The Burgess Edge Router Bit System Review

[Kelly C. Hanna]

Recently, we started a Maple and Maple plywood project for a client who wanted the look of solid wood doors without the cost. He told me about the Burgess Edge system he saw in Fine Woodworking magazine. He offered to buy the bits if I would try them out.

Since there are a ton of pictures involved with this review, I decided to put up a web page instead of bogging down the forum with multiple posts and pictures.

Here's a link to the review of the bit system and the results. For those who want 'edgeless' plywood cabinet doors and drawer fronts with the look but not the cost of solid wood, you'll want to check this out...

http://www.hannawoodworks.com/BurgessEdge.html (http://www.hannawoodworks.com/BurgessEdge.html)

[Lamar Horton]

That looks good, Kelly. I'm looking not as sceptical as before.

[Michael Ballent]

Recently, we started a Maple and Maple plywood project for a client who wanted the look of solid wood doors without the cost. He told me about the Burgess Edge system he saw in Fine Woodworking magazine. He offered to buy the bits if I would try them out.

Since there are a ton of pictures involved with this review, I decided to put up a web page instead of bogging down the forum with multiple posts and pictures.

Here's a link to the review of the bit system and the results. For those who want 'edgeless' plywood cabinet doors and drawer fronts with the look but not the cost of solid wood, you'll want to check this out...

http://www.hannawoodworks.com/BurgessEdge.html (http://www.hannawoodworks.com/BurgessEdge.html)
It looks neat, but not sure that it really buys you anything, I guess if you are a pro then it could serve a purpose... but what is the advantage to that over biscuits and mitering corners???

[Kelly C. Hanna]

Michael, the advantage is pretty easy to see. No other system will allow you to have the plywood veneer extend to the very edge of the hardwood edging. What this does is allow you to emulate the look of solid wood doors or drawer fronts. Say you are on a budget and want the look of a solid wood door using plywood...can you think of any other way you could do that and have it look like the results I got?

[Steve Cox]

Kelly,

In answer to the question on your last post, yes, I can. I recently built a desk unit where I drawers and I wanted to make them out of one piece of plywood with the grain running vertically. I did not want any edging showing. I simply used a square toothed sawblade to run a rabbet 1/8" wide from the back to just under the top veneer. I then glued edging to the plywood as if I was finishing a normal piece. You see the edging from the back but not the front and it has been quite strong so far. If I'm doing a kitchen I would look at the bits, they are interesting. If I'm on a budget and doing a smaller project I would use the method described above.

[James Stokes]

Here is how I do that. I set my tablsaw on a 45 degree bevel with the blade 1\2 the heigth of the material. Putting the fence on the left side I cut the first inside bevel. flip the material and cut again. This gives me a nice v cut to glue edge stock in.

[Jim Becker]

Thanks for this review, Kelly. It looks like a great system for folks who work a lot with plywood and want to have "zero delineation" between the edging and the flat material. It also looks like a small production shop would be well served by building two dedicated workstations given the need for "exact registration" of the bits on both sides of the joint.

[Kevin Arceneaux]

Thanks Kelly. I had seen that system somwhere, don't remember where, and thought it might be a good deal. The cost is a little high, but as my wife and I are planning on building a few things with sheet goods, this might be the ticket.

[Mark J Bachler]

I wonder if here's a head w/ inserts that fits into a shaper that will do the same thing. I would think if you sharpened them the fit would suffer. At $400 a set I'd have to think about that.

[Jim Becker]

I would think if you sharpened them the fit would suffer. At $400 a set I'd have to think about that.You could problably get by honing the back of the cutting edges for awhile, but you bring up a good point...plywood and other man-made materials are very hard on cutters, so the bits do have a limited life. An insert type cutter would be more economical in the long run if they could be sourced, especially for shops that do a bit of volume.

[Chris Padilla]

I have this set...works pretty much like Kelly said...I like them a lot and they aren't really *that* fussy to set up. As long as the plywood is consistent, one set-up and they are good to go.

You *MUST* keep the plywood flat on the table...any little bounce or hang-up and your plywood is scrap. I cut a few arcs in plywood with this bit (see my write-up on a curved maple TV shelf is the design forum: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=6911) so check it out as I discuss these set of bits there.

[Tim Sproul]

Just an FYI....Lee Valley is now selling these (I'm assuming they are Burgess). You'll get LV's service rep to back-up the performance of the bits.