Suggested Tool for Rabbet

I’m more comfortable with a router. It is easy to setup and cut. Preferably in a router table. You didn’t state what was the board size. A long board might be hard to hold on a table.

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

I would use a router with some kind of guide, either home-built or commercial. Here’s a system I’ve used but don’t own.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

I’d have to use a comination of tablesaw, (with or without a dado set up) and a plane or chisel. (Not having a router quite yet.) I’ve planed many a board down with a small hand plane (having to get things to fit my old house) and I’d bet that it would go just as quickly as getting out the router and setting it up.

-- I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso -- http://blanchardcreative.etsy.com -- http://snbcreative.wordpress.com/

thank you so much for the information.

Karson: I’m not comfortable with any tool yet, so I want to try and start out “right” so my comfort level doesn’t involve processes that you guys would shake your head at!

Don, thanks for the picture: that really helps clarify.

Scott, what’s a “dado set-up” for a tablesaw??

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

If you have access to a table saw and a daddo, that is what I use and would suggest. I get a lot better control with this. I have one table saw set up with a daddo blade , thus saving time breaking it down each time.

Dusty

-- Dusty

a daddo blade – i’ll have to look that up to see what on earth that is!
Thanks Dusty.

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

I, too, would go with the table saw and dado blade set-up. Debbie, a Dado blade is sveral saw blades used on your table saw at the same time each blad being a little larger than 1/8” thick with the thickness usually totaling up to 13/16ths of an inch

-- http://ye-olde-cabinet-shoppe.com/

Debbie, I too, use Dado blades. My reason for answering as I did above, was that a router is a less expensive way to go if you don’t have a table-saw.

Here’s a good article on using dado blades.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

router: back-up plan
dado blade: first choice. Got it.

(Not that I’m making a 5’ box. I’m still struggling with a small one! We bought a router table and a jig set from a woodshow. Actually, we bought the jig set at a wood show – seemed easy enough for me to use, and then went to Sears and bought a router/router table. Well, we get the table home and give it a try and the blade and spacer thingy and the jig are chewed up by the router. Call the jig company and find out that the jig setup doesn’t work with models from Sears. DAH!
So we have to get an adapter (mistake number one—shoulda’ returned the Sears model).
The new jig stuff arrives in the mail; we set it all up and darned if the same thing didn’t happen again. Something or other moved on the Sears model, throwing everything out of sync.
Change of plans: remove the jiggy stuff and just try the router out. Rick takes a router bit from his router (that he bought at Sears years and years ago and has worked like a charm over and over again, ) and what happens? The bit breaks. Well, maybe the bit was old/flawed. So we buy a new router bit. Run it through a couple pieces of wood and the end of the bit broke off.
So now what? Is it the bit? Is it the table? Is it the router? Is it us?

Not sure of the cause but I do know what the effect is: no box building this month! And it will take a long time for me to get the courage up to tackle using a router table. I’m going to stick with my Dremel.

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

Debbie, this is a sad tale. Without really knowing the cause of these LO’s (remember Learning Opportunities), it’s difficult to comment. But my strong suspicion is that your technique needs honing.

In my opinion, there is no better place to learn the basic skills of woodworking than at a woodworking club, or perhaps equally good from a community college course. Woodworking tools are inherently dangerous. You need to learn the basics and when you do, your fears will be diminished.

A few rules about routers. A hand-held router should trim the outside edge of wood by moving it in a counter clock-wise direction, ie from left to right.

A router always needs a guide. In a router table this is the fence. (By the way – when in the table you move the work piece in a clockwise direction, ie. from right to left.) The router bit may also have a bearing guide. The guide controls the amount of wood that is being cut. It’s always best to take less than more. In other words, cut small amount until you have crept up to the size you want. When using the router as in the picture above, the fence or guide controls the direction of the cut, making it run true. If you are cutting a trench, or dado, start with either a smaller bit and work up to the desired width of the trench. Or, and perhaps this is more practical, start with a shallow cut and sneak up on the desired depth with multiple passes.

Using the router is a matter of control. You need to control the speed and direction of the wood passing the router bit, or the router-bit passing the wood, depending on whether it’s table mounted or hand held. You need to control the amount of wood being cut per pass. And you need to control the speed of the bit rotation, assuming it has a variable speed control.

My suspicion is that in one of these areas you were not controlling the process.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

Debbie: Take a look at John Lucas web site www.woodshopdemos.com You have to enter his site and at the bottom of a page you will see a Main Menu button go there and you might find something that will give you some clues on using a router table or a table saw. He is not doing videos but he does take you through the process of making some things.

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

I appreciate all of these bits of information. I’ll be reviewing it over and over to really understand it all before I touch the router. Most of it sounds familiar, as Rick gave me some mini lessons when we bought the table.

I didn’t really watch what Rick was doing but since he’s been doing this for years I can only assume that he was “following the rules” (at least the rules of his old router).

thanks for the support and the advice.

- “router-wannabee” :) lol

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

Debbie,
I love the videos. My favorites are David Marks on D.I.Y.net.com/woodwoking. Here’s a Router video might find interesting

-- http://ye-olde-cabinet-shoppe.com/

Here is my rule of thumb I use a router on sheet goods and a daddo blade on lumber…and I’m not really sure why.

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

Debbie, check out this site: http://www.woodmagazine.com/wood/category.jhtml?catref=wd2, I hope that the videos and techical articles will help you. I vote for the tablesaw and dado blade set as my preferred choice.

-- Jesus is Lord!

I didn’t realize there was so much information out there on dadoes etc!!

They’ll be saying, “where’s Debbie?”

I should be an expert by the time I’m finished.
Thank you again SO much for the support

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

My 6” craftsman Jointer is real good for cutting Dados on boards. It’s also easy to set up, but everyone doesn’t have a jointer.

-- -** 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

and so my learning curve gets bigger and bigger—what does a Jointer do and how do you use that tool to make a dado???

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

DEBBIE !!!
Use the simplest and easiest method. Routers are great, ( I have 3) but when it comes to cutting dado’s I find that nothing works as easy ( for me) than a dado blade set on my table saw. It’s hard to mess that up. KISS ( Keep it Simple, Silly)

-- http://ye-olde-cabinet-shoppe.com/

ah shucks and I thought I was getting a kiss lol

I’m all for keeping it simple!! And since I have chosen not to use the scary table saw I can leave the dados for Rick to cut – now that is REALLY simple. hahaa

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

The shuffle gods have me wondering have you used the table saw yet?

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

Yes Debbie is this still a decision waiting to be made?

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

I was reading this and thinking the length of dado is what has me leaning to the router with edge guide. The decision is already made, but controlling a router along a clamped workpiece with clamped edge guide is really very safe. A dado blade held along a fence over a 6 foot length with limited experience in doing so? though not unsafe, is second in my books. However, it depends on the tools available. This is a good discussion that warrants completing.

-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)

I looked at the title of this and said, ”I wrote this??” I have no idea why I was asking..

No, I have not used the table saw.
I haven’t needed a dado/rabbet/ so I haven’t tried any method – yet.

(still wondering why I asked in the first place)

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

Debbie.
I just looked at what I wrote back in January. I’m sorry I made an error. I meant rabbet, & not dado.
You can use your router with a straight bit, & the fence on your router table. I do that most of the time now. I used my jointer before I had a router table.

-- -** 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

You probably has some idea in your mind at the time. I’ve read some old posts from years ago that came up in google archive searches and have asked myself the same…along with, ”What the heck was I thinking?”

-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)

Debbie, there is a book titled, “Table Saw Tips And Tricks” that shows a sacrificial rabbet fence to use with a stacked dado blade. When I make my picture frames, I routinely use this method to cut the rabbet in my picture frame stock, which is usually over 6’ in length.

I need to make a new rabbet fence for my new table saw, so I will document the steps to make it when I do get to it maybe next week. The fence works by attaching a 2X6 piece of scrap (I use old pine) to your fence, then using your stacked dado to its full width, you raise it up while it is spinning to cut out a groove in your Rabbet Fence that has the dado blade protruding from it. Then you just adjust the fence sideways to adjust the amountthat the dado blade extends from the fence. The width and the depth of the rabbet is easily adjusted by teh placement of eth fence and the height of teh dado.

I hope this helps, although pictures would help a lot. I will let you know when I post the complete story with pictures.

God Bless,
Hawg

-- Saving barnwood from the scrapyards

Hey Don! I’ve never seen that particular guide before. Please, more info.

looking forward to the pix! Thanks

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

I like the router personally. I have a 4’ clamping guide so it wouldn’t quite reach the length your talking about. I have a piece of hardboard that is the width of the offest from the bit I use. I would use it to clamp a long fence to the stock. It makes accounting for the offest fast. You must either use the same width bit or make another spacer. Keep in mind that you might have to keep the same part of the base touching the fence depending on the shape of the base. Bit needs to be centered, as well.

-- Jeff, South Carolina

thanks Jeff!

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

Debbie

Had to jump in here with my usual 2 cents. First, what’s the new avatar?

A rule of thumb for machining is if it’s large, take the machine to the subject. Small take the subject to the machine. Most rabbeting can be done easily with a router bit with a bearing. There are combinations of many variables. Since I dislike doing dados and rabbets on the TS with a dado blade. Primarily on sheet stock it’s too hard to hold down the stock for a perfect cut. I like doing rabbets with the single blade on the TS and just make two different passes.

I used my jointer for this task once. It worked very well.

Most jointers have a rabbeting feature that goes unused.

-- -John "Do I have to keep typing a smiley? Just assume it's a joke." www.flickr.com/photos/gizmodyne

again, good information! Thank you.

don’t you like my new pix?? It’s my Canadian Lumberjack look :)

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

First of all, Deb, I love the new look. It’s good to see you express yourself more :)

Second, My grandfather would answer your question as follows: “a 12 gauge works best but if you want to be sporting use a 20 gauge.” he called them grooves.

The best tool to use depends upon the size of the peice being worked on. I agree that on sheet goods, it would be best to take the tool to the wood. On pieces easier to handle, take the wood to the tool. Its a mater of safety. It is difficult to control a large panel on a table saw.

-- Greg - Charles Town, WV