raised panels on a shaper

[Denny Wayman]

hello all

does anyone here do any panel raising on a shaper with the cutterhead above the workpiece without the aid of a power feeder?

i have a cmt insert tooling cabinet knife set and it looks like it is intended for the knives to be above the panel. now before i go and send a panel flying across my shop i thought i might see if anyone here could lend their expertise and help..

thanks

[Steve Dewey]

Can you flip the cutter over & run in reverse?

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

as an aside:
Do the ends first.

[Ron Williams]

I cut panels with the cutter on top. the most important safety feature is to make a 1 pc fence for the cutter to past through which will allow the panel to register against the fence at all times. always start your cuts across the end of a panel then cut progressively around the panel

[Jim Becker]

I'd also suggest you configure or make a guard that both covers the cutter head as well as works as a hold down to keep the panel flat on the table.

[David DeCristoforo]

Many will say yes. But it's not the safest way. If the panel "lifts" at all... well a kickback on a TS is nothing compared to one on a shaper running a panel raiser! At the very least, the panel gets thrashed. Most shapers are reversible for exactly this reason. One thing to keep in mind is that if you do run the shaper "in reverse" and esp. if you are running a big cutter, you really gotta honk down on the nut because it can come loose pretty easily. Oh and one other thing... you really need a shroud or guard of some kind if the cutter is above the stock! Danger, Will Robinson!

YM

[Brad Shipton]

At a minimum you need something along the lines of the Aigner hold downs, but those will set you back half the cost of a feeder. I wasnt too sure how much I would use the power feeder before I bought one and now I cant imagine not having it. Very handy for larger runs of anything on the jointer/shaper or the table saw.

[Joe Jensen]

I have used a shaper a lot for panel raising. I have used a Freeborn cutter set that includes a back cutter, but I only use it with a power feeder. Is the cutter diameter small enough that you can run it from underneath? Every shaper I've used could reverse. Without a feeder I'd definitely run underneath. Or, if you are like me, I'd use this as the excuse to buy a feeder. The cut quality with a feeder is SOOOO much better. Imagine perfect rail and style stock that needs ZERO sanding. Raised panels with ZERO dips or divots.

Cheers....joe

[David DeCristoforo]

"Is the cutter diameter small enough that you can run it from underneath?"

If not it's easy enough to add a temporary "sub-table" of 3/4" MDF or Melamine with a hole in the middle. Then you can "submerge" the cutter into that (one of the many things I have drilled and tapped my shaper top for).

YM

[Richard McComas]

Personally I would not run raised panels beneath the cutter head. As other have said turn the cutter over and reverse the motor direction. Also make auxiliary table top with a one piece fence, this is by far a more safer way to raise panels with out a feeder. That being said, the best addition to your shaper would be to get a power feeder.

[David DeCristoforo]

That's what I'm talkin' about....

YM

[Paul Simmel]

Yoshi and Richard are correct. If you run the cutter above the panel, even with a feeder, you don't get the downward pressure where you need it; namely, right over the cut.

You can cut perfect panels w/out a feeder, however, if you run the panel over the cutter. Raising panels on a shaper in this way is one of the safest cutting operations you can do on a shaper, BTW.

[Karl Brogger]

Does the cutter use a bearing? You can make the cut in two passes. Use something to hold the panel out a bit, then come back and make a final cut. You can even do it in three stages. While time consuming its better than not being able to count to ten anymore.

I hate doing anything on a shaper by hand. To me it is by far the scariest tool in a wood shop. Huge cutters are alot scarier than a blade any day. I told the kid who works for me that if he were to slip and get a hand sucked into the backside of one of our larger cutters it would look like a tomato in a industrial blender.

[Alex Shanku]

Check out this month's Fine Woodworking for an article on what you are asking about.

[Joe Chritz]

"Is the cutter diameter small enough that you can run it from underneath?"

If not it's easy enough to add a temporary "sub-table" of 3/4" MDF or Melamine with a hole in the middle. Then you can "submerge" the cutter into that (one of the many things I have drilled and tapped my shaper top for).

YM

This is what I do for raised panels. I added some wooden rails on the edges of the table and attach a MDF panel 3/4" thick to the top. The bit won't fit otherwise. It works very well.

I have heard it is possible to run the cutter on top but it looks very scary to me.

Joe