I've never used one before but what's the word on the rotozip tool?
I can see how it would be nice for drywall etc but I'm looking for a better way to cut circles in 1/2" or 3/4" plywood or mdf board. (rather than a router).
Are these working looking at? -- is there a circle jig that works with it?
Certainly you're moving less material with it than a router which may be a good thing.
Pretty much a waste of money unless you use it for what it was originally designed to do, cut dry wall .
Goo luck, most bits are .125", 1/8", they bend, fle, chatter, and break.
Nou unless cutting dry wall.
I've used the circle cutter with my RotoZip several times. I made a cat tower with three 3/4" MDF stacked cubes. I used the RotoZip to make the holes in the top and fronts of the cubes. I also used the Rotozip and circle cutter to cut a hole in HardiBacker for the toilet flanges in my previous house. Forget cutting floor tile, though. The bit just gets glowingly embarrassed.
Worked for me, though the HardiBacker dust was hell on the bearings.
I have not use the rotozip, but have the equivalent cutter for my dremmel. I have used it to cut holes into dry wall, and into the plywood paneling. I would highly recommend the dremmel and that attachment.
I'd think a Dremmel would be a little wimpy for MDF. All the RotoZip is, after all, is a big Dremmel.
I like my RotoZip. Made an adjustable base for it and use as a small router. Convenient for small work. Uses 1/4 inch router bits. WW
As has been mentioned the rotozip and/or dremel don't work real well for wood- with the possible exception of routing shallow cavities for inlays. You might be better off looking at a laminate trimmer (mini- router) and building a trammel for it or use it with template guides to cut circles. I have a Ridgid laminate trimmer for this purpose that I usually use with a 1/4" spiral bit. Maybe three passes around, adjusting depth of cut to go through 1/2" mdf. Major clouds of dust! I try to catch most in dust collector. Hope this helps.
Excellent idea! I have the $25 Harbor Freight model that I used for some laminate trimming. Worked swell for that.
Then, too, there's the jigsaw technique for cutting the interior of a wood sheet... The OP didn't say whether he wanted a circulare hole or a circular plate. If the latter, there's a technique for so doing using a table saw.
Where it really _shines_ is _plaster_. It's good in drywall but I wouldn't rush out to get one for that purpose unless I was installing the stuff for a living. With plaster and a carbide bit though it's just plain wonderful.
A Rotozip _is_ a router, but one with marginal depth adjustment and a rather flimsy base that doesn't keep the bit square to the work--the problem with the standard Rotozip bits in plywood and MDF is that they just plain don't cut very fast and tend to burn. The Rotozip has 1/4" collets either in the box or inexpensively available that allow it to be used with ordinary router bits but it doesn't have any advantage I can identify over a router when used with them.
The one time I tried to cut a plywood circle with a Rotozip I realized very quickly that it is the wrong tool for the job.
If your objective is to have something small to cut plywood I'd recommend a Bosch Colt or the like over a Rotozip.
Or plaster.
"HeyBub" wrote in news:aqCdna0i0PTpKITWnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@earthlink.com:
*snip*If he needs a circular hole, a set of drill bits will cost way less than the Rotozip and probably leave him much happier. If he needs circular plates (with a centered hole in the middle), a good hole saw set will probably cost about the same as the Rotozip and probably work much better.
In short, small rotary tools have few uses in woodworking.
Puckdropper
Uh, if one needs, say, a two foot diameter hole, that's a Hell of a drill bit. Same for a hole saw.
"J. Clarke" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@news5.newsguy.com:
They've got them that big, but the rental on the digging machine would probably cost more than the Rotozip and probably work much worse. ;-)
Holes up to 3", holesaws and drill bits. Larger holes, Jigsaws and routers. (It's difficult to turn a jigsaw in small holes, say 1 1/2" diameter or less.)
Puckdropper
A) better way to cut circles in 1/2" or 3/4" plywood or mdf board. (rather than a router).
B) is there a circle jig that works with it?
C) moving less material with it than a router which may be a good thing.
A) No, it is not a good tool for 1/2" and 2/4" plywood or MDF
B) Yes, My kit (SEARS version) came with one. (And a "routing/er" attachment!
C) bits are, generally 1/8" diameter which removes less material, but is also weaker than a 1/4" bit and prone to breakage. Esp in thicker wood,
You did not indicate the size of the holes you want / expect to cut. And it is not clear in my mind if you are cutting a hole in or cutting a circle of the plywood or MDF.
I've cut circles with a band saw, table saw, jig saws, router, "rotozip" and hole saws and I would never select the "rotozip" over a decent router for the stock you indicated.
The best part of my "rotozip is the flexible extension, But it suffers from an inability to accept a 1/4" bit/cutter.
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