a good place to get some bits.

[betacrash]

My brother purchased some bits for his CNC router a couple of months ago from Magnate.net and the service and bits were good. So recently when I was looking for an alternate place to get some similar bits I decided to check them out. They have a ton of bits. They pretty much have everything similar except for the tapered spiral ball nose. I just wanted to pass this on. Here is what I ordered:

Magnate 711 V-Grooving Router Bits
Angle: 60° Cutting Diameter: 1/2"; Shank Diameter: 1/4"; Cutting Length: 5/8"; Shank Length: 1-1/4" 711 $9.50 1 $9.50

Magnate 2101 Spiral Router Bits, Right-Hand
Cut: Down; Cutting Diameter: 1/8"; Cutting Length: 1/2"; Shank Diameter: 1/4"; Overall Length: 2" 2101 $14.50 1 $14.50

Magnate 3921 Plunge Round & Rout Router Bits
Radius: 1/2"; Small Diameter: 3/8"; Shank Diameter: 1/2"; Cutting Length: 3/4"; Shank Length: 1-1/2" 3921 $22.00 1 $22.00

Magnate 1621 Plunge Roman Ogee Router Bit
Cutting Diameter: 13/16"; Small Diameter: 9/32"; Cutting Height: 1/2"; Shank Diameter: 1/4"; Radius: 1/8"; Shank Length: 1-1/4" 1621 $13.00 1 $13.00

Magnate 1509 Extra Deep Core Box Router Bits
Radius: 1/4"; Shank Diameter: 1/2"; Cutting Length: 1"; Cutting Diameter: 1/2"; Shank Length: 1-1/2"; Flute: 2 1509 $15.25 1 $15.25

Magnate 283 Straight Plunge Router Bits
Cutting Diameter: 3/8"; Cutting Length: 1-1/4"; Shank Diameter: 1/2"; Shank Length: 1-1/2" 283 $8.75 1 $8.75

Magnate 1503 Extra Deep Core Box Router Bits
Radius: 1/8"; Shank Diameter: 1/4"; Cutting Length: 5/16"; Cutting Diameter: 1/4"; Shank Length: 1-1/4"; Flute: 2 1503 $9.50 1 $9.50

Magnate 3918 Plunge Round & Rout Router Bits
Radius: 1/4"; Small Diameter: 1/4"; Shank Diameter: 1/2"; Cutting Length: 3/8"; Shank Length: 1-1/2" 3918 $15.00 1

[pkunk]

My brother purchased some bits for his CNC router a couple of months ago from Magnate.net and the service and bits were good. So recently when I was looking for an alternate place to get some similar bits I decided to check them out. They have a ton of bits. They pretty much have everything similar except for the tapered spiral ball nose. I just wanted to pass this on. Here is what I ordered:

Magnate 711 V-Grooving Router Bits
Angle: 60° Cutting Diameter: 1/2"; Shank Diameter: 1/4"; Cutting Length: 5/8"; Shank Length: 1-1/4" 711 $9.50 1 $9.50

Magnate 2101 Spiral Router Bits, Right-Hand
Cut: Down; Cutting Diameter: 1/8"; Cutting Length: 1/2"; Shank Diameter: 1/4"; Overall Length: 2" 2101 $14.50 1 $14.50

Magnate 3921 Plunge Round & Rout Router Bits
Radius: 1/2"; Small Diameter: 3/8"; Shank Diameter: 1/2"; Cutting Length: 3/4"; Shank Length: 1-1/2" 3921 $22.00 1 $22.00

Magnate 1621 Plunge Roman Ogee Router Bit
Cutting Diameter: 13/16"; Small Diameter: 9/32"; Cutting Height: 1/2"; Shank Diameter: 1/4"; Radius: 1/8"; Shank Length: 1-1/4" 1621 $13.00 1 $13.00

Magnate 1509 Extra Deep Core Box Router Bits
Radius: 1/4"; Shank Diameter: 1/2"; Cutting Length: 1"; Cutting Diameter: 1/2"; Shank Length: 1-1/2"; Flute: 2 1509 $15.25 1 $15.25

Magnate 283 Straight Plunge Router Bits
Cutting Diameter: 3/8"; Cutting Length: 1-1/4"; Shank Diameter: 1/2"; Shank Length: 1-1/2" 283 $8.75 1 $8.75

Magnate 1503 Extra Deep Core Box Router Bits
Radius: 1/8"; Shank Diameter: 1/4"; Cutting Length: 5/16"; Cutting Diameter: 1/4"; Shank Length: 1-1/4"; Flute: 2 1503 $9.50 1 $9.50

Magnate 3918 Plunge Round & Rout Router Bits
Radius: 1/4"; Small Diameter: 1/4"; Shank Diameter: 1/2"; Cutting Length: 3/8"; Shank Length: 1-1/2" 3918 $15.00 1

Not a recommended bit. Use an upcut, and be aware that the 1/2" cut depth won't work on a 3/4" board. This is the reason CW recommends their bits. I haven't even thought out the others on this list.

[John]

I have used the original carvewright 1/8 up spiral and a Whiteside 1/8 down spiral. The down spiral produces a much cleaner cut. Chip clearance is never a problem. A number of CC users have posted they broke the original 1/8 inch bit. There is a reason the industry standard for router bits is the cutting length should not exceed three times the cutting diameter. Manufactures that provide longer bits will not guarantee them against breakage - use at your own risk. If you are going to rout/cut 3/4 inches you should be using a 1/4" cutting diameter bit. The CC tries to compensate for the small dia. by taking many shallow passes to get to the deep cuts - sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't

I use the Whitside bit on the right. Less run out, less danger of breaking, and superior results.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c348/johnluard/routerbits.jpg

[Charles M]

There is a reason the industry standard for router bits is the cutting length should not exceed three times the cutting diameter. Manufactures that provide longer bits will not guarantee them against breakage - use at your own risk.

John,

I beg to differ. I work for Freud and we make many bits with cutting length more than three times the diameter (sadly we don't make a replacement for the 1/8" cutting bit or the carving bit yet) and offer warranty on all. Also, the CW 1/8" spiral is a special animal because it has very small gullets which results in thicker web. If you were to compare the amount of force required to break the standard down spiral that you are using with a CW bit of the same cut length you would find the CW bit is far stronger.

[John]

Looking at the Freud spirals, they all appear to fall in the working range I mentioned in my post. I suppose one could argue the 1/2 x 2 is longer but really the working range is less than 2". Freud makes decent bits and I use a number of them. I don't consider them industrial quality, but they are a good value for the price. I have no experience with their spirals.

This is the page I found listing the Freud spirals. I suppose there could be others not listed on this page.

http://www.freud-tools.com/freudupspirr.html

I am a woodworker, not a tooling engineer, so I can only relate my personal experiences, having made sawdust for a living for 28 years.

[Charles M]

I suppose one could argue the 1/2 x 2 is longer but really the working range is less than 2".

John,

Not trying to sound argumentative, but a 2" carbide height means the working range is 2". I also don't know why you would not consider them "Industrial Quality". Perhaps it is due to the different retail channels they are found in. Freud manufactures tooling for everything from portable tools up to CNC routers and panel saws and all of our cutting tools are industrial we just market some of them to hobbyists as well as to commercial users:
http://www.freudtools.com/industrial/cnc_tooling.shtml

You may already know this, but the site you linked to is a Freud dealer, not the Freud America website. You can find it here:
http://www.freudtools.com/woodworkers/rep/router_bits/Router_Bits/Spiral/html/Spiral_1.html

[John]

If you are cutting something 2" thick with a cutting length of 2" both the top and bottom edge will be ragged. The first time it is sharpened it will less than 2". I have a pin router I use 1/2" spirals on cutting 1-1/8 material. Even using 1-1/4" cutting length is problematic, so I use 1-1/2 cutting lengths and actually prefer 2" in order to get them sharpened a few more times. I don't think any tool dealer would knowingly sell 2" cutting lengths for cutting 2" material.