Router and power planer, opinions please.

[Tynee]

Good morning. I started yesterday on a project to replace all the interior doors in my house. I don't intend to replace the jambs, just the doors themselves. The doors I bought need to have the hinge mortises and lockset holes cut. I tried it yesterday with hand tools and was not able to achieve satisfactory results.

I'm looking into a power planer and a new router. These aren't tools I'll use a ton going forward, but have occasionally wished I owned a router. I'm looking at the tools linked below. Anybody have feedback on these specifically, or is there a better bang-for-your-buck option out there?

Bosch router on Amazon

Porter-Cable Hand Planer on Amazon

 

[jar944]

Skip the power plane there no use case on a door, and you need a hinge template for the router.

 

[Tynee]

Skip the power plane there no use case on a door, and you need a hinge template for the router.

I've got the hinge template in my Amazon cart. I'm curious though, what would your solution be to take 1/4" off the width of the door?

 

[steel 35]

I wood spend the money having them done,
I hate slivers

 

[jar944]

I've got the hinge template in my Amazon cart. I'm curious though, what would your solution be to take 1/4" off the width of the door?

A circular saw.

Are your jambs really that undersized?

 

[Tynee]

A circular saw.

Are your jambs really that undersized?

On the first door I hung, yes. All the doors measure 1/8 to 1/4 under the nominal size.

 

[jar944]

You can use a power plane for that, but not as nice/easy as a door planer, neither as easy as a circular saw with a edge guide (assuming you have a circular saw)

 

[Tynee]

Thanks for the input, Jar

 

[cgrutt]

If you're using a planer be careful of tearout esp on cross grain at top and bottom maybe clamp a sacrificial board. It can happen where you exit door not so bad on straight grain or where you start. I don't use a hand planer that often but have a Bosch it works good when I need it. I have Bosch, porter cable and makita Routers they all work good as im sure other brands would be fine. I recently bought a small Makita trim router would probably work good for hinges but not sure if base will accept a guide or not they sell a small plunge base for it thinking about getting one myself. Plunge router with upspiral bit and pin guide would work best on a template. Porter Cable used to make a very good door template not sure if they still make it or not. It was pricey IIRC. Good luck!

 

[jar944]

You could also use the router with a pattern bit and straight edge to cut the 1/8 to 1/4" off.

 

[Tynee]

Interesting idea. Hmmm

 

[hefnerconstructionlc]

I think you are on the right approach. You can also cut it down to near finished with with the circular saw and guide then come back with your planer and make it perfectly smooth. Those Palm size routers are perfect for mortising hinges easy to handle and do a nice job. That's how I would do it.

 

[lardy1]

I would personally do it with a circular saw but can see why someone would use a router or a plane (I'd choose the router with a pattern bit and a straight edge) but caution anyone inexperienced to watch out for metal in the door construction. Rotary cutters don't care much for metal. Carbide circular saw blade won't even know it's there.

 

[alinc100]

Circular saw,track saw,router and a straightedge would get you there. I wouldn't hog off 1/8" to a 1/4" x 1-3/8" with a trim router(I'd look for 1-1/2HP) ,conversely ,I'd want the size and lightweight,and several are now lighted,trim router for the hinges/door hardware. A circular saw or track saw would give you the ability to add a 3 degree bevel to the closing side of your door. A sharp jack plane can accomplish this as well. A quick shop built door buck is invaluable when hanging doors. https://www.finehomebuilding.com/project-guides/windows-doors/build-a-simple-door-buck

 

[elmer]

If you have a lot of doors consider the power plane.
Wood doors can expand and contract due to seasonal conditions and sometimes will start sticking in the summer months after being hung in the winter.
Solid core doors will move more than hollow core, sometimes you might have to trim them twice.

 

[AEAdam]

Router template is a bad idea in my opinion. The problem is aligning the template to where the hinge needs to be. I screwed to door to the hinges no mortise, knife all around, the remove the door.

This little guy helps:


The spear point blade can be helpful. This is actually easier and faster than using a router unless your router jig does both sides of the joint.

For cleaning up joints, I use a track saw, but I also have and use a cordless Makita planer specifically for doors and windows (kinda doing the same as you in reverse fitting old doors and windows to new jambs.

 

[Dakotadadv8]

Prehung doors so much easier.

 

[PittsburghTim]

A few suggestions/notes to get good results with hand tools. To do it properly with hand tools is fairly easy if you are patient and have a wider (1 1/2 or 2 inch) chisel and a small mallet or hammer. Start by cutting in the top and bottom. Keep the bevel pointing in. You could also use a razor knife using the hinge itself as a template. Then cut in the long side. The first two cuts will keep the wood from splitting the grain past the hinge top and bottom when cutting in the long side. To remove the bulk, make small, straight cuts into the waste are parallel to the top and bottom about 1/8 to 3/16 apart. These should be the same depth as the hinge thickness. Finally, using the bevel side down, cut out the waste. The little spots between the straight cuts will pop out nicely and help control the depth. You can use the chisel bevel side up to make the waste are perfectly flat. Unless you are doing a house full of doors, buying special tools would be wasteful if you don't see yourself doing this a lot in the future. Fine Homebuilding has a short video on their YouTube channel that demonstrates the process in a few minutes.

As far as sizing the doors, you can use a belt sander if you already have one instead of a hand plane or power plane. I would suggest that you use masking tape to mark the "cut" line. If you cut them with a circular saw, I would recommend cutting the lines first with a razor knife as it will ensure a splinter free cut as only really fine and sharp finishing blades will produce a satisfactory edge.

I hope this helps, Tim.

 

[Tynee]

Prehung doors so much easier.

I’m aware. I bought 5 doors on clearance for a total of $200. Even with the new tools, I’m in this project for the cost of 3 pre-hung doors.

 

[Tynee]

A few suggestions/notes to get good results with hand tools. To do it properly with hand tools is fairly easy if you are patient and have a wider (1 1/2 or 2 inch) chisel and a small mallet or hammer. Start by cutting in the top and bottom. Keep the bevel pointing in. You could also use a razor knife using the hinge itself as a template. Then cut in the long side. The first two cuts will keep the wood from splitting the grain past the hinge top and bottom when cutting in the long side. To remove the bulk, make small, straight cuts into the waste are parallel to the top and bottom about 1/8 to 3/16 apart. These should be the same depth as the hinge thickness. Finally, using the bevel side down, cut out the waste. The little spots between the straight cuts will pop out nicely and help control the depth. You can use the chisel bevel side up to make the waste are perfectly flat. Unless you are doing a house full of doors, buying special tools would be wasteful if you don't see yourself doing this a lot in the future. Fine Homebuilding has a short video on their YouTube channel that demonstrates the process in a few minutes.

As far as sizing the doors, you can use a belt sander if you already have one instead of a hand plane or power plane. I would suggest that you use masking tape to mark the "cut" line. If you cut them with a circular saw, I would recommend cutting the lines first with a razor knife as it will ensure a splinter free cut as only really fine and sharp finishing blades will produce a satisfactory edge.

I hope this helps, Tim.

Thanks for the advice, Tim.

 

[PittsburghTim]

Prehung doors so much easier.

True, but if you have an older home with real plaster walls or odd sized door openings, they can cost 2-3 times the price as one made for modern drywall jamb thicknesses and standard openings. The OP was going to use the existing jambs and probably avoid having to install and paint/stain and varnish new trim.

 

[jar944]

Prehung doors so much easier.

Except for installing the jamb and the casing.

 

[tyyost]

Doors are one of those places a track saw makes all the difference in the world compared to the “before“ model of the power plane or circular saw. For a handful of doors I’d make up a quick sled and get a nice fresh 40 + tooth blade on my circ saw and go to town.

 

[turbowoodworker]

Router (1)
Bits (2)
Straight edge
Hinge template
All done!

 

[no704]

First of all keep in mind that most vertical door edges will have a bevel, so make sure you are measuring the large side of the door. Router and jig is good for hinge pocket and strike. I have found a line drawn straight and a belt sander easier than a power plane.

 

[The Cobbler]

wow, so much advice on this thread but most of it I don't agree with .
I've hung thousands of doors in my career and without a power planer I'd be lost.
a small comfortable well balanced router , mine is a Porter Cable , probably not made anymore. a **** hinge marker , good measurements, centering punch like this is all I mostly used

 

[Tynee]

I’ve settled on my method, thanks to all who gave advice.

Anybody have a better alternative for the 2 tools linked above?

 

[The Cobbler]

looks like good choices . does the planer have carbide blades?

 

[jar944]

I’ve settled on my method, thanks to all who gave advice.

Anybody have a better alternative for the 2 tools linked above?

The dewalt 611 is a better palm router than the colt, I have both.

 

[jar944]

wow, so much advice on this thread but most of it I don't agree with .
I've hung thousands of doors in my career and without a power planer I'd be lost.
a small comfortable well balanced router , mine is a Porter Cable , probably not made anymore. a **** hinge marker , good measurements, centering punch like this is all I mostly used

Power plane or door planer?

 

[Dakotadadv8]

Prehung doors are easier but maybe more fun making own doors.

 

[Tynee]

looks like good choices . does the planer have carbide blades?

I had to go back and check, but it does.

 

[AEAdam]

I like my Makita cordless planer. I have that little router and have used it for hinges. bBut its the only one Ive used so there may be better.

Instead of center punching hinge holes I have a spring loaded center pilot drill. I think they are called hinge drills.

I’d look into a cordless router. My cordless tools are great. I was just doing a round over on my scaffold deck planks. They are pretty big and I had to fuss with the cord on my colt several times. Annoying. And it effected the work. 18v has the guts to do a job like that. Just can’t do it all day long

 

[tyyost]

I’m not usually a fan of Porter Cables current offerings. I have a Makita I bought in the 90’s and they still use the same blades in current models. I’d look at Bosch and DeWalt before buying the PC planer.

I have a Colt as well asa Bosch Laminate Trimmer kit. It was the first ”palm router” but others have improved the tool. Look for leds on the bit for what you are doing and good depth setting on the base with micro adjust. I hear Makita and Ridgid have some best in class features.

 

[jar944]

I'd get the makita over the PC (or others). I have one (I don't use it for doors) but they (makita) know how to make quality power planers.


The led light on the 611 makes a difference. The depth adjustment on the colt leaves a lot to be desired. I have a couple I use for doors/locks/joinery




Also vix bits for hinge pilot holes.

 

[rsanter]

I replaced al the doors in my girlfriends house.
I was assuming that I would have to cut al the doors and do all the hinge routing and lock holes.
She bought the doors from a commercial/pro door supply place. They were a but more than Home Depot/Lowe’s but not much more.
The gem was if you brought your old doors in they would cut them to exact width and put the hinge pockets and lock holes exactly where the old doors had them, and it was cheap. Like $10 or $20 per door.

 

[dnschmidt]

I am extremely router centric so I'd normally go that way but since I now have a track saw (Makita) that's the way I would go. A router with a straight edge and a pattern following bit is actually a very well controlled planer if you think about it.

 

[vwpieces]

I do not think you can go wrong for the $80 Bosch Colt over the $140 Dewalt for home gamer use.
As for Porter Cable... who knows how long the brand will survive. They were top Dog in the corded router game and for unknown reasons ended the router line. And a hand planer has very limited use for a home gamer.

In all honesty, use a circular saw with a straight edge. As mentioned before the door will need a slight bevel to close and have minimal gap. Circ saw is the tool for that. The latch and/or knob side of the door is Not 90*, Not square.

I have an 8ft piece of aluminum track lighting bought for $4 on clearance at Lowes. Perfect for straight edge cuts with a Circular Saw and a couple clamps. I also have a track saw... but those are much more money.

 

[Tynee]

Received my Bosch PR20EVS Colt, Porter-Cable PC60THP, and my hinge mortis jig this week. All three tools did their job perfectly. The Dewalt router and the Makita planer may be better tools, but I can’t imagine them being twice as good to justify twice the price. I know I wouldn’t have been twice as happy with the results for my use.

Thanks all for the input.

 

[RTM]

This link may work better, his blew up on me.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BQJ8DGDG/?tag=atomicindus08-20