut that wood on my table saw before cutting the lock miter) as long as you use the backing piece and take multiple passes.

6) Don't think about using lock miters on wood which does not have uniform thickness (the bit indexes off the inside surface).

7) I can't speak to the quality or lack thereof of the Skil bit, although technique made a huge difference on my Rockler bit.

Next time I'm going to try the Amana 55390 which I paid $20 for.


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Adam....

Just a lil followup here for ya. I spent the better part of the afternoon yesterday "tweaking" with that skil bit. and here's the short version.. millled stock to 3/8, 7/16, 1/2, 9/16, 5/8, 11/16 and 3/4". all were within a few .001's. The skil bit worked well with everything BUT the 3/4" piece of stock. It seems the bit is just a hair shy for 3/4" stock. I went through a good dozen pieces of 3/4 stock experimenting..I also have the ability to tweak settings by the thousand's of an inch..Long story short, we may either have a bad bit or its a problem with Skil's maching specs.. The bit cut well in all sizes when using softer woods, ie pine, popular, but when I ran walnut and maple through, it took a minimum of 5 passes to prevent the wood from burning...this includes adjusting router speed to compensate..
Its a great looking joint, especially with contrasting woods.. so I think I'll keep it for softer woods and look for a higher quiality bit for the hard woods. Price ranges I have found to go from 25 to 130....CMT on the high end and MLCS in the middle...


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## Schechner (Oct 13, 2009)

Thanks for all the useful info. I'm glad it isn't just me - if a 3 1/4 hp Milwaukee can't get through it, I think it's probably the bit. Although...I didn't actually creep up on it and do it in multiple passes. Maybe if I had done that.

Ah, too late. I already returned the bit. Decided to do a sliding French dovetail instead.


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