Step routing.

[toddjoles]

I just laid out the steps on my billets and realized that when using billets you don't have a square surface to support the router from. I also realized that you would be routing away your support as you went along if you did try to use the billet for support.

I'm sure the solution is a simple one but I've spent a week thinking about this and can't seem to come up with a solution to this problem on my own.

What kind of a jig do the pro's use for step routing?

[ShaneJ]

I you have access to a planer, you can use it similarly to the way Lynn Dudenbostel uses his thickness sander on this page. Of course, a #7 or #8 Stanley hand plane would help you get a flat side as well. You'd get to make those little curly things too.

I'm sure one of the gazillion people on this board that are far more knowledgeable than me on such matters will be able to give you other better ideas, but those are mine. Good luck!

[PaulD]

Here's something you can try... along similar lines to Lynn's page referenced above and something someone (MarioP?) posted a couple weeks ago. Rather than describe it I drew a quick sketch. In a nutshell, you would glue 2 sacrificial strips (in brown) of wood to the sides of your blank (in grey), and ideally another 2 to the ends. You would surface it down so the strips are the same thickness as the center of your top and true up the underside as well. You then have a reference surface that you can attach a pattern (in red) to with screws if necessary.

I'm sure there are other ideas that will be presented, but this might get you going.

[Jim Hilburn]

Here's the thing I made before I got my pantograph. I used Unistrut which is normally used in electrical work for mounting gear. I made wooden guides that rode down in the channels and teflon runners that rode on top.

[toddjoles]

Thanks everyone for your responses.

Paul, yours was my first and only idea. My thought was that some strips along the side would work ok, but what about the ends? I guess my brain couldn't comprehend something so simple as to adding strips on the ends also. I'm sure that this will work now.

Jim the unitrack idea looks very interesting, but a little to high tech at this time for me.

Thanks everyone for responding.

[Jim Hilburn]

Seems pretty caveman-like to me now.

[toddjoles]

Jim, life is relative. Your set up looks great and appears simple to build. It will be a great second step if I find myself building more in the future. At this time I can't justify the expense and effort for something I'll only use once.

[PaulD]

Jim; I've certainly resorted to "caveman" jigs/rigs/fixtures over the years, and I'm sure I will in the future. Maybe that says something about my state of evolution! I think it's essential to have the ability to make do with what we have and innovate solutions. Inevitably we improve on them with time and experience.

This is very off topic, but that's part of my complaint about The New Yankee Workshop on PBS (woodworking show, for anyone that's not familiar with it). It's a half-hour infommercial for Delta and Porter Cable and doesn't teach innovation and invention at all. If you can buy a turbo-charged, laser guided CNC vertical mill to carve your tops & backs, you're SOL! No running to the hardware store to see what you can find to improvise what you need.

Sorry for the off topic banter, but I think your setup is great for one-off work. In fact it's similar to a wooden sled I have that I made for surfacing stock with the router years before I had a power planer. I keep it around because I find the occasional use for it.

Paul Doubek