Hickory Router Bits Have Been Added

Disclaimer: I'm sorry if anyone doesn't like how sales oriented this post is, but when I see a deal like this I want to make sure that my blog readers know about it.

Doug got all the Hickory kits added that I mentioned yesterday. There are kits ranging from $4.99 to $29.99. They're selling pretty quick, so grab 'em while you still can.

Note: Links will quit working when we sell out, as we can't guarantee that more are available. Just click and see what comes up.

RBK1030

This is like the kit that I bought yesterday, but in a 1/4" shank variety and for just $29.99. It includes 24 router bits. Bits include the following:

3/8" keyhole
1/4", 3/8", 1/2" and 3/4" straight
90° 1/2" V-groove
1/2" dovetail
3/32" classical
1/2" and 5/8" core box
1/2" flush trim with bearing
1/2", 3/8", 1/4" and 1/8" roundover with bearing
1" rabbeting with bearing
5/32" roman ogee with bearing
1/4" and 3/8" cove with bearing
1/4" ovolo
1/2" hinge mortizing
45° 1-1/4" chamfer with bearing
1/4" panel pilot (1/2" panel pilot in 1/2" shank set)
3/16" half round

The set I purchased was the RBK1031, which is 1/2" shank bits. Selection is the same, other than the panel pilot bit.

RBK1029

This kit is the little brother of the set above. 12 of the most common pieces with a 1/4" shank for $11.99. Sounds like a bargain to me. If I were going to buy a smaller kit (saving money or if we were out of the larger kits), this one would be my choice. There are some less expensive ones below, but at $1 per bit, these are useful and hard to pass up.


RBK1025

This 5 piece kit for only $6.99 doesn't have a case, but it has some nifty little bits for just a few dollars. My wife is a fan of the keyhole bits, as I mentioned in this post a while back. It's a fun little kit for a few bucks, which is perfect for the title of "Starter Router Bit Set". Who knows... maybe I'll need to have some of those wrapped up to give out for father's day this year.

RBK1026

This 6 piece kit for just $6.99 includes a case and has 1/4", 5/16", 3/8", 1/2", 5/8" and 3/4" straight bits with 1/4" shank. They're great for rabbeting, grooving, dadoing and making joints for drawers, boxes, and picture frames. At this price, maybe the father's day gifts will have one of these wrapped up as well.

FBS1016

This is the set of forstner bits I bought yesterday. It includes 1/4", 3/8", 1/2", 5/8", 3/4", 7/8", 1", 1-1/8", 1-1/4", 1-3/8", 1-1/2", 1-5/8", 1-7/8", 2" and 2-1/8" bits in a carry case for just $24.99. Not bad for 16 bits at all. Matt even bought a set of these today. I think he was jealous.

FBS1007

This is the bargain of the lot. At just $4.99 for a 7 piece kit with a carry case, that's a steal. It includes 1/4", 3/8", 1/2", 5/8", 3/4", 7/8" and 1" bits. If none of the others tempted you, then surely the price on this one alone has you thinking of how many sets you're buying for gifts.

Hurry!

I'm not kidding. Some of these will be gone tomorrow morning already. Others will take a few days. But when we run out, we probably can't get more. Porter Cable is dumping the "Hickory" name and will be branding their bits as Porter Cable, so we were able to get these prices only on a limited quantity. The replacements will cost much more when these are gone.

Coming Soon - Limited Quantities

Be on the watch this week for some bits from "Hickory Woodworking". They'll show up on our New Additions page, right after they hit the RSS feed. But what's so special about them?

Amazing Value!

Yes, I said amazing. I picked up one each of the larger kits today. I'll add pictures once Doug gets them for us, but I'll describe these larger kits right now.

16 piece Forstner Bit Set (FBS-1016)

This kit has sizes from 1/4" through 2-1/8" in 1/8" increments. These are industrial quality bits for use in hand drills or drill presses for making flat bottomed holes, recessing counterboard screws, creating decorative edges, making pocket holes, or even large pilot holes. It comes in a carrying case with a large window on the front and should be priced right around $30.

24 piece Carbide Master Router Bit Set (RBK1031)

This 24 piece router bit kit includes many of the most common bits in a carry case with a window again. I bought the 1/2" shank variety, but it is also available in 1/4" shank. Either way, there are the following bits:

3/8" keyhole
1/4", 3/8", 1/2" and 3/4" straight
90° 1/2" V-groove
1/2" dovetail
3/32" classical
1/2" and 5/8" core box
1/2" flush trim with bearing
1/2", 3/8", 1/4" and 1/8" roundover with bearing
1" rabbeting with bearing
5/32" roman ogee with bearing
1/4" and 3/8" cove with bearing
1/4" ovolo
1/2" hinge mortizing
45° 1-1/4" chamfer with bearing
1/2" panel pilot (1/4" panel pilot in 1/4" shank set)
3/16" half round

Once again, an amazing value that will be priced around $30 as well.

Limited Quantities

Quantities are limited on these bits. They'll be sold on a first come, first served basis. If you can't wait for Doug to add them to our site, you can always call in and buy them ahead of time. There will be some other sets available as well, but I don't have those in front of me at home tonight. I just have the ones I purchased in front of me right now. Again, watch the RSS feed or the New Additions page if you'd like to see the rest of the sets that will become available. They should be online tomorrow (3/14/06) or Wednesday at the latest. Being a reader of my blog, you just happen to get to know about things before we start selling them.

Routers - Not just for the world wide web

Ask most geeks what a router is for and they'll tell you it sends traffic by the best route through a network. Ask me what a router is for, and I'll ask you to specify what type of router. If you're talking tools, I can talk tools. If you're talking web, I can talk that talk as well. You could say that I'm a well routed geek.

Single Speed Fixed Base Router
Single speed fixed base routers are the simplest routers. They just spin at a preset speed when you turn them on. There is a simple adjustment for how deep you'd like to set the bit, but that's about it. Nothing too tricky here.

Electronic Variable Speed
When you're routing different materials, some require faster speeds than others. By adding electronic variable speed to the router, you'll end up with a better finish on more materials. Slower rotation for softer materials like pine and faster rotation for harder materials like oak. Of course, it still takes practice to get the movement of the router / material at the right speed. That's where the artistic part comes in.

Plunge Routers
Plunge is the final type of routing. Plunge means you can take a bit and drop it into the middle of a piece of material to cut. There are special bits that work for plunge cuts, or you can lock the base down to mimic a fixed base router if you need to. One of the cooler cuts is a keyhole cut. The basic idea is to make a recessed hanger for a frame. That's why my wife bought this bit. She bought it while going to school for a fine arts degree, so it seemed like a perfect fit at the time.

What do I own?
The one I chose for the picture above is not only the one I personally own, but it is an electronic variable speed plunge router. It's a bit pricey compared to the average router in the Sunday paper, but it has all the bells and whistles. I figured I may as well get one that does everything so I don't need to buy a new one later. Now, I just need to buy a table and I'll be set.