Proposed jig question

[Beechwood Chip]

Straight bit in your router table and use a miter gauge or cut a square piece of wood to slide along the fence?

Sanding disk in your table saw and use a miter gauge?

Sanding drum in your drill press and use a miter gauge?

 

[Beechwood Chip]

Is it important that all the pieces be exactly the same length?

[Torin3]

On 1/30/2026 at 4:39 PM, Beechwood Chip said:

Is it important that all the pieces be exactly the same length?

Some variation would be OK, but I want to eventually pocket the faces for magnets to assist in keeping them from separating in the rails, so closer to the same is better long term.  It is still too cold to spend much time in my shop even with the mini-split as I have no insulation in there (2 car garage in northern montgomery county), so I've got to wait a bit before I can start trying things again.

[Beechwood Chip]

On 1/30/2026 at 2:31 PM, Beechwood Chip said:

Straight bit in your router table and use a miter gauge or cut a square piece of wood to slide along the fence?

Sanding disk in your table saw and use a miter gauge?

Sanding drum in your drill press and use a miter gauge?

 

I suggest, cut the pieces about 1/8" to 1/4" long, flatten and square one end, then use the same method with a stop or a fence to trim, flatten and square the other end to the correct length.  Since you mentioned that you had a router table, I'd use that.  You can get tear-out on the back side, so your jig should support that edge.

Let me/us know if you want more explanation, a diagram, etc.

[wtnhighlander]

As you ramp up production, it might pay to invest in some custom router bits to reduce the number of passes needed to cut the block profiles. I believe @gee-dub has demonstrated a bit with opposed cutters that can round two corners at once. I'm sure a similar bit to cut the 'tongue' on the bottom of the block in one pass is also possible. That cut may also be accomplished by using spacers between the chippers of a dado stack, provided the arbor of your tablesaw is long enough.

Here is an example of the double roundover bit.

Infinity tools adjustable double roundover router bits

[Torin3]

On 1/30/2026 at 11:58 PM, wtnhighlander said:

As you ramp up production, it might pay to invest in some custom router bits to reduce the number of passes needed to cut the block profiles. I believe @gee-dub has demonstrated a bit with opposed cutters that can round two corners at once. I'm sure a similar bit to cut the 'tongue' on the bottom of the block in one pass is also possible. That cut may also be accomplished by using spacers between the chippers of a dado stack, provided the arbor of your tablesaw is long enough.

Here is an example of the double roundover bit.

Infinity tools adjustable double roundover router bits

Definately something I will consider.  It will probably eaier to get something off the shelf to do the tongue portion, and finish isn't that critical on those surfaces.  But being able to get a consistant profile will help.  I'll likely have to get a custom double roundover with 9/16" radii, but that shouldn't be that expensive when it gets to that point.

I have a lift for my router, and a source for about a $40 router DRO so I can get repeatable locations.

[Torin3]

Just FYI, I haven't gotten lost.  Just got in the G-sharp chisel/plane sharpener.  Resharpening all my crappy box store chisels (3 of them) to give them a go.

Narex set of 4 for $50 still a reasonable set of good but not great chisels?

[fcschoenthal]

On 2/18/2026 at 1:43 PM, Torin3 said:

Narex set of 4 for $50 still a reasonable set of good but not great chisels?

Narex makes excellent chisels, especially for the money. Much better than the box store variety. Their Richter line is one of the best.

[drzaius]

I've got a couple of sets of Narex chisels and like them a lot, especially for the price. The worst thing I can say about them is that the handles are kinda ugly.

[Torin3]

 Ok, doing research on hand planes to see what would be the best choice for what I want to do.  (I'm still going to be trying the chisels as well.)

Since the ends are 1 1/4" X 1 1/4" and I'm wanting to just remove enough material to have a clean end, would it be better to use a chisel hand plane or a smaller smoothing plane?

I've been thinking about the fixture I'm going to use to hold the parts while being finished on the ends.  I'm divided on 3D printing them, or machining them out of nylon blocks.  On the 3D printing, I can print them again as needed easier than machining them out with my CNC router.  But I've got a friend willing to get me started using Solidworks (which should be my easiest design option since I have a license, and I'm trained on MasterCam which has a Solidworks plugin) and the design won't be overly complex.  I'd have 2 of them with different depths, deeper one for first side, and slightly shallower one for second side planing.

If I 3D print, I'd make them 2 parts with either spring loaded guide rods, or plain guide rods and made to use in a regular vise to hold the fixture.

My main issue with machining the fixture is I don't have all that much  vertical height in my CNC (3 1/2" inches roughly unless I make some changes that are a pain the rear), and deflection is a concern for long tools) and would have to make it in 4 parts.

[Mark J]

If you're going the hand plane route, what you want to make is called a shooting board.   You should be able to find some examples with a search.  

[Torin3]

On 2/24/2026 at 8:26 AM, Mark J said:

If you're going the hand plane route, what you want to make is called a shooting board.   You should be able to find some examples with a search.  

Thank you!  If I'm understanding it from a quick look, it is kind of what I was thinking of doing, but rotated from a vertical setup to a horizontal one.  I'll have to look at some videos to make sure I'm really getting it.

No point in reinventing a wheel if there is a pefectly good one already there.  Thanks again for pointing me to this.

Edit: Ok, watched a few videos and this will be easier than what I was originally thinking.  Shouldn't have a problem making either. I don't have a dado blade so I'll use  my router table for the slots.  I do have a router lift and know better than to try and do it all in one go.

The fence will have a groove for the rib on the koma.  Even if I get tearout on the rib portion, cleaning that up a bit won't be the problem it would be for the radiused top, as that is where the strings catch.

I've got a bench plane arriving tomorrow, but I probably won't be able to get to this until sometime next week.  I've got constable firearms re-certification this Saturday and I'm a bit focused on that.

I've got a nice board of 8/4 maple that I'll cut a piece of for the fence. 

Oh, and while I'm thinking about it, is there a prefered source here for 1/2" to 3/4" helical straight router bits?  

Edited February 25 by Torin3
Additional information.

[fcschoenthal]

On 2/24/2026 at 6:26 PM, Torin3 said:

Oh, and while I'm thinking about it, is there a prefered source here for 1/2" to 3/4" helical straight router bits?

Don't really have a preferred source, but suggest that you buy a good one. I've started switching over to solid carbide bits as much as possible, as they stay sharper longer. A dull bit will build up heat and ruin the work and the bit quickly.

[wtnhighlander]

Lots of folks speak well of Whiteside bits. There are less expensive bits on the market, but Whiteside is reasonable, and good quality.

[Beechwood Chip]

Any opinion on whether the fancy iridescent (AstraHP) coating is worth it or just a gimmick?

[Mark J]

@wtnhighlander,  what do you think of Amana and Freud?

[wtnhighlander]

On 2/24/2026 at 9:39 PM, Beechwood Chip said:

Any opinion on whether the fancy iridescent (AstraHP) coating is worth it or just a gimmick?

I see that mostly on bits intended for CNC use. I think it may reduce friction & heat buildup, but have no direct experience.

22 hours ago, Mark J said:

@wtnhighlander,  what do you think of Amana and Freud?

I see both of those brands get good ratings and reviews, but I personally own just one or two of either. My limited router use has been served well enough by the knock-off brands that used to be much less costly. Now, they are not so much less, so future purchases may as well be from brands with higher regard from the community.

[Torin3]

On 2/24/2026 at 10:39 PM, Beechwood Chip said:

Any opinion on whether the fancy iridescent (AstraHP) coating is worth it or just a gimmick?

 

On 2/26/2026 at 7:10 AM, wtnhighlander said:

I see that mostly on bits intended for CNC use. I think it may reduce friction & heat buildup, but have no direct experience.

At the plastics machine shop I work at, we switched over to using the 1/4" flush trim router bits with the blue coating.  They last a LOT longer leaving a good finish than the uncoated versions we used prior to the switch.  They start out a little less sharp than the uncoated ones (for the first little bit, the uncoated ones had a better finish) but after about 2 hours the coated ones would maintain their sharpness and finish quality much better.

Not sure how well they would preform in wood as it has a lot more gummy type residue than most of the plastics we use.  Though some like polypropelyne can gum up a router bit very easily.