Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.

In article , stoutman
wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.

Youch. Just thinking about it clenched my sphincter...

--
"The thing about saying the wrong words is that A, I don't notice it, and B,
sometimes orange water gibbon bucket and plastic." -- Mr. Burrows

An upcut spiral is the only bit I've ever broken. There's very little
metal in the middle of one of those puppies. I either broke a 5/16 or
1/4. It got my heart racing when it went ZING!

Dave

stoutman wrote:
Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.

Yeah, I know the feeling! I nearly filled my pants a few weeks ago when I
had a Keller dovetail bit bust and come flying into my chest.

Bob


"stoutman" wrote in message
. com...
Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.

On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 03:44:04 GMT, "stoutman" wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.

At least your instincts are good - better to crap with your britches
off.

Yep, scary. And Woodcraft had 'em on special just last month! I got "lucky" and broke one just in time.(Gloat?) Tom

On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 03:44:04 GMT, "stoutman" wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.



How deep of a cut were you making? What brand?

On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 03:44:04 GMT, "stoutman" wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit.

Solid carbide ? Those are always going to be brittle - don't shock
load them.

Better bits are less snap-prone than the cheapies.

Back a few years ago when my Dad was still living, my then 35 yr old
brother-in law Jeremy was talking about wanting a router to try out his
woodworking talent. My Dad got up from his chair and went out to the
workshop to get one, and Jeremy followed, after finishing the conversation
with my Mom. Dad and Jeremy met at the top of the back steps, so they just
stood there and talked about the tool. The router had a 3/4" through-slotted
cutter in it, protruding about 3/8". Jeremy wanted to hear the router run,
so Dad directed him to the overhead soffit, where there was an electrical
plug used for Christmas lights. Jeremy, holding the router in his left hand,
dangles it down by his left hip as he stretches upwards with his right hand
to plug the unit in. The toggle switch on the router was apparently in the
"on" position, un-noticed at the time, where Jeremy had been absent-mindedly
flipping it back and forth while talking. When he plugged the tool in, it of
course instantly started. Dad said he heard a heavy propeller-like sound and
saw something big go flying by his head into the yard, so he turned to see
what it was. There was the router, now unplugged, with a pair of men's
briefs hung up in the cutter, lying on the ground!! Dad whirled back around
to see Jeremy shaken, face white as a sheet, and eyes big as saucers.
Jeremy FLEW to the bathroom to see what damage had been done. (privates
seemed to be a major concern) The only physical damage was a 3/4" hole in
the left hip seam of his jeans, with a slight band-aid wound on his hip
where the router bit had nicked him. The router had sucked his entire pair
of underwear out of his pants in hundredths of a second! Luckily, nothing
critical was hurt, but he ended up with a bruise in his inner crotch at his
left leg, and a severely injured pride. In-law visitation dwindled for a
while after that.
For years afterward, my Dad could not tell the story without crying from
laughing so hard, telling how he stood outside the bathroom door, along with
my HIGHLY concerned sister asking "Jeremy, are you all right?"
Jeremy never mentioned wanting to take up woodworking again.

RJ

"Phisherman" wrote in message
news
On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 03:44:04 GMT, "stoutman" wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.



How deep of a cut were you making? What brand?

1/2" into the MDF. I was using a PC bushing on the router (free hand) and
to get the depth I needed I under chucked the bit into the collet. This
could of contributed to it breaking. Brand: Whiteside from Woodcraft.

A piece of shrapnel hot me in the arm and I thought for sure It drew blood,
but nope. Not even a scratch.


"Phisherman" wrote in message
news
On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 03:44:04 GMT, "stoutman" wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.



How deep of a cut were you making? What brand?

On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 08:09:22 -0500, the inscrutable "Backlash"
spake:

Back a few years ago when my Dad was still living, my then 35 yr old
brother-in law Jeremy was talking about wanting a router to try out his
woodworking talent.

--snip of GREAT story--

For years afterward, my Dad could not tell the story without crying from
laughing so hard, telling how he stood outside the bathroom door, along with
my HIGHLY concerned sister asking "Jeremy, are you all right?"
Jeremy never mentioned wanting to take up woodworking again.

I understand your dad's trouble in telling that story. vbg
What a hoot!


================================================== ======
TANSTAAFL: There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.
http://diversify.com Gourmet Web Applications
==========================

My personal favorite came from my tool dealer who tells
the story about the pro cabinet shop guys who bought a
new Freud three wing panel raiser and took her to the
shop for a quick "test run".

The guy got distracted during the bit installation and
failed to lock her down. When he flipped the switch on
that big old PC 7518(3.5hp) router, the three wing cutter
came up to speed and just as the guy started his feed,
the bit took off like a helicopter and went straight up
into an exposed beam in the shop ceiling.

The work in the shop came to a halt for the rest of the day.




stoutman wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.

In article ,
"stoutman" wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.




I have posted this many times.....wear a leather apron when using a
handheld router with a large bit... even when using a router table. It's
just plain smart. I never bother when using little bits, but as soon as
I need to drop the RPM, I put on the apron.

I have seen what a 1 1/8" x 1 1/2" long pattern bit with top bearing can
do to a plywood panel. It took a nice nick out of it..and had it been
flesh, the nick would have been bigger..noooo thank you.

On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 14:39:37 -0500, Robatoy
wrote:

In article ,
"stoutman" wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.




I have posted this many times.....wear a leather apron when using a
handheld router with a large bit... even when using a router table. It's
just plain smart. I never bother when using little bits, but as soon as
I need to drop the RPM, I put on the apron.

I have seen what a 1 1/8" x 1 1/2" long pattern bit with top bearing can
do to a plywood panel. It took a nice nick out of it..and had it been
flesh, the nick would have been bigger..noooo thank you.


The Whiteside upcut spiral bit he was using is actually a small bit.
He made too deep of a cut or moved the router too fast. A face shield
might be useful too.

stoutman wrote:
Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.

In my early routing days, I had an old B&D 1/4" router in a flimsy
metal table. Something went bad with a 3/4" straight cutter and
it got bent about 20 degrees in the shaft. Now, imagine the sort
of "Whup, whup, whup..." this hunk of metal made at 10k+ rpm,
with a bend in the shaft. I crawled along the floor and sneaked
up to unplug the router. That had a distinctly clenching effect
on me, so much so that went I had a 1/4" spiral cutter break
some years later I hardly even thought anything was wrong :-}

--
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==-=-=-=
Mike Lacy, Ft Collins CO 80523
Clean out the 'junk' to email me.

On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 01:22:12 GMT, Phisherman wrote:

On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 14:39:37 -0500, Robatoy
wrote:

In article ,
"stoutman" wrote:

Broke my first router bit. 1/4" upcut spiral bit. Took to deep a cut in
MDF and the bit cracked and scared the pants off of me.




I have posted this many times.....wear a leather apron when using a
handheld router with a large bit... even when using a router table. It's
just plain smart. I never bother when using little bits, but as soon as
I need to drop the RPM, I put on the apron.

I have seen what a 1 1/8" x 1 1/2" long pattern bit with top bearing can
do to a plywood panel. It took a nice nick out of it..and had it been
flesh, the nick would have been bigger..noooo thank you.


The Whiteside upcut spiral bit he was using is actually a small bit.
He made too deep of a cut or moved the router too fast. A face shield
might be useful too.

and a kevlar jock strap!!
(gotta have your priorities straight)



mac

Please remove splinters before emailing