Raised Panel Set

[John Grossi]

Hi, I am considering the Freud 97-210 3 piece cabinet door router bit set. It sells for $159.99 on Amazon. One feedback says a router with at least 3 hsp should be used and it Must be a variable speed router. I have two routers over 3 hsp that I planned on mounting in my router table, using these bits. Don't think either are variable speed. Any thoughts on this variable speed issue and also if the price is fair. Thanks, John

[Dewayne Reding]

You should always use the lower speeds specified by manufacturer. Have you ever used a large router bit? It's a pretty violent operation if not done correctly. Couldn't tell from Amazon description, but it appears to be something around three inches diameter.

You'll want a jig for the rail and stile part of the operation. It will save your fingers and material waste.

[Charles McCracken]

John,

Variable speed is a necessity because the raised panel bit needs to run at about 12K RPMs. There are external speed controllers available but I have no personal experience with them. Also, the Freud FT1700VCE router (2-1/4 HP) is capable of running them so 3HP is not an absolute requirement.

[Gary Ratajczak]

nice to see a mfg. rep taking part in the community. I read your post about using the stile and rail bit set with a 2-1/4 hp router.

I was curious to see if you could discuss a little further. Where is the practicle breakpoint? I am a home woodworker, and will be doing a number of cabinets. I currently have a Freud Plunge in a lift setup. To gain some added stability, I have been considering moving to a non-plunge setup.

I like some of the features on the new Freud products. With that said, would the 'general" rule be to move to a >3hp if you are a high volume shop? Would you consider a 2-1/4hp suffieicent to run the raised panel bits from teh 3" to 3-1/2" range?


General Wants

- Looking for stability
- Above table adjustment
- Not to buy more than I need

Regards,
Gary R

[Charles McCracken]

Hi Gary,

You would need to check with the various manufacturers to find the max bit diameter they recommend for their routers but the Freud 2-1/4HP will handle bits up to 3-1/2". A 3HP+ is better for production since it can remove more material in each pass but for occasional use the FT1700VCE will work well.

[James Phillips]

For what it is worth, you can get by with a router as small as the PC 690. You remove the bulk of the material using the table saw (cut a bevel along the raised panel edge). Slow the router to its minimum speed, and slow you feed rate.

[John Grossi]

Charles, It is great to here from a manufacturer's rep. One of my 3.250 routers is the Freud FT2000E. Any idea if it is variable speed, and if not would one of the speed reducers work with it. The other router is the Hitachi M12V. I do not think it is variable speed. Anyone out there have experience using a speed reducer. Thanks John

[scott spencer]

HF sells a speed controller that's pretty reasonable if they're ok to use.

[Michael McCoy]

Charles, It is great to here from a manufacturer's rep. One of my 3.250 routers is the Freud FT2000E. Any idea if it is variable speed, and if not would one of the speed reducers work with it. The other router is the Hitachi M12V. I do not think it is variable speed. Anyone out there have experience using a speed reducer. Thanks John

The FT2000E is variable speed

[Charles McCracken]

The FT2000E is variable speed

Affirmative. The original FT2000 was single speed but the later variants (FT2000E, FT2000VCE, FT2200E and FT2200VCE) are all electronic variable speed.

[Bill White]

Somewhere I read that the aftermarket speed reducers were tough on the router motor. Certainly don't know that to be true 'cause I've never used one. Sure wouldn't want to fry my 690 motor. Anybody got any input?
Bill

[John Gregory]

I think both of your routers are variable speed. here is the FT200E
I own the Hitachi M12V and it will spin those bits and is variable speed.

Charles, It is great to here from a manufacturer's rep. One of my 3.250 routers is the Freud FT2000E. Any idea if it is variable speed, and if not would one of the speed reducers work with it. The other router is the Hitachi M12V. I do not think it is variable speed. Anyone out there have experience using a speed reducer. Thanks John

[James Phillips]

Somewhere I read that the aftermarket speed reducers were tough on the router motor. Certainly don't know that to be true 'cause I've never used one. Sure wouldn't want to fry my 690 motor. Anybody got any input?
Bill

I am guessing here, but I would imagine the electronics are the same as an internal, just in a seperate box. I cannot imagine it hurting a router

[Steve Leverich]

Older motor speed controls were pretty much all phase angle fired SCR circuits - same as a lamp dimmer, and just as noisy because they only turn on PART of each half-cycle of AC power - newer speed control circuits can be either that type or PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) which actually change the frequency and duty cycle of the AC going to the motor.

If you have a newer speed controlled motor (PWM type) and you feed it with an SCR dimmer type speed control, it will limit the available power to the motor even more than either circuit, and odds are the motor will stall.

A stalled motor (some types) draws huge amounts of current under locked rotor conditions, so the possibility is there for motor burnout if you try to use an external speed control on an ALREADY speed-controlled motor.

I've not actually TRIED to burn up a router doing this (no volunteers to pay for the replacement :=) but I wouldn't recommend it unless you're rich and bored... Steve

[Mike Henderson]

I've done raised panels with a PC 890 router (2.25HP) without any problems. But I didn't try to take a full cut in one pass. I took serveral passes, each one fairly small.

I'm not a production shop so I can afford to do that. If you're doing panels for production work you should have a big router (or shaper) so you can do them in one pass.

Whatever you do, use variable speed to slow the bits down. You don't want to run them full speed.

Mike