Router bits worth looking into

[James Nugnes]

So looking at router bits. Doing a search, the Whiteside gets a fair amount of support here. Kinda' pricy. But so is everything else that has to do with woodworking. Any other brands I should be looking at for 1/2" shank router bits. Need a compression spiral or two....probably a round over as well.

[Matt Krusen]

Whiteside, Freud, Amana. All good. Whiteside always seems to be a step above for me though.

[glenn bradley]

You are looking at a pricey bit. With the Whiteside being only a few dollars more than something like say, a Woodline, I would go with Whiteside. Freud and Amana are also my 2nd and third choices. Back awhile I did my own performance test and usd the same profile over a period of time; Rockler, Woodcraft and Whiteside. With equal use the Rockler and Woodcraft were done before the Whiteside was even ready for the first trip in for sharpening. Whiteside's sharpening of thier own bits is quite reasonable which only increases their overall value.

Hey, you're right; Whiteside does get a fair amount of support. I think I should be getting some sort of store-credit for all the nice things I say about them :D

[scott spencer]

Whiteside, Eagle America, and Infinity are my top bits. Freud bits are good too. For a little less than the top shelf bits, the MLCS Katana line and the Price Cutter line are a step above most.

[Dave Richards]

You also might have a look at Magnate. They have good bits and they have some you might not find elsewhere.

[Matt Krusen]

+1 for Eagle America. Forgot about them. Very nice bits.

[Michael Moscicki]

Whiteside bits are the only bits I buy now. They were rated best overall and best value by Fine Woodworking a few years ago.

[Gene Takae]

Not only are Whiteside bits fantastic in quality, there are Made in America by a family run company-not a big corporation. And the owners are very nice people has well.

[scott spencer]

+1 for Eagle America. Forgot about them. Very nice bits.

The last I knew, most of the EA bits were made by Whiteside and were the same as WS.

[Tom M King]

Whiteside, Eagle America, and Infinity are my top bits. Freud bits are good too. For a little less than the top shelf bits, the MLCS Katana line and the Price Cutter line are a step above most.
Whiteside makes the top quality bits in the choices available from Eagle America.

[Art Mann]

You might want to take a look at Southeast Router Tools. I have used a lot of their bits on my CNC router and that is about the toughest application you can use a router bit for. They held up well. You can buy them from an on line store called US Router Tools among other places. They have pretty good prices. They also sell Onsrud if you want to pay top dollar for premium tooling. Their customer service is good.

[Randy Red Bemont]

Whiteside is what I use. They are made in the USA and located here in NC. Great quality and selection.

http://www.whitesiderouterbits.com/

Red

[Keith Hankins]

I've got a lot of diff brands, but by far Whiteside is tops. They are the beefiest, and stay sharp longer. If they don't have the profile I need, Amana is good also. Eagle America not bad. Got a few Freud but they don't last. Whiteside a few more dollars upfront, but longevity and quality are worth it.

[James Nugnes]

While looking around for a self centering brass bushing kit (or kit with a centering pin) I noticed that the Rockler brass set is out of stock till mid-April!!! Then noticed Whiteside now has this really nice brass reducer kit.....not the same thing obviously but God they look nicely built. Anybody using it? Wish Whiteside had a bushing kit. I think they just make two or three separate bushings.

Also any suggestions for a brass bushing kit since the Rockler is unavailable till mid-April?

[Justin Schaub]

... since the Rockler is unavailable till mid-April?

FYI, I called Rockler when one of my in-stock items didn't ship and is now quoting mid May. They are claiming that their inventory has been hit by the longshoreman strike on the west coast. They started bumping their "available" dates with random guesses, but I wouldn't trust any dates you see on their website.

[Larry Edgerton]

Whiteside, Freud, Amana. All good. Whiteside always seems to be a step above for me though.

What he said.......

[Jim Dwight]

I usually buy router bits from MLCS and not usually their Katrina line. For most bits, I think their bits are plenty good enough, at least for me. But I had bad experience with a dovetail bit - the kind that makes 7/16 blind dovetails with inexpensive jigs. It has a 1/4 shank and broke where the bit necks down under the carbide. I bought a CMT replacement and it has been fine - seems to be another "better" brand.

Besides price, MLCS provides free shipping and is quick to get orders out. I have lots of their bits and have used some of them a lot and been very satisfied with nearly all of them. No problem with anything with a 1/2 shank.

[Jerome Stanek]

I like Vortex, Onsurd,Centurian, and Belin better than Whiteside. But I use these hard on my CNC.

[Ray Newman]

Another plus for Whiteside. Another good source is Eagle America. Over the years, I have bought from them and am well satisfied with their bits. They have two classes of bits: made in the US and what appears to be a "quality import". I have only bought the US made bits and cannot speak about the others.
http://www.eagleamerica.com/?S=MSN_BR&utm_source=Bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Brand

[James Nugnes]

Boy nobody is using that gorgeous Whiteside reducer kit??? Guess that tells me how useful that thing is compared to a bushing kit just as an example. Maybe it just says something for how many people still use routers handheld instead of in a table. Gosh it looks like it should be framed and on a wall it is so beautifully machined.

[Tom Walz]

http://www.carbideprocessors.com/Whiteside/

Genuine Whiteside at discount prices

[John Sanford]

FYI, I called Rockler when one of my in-stock items didn't ship and is now quoting mid May. They are claiming that their inventory has been hit by the longshoreman strike on the west coast. They started bumping their "available" dates with random guesses, but I wouldn't trust any dates you see on their website.
A perfectly reasonable claim. The bumping of the available dates may also reasonable, now that the labor issues have been sorted out, thing are moving and estimates can be made.

[James Nugnes]

Placed my order with Carbide Processors about an hour ago and was about to post them up as a source. There is even a 10% coupon that works and their pricing on bits is very very good.

Now I am left with the issue of using the Festool guide stop and edge guide or going with Microfence primarily for their large circle cutting capability. The problem with MicroFence is that it requires a component form just about every kit they make to get anything done. Just to cut circles requires stuff from three different kits. So it is all or nothing with them. But if I don't go with them I am stuck with somebody else circle jig and from what I can see, all the others are pretty terrible. It is their fixturing that appears to let you down. The thing coming apart in the middle of a cut can make for a very bad day. Rockler wildly discounting theirs only irritates me further. Don't discount it......fix it!

If I don't have occasion for many repetitive tasks I am guessing that the Festool guide stop and rail is more useful than the edge guide for a Festool router. Do most folks have the guide stop and rail? I am likely to go that way and somehow try to find my way to a good circle jig.

[Kent A Bathurst]

http://www.carbideprocessors.com/Whiteside/

Genuine Whiteside at discount prices

Yep. I'm not much of a router guy, and don't consider myself an expert, so I make sure I stay out of trouble and buy from Tom.

Finestkind.

PLus - you are supporting a Friend that supports the Creek. Tough combo to beat, IMO.