A keyhole/picture-hanging groove, for example, would be virtually impossible with a fixed-base router. Some popular bits are best used with a plunge router. A simple twist of the plunge router’s stepped turret allows you to increase the depth-of-cut setting for the next pass, guaranteeing a cut that’s not too deep. You don’t have to tip a spinning bit into the work as you would with a fixed-base router. It allows a plunge router to make a series of relatively shallow but ever deeper cuts. A deep mortise can be cut without overtaxing the router or the bit. This protects your bits, your fingers, and your benchtop from accidental nicks.Ĭutting mortises is much easier with a plunge router than with a fixed-base model. Just push your finger to disengage the lock lever and the spring-loaded mechanism retracts the housing, lifting the bit into the safety of the router base. A plunge router automatically surrounds and protects your expensive bits when it’s not in use. One advantage a plunge router has over a fixed-base model is bit protection. Plunge routers allow you to read and fine-tune the depth right on the router’s face. Small changes in bit height can be frustrating to make on some fixed-based routers. Micro-adjustable depth knobs make fine-tuning a plunge router simple. You won’t leave burn marks, as you might if you tipped the router in or waited for it to spin down before extracting it at the end of the cut. At the end of the cut, release the plunge lock lever and the bit retracts off the workpiece, leaving you with the cleanest flutes possible. With the router set on the start block, plunge the bit to the preset depth and press the lock lever as you make the cut along the length of the board. All you need to cut perfect flutes is a start block, a stop block, and an edge guide. This type of milling is safer and simpler than using a fixed-base router. There’s no better way to mill stopped grooves and flutes than by using a plunge router. This is one operation you definitely want to get right the first time, and a plunge router is the surest way to get the job done well. Try tipping your fixed-base model into a cut like this and your cut will likely be misaligned right where the groove starts. The plunge router is ideally suited for stringing and delicate inlay work, often called captured inlay, because the plunge mechanism allows a smooth entrance and exit from the cut. These jigs cut mortises, tenons, dovetails, and a whole lot more, but they simply can’t perform all their operations without the use of a plunge router. You may get away with tipping it into the cut for a while, but sooner or later that template would be nicked.Ī plunge router is a must when it comes to sophisticated jigs for making joints. The plastic bowtie inlay template, shown above, would probably have a few battle scars if a fixed base router had been used. Just set the router over the template, turn it on, plunge the bit to the preset depth and rout. Template routing with guide bushings is trouble-free when you use a plunge router. Here are eight things a plunge router can do with ease that present a challenge for a fixed-base model. Some die-hard users of fixed-base models may argue that a fixed-base router can do everything that a plunge router can do, but they don’t realize what a great, unique tool the plunge router is. Plunge routers have been around for years. The depth stop works much like the stop does on a drill press. The depth of cut can be preset, allowing you to position the router over the work and plunge the bit to an exact depth. A lock/release lever allows free up-and-down movement of the router housing or locks it in place at a given depth. The plunge mechanism is spring-loaded so the motor housing always wants to spring up to the top of the posts. Its unique base allows the motor housing to ride up and down on a pair of posts fixed to the base. Routing chores, such as mortising, stopped dados and inlay pattern work, are safer and easier to perform using a plunge router. The plunge router deserves a place in every shop.
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