Working with a hand router on wood. Working with plywood Which cutter to cut plywood on a hand router

Processing lumber, inserting hinges, making technological holes and recesses, wood carving - all this can be done by a device such as a router. Moreover, this can be done not only by professional equipment, but also by relatively inexpensive hand-made units. But working with a manual wood router requires knowledge of some techniques and rules. All this is in the article.

What is a router and why is it needed?

A router is a device for processing wood or metal. They process flat and shaped surfaces, and also form technological recesses - grooves, ridges, recesses for installing hinges, etc. According to the installation method, there are stationary machines (there are different types to perform various operations), and there are manual milling cutters. Hand-held electric milling machines are a universal tool that allows you to carry out any operation. To change the operation, you just need to change the attachment - the cutter and/or its location on the part.

Machine tools are used mainly in mass production. In them, the cutter is installed motionless, and the workpiece moves along a certain trajectory. When working with a manual router, the situation is the opposite - the workpiece is fixed motionless and the router is moved. When processing large volumes of identical parts, it is more convenient to mount a hand router on a horizontal surface, making something similar to a milling machine.

Homemade milling machine - a horizontal plane with a hole in the middle, to which a manual router is attached from below

There are many various types milling machines, but for home handyman or for semi-professional use, universal ones are more suitable. They are equipped with various cutters and special devices, which allows you to perform any operation. They just require more time and skill to perform than on a specialized machine.

What can be done with a hand router:

Similar operations are used in carpentry, in the production and assembly of furniture. A hand router can even cut into a lock or hinges on a door. Moreover, it will do this much faster and more elegantly than similar operations performed using hand tools.

Preparation for work and care

To understand the principles of working with a hand router, it is advisable to have at least a general understanding of its structure and the purpose of its parts.

Structure and purpose of main components

A manual electric router consists of a housing in which a motor is hidden. A holder protrudes from the body into which the collets are inserted. Collets are small adapters that allow you to use cutters with shanks of different diameters. The cutter is inserted into the collet and tightened with a clamping bolt (on some models it is fixed with a button).

Another important part of a manual router is the platform, which is connected to the body using two rods. The platform is usually made of metal. There is a sliding plate on the underside of the platform. It is made of a smooth material that ensures smooth operation of the tool as it moves around the part.

Setting up the milling cutter operating parameters is done using:

• Handles and dials for adjusting the milling depth. The adjustment step is 1/10 mm.
• Adjusting the speed. Changes the rotation speed of the cutter. To begin with, you should try working at low or medium speeds - it’s easier to operate the tool at first.

There is also an on/off button on the case, and there may also be a lock button. Here, in brief, are all the nodes. In addition, it is also quite easy to use rip fence. It can be simple or adjustable - you can move the cutting part slightly to the right or left.

Care

The equipment leaves the factory lubricated, so in principle, no additional operations are required. But it is necessary to keep the equipment clean - you need to clean off dust more often and change the lubricant if necessary. Lubrication is needed for moving parts - guides. You can use liquid aerosol lubricants (preferably), but you can also use regular consistent ones like Litol. But, when using thick lubricants, you will have to remove them periodically, as chips and dust stick and it becomes difficult to work. When using light aerosol formulations there is practically no sticking.

To make the sole slide easily, you can lubricate it with silicone grease. This is especially useful when working with templates. Then the tool literally glides, moves smoothly and without jerking.

Rotational speed

Working with a hand router on wood, composite, plywood, etc. begins with setting the basic parameters. First you need to set the rotation speed. It is selected depending on the selected cutter and the hardness of the material and the characteristics of the cutter, so you should look for exact recommendations in the operating instructions.

Securing the cutter

Next, the cutter is installed. Most branded cutters have marks that you can use to guide you. If they are not there, then the minimum requirement is to clamp at least 3/4 of the length of the shank (cylindrical part). Insert the cutter to the required depth (if necessary, after installing a collet - an adapter chuck for different cutter diameters), secure the shaft, and tighten it with an open-end wrench until it stops (but do not overtighten).

If the model is simple, two keys are needed. They do not have a shaft locking mechanism; you will need to hold it with a second key. Mid-class devices have a lock button. Holding it, use an open-end wrench to tighten the cutter. In expensive models, in addition to the lock, there is a ratchet that you can use to navigate.

Setting the milling depth

Each model of a manual milling cutter has a certain reach - this is the maximum depth to which this unit is capable of processing material. The maximum depth of milling is not always required; then it needs to be adjusted. Even if you need to mill to a greater depth, so as not to overload the cutter and unit, you can divide it into several levels. There is a revolver stop for this. This is a small disk under a barbell with a number of stops of different heights - legs. The number of legs is from three to seven, and more does not mean better. It is much more convenient if it is possible to adjust the height of each leg. This shows the class of the equipment. To secure the turret stop in the desired position, there is a lock, usually made in the form of a flag.

Setting the milling depth to manual router occurs in several stages:

• Place the tool on a flat surface, release the clamps, and press with your hand so that the cutter rests on the surface.
• Release the turret stop by unscrewing its lock.

• Depending on what depth of milling is needed, choose the leg of the turret stop. The disc with legs is rotated to the desired position.
• The screw is not fixed, but the bar is held with a finger, and the movable pointer is moved so that it coincides with zero (in the photo above).
• The rod is raised to the milling depth mark, after which the turret stop lock is lowered (pictured below).

Now, when installing on the workpiece and pressing top part, the cutter will enter the part at the set distance.

Good routers have a wheel for precise adjustment of the milling depth. It allows you to adjust the depth without changing the settings (there is no need to repeat the entire operation), albeit within small limits (in the photo above it is the green wheel).

Milling cutters for hand router

Milling cutters are cutting tools that process and shape a surface. They consist of a cylindrical part, which is clamped by collets in the unit holder, and a cutting part. The cylindrical part can be of different diameters. Choose one that has a collet for which your device has. The shape and location of the knives of the cutting part determines the appearance that the wood receives after processing. Some cutters (for edges) have a stop roller. It specifies the distance from the cutting surface to the material being processed.

Working with a hand router on wood requires the presence of a certain number of cutters. This is a small part of what exists

Milling cutters are made from different metals and alloys. For processing soft wood - pine, spruce, etc. - use conventional nozzles (HSS), for hard woods - oak, beech and others - from hard alloys (HM).

Each cutter has a certain resource and maximum speed at which normal operation is ensured with minimal runout. You should not exceed the recommended speed - this may cause damage to the router. There is also no point in sharpening a cutter if it is dull. This is done using special equipment (costing about $1000), where you can set the required sharpening angle. Nothing good will come of it manually. So, dull ones are easier (and cheaper) to replace, since they cost relatively little.

Popular types

There are a number of types of router bits that are used most often.

There are simple cutters, formed from a single piece of metal, and there are typesetting ones. Stacked ones have a shank - a base, a certain set of different cutting planes, a set of washers of different thicknesses. From these parts you can independently form the required relief.

A set cutter is a set of several cutting surfaces and washers from which you can make a cutter of the required shape

These are the most popular types of cutters, but in fact there are a lot of them. In addition to the different diameters of the shanks, there are different diameters of the cutting surfaces, their height, the location of the knives relative to each other, etc. In general, for do-it-yourself milling, you usually need about five of the most common cutters. They are usually present constantly, and the rest are purchased for specific types of work.

Principles of working with a hand router

An electric router is a rather dangerous thing - sharp cutting parts rotating at high speed can cause serious injuries, and chips flying from under the tool too. And although most models have a protective shield that reflects the main flow of chips, safety glasses will not hurt. So working with a manual wood router requires attention and concentration.

One of the models is with a connected vacuum cleaner to remove chips

General requirements

Working with a manual wood router will be easier and more enjoyable, and the products will be of normal quality if you meet certain conditions:

The requirements are not so complex, but fulfilling them is the key to good performance and safety. Well, the main requirement is that the router must be driven smoothly, without jerks or jolts. If you feel a strong beat, change the speed. Most often it needs to be reduced, but in general it is worth focusing on the manufacturer’s recommendations (available on the packaging).

Edge processing - working with a template

It is easier and faster to process the edges of a regular board using a surface planer, but if you don’t have one, a hand router will also do the job, but it will just take more time. There are two ways: without a template and with a template. If this is your first experience with a router, it is better to use a template. When processing the edges of boards, you need straight edge cutters, and most likely you will need two - with a bearing at the beginning and at the end of the cutting part (pictured).

To process the edge - make a flat surface

As a template, you can use an already processed board or, for example, building code. The length of the template should be slightly longer than the length of the workpiece - 5-6 cutter radii on each side. This will make it possible to avoid the cutter “diving” into the material at the beginning and at the end. One important point: the horizontal plane (perpendicular to the one being processed) must be level. In any case, its curvature should not be greater than the gap between the bearing and the cutting part, otherwise the cutter will touch the template, and this is very bad - it becomes imperfect and the applied irregularities will appear on other copies.

If the width of the part is no more than the length of the cutting edge

The cutting part of the cutters is of different lengths, but the larger the cutting part, the more difficult it is to work - more effort has to be made to hold the unit. Therefore, it is easier to start working with a medium cutter. The procedure for processing an edge with a router (with a template) is as follows:

• Set the template so that it defines the required flat surface - stepping back the required distance from the edge.
• The workpiece with the template is securely attached to the table or any other horizontal surface.
• Install a cutter with a roller in the middle part. It is set so that the roller rolls along the template, and the cutting part rolls along the part. To do this, place the cutter on a fixed workpiece with a template, place the cutter disconnected from the network, adjust the position of the nozzle, and clamp it.
• Set the cutter to the working position - lower the body and clamp it.
• Turn on the hand router and guide it along the template. The speed of movement is determined by the depth of processing. You will feel everything yourself.
• How to operate the router? Pull or push? Depends on which side you are standing on. If the workpiece is on the left, you push, if it is on the right, you pull. You can also navigate by the flight of the chips - they should fly forward.

That's all, actually. After you have completed the passage, evaluate the result and remove the clamps.

This, by the way, is another way to remove a quarter along the edge of the workpiece or in some part of it. To remove a quarter, adjust the cutting part so that the processing is at the specified depth.

By replacing the cutter with a curved one (fillet) and moving the template or using the included stop, you can apply a longitudinal pattern to the workpiece (pictured below).

In general, this milling technique is quite convenient. For the first steps in woodworking, this is The best way“get your hands on it”, then you can align the edges even without guides.

The width is greater than the length of the cutting part

What to do if the thickness of the workpiece is no more than the length of the cutting part of the cutter? In this case, work with a manual wood router continues:

Now the edge is completely processed on one side. If necessary, repeat with the second side. In general, to master working with a manual wood router, you will need several “rough” blanks. Choose from those that you don’t mind throwing away - at first there will be a lot of jambs, then gradually you will learn.

Obtaining a figured and curved edge

If you need not a straight edge, but a rounded one or any other shape of the edge, you need to look at the condition of the existing edge. If the workpiece is more or less flat, take the required edge cutter, install it and process the surface as described above. If the surface is too curved, it is first brought to normal condition and then milled.

This is necessary because the bearing roller rolls over the surface and if there are flaws, they will be copied. Therefore, act sequentially - first level it, then add curvature.

If a curved surface is at all boring, a template is cut out. The design is applied to plywood 8-12 mm thick; first it can be cut out with a jigsaw, so the edge can be brought to perfection with a router.

In this case, you will also have to work with a router, but without a template for now. When the surface is perfect, the template is fixed to the workpiece and then the work already described above with a manual wood router. Just one thing: if you need to remove a large amount of material in some places, it is better to do it with a jigsaw, for example. Otherwise, the cutter will quickly become dull.

Video tutorials on working with a hand router

When installing doors, you need to cut in the hinges, how to do this using a router - in the next video (there is also information on how to make a groove, for example, for installing an extension).

How to make a homemade milling machine from laminate samples (plywood is possible) and how to make finger joint for drawers (tables, for example) - in the next video

Working with a hand router on wood is shown quite well in the following video, but it is English language. Even if you don't know English, take the time to watch it. Many operations will become clearer.

Plywood is an inexpensive, universal construction material that combines the lightness and warmth of wood, a beautiful natural texture, low cost and durability. It lends itself well to milling, grinding and decorative processing. Classified:

Wood species

Birch plywood and plywood from coniferous species wood (mainly spruce). Of all the options, birch plywood remains the leader in sales volumes. It is popular among furniture manufacturers and in interior decoration; an endless amount of gift and souvenir products are milled from it. It has an even color and a soft, attractive texture. The color of softwood plywood is much darker and the texture is more contrasting. Due to its lower cost, it has become widespread in construction for the manufacture of formwork and other temporary structures. The technologies for milling coniferous and birch plywood are no different.

Impregnations

There are two impregnation options - FC and FSF. Both make plywood partially resistant to moisture and temperature changes, but with some differences. FSF is recommended for street work and contains more resins. FC is the safest impregnation option, contains a minimal amount of resins and is therefore less resistant to moisture. Recommended for indoor use. The type of impregnation has virtually no effect on the quality of plywood milling.

Types of processing

Based on the type of processing, plywood is divided into sanded and non-sanded. NS - not polished. Ш1 - polished on the front side. Ш2 - polished on the front and back sides. The type of processing has virtually no effect on the quality of plywood milling.

Plywood varieties

The grade indicates the quality of the raw material from which the plywood is made and the number of defects on the visible sides of the sheet. Grade 1 allows for up to two defects (inserts) on the visible surface of the sheet. Grade 2 allows up to 8 defects (inserts). In grades 3 and 4, the number of defects increases, knots appear, color and texture become uneven. Usually the grade is indicated by two numbers 2/2 or 2/4. This indicates the grade for the face and back of the leaf. Please note an important point - not all types of plywood are milled equally well. Grades 3/3, 3/4 and, especially, 4/4 are made from lower quality raw materials. During the milling process, chips appear at the ends of parts made from such plywood, chips may fly off, and a poorer quality adhesive layer leads to the fact that after milling, parts can delaminate and fall apart. You need to choose low-grade plywood very carefully, only when it is really justified.

Laminated plywood was developed to produce high-quality reusable construction formwork. It is able to retain its properties in direct contact with water, mortars, and concrete. Easily tolerates temperature changes. At the factory, before being pressed and gluing, the veneer sheets are covered with a special protective layer (laminate). After cutting to size, the ends of the sheets are painted over with paint, which prevents moisture from getting inside. Milling laminated plywood requires more attention and responsibility. Incorrectly selected cutting tools or speed settings lead to chipping. On dark laminate they are very visible and cannot be removed.

Milling plywood is the optimal method for curved cutting. This procedure is carried out using a woodworking milling machine to simplify and speed up the work process. This method helps to create custom products.

It is possible to cut with a hand tool for this operation, but it takes a lot of time and causes difficulties during the work.

Milling is carried out in the following cases:

• Construction and renovation work;
• Furniture manufacture;
• Interior and exterior design;
• Production of packaging, advertising structures, POS materials.

Device

To fully cut plywood using a router, you should acquire a special device. Thanks to him, the blanks are formed clearly according to the intended idea without distortion. This allows the tool to be positioned precisely to match the workpiece. Attention! Some such devices can be obtained by purchasing a router directly. There is also a purchase option of this equipment sold separately, can be made by hand.

Milling plywood with a hand router is carried out using a parallel stop. To do this you must have:

• Screw for rod stopper;
• Hand tool base;
• Overlays;
• Upora;
• Barbells;
• The carriage is movable;
• Screw for stopping movable carriages;
• Screw for stop stop;
• Screw for fine adjustments.

Features of using the tool:

• To ensure straight-line movement of the cutter in relation to the base surface of the plywood, a rip fence should be used. This configuration can be seen with almost every instrument on sale at optimal cost. According to the instructions, it is recommended to use such a stop when processing edges and milling grooves on workpieces on which fixtures are attached.
• To install the device in the desired position to begin the work process, it is recommended to push the rod into the holes of the frame so that the required distance is formed between the cutter, i.e. between its axis and the stop point on the top of the workpiece. It is then clamped using a locking screw.

Attention! There are stop models in which the pads are movable and can allow you to change the size of the surface.

• To make it possible to process round workpieces, a special element is added to the stop part. It does not need to follow the shape of the surface being treated. It is enough to cut a recess in an angular shape, and it will fit to any diameter.
• During the milling process, it is worth paying attention to the fact that glue when joining veneer sheets can quickly damage the cutting tool and also dull it. To avoid such a situation, high hardness requirements are imposed on the instruments for this process.

Plywood cutting on CNC machines – processing of plywood blanks on machine tools with numerical control. CNC machines allow the production of parts in automatic or semi-automatic mode. The advantage of this type of manufacturing is the high precision of the actions. CNC processing of plywood can be performed both in private production and in factory conditions.

Peculiarities

Computer numerical control equipment allows operator intervention to be kept to a minimum. After manufacturing, the part does not require additional processing.

Using machine tools, several types of processing can be performed:

• laser;
• milling;
• waterjet.

There is also plasma treatment. But it is used less frequently than other types. Depending on the type of processing, there are both advantages and disadvantages. They need to be considered Special attention if you don’t know which machine is better to choose.

The most suitable materials for work are sheet type materials. Of the listed types of manufacturing, the most popular is milling. on the machine ensures the production of parts with precise dimensions and smooth edges. Laser cutting is more suitable for cutting plywood.

When cutting, you must adhere to the rules for using the unit.

Using milling you can create almost all types of parts. Modern models are compact, so they can be placed in a room with a small area. Numerical control ensures easy operation. Thanks to this, you can handle plywood processing without any experience. When purchasing a machine, you will receive instructions that describe how to operate it.

Types of milling devices

The most common and functional is milling type. The design of the machine assumes the presence of a collet clamp. With its help, you can use cutters with different diameters with the machine.

Are different small in size. But at the same time they have a lower power rating. Most often, such units are used for additional processing of parts in order to ensure higher accuracy.

Waterjet machines are also available. The third type of devices is represented by a vertical base. It has wide functionality and is large in size. Because of this, the device can only be placed in a room with a large area.

Purpose

Giving preference, it is easier to process plywood with a milling cutter than when using other types of units. The milling device allows the production of parts with complex shapes.

Thanks to milling, the following is possible:

• profiling of cornices, platbands, baseboards;
• cutting along a contour with a curved line;
• creating grooves, shaped recesses;
• surface decoration;
• drilling holes.

On milling machine With CNC you can adjust the cutting depth. This feature provides automatic processing. The operator is required to specify the trajectory along which the cutter will move. If you cut sloppily, the control program will help solve this problem.

Advantages

Milling plywood allows you to obtain parts with a clean and smooth surface. When using a laser, the edges will be charred and the edge will suffer burns. Additional steps will be required to process the ends.

Other benefits include:

• the ability to work with material that has a large thickness (thanks to milling cutting, you can process a thickness of ten centimeters, while laser cutting allows you to cope with a thickness of no more than one centimeter);
• creation of curved CNC cutting of three-dimensional products and panels;
• chamfering, rounding, groove milling.

Exist special cutters, intended for cutting on plywood. Using such a cutter, you can make parts, after which lint and other defects will not form on the cut.

But laser processing of plywood also has a number of advantages. Using a laser cutting machine, you can produce small parts with exact shapes and fragile elements. By performing CNC laser cutting of plywood, there is no mechanical load on the workpiece.

Preparation

Before production, it is necessary to prepare the CNC machine for operation. Setting up the unit involves two stages. The first is represented by setting up tool blocks, and the second - by working mechanisms.

Setup is carried out step by step:

• securing base and fastening elements;
• warming up the mechanisms of the machine tool to ensure stable operation;
• running the control program idle.

Additionally you need to check:

• how clean the system mechanisms are;
• Do the drawings and workpieces correspond?
• Is there sufficient coolant and lubricant?

When serial processing with cutters, you should carefully monitor the processing of the first workpiece. With its help, you can determine whether there are errors after adjustment. If there are inaccuracies, additional corrections must be made. If there are several elements, the layout on the sheet saves plywood. After setup, there is no need to check the control program - it will produce parts according to similar parameters.

cutting

Before you start cutting plywood, you need to make sure that the cutters are securely installed in the chuck. To do this, make sure that the cartridge is tightened and the nut is tightened. The check is performed using a wrench.

Then you need to adjust the depth to which the cutter will penetrate. The limiter knob allows for simple and quick adjustment of this indicator if necessary. To test milling, it is recommended to use an unnecessary piece of plywood.

Many inexperienced users believe that the larger the cutter I cut, the better. But the principle “cut with a large tool for better work" will not work here. If the cutters have a large diameter, the machine tool should be set to a low speed. When purchasing a machine, it comes with instructions in which you can see which parameters are optimal for processing.

The dimensions of the plywood blank should not be more than ten centimeters. For the production of larger parts, special CNC machines are used. Professional units allow you to perform three-axis processing and cut thicker plywood. If previously the operator cut the part himself, now the production is carried out automatically. One is required to monitor the work. You can control production remotely.

Scope of use

Cutting plywood using milling machines is used in the construction industry. Thanks to it, floors, wall formwork, and foundations are made. Plywood is also used in:

• shipbuilding;
• roofing works;
• laying the floor;
• interior design;
• furniture production.

Using milling on CNC machines, it is created figure cutting. Thanks to cutting, advertising structures are produced. Plywood has high performance characteristics. The material can be used to make small three-dimensional letters for signs.

Using plywood can save money and make furniture easier to make, but there are issues that need to be addressed with greater care. For example, the difficulty of sawing sheets into blanks without chipping, masking visible ends, etc. However, these problems can be solved, which will be discussed in the article.

Sawing to size

It's best to start with the largest pieces and consider the grain direction of the outer layer. Drawing up a cutting diagram ( photo A) will not take much time (especially for large products), but it will help you get rid of the purchase of additional material. In addition, by looking at the diagram, you can understand which cuts should be made first.

When drawing the cutting diagram, put down the dimensions and make sure that the parts fit on the sheet. Also allow sufficient finishing allowance.

To prevent chipping on both faces of the plywood, score the bottom face with a disc raised approximately 1.5 mm. Then raise it to its full height and make a gash.

You can make any cuts on a table saw as long as the plywood is face up. In this case, the lower side tends to chip. If both sides must be free of chips, then first make a scoring pass ( photo B And rice. 1a).

Although the factory edge of a sheet of plywood is fairly straight, it needs to be filed using a straight edge to remove any possible defects. Therefore, when you first cut, give a small allowance, and then come back and saw off the factory rib ( rice. 1).

When working with a manual circular saw, the plywood should be laid face down. Place a full sheet of plywood on a sheet of foam (Fig. 2) - due to it, it is more convenient to handle plywood; the sawn piece does not fall and at the end of the cut does not tear out the face veneer.

There are times when it is necessary to use a stationary circular. To avoid chipping at the end of the cut, use the two-pass method. After feeding the part into the machine by 50-75 mm, expand the panel ( rice. 3) and make a full pass.

Grooves

Depending on the size of the part, grooves are selected using a tabletop circular saw or a router with a guide ruler

Aligned slots. Clamp the two panels to the workbench. The faces on which the grooves are to be selected face each other. Use a router to select both grooves in one pass.

In this template, a series of grooves of increasing width are selected and each one is marked with which disk it was cut with. Now it is easy to set the groove disc according to the thickness of the plywood.

Gauge for selecting a disk for grooves for a table circular saw ( photo B) consists of two glued blocks of 20 mm plywood with a number of cut grooves of different widths.

Guides with double rulers. The groove on the plywood is selected using two guide rulers ( rice. 4). The exact distance between the guides is determined by cutting plywood ( rice. 4a), To rout a groove, move the router along one fence guide and then back along the other fence.

Masking the ends

Typically, hardwood strips 6-20 mm wide are used for edging the ends. Make edging strips slightly thicker than plywood ( photo G), and after gluing, trim them flush.

To help hold the trim on the edge of the plywood, you can cut a mortise and tenon (top photo) or use a fiberboard dowel (bottom photo).

The more clamps are used to press the edging, the less chance there is for cracks to form. Ideally, clamps are installed in increments of 100-150 mm, but large products, for example, in cabinets, this is not always possible. In this case, use a wide clamping block ( rice. 5). The wider the block, the further the clamps can be spaced. In addition, the pressure block protects the front side of the edging.

When there are not enough clamps even when using wide blocks, there are several options for screeding. One of them is to modify the clamping block by making one edge slightly convex ( rice. 6) - the force is first applied in the middle between the clamps, and then distributed to the sides. Another way is to insert oppositely directed wedges between the pressure block and the edging ( rice. 7).

If there is a local gap, additional force can be applied using a C-clamp and wedge.

If the edging does not want to be pressed in a certain place, use a C-shaped clamp with spacers (so as not to damage the edging) and a wedge ( photo D).

Sometimes the problem is not the number of clamps, but that they are too short. In this case, press the support bar across the panel and attach the main clamps to it ( rice. 8).

Most tube and rack clamps apply force too high, causing the frame to twist out ( rice. 9a). Use a pressure block with rounded edges ( rice. 9) - this will redistribute the force so that it is applied in the middle of the edging.

Sometimes you have to attach the trim after assembling the case. It must exactly match the thickness of the plywood and be level. In this case, use guide blocks and packing tape to align and secure the edging ( rice. 10).

When planing or sanding flush edging, apply tape to the plywood to avoid damaging the veneer.

Trimming the edging. Trimming is performed with a stripping block ( photo E) or with a hand plane ( photo F). To avoid damaging the veneer, use a strip of adhesive tape.

Sometimes the edging is trimmed using a router with a flush cutter. The cutter bearing tracks the face of the plywood. A stable position of the router base on the edge of the plywood is necessary. To do this, press a 50x100 mm board flush with the top edge of the edging strip ( rice. eleven). On the board you need to select a fold ( rice. 11 a).
When processing identical panels, for example the side walls of a cabinet, press them together using a 50x100mm spacer ( rice. 12) to provide good support for the router. Move the router counterclockwise, and if there are grooves in the panel, temporarily seal them with inserts ( rice. 12a).

Device ( see fig. and photo) is a wide base to which a ruler is attached with glue and screws. To cut the base to size, a hand-held circular saw is run along one edge of the ruler, and a router along the other. (Note: A ø10mm straight bit was used for this guide.)

When the base is trimmed, a auxiliary ruler is obtained that will show exactly where the cut should be made. Simply press the ruler into place and align its edge with the marking line,

If you need to mill a groove wider than the diameter of the cutter used to cut plywood, you cannot simply replace the cutter - you will have to change the position of the auxiliary ruler. Instead, make a second identical guide straight edge and rout the groove in two passes ( rice. 4).

Assembling parts made from plywood is not much different from assemblies made from solid wood - you need to tighten the parts tightly across their entire width. But when you sandwich a row of shelves between two side walls, you can't pull most of the panels together in the middle.

To hold a large assembly of plywood in place when installing clamps, use a square block with grooves cut in the middle.

To tighten the assembly tightly, use 50x100 mm boards with a convex edge ( rice. 13) - the bend directs the clamping force first to the middle of the panel, and then, when tightening the clamps, distributes it to the sides.

Another problem arises when inserting slightly curved panels. The solution is to press the thick stiffener and straighten the curved panel during assembly ( rice. 13a). When the glue hardens, the panel will remain straight even after removing the stiffener.