It's definitely plan B to rout by hand. But there are several reasons I'd prefer not to:dealguy11 wrote:Out of curiosity, why not route the chamfer by hand? It should be pretty trivial compared to trying to set this up as a 2-sided project and getting everything aligned.
1. With this particular design, I am hoping to be in a position where I can make and sell many, and I'd like to streamline the production as much as possible. With properly placed dowels, a flip of the stock and a tool change, theoretically I should be able to dial in production without too much trouble. Also, I plan to use steel hairpin legs and would like to recess the mounting plate in a pocket under the table. So I probably need to machine on 2 sides anyway. Am I underestimating the challenge of 2 sided machining?
2. I am trying to cut a pretty substantial scalloping/rounding of the underside more than a simple bevel -- at least that's the design I am hoping to achieve. I realize that the "right" bit might not exist. So alternatively, I could run a moulding toolpath with a ballnose to achieve the desired look, but that machining would probably take a long time. I realize that my design dreams and the reality of production time/complexity might be in conflict here...
3. The profile that I would need to rout by hand is pretty complicated compared to a simple circular tabletop.
The CNC arrives next week -- my first real machine after playing with a small Handibot for a year. After I figure out which way is up, I will start prototyping the design. I am sure, at least at first, that it will be 100x more complicated that I think it will be!
