Replies

1. 
   Frozen | Dec 05, 2008 06:14pm | #1

   - take multiple passes, increasing the depth of cut by small increments
   (D'oh! - read the post more carefully next time!)

   - use a really sharp bit - the newer the better

   - I'm not sure whether climb-cutting could help (or is even possible) in this situation.

   
   

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   Edited 12/5/2008 10:15 am ET by Frozen

2. 
   bones | Dec 05, 2008 06:38pm | #2

   Like the other poster said good (clean) bit.  Light passes. End-grain first long grain second.  If its possible I try to put a backer board on the edge where the bit will exit to absorb the shock and prevent the blowout.

   Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases:
   If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it.
   And if it stops moving, subsidize it.
   
1. 
   BruceS | Dec 05, 2008 06:43pm | #4

   Same idea, same time ;-)Work Safe,  Count to 10 when your done for the day !!

   Bruce S. 

    

3. 
   BruceS | Dec 05, 2008 06:41pm | #3

   Use an extra long board(1")  then make the cut and then rip off the excess.  Going up hill on the grain is always a bummer.  A larger diameter bit will help some too,  as the angle of attack on the "end" grain won't be as steep, but I would still use a backer or longer board. 

   For safety reasons I won't mention climb cutting.

   Work Safe,  Count to 10 when your done for the day !!

   Bruce S. 

    

1. 
   kmetzger | Dec 05, 2008 06:50pm | #6

   Thanks for your ideas. The thing is, it's a 6 inch long cut in the center of the board, which is Honduras mahagony. So I can't use an extra long board. I'll try using a new bit, but I still think I'd get tear-out. So I think I might just have to stop short of the 6" length and use a carving gouge to carve the end out in the same shape as the initial cut.

4. 
   BruceS | Dec 05, 2008 06:47pm | #5

   Oops, wait a minute.  Does this finger hold run the whole length or only about 4" in the middle of the ends?

   Work Safe,  Count to 10 when your done for the day !!

   Bruce S. 

    

5. 
   photonut | Dec 05, 2008 07:05pm | #7

   It can nearly impossible to stop tear-out while using a router, but it can be minimized. For the cut it sounds like you're doing, I would bury the bit into a fence with the bit running. This created a zero-clearance fence. This is safe if you screw or bolt the end of the fence to the table top. This zero-clearance method will result in the least amount of tear-out because the wood is almost 100% supported. I would also use stop block on both ends of the fence to establish the length of the cut. I would plunge into the cut about a quarter of an inch from the starting end, climb-cut back to the stop block, and then rout to the end stop. Climb cutting is safe if the cut is shallow. The stop block helps also. If you don't want to lengthen the groves you have now, and if you have room to do so, get out a sharp chisel and turn the ends into lambs tongues. Turn it into a design modification.

1. 
   kmetzger | Dec 05, 2008 08:08pm | #8

   Thank you, Photonut. A zero-clearance fence did the trick. There is almost no tear-out, so if I use a brand new bit, I should be in good shape.

1. 
   photonut | Dec 05, 2008 08:52pm | #9

   Awesome. Glad it worked.