Currently on the job, we are building a curved deck that is being decked
with 5/4 Ipe. We have used Ipe a great deal in the past but never on a
curved deck. We have been kicking around ideas about how to cut the decking
to final length. My current favorite idea is to rough cut it to length and
then rout it to final length with a flush trim bit.

What can I expect routing the endgrain of Ipe? I am thinking that I will
first rout it with a couple of layers of tape on the piece that the bearing
will ride on, then remove the tape and make a final pass removing only a
small amount.

I know that Ipe is tough on cutters. I have approximately 60 ft of decking
to rout. Should I plan on more then one bit? What will the problems be,
(i.e., tearing burning, all of the above)? What combination of bit speed
and router speed should I use?

I plan on doing some experimenting today and we will hopefully be doing the
final work on Friday. Any thoughts would be appreciated as there is little
room for error.

SteveP.