Patriarch wrote:

"Rumpty" wrote in
:

I'm sure, in the hands of an artist, many things can be done with a
RAS. I
can't imagine how one would cut a curved bonnet top moulding with one,
however.

It's done all the time! We use the Delta Shaper heads and bits, and a
variable fixed rub collar on the table, the cuts are made with the
arbor down pointing on the table and the moulding mounted to a guide
board and fed past the bit.


Pardon me, but my estimation of your courage just went WAY up! That sounds
to me very much like an inverted, free-air shaper.

I'll pass, thank you.

Such setups can work well and can also be made to be very safe with only
a little effort...a fence/hold-down around the cutter head is able to
prevent virtually any chance of accidental contact or even approach to
the cutterhead. As with a regular spindle shaper or router in table,
cutting is "uphill". Only real disadvantage is the lower rpm as is
equivalent of using a shaper head on the table saw. This is made up
some by the larger diameter as compared to almost any small (3/4" or
less spindle) cutter.