routing small parts

[garyhuff]

How can I route grid pieces (or saw) for window panes ? Is there a safe way to handle small pieces as I intend to keep all ten digits as long as possible.

[DamnYankee]

A router table, featherboard clamped on to its fence, and a push stick.

I take extra precaution when using push sticks: I always use 2 sided tape which has sandpaper attached to it so the abrasive side sits on the board I'm routing. It helps me anyway.

[JGS]

[Routerman P. Warner]

Smart question, and a difficult one to answer. Skinny sticks sometimes best handled when fenced and toggle clamped in a carrier of some sort (table routing). Some times the work can be milled on a big stick and harvested off as necessary. Hold in and hold downs with zero clearence fence I like too. Vacuum clamping on a jig and then hand routing, may require sophisticated fixturing but may yield best result/time invested.

(Routers)

[Dave Balderstone]

Rout the profile on the edge of a wide board, then rip it off on the table saw. Rout, rip, rout, rip...

[DamnYankee]

I was under the impression he was making muntins to hold panes of glass (correct???), therefore the muntins needs to be profiled on each side facing the glass.

If that's not the case, then by all means follow your instructs.

[Dave Balderstone]

And the profile facing (in contact with) the glass will therefore be flat, n'est ce pas?

[mac davis]

I had sort of the same problem tonight...

I'd trimmed out a cabinet face for the shop with 1/4 thick oak, (to hide the used particle construction) and had done the usual thing of edge rounding on the router table, then ripping the 3/4" strip off, and routing the next strip, etc...

Had it set up this afternoon all mitered and everything, fitting it with spring clamps to see how it would look, and my wife and 2 neighbors (we work by committee here, I think) suggested that I also round the inner edge, which I usually leave straight...

Tried several different ways to set up feather boards and stuff and noting looked safe... almost gave up when I had one of those "you're thinking way to hard on this" flashes..

I figured that the strips had to have holes on them for the nails anyway, so I drilled them and drilled matching holes in a 3' piece redwood fence picket... nailed the strips one at a time to the edge of the picket face and ran them through the router, then pulled them off the picket and fitted them on the cabinet with all my fingers intact and working normally, a goal I set for the end of each session in the shop.. Sometimes I forget the KISS rule, I guess..

[Lawrence Wasserman]

Depending on the profile, one way is to rout the edge of a wider board, then rip off a strip of appropriate width with the routed edge.

[Daniel Martin]

Here is a link for a tool that might help you.

[Charles Spitzer]

route them as big pieces, and trim on a table/band saw to small pieces