Router Bits Reviews

Though not the most expensive you can find, for the price I know I will get my use out of these chisels. This will be the lifetime set I will surely take care of. And now I am planning to get the gouges to match (and make a case for each.)

I was hit with a late minute Christmas List and knowing my Son, who takes pride in his wood working tools.
I was in the market for a "good" Woodworkers Chisel Set when I came across this set which was highly recommended to purchase if I saw it. And not to mention the price$$$...
Thank you so much! It will make my Son's Christmas when he receives this gift...

The freud set compares well with the Marples and the Footprint sets that I have. Although the Freud set is Chrome Vanadium steel, compared to the Sheffield steel of my other chisels, they sharpened very well out of the box, and they seem to hold an edge as well as the other sets. For a ten piece set, the price was outstanding, and the set also came very nicely boxed. I haven't cut any dovetails yet, but I like the low profile for the outside edge, it should make cutting the pins very smooth. I highly recommend this set.

Does what it says. Fairly easy set up and use. Flexibility allows use with both fixed and plunge bases and the turnlock base is universal. Comes with only 1 3/8" bit. I think it should come with the 1/4" bit also, but they are cheap. I like mine very much. Worth the money.

My first experience when I opened the box was one of amazement at all the pieces that had to be assembled. Once I got through the time consuming process of figuring how it went together and then actually assembling it, it was time for use. It only took a few minutes to get it clamped to a piece of wood and start routing. I have no complaints about the product now that it is assembled and ready for use. I would recommend this to others looking for a template.

I also reviewed the SpiroCrafter by Milescraft. Both products do as advertised. This time the larger turnlock base plate was required. It gave better support across the letter mounting rails. The bit included only works for the larger letters, but it is pretty cheap, and too large for the smaller letter set and bushing. The letter templates were actually thicker and sturdier than I expected. My first practice piece worked fine with no mistakes, and I am a novice. Your maximum letter width would probably be 7/16". A 3/8" bit is included. The other problem with the bit was it's lenght. With my PC 891 plunge base, I had to extend the bit quite a ways out of the collet since the bit is so short (about 1"). This set has to be a much easier way of making signs than the Vermont make that does one letter at a time. I am now looking at a 7/16" Freud dish carving bit that has a flatter bottom. You could also use a straight bit, but I like the rounded edges, but some letters, like a 'N' will have some ridges in the middle so you have to play with the router movement to clear the extra material. I'm sure I could have used a small chisel. No big deal either way, but a flatter bottom bit would have worked better. If you are considering this for outdoor signs, I think the 2 1/2" high letters and 3/8 thickness would be rather small to view from any distance away.

This fence adjusts easily, mounts and dismounts easily and quickly, connects to the dust collector conveniently, and in general works as expected. The only thing I wish were different is that the baltic birch face is not protected, as another reviewer commented. My solution was to cover it with UHMW plastic and double-sided tape. Laminate would work also, but the UHMW solution is quick, inexpensive, durable and easily replaceable.

I am interested in this item, but haveone question; are the fences individually adjustable?

This is a fine piece of equipment that will outlive you.

The bit is enclosed in a box that can easily be attached to a vacuum. Drill 2 holes to attach it to any existing router table(I mean uh,.. any existing router table that you are able and/or willing to drill holes in). All of the parts and hardware are high quality, heavy duty and accommodate large fingers and hands. The voidless 13 ply fences are easily adjustable.

I bought mine years ago, so my information might be dated, but the only thing I can think of that would make this a better tool out of the box is plastic laminate on the face of the fences. I did this myself long before the first job I used it for was completed. It just seems natural to me that Rousseau would protect that sweet plywood and at the same time give this tool a look and feel that is similar to the rest of their product line.

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Realmente la calidad de estas "Router Bits" es excepcional. El balanceo es perfecto y el filo es inmejorable. Recomiendo esta marca pues la relaci�n precio/prestaciones es muy buena.

This is exactly as advertised - the ideal starter set. I bought this set along with my Porter-Cable "Ultimate Router Workshop." The bits are very sharp, sail through wood, and leave a smooth finish.

This is fine set--strong, well-made, sharp, and packaged in a handsome wood storage box. Well worth the price. Only negative for me is the reveal on the panel raising bit wasn't quite the size I would have liked.

Here are some points that may prove helpful to you.

A. The description doesn't identify the five bits. They are from left to right in the picture 1) a bit for mating edges of boards for glue-ups 2) the panel raising bit, 3) a door lip bit--for making center panel lips that overhand rails and stiles, 4 and 5) a matched pair for cutting rails and stiles. If you are doing raised panels 2), 4) and 5) are the bits that count.

B. The set comes with a helpful how-to booklet. It is first rate. But, alongside the picture of the five bits on page 6 is a caption that misidentifies the five. The order is wrong. Left to right the bits shown are actually panel raiser, rail cutter, stile cutter, glue joint and door lip.

C. The panel raising bit will produce a relief of 3/4" (excluding the 3/8" that recesses into the rail and stile grooves). That's less than the more common 1-1 1/2" reveals on many kitchen cabinet doors. It turned out to be very acceptable for my rather small doors (20"x20"), but it may or may not be what you need or want.

D. You absolutely need to use a router/shaper table. The panel raising bit has a 2 1/2" diameter, so you need no less than a 3" throat opening.

E. The bits all worked fine on my 2 HP variable speed router--using red oak stock. (Variable speed helps a lot and is probably a must.)

F. You will want to make practice cuts on scrap, back up end cuts with waste stock to minimize tear-out, use a safety guard on the router/shaper table--along with safety glasses and use hold-downs to secure work pieces as they pass through the bit.

The raised panel doors were fun to make and they look splendid. Good luck with yours!

The large review written here, really covered all of the bases. The one more thing worth mentioning, is that Freud sells the larger more popluar 1 1/2" reveal in a set, which has the 3 1/2" bit to make it, plus the stile and rail set. They come in different part numbers starting with 97- So two of them for example are 97-100, and 97-104. Be sure your router base is at least 3 5/8" to accept them.
It does not include the glue up joint bit, or the drawer lock bit. The glue up joint bit is great for mating a number of panels. Avoids the lip of one or more boards sitting a little proud, that is frequently a problem. It is not a problem, if you have a very large sanding station, belt or drum, you can send a complete door through and get all of the surfaces even. For the rest of us, a glue up bit is just what the doctor ordered. What happens is that you run the bit in adjoining pieces. One piece is run face up, then next is run face down. Then the two mate together perfectly, as long as you have the registration set proplerly. When the boards are clamped-compressed together, they line up. The other thing is the drawer lock bit, which gives you the drawer front, by (rabbetting) the back of the drawer front, including and edge lip which is beneficial to ensure a clean close.
Freud bits are superior in the job they do. They leave a clean finish on the work, and saves a lot of time not having to sand out imperfections. All in all this is a very nice set. Highly recommended.

I'm new to the world of wood but enjoy making many different projects including raised panel cabinet doors. I have used 3 of the 5 bits in this set and like the previous reviewer, have found them to be extremely sharp and to leave a perfectly smooth edge in hardwoods including red oak and ash. As a side note, I'm particularly greatful for Amazon's online shopping resource as my local supplier feels justified in gouging me for top quality Freud products such as these. A similar set through him would cost easily 3 times as much as Amazon is charging. Overall the product and the price are certainly a fair value.

When I received the Freud raised pannel bit set, I was very anxious to try it out. The bit set included a very detailed booklet on making raised pannel doors - I found it to be quite useful and a nice surprise. The reverse glue joint bit works very well - I have been using biscuits up to this point, but I think I will use this bit for any future pannel glue ups. It took about 10 minutes to set it up for the first time - but it works really well and I can run boards through very quickly. The rail and stile bits are exactly what I was expecting - a high quality set that produces clean, sharp edges and a tight mating joint. The raised pannel bit itself was pretty awesome - unlike some of the other bits I looked at with two cutting edges, Freud uses four edges which results in an extremely smooth cut - even on the end grain. Finally, the multi-profile bit is pretty fun to use - I have created some pretty interesting table edges and pieces of molding by just playing around with the height settings - since I don't have a shaper I find myself turning to this bit whenever a small piece of trim is needed. This bit set offers everything a woodworker needs to complete raised pannel doors and the addition of the multiprofile and glue joint bits make it a great deal!

The standard base on the Porter Cable won't allow you to use the larger router bits. If you don't feel comfortable making your own base (using the orginal as a template), you might as well buy this sub-base right from the get go and save yourself the frustration of a "job stopper" when your bit doesn't fit. Regarding the see thru acrylic, it gets scratched up quickly and static electricity causes dust to stick, so it doesn't stay transparent for long.

I've owned one of these clear bases, that allow for larger bits, for years. Although I don't use it for production projects, I do use it frequently. The idea that I can see through it, has never been an issue; It's being able to see where the router bit is doing it's work that I find important. The only concern I 've had with this base is, that because of the wider mouth, one needs to excercise extra caution when turning corners (The wider mouth of the base has a tendency, along with the router's weight to "lean" over a corner.) I've found that using my "D-Handle", and maintaing strict caution and control, by keeping the "D-Handle" on the opposite side of the corner, helps me maintain safe control.

Overall the template is well made. The one let down is that the t-knobs on the set screws tend to slip. I'm replacing them with hex head screws. It will take a bit more time to set the location of the pins but I'll be sure they won't slip.

I FINALLY BROKE DOWN AND BOUGHT THE PORTER CABLE ADJUSTABLE DOVE TAIL TEMPLATE FOR MY OMNI JIGS IN THE SHOP. I HAD BEEN USING MY LEIGH JIG WHEN I NEEDED TO HAVE THE ABILITY TO ADJUST THE LOCATION OF THE DOVE TAILS. WELL TO SAY THE LEAST IT WAS EASIER TO SET UP THAN THE LEIGH JIG IS. AS FOR THE QUALITY, IT WAS SUPER. IF IT HAD BEEN ANYTHING BUT IT WOULD NEVER BE USED IN MY SHOP, NOR WOULD I HAVE TAKEN THE TIME TO SET HERE AND WRITE ABOUT IT. I ALSO NOTICED IN DEC. 2000 AMERICAN WOOD WORKER MAG. STATED THAT THE LEIGH JIG IS THE ONLY JIG WITH THE ADJUSTABLE TEMPLATE. I FEEL THEY NEED TO RESEARCH THEIR ARTICLES BETTER. ANYWAY, AFTER ALL THE YEARS I HAVE BEEN BUILDING HIGH END CUSTOM FURNITURE I HAVE FOUND THAT IF ITS NOT THE VERY BEST I CAN BUY, I DONT WANT IT. THATS WHY I FEEL THAT IF MY FURNITURE IS NOT ABSOLUTLY PERFECT ITS NOT LEAVING MY SHOP, THIS TAKES THE VERY BEST IN EQUIPMENT. I HOPE YOU TRY THE ADJUSTABLE TEMPLATE IN YOUR SHOP, I KNOW YOU WILL LOVE IT AS I DO. I NOW HAVE 2 24 IN OMNI JIGS AND A 16 IN AND I AM GOING TO LEAVE THE ADJUSTABLE ON ONE OF THE 24 IN JIGS. SO LONG FOR NOW, THANKS FOR READING MY REVIEWS. JAMES

I bought the P-C 891 Router and the P-C 698 Table, supposedly compatible. I ordered the 75301 Height Adjuster because it looked like a great help for adjusting the motor height from above. But there are no HOLES in the TABLE to pass this Adjuster through! The folks at Porter Cable admit they forgot to provide holes for the 890/891/892 router motor, and they are very nice about this, but told me yes, I really have to drill two holes in the table to use this gadget! The table comes with plenty of other holes to accomodate the attachments, motors, etc. so it seems a shame that they did not make two holes for the ht. adjuster. Actually it's not hard to reach underneath to open and close the locking lever and twist the original height adjuster. I just don't know if I want to drill out the table yet.

This product makes adjusting router height virtually effortless. Insert it through one hole in the table and unlock the clamp, them insert it through the other hole and adjust the height while watching the callibrated dial rotate on the table. Then return to the first hole to lock the clamp again. No need to crawl under the table and find the adjustment screws.

Bought these as I am starting a business (have been a cabinetmaker for 25 years)and couldn't afford to buy all the bits I needed at per piece price. Have used 6 different bits out of this set already and really haven't noticed the difference from higher priced router bits. Used the flush trim bit makeing corbels out of oak (four cuts per corbel)from a pattern. After an hour of use and many cuts it finally started to burn. Will most likely buy another set.

For the customer service I'll say this... I also had a bit come loose and bounce around. I asked customer service what I should do. (this was at 1:00 on a Friday) They OVERNIGHTED a replacement set on SATURDAY. I got it on Monday at 12:00. Not bad for an order placed on the previous Wednesday at 5:00.

Now for the Bits themselves.I shopped around for a good set of bits to learn on. By far this is the best value for your money. I looked at the local "orange" store, a discount supplier near some "harbor" and Amazon. This set is of acceptable usable quality for the hobbyist, or beginner. They aren't perfect, but for the price I would have been stupid to buy something else. I did see identical bits under a different barand in a catalog for around 65.00. Don't let the made in China scare you away either. China is getting better at making things every day. Just yesterday I think they found out how to give me 24 quality bits for a very reasonable price.

If you don't like money you can sure spend more on bits. But like me, if you like your money and want the most bits for the least of it, this is the set.

Well made, nice package, perfect starter set for serious router work. Price makes it an outstanding value. if you ruin a bit the loss won't ruin your day nearly as much as losing a pricier Freud or similar pro quality bits.

jb