Does anyone know of any instructional websites to walk throught the
steps to make raised panel cabinet doors? I recently got a shaper
with stile, rail and panel cutters and would like to make a cabinet
door.

(Mark) wrote in
m:

Does anyone know of any instructional websites to walk
throught the steps to make raised panel cabinet doors? I
recently got a shaper with stile, rail and panel cutters and
would like to make a cabinet door.


Here's one:
http://mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite_...marthtml/pages
/instruct.html

Casey

I know you are not asking for advice here....

But don't feel you need to raise the panel in one pass. Trust me.

John

Mark wrote:
Does anyone know of any instructional websites to walk throught the
steps to make raised panel cabinet doors? I recently got a shaper
with stile, rail and panel cutters and would like to make a cabinet
door.

Pick up the Sommerfeld catalog. Instructions are right in
the catalog. sommerfeldtools.com. great folks.

David

Mark wrote:

Does anyone know of any instructional websites to walk throught the
steps to make raised panel cabinet doors? I recently got a shaper
with stile, rail and panel cutters and would like to make a cabinet
door.

Try the CMT website!....That's what I used

I dunno of any videos, but i can offer some pointers.
If you have set up and used a router table, you should have little problems
setting up a shaper. Very similiar concept. Although, you may be a little
intimidated with it at first, (mine sounds like a b-29 taking off with the
raised panel cutter running in it! WAY different than my little router
table! )

First, you should really consider a shaper jig, (i use the delta 43-186) for
doing the endgrains of your stiles and rails. It eleminates much causes
for error. And, as a bonus, helps keep your fingers away from the cutter.
If you have problems with snipe on your panels, you can screw a longer 1x3
or something to the back of it and use it to ride against the fence to help
keep things true to the cutter while you are feeding it through.
Always cut your endgrain first, as it will almost always chip out at the
end. (the cut with the grain will take care of this)

If you get hooked on making raised panels and decide to make kitchen
cabintes for everyone you know, invest in a feeder, they are wonderful time
savers. -Dave


"Mark" wrote in message
m...
Does anyone know of any instructional websites to walk throught the
steps to make raised panel cabinet doors? I recently got a shaper
with stile, rail and panel cutters and would like to make a cabinet
door.

Check out this MLCS video:

http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shops...thtml/pages/vi
deo.html

Although I didn't follow everything exactly, it gives a good
introduction for about $10.

Lou

If you get instructions on using router bits to make a raised panel door,
setting up the cutter for the profile (stick) cut is generally a little
different with a shaper cutter. The cutter joints off a little part of the
edge as it sticks the profile. You need an offset fence for this operation.
With a router bit, the stile runs against a bearing. For shaper work, I
feel the stock feeder is pretty much a necessity. One, you get a better
quality of cut; and two, it keeps your fingers away from the cutter.

I also consider the shaper as one of the more dangerous tools in the shop.
I would try to get someone to show you the proper use of the tool. For
myself, I couldn't find anyone so I did the next best thing, I got a good
book on using the shaper. At the very least, please do that; and better, do
both. A six inch heavyweight cutter twirling around on the shaper can
really do some damage. That isn't to frighten you, just to prompt you
toward safety.

When you run the panel, always run the edge grain first. Then rotate 90°
counter-clockwise so the next pass removes any tearout from the edgegrain
pass. If you have 5+ horsepower, you can cut the panel in one pass. For 3
hp (which I have), I do the panel in two passes with a light second pass.
You will need more passes for lesser horsepower. You need to keep a proper
feed rate to lessen chances of burning and heating and resin buildup on the
cutter.

For stiles and rails, always cut the rail first (cope cut), then the profile
on stiles and rails (stick cut). Make the rail a little wide. That way,
the stick cut takes care of any blowout on one side of the rail, and
trimming to width takes care of any blowout on the other side of rail. The
fence is set to where the rail just barely touches the rub collar/bearing on
the cutter. If you have a rub collar, a slight discoloration of the end
will show the fence is set properly. To hold the rail, I made a simple jig
out of a square of 1/2" baltic birch ply. I put a fence on the ply that is
square to the shaper fence. Two toggle clamps on the jig fence holds the
rail in place. Once I have the height adjusted, I replace a small strip of
wood that mounts to the jig's fence between the rail and the fence to make
it zero clearance. Then I can cut the rails.

For the shaper fence for the stick operation, I made a straight fence with a
boxed opening around the cutter to which I can attach a 4" dust collector
hose (Same for the cope and panel raising). To the outfeed side of the
fence, I attached a piece of plastic laminate. That makes about a 1/16"
offset fence. You set the cutter so that the widest part of the cutter is
even with the plastic laminate. That way, you shave off (or joint) about
1/16" of the stock as it passes across the cutter. This further straightens
the stock and makes sure you have a full profile. Not always true when
running across the bearing of a router bit.

Another step with using shaper cutters is that you have to shim the cope
cutter and possibly the panel raiser for a proper fit. To do this, first
stick a profile to a piece of stock. Then mount the cope (rail or stub
tenon) cutter and do test cuts and shim for a proper fit. The fit shouldn't
be tight, just slightly snug. A trick I read about (Delta website) and now
use is to buy extra spindles. When changing cutters, change the entire
spindle and cutter as a unit. That way, you don't have to worry about
re-shimming the cutters after they have been set up. Although it doesn't
seem like it would be, it seems every time I remove and replace a cutter,
the shimming changes and take quite a bit of time to reset it up. Also, I
place a mark on each cutter near the end of a wing with a black felt marker.
When the cutter is properly shimmed and set to the proper height, I measure
the distance from the mark to the table with a dial indicator on a sliding
base. If for some reason, after a long run of doors, you find you need to
run another rail or stile, setting up another cutter is easy. Of course, if
you have three shapers, it is a moot point.

For the stock, I usually buy 15/16" or full 4/4 lumber. I sticker it in the
shop for at least a few days. I then rough mill it to about 1/8" above the
final 3/4" thickness and about 5/16" greater in width. I then sticker it
again and let it set a couple of days more. If you have a wide enough
planer, you can then joint a 1/32" and plane a 1/32" of the stock thickness
for the door panels and glue them up. Of course, mill properly for edge
grain gluing. Then next day, you can rerun the panels through the planer
taking off 1/32" off each side, cut to size and raise the panels on the
shaper. Alternately, you can joint and plane to 3/4", glue up, sand smooth
the next day (wait a couple of days if you can), size the panels and raise
them. After the panels are sanded and perhaps finished, joint and plane the
stile and rail stock to final thickness and run them. Glue up the doors as
soon as you can on a very flat surface. The key is to try to get the doors
glued up as soon as you can after milling so they don't have as great a
chance to move on you. Proper milling and gluing the doors up square and on
a flat surface is needed to insure a square, flat door.

Hope this helps,
Preston
"Mark" wrote in message
m...
Does anyone know of any instructional websites to walk throught the
steps to make raised panel cabinet doors? I recently got a shaper
with stile, rail and panel cutters and would like to make a cabinet
door.