Can the shopbot do this?

[bob_reda]

I usually make a couople hundred boxes a year from 1/4" thick maple that require box joints. Can the shopbot perform this task with the wood laying flat??

Thanks
Bob

[richards]

You'll have to decide what to do with the radiused corners. A round cutter will always leave a radius. If you use a very small diameter cutter, then cutting times will be prolonged.

[mikejohn]

You can also make a simple jig to do this off the end of the Shopbot.

.................Mike

[bob_reda]

Thanks guys,
This will determine if I get one or not. My first instiincts tell me to use a 1/16" spiral bit to cut out the piece and do the box joints, this way the radius edges would be at a minimun. I don't have a shop bot at this time so I don't know what kind of jig I could make off the end, and if I would be able to save any time doing it this way.

Bob

[tuck]

Bob, if all you think you may need a ShopBot for is to make box joints a few times a year, then no. There are many excellent jigs available for much less money to do just that with a hand-held router.

[patricktoomey]

Bob,

I think trying to do this flat would introduce too many problems. A bit small enough to produce a relatively good looking joint will force you to run at such a slow feed rate to prevent bit breakage that cut times would be very long. Also the bits wouldn't last very long.

Here is a jig that shows one way to clamp the board off the end of the table... http://www.iedu.com/DeSoto/cnc_joinery.html
That may work but the time to setup and clamp each piece may not be acceptable. It also limits the length of your pieces.

Here is another thread that has some interesting info, it's where I found that last link... http://www.talkshopbot.com/forum/messages/32/7283.html#POST23044

In the end I agree with Mark that if this is all you want to do the ShopBot would be extreme overkill and a manual rig would be more efficient. However, if you do get the ShopBot I can guarantee you'll find LOTS of other stuff to do with it :-)

[beacon14]

I don't think you will end up using a 1/16" bit in production to cut 1/4" maple. Think 1/8" minimum; I find 3/16" to be stiff enough that I don't have to worry about breaking it, but small enough to not waste much wood.

[burchbot]

Hi Bob
Here is a machine that may work for you http://woodworker.com/cgi-bin/FULLPRES.exe?PARTNUM=95-201
Dan