# router circle jig



## buckbuster31 (Dec 27, 2016)

New to the forum, but been long time lurker and woodworker. What router bit would you all recommend for a circle jig for router? I was commissioned to make a lazy susan and these seems to be the easiest route for me due to my band saw not quite being large enough.


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## brtech (May 26, 2010)

Spiral. You can do it with a straight bit, but a spiral is best. Whether you want upcut or downcut depends on how you are attaching the wood to the jig.

Use a bandsaw or even a jig saw to get close to, but not on the line. Then trim away.

I've seen people build a circle cutting jig for a bandsaw that put the center off the edge of the saw table. That let them cut an arbitrary sized circle with their bandsaw. Of course, you have to support the jig on something that keeps it level with the table, but I've seen something that wasn't really much more than a stable floor stand with a pivot point on it and a brace that clamped to the base of the bandsaw to keep in in the right position.


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## wapakfred (Jul 29, 2011)

Most any straight bit will do. If you cut the work piece down close to the final size, a 2 flute bit will do nicely. If you don't trim the work piece, you might need a bit that will "plunge" cut. I'm a little puzzled by the comment about your bandsaw…I've cut some fairly large circles on a not-so-large bandsaw using a circle jig.


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## jerryminer (Jun 15, 2014)

Any straight bit will work, but as mentioned, a spiral bit will cut cleaner.

I like to take an off-cut to make a sanding block of the right radius. Fill in the waste area with a piece of cork of appropriate thickness. No flat spots created by sanding that way.


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## OSB (Dec 16, 2016)

I am going to steal that sanding idea.


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## jmartel (Jul 6, 2012)

Go with a 1/2" spiral bit. Either up or down cut works. Just make sure to orient the face side away from the direction of spiral. If you have an up spiral bit, put the show side down. If you have a down spiral bit, put the show side up.

If you want to cut a circle but not leave a mark in the center from the center pin, use a scrap of wood/plywood and secure it with double stick tape. Put another scrap of the same thickness under the router base, leaving the bit exposed below it. Then pivot it around the scrap in the center.


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## JAAune (Jan 22, 2012)

Be careful with the downcutters in a handheld router. They want to climb up and out of the cut. Upcut bits pull the router against the workpiece.


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