Freeborn (PT 15-006) 5/8 raised panel cutter with (PT 16-001) 3/4 back cutter.

[Jeff Longley]

Hello, I have a PM 2700 Shaper Table and am using the Freeborn 1 1/4" bore (PT 15-006) 5/8 raised panel cutter with (PT 16-001) 3/4 back cutter. To make clear I have not used the setup yet but am getting to the point here soon. When I orderd the set I intended to have 3/4" raised door panels. My Question is with the setup that I have will this leave my raised panel an 1/8" proud above the rails and stiles that will be 3/4"? Either way Proud or flush I am ok with just trying to figure out what way they will end up. Freeborn is not open until Monday morning just trying to get an answer today.

From reading the forum I am getting the PM 1hp four wheel power feeder for safety reasons as I dont want my hands near the blade. I feel it will be more accurate than trying to feed by hand.

Another question I have, can you run the raised panel cutter with the back cutter at the same time and do you have to make 1, 2, and or 3 passes to get a nice finished product or can you just run one pass and call it good?

I'm not knocking Freeborn or anyone associated with them, but I have not been able to find any info of exactley of how to set the two blades up with each other for my operation explained at the begining of this post. With the shaper blades the Back Cutter had a Coller and some plastic washers with it which I beleive are shims. The directions do not say how to set the two up together, so can anyone school me on this? There is a ton of knowledge based people on this forum so any help would be GREATLY appreaciated!

Jeff

[Leo Graywacz]

If you get the back cutter with a 5/8 panel cutter you will have your panels nearly flush on the rear and recessed on the front. If you get a 3/4" cutter and use no back cutter it will be proud by the thickness of the wood left under the groove. If you get a back cutter for a 3/4" panel cutter it will be flush on the front and the back of the door.

If you have a shaper that is powerful enough 1 pass will accomplish the cutting.

[J.R. Rutter]

If you are making 3/4" doors and want the panel to be flush on front and back, then the 5/8" panel raiser and back cutter is the correct choice. You are good to go with your 15 series cutter and the 16 series back cutter.

The way that Freeborn specifies the panel thickness assumes a flat back, recessed from the back of the frame. Adding a back cutter lets you use 3/4" material for the panel but brings the back of the panel out flush with the back of the frame.

Yes, you can make this cut in one pass. Just adjust the space between the panel cutter and back cutter to match the groove. Some people use a spacer sized as a rub collar, but I didn't bother. Here is a picture showing one way to make a fence to do this cut safely and easily. I have a different fence system now, but the concept is the same - a thin strip of aluminum spans the space between the two cutters.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-hqurWTTRZG4/S6AV1AzjkWI/AAAAAAAAAOY/2ilIYTpxJU0/s720/DSCF0002.jpg

[David Kumm]

A 5/8 panel cutter with a back cutter will be flush both on front and back assuming a 1/4" tongue and using 3/4" stock. A 3/4" cutter will not work with a back cutter unless you are using 7/8" stock. There should be a 1/4 spacer between the front and back cutter with shims to fine tune the fit. If you are just starting with a shaper I would recommend you shape the face and then run the back cutter separately until you gain more experience. Lots of bad things can happen when cutting fronts and backs at the same time. I never use a back cutter as it is more sanding, more fiddling, and doesn't add to the look IMO. I usually run 7/8 to 1" rails and stiles with a 3/4 panel and no back cut. 3/4 rails and 5/8 panel work as well. Dave

[Jeff Longley]

Thanks for all the info on what I am looking at. I like the idea of having the back flush and the front flush with the rails and stiles. I do have the rub bearings as well with this setup. Having the rub bearings I do beleive I can use the PM2700 fence without having or using an auxillary fence. If this is not the case I would be intrested to hear from someone who knows more about this.

Jeff

[J.R. Rutter]

If the rub bearings give you the profile depth you want, then you just dial in the fence so that the faces are even with the bearing. I would still do a sacrificial cut to get the fence edges as close to the bearing as possible, especially when learning the fine points of feeder setup, etc.

I like the continuous fence for narrow panels and it let me go deeper into the panel to get the look that I wanted.

[Peter Quinn]

Thanks for all the info on what I am looking at. I like the idea of having the back flush and the front flush with the rails and stiles. I do have the rub bearings as well with this setup. Having the rub bearings I do beleive I can use the PM2700 fence without having or using an auxillary fence. If this is not the case I would be intrested to hear from someone who knows more about this.

Jeff

This can certainly work for larger sizes of panels, I have done it on my own shaper. But I prefer to use a set up like JR's or a dedicated panel hood for safety and accuracy, particularly with either small or narrow panels. Its important to try and minimize the fence opening as much as possible with any shaper set up. Given the diameter of a panel raiser using the stock split fence creates a rather large opening between fence plates and a lot of cutter projection beyond the fence plate surface. Large cutter projection has its own obvious dangers, but dust collection can also be challenging. When shaping narrow or small panels it is nearly impossible to do the cross grain passes without creating errors which can not be removed. Sometimes it is possible to "gang" narrow panels with a clamp and carriage jig, or to glue panels together temporarily for the purpose of running the short side, then ripping them to width for shaping the longer edges. But its not my preferred method to do these things for the purpose of making a split fence function as a panel hood or the proper fence. A dedicated hood can create a nearly continuous bearing surface for the panel tongue whose opening is little more than 1 3/4" and greatly improves dust collection while protecting your hands from the cutters projection. I made one based on a design in Lonnie Byrd's shaper handbook which is simple but highly functional. There are lots of creative variations on the fence type JR pictures as well. The only time I rely on a rub collar for panel raising is when running arched or curved panels with a template.

[Randy Henry]

Jeff, I have the same shaper, cutters, and a PM 4 wheel powerfeed. I used the advice JR gave, and made the continuous fence and it works great, along with the other jigs he recommended. I run my panels with the good side down, with the raised panel bit facing up. The paper shims go between the shaper cutter and the back cutter. When you start getting the cutters sharpened, you just remove a shim or so to make the panel fit in the groove better. I also started using the outboard fence for the pattern cutters, and it does alot better than using the fence on the shaper. With this setup, you can make your panels flush with the frame, or proud if you want. While the shaper will do the cut in one pass, I don't do it. I do it in two passes and take off just a little on the final pass. It cleans up any imperfections if something went wrong. If you are ever down my way, let me know and I can show you the setup to save you some time and aggravation. I'm about 2 1/2 hours from KC.

[Jeff Longley]

Randy, Thanks for the info. I may take you up on your offer sometime coming up. My dad lives at the Lake and I am familiar with it myself. Normally I just need to see the setup once to figure it out. I dont do wood working for a job just a hobby. I thought I would get into but then found out I really like it and now Im going broke buying all this cool stuff. I think I am understanding what is going on with this setup.

Thanks,

Jeff