Replies

1. 
   hammer1 | Jun 04, 2008 06:03am | #1

   In the olden days, before pre-hung doors, we used to use a Porter Cable set up for passage and exterior doors. There are quite a few different hinge brands and they aren't all the same, particularly the ones with rounded corners. Sometimes you have to match the bit to the radius on the hinge. The holding pins are replaceable, if they get bent or worn, trade them out. I can't recall any problems other than hitting the template with the router bit, LOL. We also had a gizmo for the lock sets, strike and jamb plate. Very convenient when you have a lot of doors to hang. No experience with other brands.

   These days, I only need to cut in butt hinges on custom doors. I make my own templates out of 1/2" plywood. On cabinet doors with Euro hinges, I prefer to use a drill press with a fence and stop. I think it's quicker, more uniform and you don't have to worry about the template sliding, drilling out of square or the wrong depth.

   I just did some butt hinges on a cabinet with inset doors. The hinge cuts are critical in this application and I only had a couple doors. I incised the border by hand, wasted most of the gain with a router, then finished off with a chisel. It takes a bit longer but when there is no room for error, that's the way it is.

   Beat it to fit / Paint it to match

2. 
   MikeHennessy | Jun 04, 2008 02:00pm | #2

   There was a discussion of this over at Breaktime a month or so ago -- you might want to check the archives.

1. 
   carpenter5 | Jun 04, 2008 04:33pm | #3

   Hey Mike can you clarify where what breaktime is.... I'm out of the loop on that one.

1. 
   MikeHennessy | Jun 04, 2008 05:28pm | #5

   Breaktime is the equivalent of Knots, but related to Fine Homebuilding vs. Fine Woodworking. Just a different forum on this site. You should be able to find it from the home page. (I just have a direct link in my "Favorites", so I can't tell you exactly where on the home page to find it.)

   Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA

3. 
   doorboy | Jun 04, 2008 04:46pm | #4

   carpenter5,
   First, I am personally not a fan of the P-C, Bosch-type of hinge templates. I have made my own out of plywood--the same theory as a storyboard used to mark the hinge locations. Just tack it on the jamb, do your mortises, and then tack it on the door and do your mortises. Be careful that you have the proper gap at the top of the door.
   'Breaktime' is the forum of the FineHomebuilding and can be accessed by clicking on 'Breaktime' right above this post.

4. 
   cowtown | Jun 05, 2008 09:12am | #6

   hinge templates for routing out hinges with normitic devices are really only justifiable in time economy when you get to doing 3 or 4 doors or more...all the same.

   up to that point, butt hinge markers and a chisel will do the job just as fast, and if you have a hand router, just as precise. Minus the clean up of dust that a router produces.

   I seldom dig the hinge template out for even a couple of doors, even though it's all set to go with a dedicated router.

   Switching to cabinet doors, the Blum Eco-drill is -at 200 bucks or so, just as cheap as any other cabinet door boring attachment, and ever so much faster to place and use. Mine has paid for itself many times over.

   Eric