Single Blade
Cutter Block
Single bladed blocks
were used from the
late 1920’s right up to
the 1950’s, especially by pattern
makers. These were produced in
numerous styles and the advent of
cutters with bottom cut geometry
was traced to this early design. These
tools could be run at greater speeds,
smallest diameters at 18,000 RPM
and largest at 12,000 RPM.
2
furniture
focus
by Tom Rogers
1990’s and beyond
Innovative tooling continues to be
developed. Examples of this include
solid carbide spiral cutters, ROTATIP
replaceable tip cutters and PCD
tipped tooling. For improved safety,
integral chip limiters are now designed
into cutters with diameters over
16mm, and restrict the level of injury
should a cutter be contacted. IP
Chip limiter
1.1mm
Tom Rogers describes a simple
way to enhance the appearance
of a piece of furniture.
ne useful routing accessory
that lends itself to this is
the Trend Routercarver.
Intended for cutting decorative
carved motives into panel faces, frame
corners or as intricate surrounds for
door handles and other furniture
fittings, the system uses a number of
interchangeable templates, held by a
single frame, to produce many varied
designs.
O
Although each Routercarver set uses
two or more templates to produce a
specific design, for a simplified effect,
fewer cuts can be selected from each
standard template to achieve a unique
carved style of your own.
In my example I have taken a section
from the Classical template Ref.
RCT/HS/C, to produce a carved
frieze along the bottom of an
ottoman. The carving on the top of
the box is Ref. RCT/LP/C.
To locate the holding frame and
templates in position, it has been
necessary to temporarily remove the
feet and the bottom plinth moulding.
A clamping batten is fitted in place of
the plinth moulding. Carefully
select the section of carving on
the template and calculate the
spacing between each carved
section on each face of the
workpiece. Remember to
always cut a trial sample first to
avoid risking the workpiece.
The Trend Clamp Guide straight
edge can be used to position
the template frame square to
the edge of the workpiece or
panel in each cutting position.
In this example, I also used it to
set a margin and guide the router to
cut a decorative line around the
ottoman. For this I fitted a radius
cutter, although a v-cut or shallow
square recess (straight cutter) can be
used for these border lines.
Various finishes can be applied to the
work, either to match the existing
finish, or having stripped and sanded
the surface, a new finish to match
other furniture or interior style. The
surface can be stained and varnished
or have a paint or paint effect
(ragged, sponged etc.) applied.
Alternatively an attractive effect can
be achieved by highlighting the carving
using a contrasting colour. IP
INProfile
13