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fin wrote:My mate swears by old fashioned long point compasses. I just have a one of those standard helix things from my skool days.

Try a eBay search for vintage compass or also long point compass but you'll obv get the other type coming up also

i have a long point compass, use it all the time and it lives in my holster pocket with my tape

gonna have to try it out like

I am surprised that no one has mentioned a china-graph pencil! this is what I use on coloured material or shiny stuff. HTH. Oh and it fits in a compass.

Wes wrote:Laminated board chips easily. Are any of the faces going to be exposed? If so, it might be worth using an electric plane with a steady hand (and goggles!!). You could even make up a template with 6 mm ply, clamp that to the panel and use a router with a guide roller on the cutting bit. A little bit of jig work there mate

Thanks for your reply Wes, What a brilliant idea. I've never used an electric plane before, can the depth be altered on one of those, or is it just a really fine 'cut' and you've got to keep going over the area?

Bit tricky to get a really fine cut if you've never used one mate...Worth getting someone to show you how to use it correctly and the does and don'ts plus a good bit of practice

The depth on electric planes can be altered from a fine cut up to a relatively deep cut...Max close to 1/4 of an inch on standard hand held planes..

It really is accurate work, so you're probably better off with the guide rail method IMO mate..And be careful...I can't stress enough, Safety Glasses!!

Wes wrote:It really is accurate work, so you're probably better off with the guide rail method IMO mate..And be careful...I can't stress enough, Safety Glasses!!

sorry for going on novice mode, but when you say guide rail, is the guide rail on the actual router? I also have a laminate trimmer which might be handy for this particular job, its got a flat base on the bottom.... sorry, just can't quite picture what you mean by guide rail..

By a guide rail, I essentially mean a straight edge that you can sit the edge of the router against. You'd measure the distance from the router 'cutting bit' to the edge of the router (worth practising on scrap pieces so you gain an understanding of where you're measuring from), then use that measurement to set a guide rail (a straight edge clamped to the work piece) on your work piece so when you position the router it cuts to your line. Only really effective if the scribe line is straight. Well, unless you're creating curved templates but that will be a little more advanced and not something you'll need to do at this stage..

If the scribe line is undulating, like it maybe when scribed against a floor or wall, you'll need to use a jigsaw with a downward cutting bit (sometimes called a laminate cutting bit) if you've had to mark the scribe on the exposed face.

That's probably all a bit confusing mate and there may be better methods. It will make more sense as you actually get hands on experience Alistair

Wes wrote:By a guide rail, I essentially mean a straight edge that you can sit the edge of the router against. You'd measure the distance from the router 'cutting bit' to the edge of the router (worth practising on scrap pieces so you gain an understanding of where you're measuring from), then use that measurement to set a guide rail (a straight edge clamped to the work piece) on your work piece so when you position the router it cuts to your line. Only really effective if the scribe line is straight. Well, unless you're creating curved templates but that will be a little more advanced and not something you'll need to do at this stage..

If the scribe line is undulating, like it maybe when scribed against a floor or wall, you'll need to use a jigsaw with a downward cutting bit (sometimes called a laminate cutting bit).

That's probably all a bit confusing mate and there may be better methods. It will make more sense as you actually get hands on experience Alistair

Thanks for the advice Wes. The only issue is, i need to shape the piece of wood into an arch lol...

The router that we use at work has a distance of 8mm between the router bit and the edge of the router, but I'd imagine this could change with different sized bits.

This post has inspired me to experiment with different methods and get a feel for which tool is suitable for different jobs. Going to try all three methods on a bit of scrap wood... jigsaw, router, and electric plane.

Thanks again mate, you're a star

The router that we use at work has a distance of 8mm between the router bit and the edge of the router

Wrong measurement there mate. That's the internal edge of the router base plate. You want the measurement from the router bit (more accurately the point where the bit blade will be coming into contact with the scribe line on your work piece) to the external edge of the base plate. The edge that will be pressed against the guide rail

This post has inspired me to experiment with different methods and get a feel for which tool is suitable for different jobs. Going to try all three methods on a bit of scrap wood... jigsaw, router, and electric plane.

There you go mate! You need hands on experience that will give you a greater understanding of tools, the way they work and the different methods that can be applied. You can only gain experience by using them and making mistakes, but make sure the mistakes are left on the work piece and not your body There's nothing wrong with going slow at first and really thinking about what you're doing, especially when it comes to power tools..

You could post some of your work in 'Showcase gallery' too...You might get criticised, but that's an important part of learning. Take nothing personally

Alistair86 wrote:There you go mate! You need hands on experience that will give you a greater understanding of tools, the way they work and the different methods that can be applied. You can only gain experience by using them and making mistakes, but make sure the mistakes are left on the work piece and not your body There's nothing wrong with going slow at first and really thinking about what you're doing, especially when it comes to power tools..

yh, you're right, health and safety first

Alistair86 wrote:You could post some of your work in 'Showcase gallery' too...You might get criticised, but that's an important part of learning. Take nothing personally

that is very true mate. When I was a bit younger I couldn't take criticism, but recently I've welcomed it, it's something that you need to accept, in life in general. Don't get me wrong, I don't tolerate rudeness, but if somebody has a genuine point, I see it as a good thing, a learning curve.

Thanks again pal, you've been a great help

Wes wrote:Laminated board chips easily. Are any of the faces going to be exposed? If so, it might be worth using an electric plane with a steady hand (and goggles!!). You could even make up a template with 6 mm ply, clamp that to the panel and use a router with a guide roller on the cutting bit. A little bit of jig work there mate

I'm with you on the template and router, Wes. That's what I use for critical jobs where caulking the joint just isn't an option. Needless to say the cutter needs to be fresh and sharp, and cheap Chiinese cutters don't really hack it (I use this type of cutter, not cheap but less chip-out from replaceable tips). For cutting laminate boards Bosch do make a few specialised jigsaw blades which really work much better than the ordinary blades - the T101BIF is for straight cutting (up cut) , the T101BRF is for top down cutting whilst the T101AOF is for tight curve work. These are the laminated material equivalents of the T101B, T101BR and T101AO respectively. They also work well on bothe engineered oak and laminate flooring