Hi,

I'm working on a project that involves making multiple copies of small wooden pieces. So I made a template and went over to my router table and installed my flush cut bit and carefully started trimming. I was really nervous doing this as my fingers were about an inch from the blades, but I've never had a problem before. In this case the bit (it has a straight flute) must have hit an edge and it sent my piece flying. Luckily my fingers didn't follow and my Jack Burton-esque reflexes saved me again. Anyway, I built some wooden fingers with grippy pads on the ends to control the piece, but the bit still hits an edge and either tears it out or throws the whole piece.

I thought about buying a better flush bit but I'd have to order one and I want an instant fix. I read about using a sanding drum w/ bearing as a template sander. So I built one and it works OK, but it's not very fast and takes about 20x as long as using the router bit (and this is with using wood that is about a 1/16th inch bigger than the template, so not much material to remove).

So what is ya'll's techniques for cutting using small templates? And who sells a good spiral flush trim bit?