Things Are Getting Scary!!

I have had a similar experience. I had a spiral cutting bit come loose and come up through the piece I was cutting. It scared the daylights out of me. I now am very diligent in checking the bit twice before I start cutting. I also always wear safety glasses and use push pads.

-- Greg - Charles Town, WV

I had a/4: spiral router bit break when cutting some mortises. In my case the bit was captured in the wood.

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

Yeah, straight bits can break off. I’ve had a Porter Cable dovetail bit break on me, too. That’s pretty scary because it’s not trapped and goes flying. Ditto on the safety glasses!

-- http://www.north40custom.com -- http://north40studios.etsy.com --

Greg3G I also agree with the push pads, I always use them at the router table. Makes it alot easier to control the wood to I think. It’s like giving the piece of wood a handle to push from. It was just weird that it did that. Could it be that the router’s speed was to high? I was running it at full speed.

-- Tyler, Illinois

Flying router bits are always scary!

Good to hear from you. Don’t be such a stranger – just be strange!

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

Were you cutting full depth with the 1st cut?

-- Only the Shadow knows....................

Although we all feel like it should not, this is a somewhat common occurrence. When something is turning at 20,000 RPM, things can get dangerous. About 20 years ago, I had a router bit shear off and go flying into my knee – that was a (not so) fun trip to the emergency room.

Since then, I always double check the bit and collett. Make sure your bits are clean and don’t buy poor-quality bits. Also… don’t abuse the bits – pushing too hard or overheating a cheap bit might not break it this time, but it can create metal fatigue that weakens the bit and it might break at sometime in the future.

Of all the implements of destruction that I have in my shop, the router is the only one that really scares me. I use it daily, but with a healthy respect for what it can do to me if I am not careful.

-- Mark, Dominican Republic

I had the saqme thing happen. Happenned no more than 2 inches into the cut. I took it back to sears thinking they’d replace it (considering I had owned it less than 30 minutes) but no luck. I’m quite sure I was doing everything right, but i guess it happens. I think a 1/2 inch shank might have helped in my case, but oh well. Also, you were probably already doing this but remember to make several shallow passes instead of one deep one. Glad everything turned out safely.

Good to know for when I get good enough knowledge to try out my router.Thanks for the post.

-- Dustygirl..Hastings,Ontario.. How much wood can 1 gal chuck if 1 gal can't cut wood?

I’ll second the “how much were you taking off in a single cut?” questions. I’m not sure what all goes into making a bit break, although I’ve broken one on my Domino, but making bits hard so that they stay sharp means that they’re also brittle, and spinning ‘em at 20k RPM means there’s a lot of energy flying around, and the heating and cooling means that there’s lots of room for altering and destroying the temper in the mettle.

So, yeah, glad you weren’t hurt, and it’s a good reminder to me to try to avoid the stupid stuff.

-- Dan Lyke, Petaluma California, http://www.flutterby.net/User:DanLyke

Happened to me a few times bro. Enough that I don’t even have to ask how much you were taking off, I can say for sure you were taking to much off in one pass. However, I have had a Fued bit snap on me when I tried to strain it. Bits are just never 100% perfect and if their flaw is in their shank it’s syonara router bit. You also may consider moving to a spiral bit instead of a straight cut.

-- Rogue

Tyler, Don’t know what to say, sounds like you were doing everything right. The following are just some comments for the future:
- They are costly, but I buy the best bits (I think 1/2” shank are the best).
- I cut about a 1/4” lenght of 1/4” ID or 1/2” ID plastic tuping and slip it on the bit shank up to the shank neck to prevent the collet from griping the curved neck of the bit.
- And of course, make at least two depth settings of cuts before the final pass (especially on hard wood).
- And safety at all times.

-- Ron in Osseo, Minnesota

Heres the deal. I usually do make several passes but this dato was for a 1/4 inch bottom panel for this box and it was only going to be just shy of 1/4 inch so I made the full depth cut all at once, but I don’t think this should be to much strain on a bit for it to break.

-- Tyler, Illinois

As far as I can remember, the only bits that have ever snapped off for me were 1/4” straight bits, with 1/4” shanks.

I have never broken a bit with a 1/2” shank yet.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

yeah the 1/2 inch shank bits I have are absolutely great. They seem so much more stable and have less vibrations.

-- Tyler, Illinois