Shaker door shaper cutters

[Mike Berrevoets]

I need to make cabinet doors and 5 panel drawer fronts for our kitchen remodel. I've never used a shaper before and I'm looking at shaper cutter options.

My wife wants a "shaker" door with the beveled edge. It looks like there are three or four options that I've found so far.

MLCS has a stacked shaper cutter for about $80
MLCS has a two piece shaper cutter set for about $180
Infinity has a two piece shaper cutter set for about $200
Freeborn has a 6 piece cutter set for somewhere around $400 or maybe a little less.

Since I only need this to make one kitchen's worth of doors/drawers I'm assuming longevity won't be an issue with any of the options. But, is one option easier to set-up and use than the other? I kind of like the Freeborn set even though it costs more because there is an option to cut tongue and groove rail and stiles and that is something I might do more in the future. Plus, if I need to sell the set later I'm guessing the freeborn will have the best resale.

are there other things I'm not thinking of as a new shaper user?

thanks, Mike

[Chris Payne]

If you are just needing one set your best bet would be to have them built.

[Peter Kelly]

If you're only making one set of doors, I'd go with the Infinity brazed ones. Always been pretty pleased with the quality of their tooling.

are there other things I'm not thinking of as a new shaper user?

Get a stock feeder if you haven't already.

[Martin Wasner]

I've got a Freeborn shaker insert head set I'd like to sell. But, I want to sell all of my heads at once. I've got shaker, ogee, and quarter round sets. Three sticking, three cope heads.

[rudy de haas]

Mike:

I'm in much the same position - bought a used shaper to make a small number of things including some cabinet doors and some rail and stile wall elements. Mine came with a few cutters but, of course, I need more. Dimar has a beauttiful set - $805! more than I paid for the machine and not something I'm going to do. Grizzly has some things you might like (the C2176 set does what you want for about $265 for the larger ones).

I've already managed to embrass myself by buying (for $30 canabucks at a gaage sale) a set of cutters that I can't use - so be careful what you buy. In particular make sure what you get is right for the thickness of your wood - you can fake it a bit with spacers and height adjustments, but a cutter intended for 3/4 inch woods is harder to make work than you'd want things to be if you're cutting 1" wood.

[Peter Quinn]

Freeborn is the most flexible option, probably the best resale as a percentage of purchase price but double the cost, so you pay for the privlidge. I have several infinity sets, they are functionally the equivalent of the freeborn sets, equally easy to stack, lots of groover options, I think you can even get an extended cope cutter for tenons. At the shop where I work professionally we use freeborn or equivalent, for the home shop where margins are tighter and demands not so intense I'm not afraid to go infinity. You didn't mention your spindle size, infinity braised sets are unfortunately only available in 3/4" bore, freeborn offers both 1 1/4" and 3/4". You might get better resale with the 1 1/4" heads, you could bush these down to 3/4". Amana also sells some decent sets for reasonable cost.

[Peter Quinn]

Here is another option for shaker doors in 3/4" bore

http://www.amanatool.com/sc565-2-pie...-material.html

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Mike, is the frame a plain frame with no profile?

If so you can make that with a grooving cutter.

If the panel needs a bevel you will need a cutter for that unless your shaper spindle tilts.......Regards, Rod.

[J.R. Rutter]

Here is another option for shaker doors in 3/4" bore

http://www.amanatool.com/sc565-2-pie...-material.html

Strange that they make a point of labeling (twice) "T" then not specifying what it is. Assume 1/4" ?

What is everyone's thought on the beveled inside profile? A shop just asked me the other day if I could make doors like that.

A set of inserts and backers for my universal Great Lake Tool heads is about $450. They will create and grind custom stuff based on wood sample or drawing in about a week.

[Martin Wasner]

What is everyone's thought on the beveled inside profile? A shop just asked me the other day if I could make doors like that.

I just ordered eight new heads, twenty four backers, and forty eight inserts. I did so with a slightly eased edge where it contacts the panel. Plus a four wing straight cutter. A big pill to swallow ordering all that at once.
Advantages to the eased edge, no fuzz, and it creates a shadow so if the panel isn't one hundred percent tight, it doesn't show. It should be less prone to tear out on that sharp edge, but that shouldn't be much of a concern if the inserts are sharp. Just a bit more forgiving.

The finisher might grumble a bit on stained things depending on how eased that edge actually is being it's one more spot to rub stain out of. Painted stuff, you can caulk that joint and the door should look flawless for a long time. Even it's not caulked, where the paint cracks at the sticking to panel joint is inside a bit if it's a light build.

I wavered on the decision for a while, I determined if I didn't like it, it wasn't a big deal. The inserts have a relatively short life span anyways, and I could just switch them out as needed.

[Martin Wasner]

Or are you talking about the sticking profile JR?

A shop I worked at did a single job that way. Where the rail meets the stile is tricky being there's no lip. There's nothing you can do to make that glue line disappear like you can with a regular stick and cope set. Prone to flaking at the r&s connection as well if it's not glued perfectly, which is virtually impossible

[J.R. Rutter]

I spec a tiny radius at the groove edges as well. Smaller than every "factory" type door that I've seen, but enough to avoid small chipping and allow just enough stain bleed to help mask shrinkage effects.

Thanks for your feedback on the sticking profile. Seems like the bevel would have to be pretty steep - like 75-70 degrees to minimize the rail:stile joint issues.

Who did you buy the cutterhead package from?

[Martin Wasner]

Precision Edge Tooling. Which I think is a store brand name, I'm not sure who actually produces them. There was a fairly large woodworking machinery company here in Minnesota called G.C. Peterson, I think they were having then made and sold under their own name. Peterson got bought out by Acme Tools five or six years ago. So, I bought them through Acme Tools

[Mike Berrevoets]

Hi Mike, is the frame a plain frame with no profile?

The boss (wife) wants it beveled on the inside of the frame. There seem to be a lot more options (and cheaper ones at that....) if it's not beveled. The panel will be flat.

[Mike Berrevoets]

Strange that they make a point of labeling (twice) "T" then not specifying what it is. Assume 1/4" ?

One of the retailers had the "t" dimension and it said 3/16".