Page 40 - Router Boss Manual

Cut the grooves
At this point, we can go ahead and cut the groove
for the panel. Use a 1/4” gauge bar or similar-sized
drill bit to set the depth stop to make a 1/4” deep cut.
Turn the crank handle to move the stock clear of the
bit, plunge the router and turn it on. Then use the power
feed crank to move the stile past the bit and cut the
groove. When you reach the end of the stile, you can
reverse directions to clean up the groove and remove
any chips from the groove. If you have multiple rails
and stiles, go ahead and cut grooves in all of them at
this time without changing the machine setup.

TIP - Because the groove may not be in the exact
center of the stock, you should mark the face
on all your boards and cut all the grooves with
the marked face oriented the same way, such as
against the mortising rail.

Cut the mortises
Leave the router plate and plunge mechanism
locked in position and use the crank handle to position
the bit so the edge of it aligns with the marked edge of
the first mortise. Reset your depth stop to the depth of
the mortise, in this case 3/4”. (You may need to stack
gauge blocks to get the required depth.)

NOTE: To perform the next step, you’ll need a
spiral up-cut bit capable of making “drill-like” plunge
cuts.

With the bit edge aligned with the mortise edge,
plunge the router to the stop, then lift the bit above the
stock. Turn the crank to align the bit with the other end
of the mortise and plunge it to the full depth. These two
cuts establish each end of the mortise. It would be too
much to cut the entire mortise in one pass, so make in-
cremental shallow cuts (about 1/4”), using the crank
handle to feed the stock back and forth past the bit,
making the cuts progressively deeper, but always stop-
ping shy of the two full plunge cuts you made initially.

TIP - It is much easier to incrementally plunge the
bit if you have installed our plunge assist kit.

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