I'm getting ready to tackle the last big job in my kitchen renovations - fitting laminate worktops. I'm hiring a jig and router for next weekend, and I'm fairly confident I can make a good job of it. I do still have a couple of questions that I'm sure you guys can help with :-)
1) Is it best to do the cuts in one go, or make several passes, getting deeper each time?
2) I'm a bit concerned about the laminate chipping. I've read that scoring it first helps, and also clamping some wood to the surface can stop it, but what about the bullnosed front edge?
3) Would a circular saw work for the straight cuts? I imagine it would be quicker, but would I need a special blade (especially to avoid chipping the laminate?)
Thanks for any advice you may be able to give. I've tackled everything in the house myself so far (with lots of helpful advice from here), but I would probably have left this one to a professional. Unfortunately no-one seemed to be interested in doing the work (not unless they also supplied their own low quality worktops). In any case, as my mother-in-law helpfully pointed out, I could mess up quite a few cuts before it would have been cheaper to get someone in!
You need to do several passes. I have a fairly powerful 12.7mm router (DeWalt DW625) and did my passes at about 8mm increments. The trick is to make sure that the cutter is sharp, keep the router moving but don't force it so that it slows noticably.
You must make sure the the work is properly supported. WHat I did was to lay strips of timber on my bench to act as spacers and then I laid the worktop on that. This prevents any tendency for it to move and crack away as you go through.
Also, do make sure that the jig is very firmly clamped to the worktop.
This won't happen with a router if you follow the jig instructions. Cut from the bullnose front towards the back.
I use a router for both. You are much less likely to chip the laminate than with a saw.
If you have enough worktop, try a practice cut near one end.
Thanks for the tips. The pricing structure of the worktops meant that an additonal £5 resulted in an extra 2m of worktop. I should finish up with a few small offcuts and one length of around 10ft, so I guess I have enough for a couple of practice runs. Not too many, though - I could use that piece in the shed :-)
On Mon, 24 May 2004 10:58:27 +0100, "Bob" strung together this:
Yep, that's how you're meant to use a router in all circumstances, cut about
10mm deep on each pass. One tip is when you've got the jig setup you'll notice there is a couple of mm play in the guide. When you're cutting pull the router away from the finished side of the cut, then when you've gone all the way through make a final full depth pass pushing towards the finished edge to clean up any cut lines or blade marks.
You'll be ok with the router and guide, just go gently. The same applies with the circular saw, just easily guide it in and it'll be fine.
Yep, that's what I usually use for straight cuts on worktops, use a fine tooth blade. It also helps to clamp a rigid straight edge onto the back of the worktop so that you get a nice straight cut.
Cowboys, I won't fit thin worktops unless the customer supplies them, I'm too scared of them bending and snapping in the van!
Make use of masking tape on both sides of the worktop, that should minimise flaking of the laminate and you won't have to apply pencil marks on your worktop. When we recently renovated our kitchen (still ongoing btw), we actually measured a few cms extra, and after cutting the worktop with a jigsaw, we sanded the edge to the size required. The sanding provided by far the best solution - no flaking, and just a very smooth surface to work with.
I don't think I'd have the patience for sanding - I have 10 cut ends (6 visible) and 2 mitred corners to do!
I'll see how the test cuts go before trying all the anti-chip tips - they are good quality worktops (at least I hope they are - Axiom), so the laminate should be well bonded. I should probably buy a new cutter though - then I'll know its sharp.
You should find that if you use a good quality sharp cutter and are not agressive on depth or rate of cut, that there will be no chipping.
Remember that a small version of a router is sold as a laminate trimmer and that you can get laminate trimming bits for standard routers.
I've had good success with CMT and Freud TCT cutters, although Trend are OK as well. It is worth spending the extra if you want a good job. This is not one for the £3 Chinese jobs.
Quite. And in any case, a decent cutter is still relatively cheap when compared to the cost of the materials being cut. I'm intrigued by the "laminate trimmer" - is that for cleaning up the edging strips? I had planned to cut roughly to shape and then file the last bit down, but if there is a proper tool...
Normally a laminate trimmer is used when you are laminating something yourself. You cut it oversize and stick with contact adhesive.
The laminate trimmer then has a bearing guided cutter, where the ball race runs on the edging. It then cuts the laminate precisely.
I'm not sure about using it the opposite way on edging. You should be able to with care but bear in mind that the router base is only supported on the worktop edge.
I would definitely practice this before attempting it......
I had the same worries but on the advice here bought a very good jigsaw (Bosch) with down-cutting blades. Change these the moment the work seems to be getting difficult. With the first sink the (crap B&Q) blades were blunting in only a couple of feet but some others from a woodworking place lasted a good two metres before I decided to replace them. They could have been used longer I'm sure but blades are cheap - worktops aren't.
Thanks, but I made a concious decision to steer clear of using a jigsaw. I know quite a few people recommend it, but I usually find it impossible to get a perpendicular cut on thick items - the blade always seems to wander off on its own path on the underside.
The router with a jig to guide it sounds much more likely to work
I used a jigsaw with downward cutting blades. Because they cut on the push stroke, they are made extra thick, and don't seem to bend like ordinary blades.
The secret is to steer by twisting the saw along the axis of the blade, and resist any temptation to apply sideways forces (like you would to steer a panel saw).
(To be a bit technical, pushing sideways creates a bending moment on the blade between the top of the surface and the saw and this causes the blade to, well, bend).
Well the bank holiday is over, and so are my kitchen worktop worries! This was one job that I was a bit reluctant to tackle myself, so thanks to everyone here for all the advice and encouragement.
The router and jig combination made cutting the mitres incredibly easy; the simple straight cuts I did with a circular saw.
The joins are barely noticeable - easily as good as any professional would have managed, and at a fraction of the cost. I am one happy DIYer this morning :-)
The total cost for 42ft of Axiom gloss laminate worktop and the tool hire came to £550, and the work involved cutting it into 8 runs including a breakfast bar and two mitred joints. I'd hate to think what the labour cost would have been even if I'd found anyone to do it!
As for the suggestion of using a jigsaw, I don't believe there is any way that I could have achieved such a tight join with one. The blade would have had to be perfectly vertical, with no bending, and I would have had to steer it on a perfectly straight line - all things that I have never managed to do before. In contrast, the jig that I hired (a good quality one by Trend) was very simple and quick to set up, and the router breezed through making a perfect cut without causing a single chip in the laminate.
The only hassle this weekend was with the new sink, which despite claiming to fit a 1000mm unit, was actually 20mm too long - they obviously forgot that the sides of base units are not infinitely thin, and that you lose 15mm of that 1000 at each end! Anyway, after cutting the hole as long as I could with a jigsaw, some careful use of the router managed to clear enough space for the sink to fit.
So, based on my experience, I'd recommend the following to anyone else wanting to do the same:
1) Use a jig and router for professional-looking mitred joints.
2) The other straight cuts can be done with a circular saw - always cut with the worktop laminate side down, with the post-formed edge at the front.
3) Use biscuits to align the connecting pieces vertically.
4) Make sure the pieces are aligned properly before tightening up the worktop connecting bolts, and don't do them up too tight - the chipboard core will compress but the laminate won't! (I spotted this in time, so didn't actually do any damage, but it would be easy to crack or lift the laminate at the join if you're not careful)
5) Cut the worktops outside - the tools generate a tremendous amount of sawdust!
6) If it's a sunny day, apply sunscreen - you'll be out there longer than you think :-(
Bob (Who now has a sunburnt head but a happy SWMBO!)
Just out of interest who did you hire the router and jig from, one of the nationals or a local company, what was the cost and for how long, and did they charge for the cutter or just a resharpening charge?
Re circ cutting, I find putting a piece of hardboard or scrap wood against the laminate side greatly reduces the chance of chipping. With a circ cutting laminate, although the bulk of the forces push upwards, the blade does still go down through the gap and can still chip if youre unlucky, or not careful.
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