This is the kind of spiral cutter Lucky is talking about. ? This particular one is a Rangate product and comes with a rub bearing for template work and has nickers top and bottom.? I have a similar version made by Leitz.? Terrific cutter.?
I often get asked ¡°I¡¯m new to shapers and want to get cutters for it, what should I buy?¡±. ? In my own experience, that¡¯s putting the cart before the horse, and if you aren¡¯t careful you¡¯ll spend a lot of money on tooling that¡¯s rarely or never used. ? I learned this the hard way. ? The best strategy for shaper tooling is to let the projects you commit to making drive the acquisition of the shaper tooling. ??
For instance, if you think you¡¯ll be doing a lot of tenon cutting for joinery, a pair of deep cutting rebate cutters might seem ideal - stack one cutter above the other with a spacer in between and presto, you have a variable thickness tenoner. ? Then a year later you realize all your tenon work is done with a Festool domino router. ? I¡¯ve seen this specific scenario many times. ?
To be sure, some cutters are more general use than others, and a spiral rebate cutter like Lucky mentioned facilitates template/pattern work, edge rebates, and can even be useful as dimensioning timber. ?
Lots of people will say to get a variable thickness grooving cutter.? The utility of a groover is entirely dependent on the projects you undertake. ? I have two variable width groomers in my shaper tool inventory, and they are the least used cutters in my collection because of the type of work I do. ??
Then there are the bargain hunters who lunge after cutters because they are on sale, or offered at a whopping discount to new.? I¡¯ve been guilty of this myself.? So you buy that super screaming deal of a panel raising cutter, then once you use it you discover it doesn¡¯t have the profile shape you want, or is too large to go down into the shaper cavity below the cast iron top like you thought. ? Research what fits your machine, and buy what you know you need and will meet all the needs of your project and fit the machine.
Rangate¡¯s Cutter Share program is a terrific way to test out shaper tooling. ? You can rent most of their standard cutters for a few months for a project, then if you decide you need to own it, you can buy that set at a discount.?
My very strong encouragement is to let your projects drive your cutter purchases, and resist the temptation to buy a bunch of tooling on a prospective basis. ?
David Best - Sent from my iPad
On Feb 11, 2020, at 6:01 PM, imranindiana via Groups.Io <imranindiana=[email protected]> wrote:
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David,
I do not have a spiral head like you describe. Just a question, does it have nickers top and bottom to do clean rebates like a rebate head. If not how do you rate rebate quality compared to a rebate head with nickers - I assume you have one.
Imran
On Feb 12, 2020, at 3:00 AM, David Luckensmeyer <dhluckens@...> wrote:
?In general, the most used cutter by my colleagues and me, is a spiral cutter between 80-125mm diameter, and 60-100mm tall. The exact size depends on your machine¡¯s capacity to tilt the cutter through a full 45 degrees.?
This cutter can rebate timber, on the top or bottom, forward or backward, very cleanly, and at a myriad of sizes. You can put an angle on the edge of a piece of timber. You can chamfer edges at basically any size. You can even ¡°raise¡± a panel by rebating the front to fit into a table-saw-made groove and complete cabinet work.?
Many places make a cutter like I¡¯ve described above, including Hammer, Felder, Rangate, etc. I have a 125mm dia. Spiral cutter from Leitz. I love it and use it all the time.?
And your second cutter should be an adjustable groover, unless you have the dado set?
On 12 Feb 2020, at 7:50 am, robsimmons67 via Groups.Io <robsimmons67=[email protected]> wrote:
?So after getting my C3-41 I am not sure what a good first but would to get. I do have a router table but I do want to use the shaper. Any advice on what a good bit or two to get? Just have no idea where to start.?
