# “Did I ruin my bit?” or “tips for caring for bits?”



## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

Hey all. New to forums because I didn’t know where else to turn/ask. I just got a Shaper Origin and was making some cuts this week on 3/4 Baltic birch with the 1/4” upspiral bit the SO came with. I haven’t cut that much, but today I was getting awful burning on my piece.

I wasn’t lingering and was using the same spindle speed I’ve been using the other couple times I’ve made cuts (5 out of 6). I also was sticking to cutting only 1/4” per pass. After finishing today, I was reading up that ply’s adhesives will gum up bits and cause heat. I haven’t cleaned the bits at all, but I also haven’t done much cutting. I’ve literally had the SO for a week.

Assuming the adhesive was the issue and causing the burning, is my bit already toast or can I clean it with some bit cleaner (that’s on the way) to restore its cutting ability? I’m surprised I’ve had an issue after only a handful of cuts (I’ve cut less than 100 feet of material between all the passes), so how often should I expect to clean my bits given I’ll be working primarily with ply or mdf?

Thanks in advance.


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## old55 (Aug 11, 2013)

Welcome to the forum.


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

Photos always help when it comes to something like this.


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## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

Totally makes sense. Here’s a couple pics.


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

I wouldn't use that bit again; looks crystalized, brittle.


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## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

Got it. Thanks!

How do folks clean their bits and how often?


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

LazloHollyfeld said:


> How do folks clean their bits and how often?


I've never had to clean a bit. When the feed/speed is right you should get chips that carry the heat away from the bit. If you're getting dust or the bit is discolored then your feed is too slow for the given speed (rpm).


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## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

difalkner said:


> I've never had to clean a bit. When the feed/speed is right you should get chips that carry the heat away from the bit. If you're getting dust or the bit is discolored then your feed is too slow for the given speed (rpm).


Thanks. That bit went into the trash. Safety is more important than an Andrew Jackson or two.

I guess I’ll need to practice with the SO because I was pushing through the material at what I thought was a good pace - not lingering, but also not pushing so hard as to cause deflection. The rpms were what was recommended. Thanks for the feedback and advice!


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

LazloHollyfeld said:


> I was pushing through the material at what I thought was a good pace


What was your feed rate and rpm?


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## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

I don't know how to answer the feed rate because I was manually pushing the router. But the speed was a 5 (about 22,800 rpm).


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

Pushing it manually is bound to be inconsistent and likely not nearly fast enough feed rate for that high speed of the router. 

I'll give you a for-instance; I cut the full depth of 1/2" Baltic Birch with a 1/4" compression bit running at 18k rpm (4HP spindle) and a feed rate of 175 ipm to 250 ipm. Running like that I produce chips, not dust, and the bit is no more than room temp when I finish a cut because the chips are carrying the heat away.


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## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

difalkner said:


> Pushing it manually is bound to be inconsistent and likely not nearly fast enough feed rate for that high speed of the router.
> 
> I'll give you a for-instance; I cut the full depth of 1/2" Baltic Birch with a 1/4" compression bit running at 18k rpm (4HP spindle) and a feed rate of 175 ipm to 250 ipm. Running like that I produce chips, not dust, and the bit is no more than room temp when I finish a cut because the chips are carrying the heat away.


So I should either push harder (probably not a good idea) or slow down the rpms. Ok, I'll slow it down to a bit and see how that goes.

Really appreciate your time and feedback. Thanks!


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## sreilly (May 22, 2018)

What I might question or at least consider is the brand and type of bit used. Up spiral/down spiral carbide/compression or high speed steel. Not being familiar with CNC systems it just seems counter intuitive to cut 1/2" deep on a single pass. But then again maybe CNC because of its consistency can do things we would not consider doing with a handheld router. And then too the hardness of the wood would likely be a consideration. Not real helpful for you but trying to understand.


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## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

sreilly said:


> Not being familiar with CNC systems it just seems counter intuitive to cut 1/2" deep on a single pass. But then again maybe CNC because of its consistency can do things we would not consider doing with a handheld router.


To be honest, this raised a bit of an eyebrow for me as well. I've always heard "no more than half the diameter of the bit per pass." Shaper seems to say effectively "full diameter of the bit per pass is ok." I planned to keep it at a 1/4" deep cut for the 1/4" bit, but slow it down to see how that changed things.

@difalkner, what brand/material is the bit you're using to cut 1/2" deep in a single pass?


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

LazloHollyfeld said:


> what brand/material is the bit you're using


Whiteside 

Here's a short video showing cutting at the speeds I mentioned -


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## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

That's a great video. I did slow down the bit a little and glided (I hesitate to say "pushed") a little more aggressively and the product turned out just fine. The bit was also slightly warm; certainly not as hot as it used to be*

* Not a true comparison because I threw the old bit out and this was a new one. But the lower heat gives me hope that this one will last.

Thanks again!


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## Bits&Bits (Sep 18, 2020)

We have found that Baltic Birch is also more abrasive than most other plywoods. I echo the above post regarding slowing down the rpm, you want to see chips, not dust.


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## Bits&Bits (Sep 18, 2020)

Regarding cleaning, I soak bits in liquid laundry detergent for 30 mins, then rinse and brush off with nylon or brass bristle brush.


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## Rev. A (Jan 29, 2021)

Simple Green is a great cleaner for bits and saw blades. Soak for a few minutes then use an old tooth brush. Rinse with water.


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## neville9999 (Jul 22, 2010)

LazloHollyfeld said:


> Totally makes sense. Here’s a couple pics.


This bit is finished, totally cant be fixed and looks like it was massively overheated. You should post an imgae of how it was used as something went very wrong, no bit should look like this. N


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## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

neville9999 said:


> This bit is finished, totally cant be fixed and looks like it was massively overheated. You should post an imgae of how it was used as something went very wrong, no bit should look like this. N


Don’t know how to post an image of how it was used because I don’t have a third hand to take a pic (you should keep both hands on the tool 😜).

what went wrong was I used the bit with a spindle speed of 5 out of 6 for about a week cutting 3/4 plywood, at 1/4 per pass. Bottom line, spindle speed was just too high for the material because I was completely new to routing. I’ve since backed down (the post is from 5 months ago) to a 3 or 4 and haven’t had this sort of heat. I threw away the bit btw, as others said it was toast.


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## neville9999 (Jul 22, 2010)

There is the issue of how much work that cutter had done, they cant keep cutting forever as there is a limit to how many meters they can do, so with straight bits its not that hard to sharpen them but Spirals are harder to get that done and costly too, so new bits are often a more simple solution, cutter speed is not that much of an issue, I don't know from your post how fast the 5/6 speed is compared to the 3/4 but from what I have seen cutters that have lost their sharpness cant be pushed hard as they will overheat. To me the decline of that bit was more to do with it losing its sharpness and then being overloaded than it was to do with spindle speed, as a blunt edge is a quick path then to overheating it, that bit must have been glowing it was so hot and for more than a few minutes too. So I think that damage is far more to do with it losing its sharpness and then being overloaded than to do with cutter speed. N


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## LazloHollyfeld (Jun 19, 2021)

That’s good feedback. I don’t think the bit was ever glowing, but the shavings caught fire at one point which freaked me out and led to me to reassess everything (and what caused me to post).


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## neville9999 (Jul 22, 2010)

LazloHollyfeld said:


> That’s good feedback. I don’t think the bit was ever glowing, but the shavings caught fire at one point which freaked me out and led to me to reassess everything (and what caused me to post).


Really, some shaving were on fire! Had you turned the lights off I am sure it would have been glowing, you dont melt the end of a bit like that were in not red hot. I feel sure you have learned a lot from this experience.


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