Slotting cutter vs straight router bit

[bchee]

Which would you guys recommend for cutting grooves? A slotting cutter or a straight bit.

I think I'm going to cut about 50 linear feet in poplar.
I know some of you have done your own garage and kitchen cabinets.

 

[Kurt4440]

Do you have a router table?
You gave the length, how about width and depth.
Do you have a table saw?
What are you making?

 

[A_Pmech]

Depends on the orientation of the slot.

A straight router bit works well for slotting the face but not on the side.

A slotting cutter on an arbor works well for slotting on a side but will not slot on the face.

 

[2chipped]

A slotting cutter is the best imho if using a table.

 

[bchee]

I dont have a table, but I was thinking about making one.
I was going to make frame and panel doors, so I want to cut grooves for the panel.
I'm guessing the groove will be 3/16 or 1/4

 

[woody 73]

Depends on the orientation of the slot.

A straight router bit works well for slotting the face but not on the side.

A slotting cutter on an arbor works well for slotting on a side but will not slot on the face.

Well Said

 

[bchee]

Depends on the orientation of the slot.

A straight router bit works well for slotting the face but not on the side.

A slotting cutter on an arbor works well for slotting on a side but will not slot on the face.

Not sure I understand this. I'm cutting 3" wide by 3/4" thick strips of wood, so cant I position them in any way I want?

 

[dsan]

How about a spiral bit? Woodcraft has a sale on the 1/4" shank on sale for $14.00

http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/20...ter-Bit-14-D-1-CL-14-SH-Whiteside-RU2100.aspx


I have a few of them and they work great. If I am not mistaken they are made in the USA.

 

[metal1313]

slot cutters work better on the sides of stock, while straight bits work better on the face. i have tried to use a stright bit in a table and i did not get the same results with trying to slot the narrow side

 

[Bigpigdave]

Do you have a table saw? I would use a dado to make the slots, much cleaner and faster than a router.
JMHO, Dave

 

[PassnThru]

Do you have a table saw? I would use a dado to make the slots, much cleaner and faster than a router.
JMHO, Dave

There's your answer. For a simple slot, a table saw is great. You don't even need a dado - multiple passes will do it. For a profile, the router is the best. Routers can be a serious pain when cutting slots or grooves of any kind. You better have a very good, very sharp bit (and spares) and a very good router table for that.
Don't confuse a router and a table with a shaper.

 

[TDITS]

If all you are doing is cutting a slot I'd just use a table saw. That's the way Norm always did it. Make one pass, flip the stock end for end and make another pass. Your slot is automaticly centered.

But if you are set on using a router I'd go with the slot cutter. It cleans the grove out much better than the straight bit. With the straight bit you'll have to go slower and maybe make a couple of passes with it. But if you don't have a router table you aren't going to have much luck with either one.

 

[PassnThru]

You might be interested:
http://www.rockler.com/blog/index.cfm?mode=entry&entry=7F490581-1372-6771-F6989639FA0B68D9

 

[A_Pmech]

I dont have a table, but I was thinking about making one.
I was going to make frame and panel doors, so I want to cut grooves for the panel.
I'm guessing the groove will be 3/16 or 1/4

You might consider a frame and panel set, such as:

http://www.cmtutensili.com/show_items.asp?pars=RBSET~8/900.512-13-14-16~2

Similar sets are sold at places such as Home Depot or Lowes. They allow you to make all the the rail, stile and panel details. You'll need a suitable router table to make best use of the set however.

 

[bchee]

I'm not set on using a router, but I definitely dont have or want a table saw taking up space.
I also dont want any fancy profiles, just a very basic square frame with all square edges.

thanks for the input guys. I'm going to look into these slot cutters more. I wasnt aware that clearing the grooves was that important.