Useful thread this ... had done a lot of research trying to find the perfect cutters before realising I would have to make my own. But a new shop opened up locally and as luck would have it!
Lower diameter of the cutter is 10mm, bearing external diameter is 9.5mm - this explains the effect shown in the photo
Lower diameter of this cutter is 9.3mm.
(Ctrl and + to zoom in on Iggy's photo)
Shout if anyone wants the top option thrown in the post. The lower option is more expensive as the cutter is mail order.
Nice Rich
Looks like you found the only supplier in the world of wide based dovetail bits!
That price is pretty good. I am enjoying the buoyant aussie dollar at present, just ordered some bindings from the UK for 1/2 what they cost in australia. Shipping was a whopping 9 quid! A$1 = almost 70p now.
but if you have a tilt base trimmer and straight bit will do.
Those flared bits take too much material off IMO and clog and break the bearing cause of the difference in speed.
You can create any angle you want with a tilt base and a straight bit.
Last time I will put in my .02.
@Iggy: Where do you start and stop the routing on your sidewalls. We have a pair of jeronimos and there is some degree of bevel all the way around the tip, but it's hard to see how much was routed after you have sanded it all again. I'm still doing wood sidewalls and the last pair I started in the tip spacer and to me it looks a bit lame. Thinking I will just start and stop with the wood. thanks
I bought a top bearing doevtail bit with 1/4 inch shank. I then got the smallest OD bearing with a 1/4 ID and used this to replace the original bearing. Unfortunately this wasn't flush with the narrowest point of the cutter. I then clamped the ski upside down on the edge of the table and ran the bearing along the edge. Basically in the tip/tail the cutter doesn't engage at all. Then starts engaging and you end up with some vertical sidewall above the edge then a bevelled area. Mine is like your second example Rich where the bearing is larger than the cutters narrowest point, although your has very little difference where mine was bigger (therefore more vertical before the slant started - try to offset this by having very little bearing riding on the edge = dangerous!)
More recently I have changed to the tilt base router with straight top bearing bit. Same routing method. I think it works much better and I get a more even bevel all the way along.
Not sure I understood your question though. Does the bearing look crap and my results look good or vice versa.
@skibum: I think mine is only 10 degree bevel. I could never get the magic combination of top bearing - 22 degrees - wide cutter narrowest point - 1/4 shank. I think I got it from Carbatec australia. http://www.carbatec.com.au/carba-tec-dovetail-bit_c9415 I think this is it.
Note to self - write down where you buy everything alomg the way, chances are you will need another one later on!
Last edited by falls on Thu Jul 28, 2011 11:29 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Falls - I think I was trying to compliment you on your results and understand the margin between the perfectly sized bearing and one that will work ; )
thanks
The bearing is ID 1/4 inch, OD 9.5mm
Cutter is 15.75mm long cutting length, 15.75mm diam at widest point and 7.75mm at narrowest diameter.
It says 7 degrees on the website, but my trigonometry is saying 17 degrees.
This setup leaves 5.5mm of vertical before it starts cutting in, so if you run only half the bearing on the edge it leaves about 4.5mm vertical and then leaves the angle on the rest. It's OK in one pass. I didn't like how the bevel didn't start for a while leaving vertical sidewalls for too far in from tip/tail. I think your setup Rich where the bearing is only slightly larger than the cutter is on the money (but I think I'm a tilt base router convert!)
