T & G Router Bit Set for making wood flooring

[Dave Gaul]

I have the following set: http://www.eagleamerica.com/product/v193-2832/ea_-_door_construction , 193-3835, which produces a "V" groove on one side.

Will this be good to use to make wood flooring? Obviously the "V" side would go down!

[Peter Quinn]

I have the following set: http://www.eagleamerica.com/product/v193-2832/ea_-_door_construction , 193-3835, which produces a "V" groove on one side.Will this be good to use to make wood flooring? !Not really the right thing for flooring. The set you have is for cope and stick with no gaps and very tight tolerances. It produces a glue joint. Flooring typically gets nailed down. You need a nail clearance slot, tongues are typically .010" smaller than the grooves because long floor boards often have a bit of twist and would be difficult to install if the gap were smaller. Each floor board gets it's tongue nailed down which secures the groove of he next board installed. Also, floor cutters typically leave a back bevel below the tongue to minimize issues with gaps appearing on the face.I suggest you go to a home center or flooring vendor, get some samples and take an lose look at the geometry involved. You could probably make the set you have work in a pinch, but you will have major headaches on install. To mr it's worth it to get the right cutters on this one and preserve that cope and stick set for door work.

[Dave Gaul]

Thanks Peter, just the advice I was looking for. This definitely isn't a "in a pinch" job, as I need to make a lot of flooring for my home.

Is this the type of set you'd suggest? http://www.eagleamerica.com/product/190-2555/ea_-_glue_joints

[Jeff Duncan]

Peter has some good points, in addition I'd add you may want to search the archives as this topic has been brought up before. My personal opinion is that it's much too expensive to attempt to make your own flooring. Even in my shop which is fairly well equipped with industrial machinery I wouldn't attempt it. With a router table....not a chance. The cost of the lumber is not much cheaper than the flooring. Even assuming you skip end matching and bottom relief, your still in for a LOT of work to do a house full of flooring. And unlike custom furniture there's no real discernible difference between what you make and what you can buy.....assuming you make it well;)

Now if your just dying to punish yourself....get yourself the right cutters as Peter noted. Then make sure your lumber is fairly straight, flat, and uniform thickness. Use an outboard fence for your cuts, it's very important that your stock remains the same width....unless your doing some type of rough or antique look or something. I also strongly suggest a feeder as pushing hundreds of feet of stock through any machine is strenuous work. Not to mention you'll never get nearly as clean a cut feeding by hand.

Anyway that's just a couple tips to get you started, good luck!!!

JeffD

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Dave, in my opinion you're not going to enjoy making flooring with a router.

I have a shaper with a stock feeder and it's still the pits.

As you're aware first there's the jointing and planing, then sawing, then two trips through the shaper/router for edge treatment and then back relief cut requires another trip through the shaper.

I use an outboard fence and take off an extra couple of millimeters to ensure that the edge is straight and that all pieces are the exact same width, I don't think that's possible with a router bit.

Regards, Rod.

[Dave Gaul]

My original plan was to purchase the flooring, but not exactly in the budget right now. I have access to enough free lumber to make plenty of flooring for my home. Free is the motivation here!

Thanks for all the tips guys, this is my first time doing this, and may be the last! But I'm gonna give it a shot!

[David Nelson1]

Hi Dave, in my opinion you're not going to enjoy making flooring with a router.

I have a shaper with a stock feeder and it's still the pits.

As you're aware first there's the jointing and planing, then sawing, then two trips through the shaper/router for edge treatment and then back relief cut requires another trip through the shaper.

I use an outboard fence and take off an extra couple of millimeters to ensure that the edge is straight and that all pieces are the exact same width, I don't think that's possible with a router bit.

Regards, Rod.

+1 on what Rod said!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOL

[Peter Quinn]

:)
Thanks Peter, just the advice I was looking for. This definitely isn't a "in a pinch" job, as I need to make a lot of flooring for my home.

Is this the type of set you'd suggest? http://www.eagleamerica.com/product/190-2555/ea_-_glue_joints

That set should work fine Dave. Its got all the important features to produce a floor board which is easy to install and lays down well. I will agree with all the cautions others have mentioned. I work wood for a living for a firm that also makes flooring, and have been put into service making flooring when things are slow. During this recession things have been slow, so I've seen more flooring than I care too these past few years. Good flooring is beautiful to behold, but not much fun to make. Boring with a capitol B, lots of waste to deal with, difficult to render well in the home shop. I have three shapers and a portable molder at home and I won't make my own flooring for a 200 SF kitchen.

Butttttt, if the wood is free, you have the time, the patience, the gumption, why not give it a try. Worst case you will get a nice floor, a good story, and a learning experience. Best case you will burn out 3 routers, fill 30 bags of saw dust, and wish you had chosen linoleum before its over.:) Good luck and post pics on your results. Let us know if you have any questions about the process. Lots of guys here have devised some pretty good systems for making flooring in the small shop so do search the old posts for ideas too.

[Gary Curtis]

+1 on Rod's comments.

And don't overlook those wide Dados on the underside that counteract cupping due to slab moisture. That would be a lot of milling needed.