Simple DIY router jig for lumber shafts **Version 2.0 pics added**

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Happy Saturday everyone. I was turning some Douglas fir shafts this morning and thought I'd put together a little something showing my super simple router jig. This will be lengthy because I don't know how to put text in between my pictures from my phone so some will be posted individually to better explain.

First I grab some Douglas fir from the lumber yard with the tightest, straightest grain I can find. It costs about $2.30 for a board big enough for a couple dozen shafts.

Then I use my super-cheap-but-never-disappointing Performax table saw to rip it into 36" long 3/8 square stock. It's important to rip your stock 36" long and you'll see why later.

Here's a simple pic of the whole router setup. I'll elaborate momentarily.

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It's just a scrap piece of lumber with a slot cut out for the plunge router. Then, the first two pieces of angle iron have 1/2 inch holes (3/8 stock fits perfectly in a 1/2 hole) and will guide your stock into the blade.

The second two pieces have holes that are the desired diameter of your shaft. These are the output guides. I like 11/32 but also have interchangeable output guides of 5/16 and 23/64.

The line that runs down the center of the board makes it easy to square up all 4 holes with one another since they're different sizes. Notice the line crosses directly through the center of each hole.

That's why my guides don't Have to be pretty or symmetrical from left to right. ***however, they do have to be drilled in the the exact same height (vertically centered) on the angle iron****... Left to right doesn't matter because the line helps you line them up no matter where they are.

The angle iron is thin enough that you don't have to be absolutely perfect about squaring up the individual jigs 90 degrees to the board. I make square lines for each guide and then eyeball each one *focusing mostly on making sure the line splits the holes down the center*

I should also note that I attach all the jigs before cutting the slot for the router. It makes it easier to see your square line.

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Next I screw it into my work bench. I like this method because I can attach or detach whenever I like. Then I clamp the router *tightly to the jig.

Please note that some safety guards will have to be removed for this jig to work. I do not encourage anyone to operate their equipment without the safety guards in place. This is simply a demonstration, and not a recommendation, of my method. I personally feel safe with this setup because the clamps and guides keep your fingers away from the nasty bits. Please exercise caution and extreme focus.

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It's going to take some fine tuning to get it set up right, so be sure to rip some junky square stock to run through while you tune it so you don't waste your good stuff. I keep the right clamp tight and loosen the left one to adjust the router. Moving the router body forward and backward will actually adjust the blades position in the holes slightly left and right during the rotation.

Look through the holes to see how the router is placed. I rotate the blade so I can see its widest cutting edge, and I use line-of-sight to move the cutting edge juuuust outside my 11/32 output hole. I'll explain why in a moment.

Then I put the 3/8 stock into a 1/4 to 3/8 socket adapter attaced to a drill and turn on the router with a clamp. I use a clamp because your free hand will be needed to stabilize the shaft later on.

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Start spinning the square stock through the 1/2 holes and into the router bit. This is where the fine tuning comes into play. If you're blade is set even just a little too close, it will still make it through the output guides, but your shaft will come out looking all crazy, rough, and wavy. If it's set too far out, the square stock won't go through the output holes effectively and will build up excessive heat.

You want it to cut just baaaaarely larger than your output hole... And I'll elaborate further with pictures

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I hope you can see the pictures clearly enough. When the shaft is just barely larger than the output hole, the sharp edges of the output hole actually cut that last tiny layer of rough stuff off (because the router doesn't turn a smooth circle) and by the time that first guide hole has done its job, you're left with almost a perfectly smooth shaft. Then it travels through the second guide hole which refines it a little more and you're left with a shaft that really doesn't even need sanding.

If you look closely on the front face of the first output hole you can see the remains of tiny wood chips and dust that were cut off by the sharp edge. You can also see that the shaft is very slightly smaller and much more refined after leaving the first output hole.

This is where your free hand comes into play. Once it gets about 8-12" past that second guide hole, it can get a little wobbly so you'll use your free hand to stabilize it. You can also feel free to put as many guide holes as you want so you don't have to use your hand to stabilize the shaft, but I just use two. It requires less set up.

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This picture shows why it's important to start with 36" stock. The first 2 inches get pretty mangled as they set the pace for the output guide hole, and the last 4" on the drill end are left unrefined because it doesn't make it all the way though the system. That leaves you with 30" of ready-to-rock shaft... or 31" if you don't mind cleaning up that little rough area between the square stock and the refined shaft.

30" is perfect for me because I shoot 30" shafts. If you shoot longer shafts you can begin with 37"...38"...39" stock.

This photo also shows the different layers of refinement. The square stock is inside the drill chuck, the rounded square is what it looks like as it travels through the 1/2" holes, the rough 11/32+ is what it looks like as it passes the router blades, and the smooth 11/32 shaft is what it looks like after the first guide hole has done its shaving.

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And finally, some Douglas fir shafts in different stages of completion. All you need for this setup is a router, a board, a couple dollars worth of small angle iron, some wood screws and some shaft lumber. Everything except the router can be had for $10-15 and that includes your first couple dozen shafts.

You don't actually need the table saw because 3/8 square stock of several different species can be found at almost any lumber retailer. Depending on species they're about $0.80 to $1.30 each. Just make sure to sort through the pile and take only the straightest grained stock.

I hope this helps somebody out! Have a good weekend everyone.

[Knoll]

Good write-up! Is router bit a straight cutter?

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Yep! It's a Double Flute Straight Bit.

[Urufu_Shinjiro]

Wow, that's pretty cool. Very well put together demo as well.

[CavemanRob]

Really awesome pictures and write-up.  very helpful.  are you a teacher by trade?,  because that was the most well-put-together lesson plan I've seen on making arrow shafts in a while.

[Onebowonder]

This was excellent Make-N-Break!  I don't yet have a router, but this gives me a good excuse to get myself one!    ...but now I'm wondering if I couldn't set up a similar deal using my dado blades on my table saw in place of the router.   Hmmmmm...  They might not be quite so clean of a cut as the router bit, but might be worth a try since the jig looks pretty inexpensive to mock-up.

I was also going to ask, would a piece of PVC pipe on the catch end of the process help so that the newly cut shaft was less inclined to whip around as it was pushed through the jig?

OneBow

[Knoll]

Eric - there's vids on YouTube making dowels using table saw setup.

[Cromm]

Nice work.
Thanks for your time.