[Radio Wrangler]

Routers are potentially very dangerous tools. You may only want to cut one piece of wood and then put the machine away in a cupboard for the end of eternity (See 'Good Omens, BBC recent wednesday evenings) But you similarly only have one set of fingers, one set of eyeballs per lifetime.

Go for good protective goggles and take care. Make sure that if you slip, it goes away from you.

Cheapie Chinese router bits are available singly or in sets. I've seen sets sometimes cheaper than individuals. They'll work fine if you take your time and don't push them hard. David EBT's advice is right on the money.

For routing a straight channel, you'll want a thich straight edge to run the router along against to get the line straight. You'll need a couple of clamps to hold it.

Of course, once you have a new tool, you start finding jobs for it.

If you'd been close, you could have done it on my set up. I've got large and small professional grade routers and a good variety of bits. I built a full kitchen out of solid hard-wood, bought as raw sawn planks.

David

David