Router Table Circle Jig - Making A Round Cutting Board

I wanted to see if I could turn a square end-grain cutting board into a round one. With the tools I had available and some other features I wanted, this presented a fun challenge. This is the process of how I pulled it off.
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[@ExotiC255]

I wanted to give a thumbs up but then I realized I already did. Great work! I would love to start my own workshop...

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thank you twice then!

[@BruceAUlrich]

Cool method, Mark!

[@Affendog]

It works and solves the perfect juice groove issue. I always hate doing grooves because of the symettrics problems. Class a solution

[@steven.woodward]

Thanks for the tip on using double sided carpet tape. I was using a spray adhesive which took some work to remove the goo. Also had to wait a few minutes for it to dry. So the carpet tape saves time and work.

[@jg4u2call]

Beautiful piece. Keep up the good work and please continue to share.

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thank you! I've got lots more cool stuff coming eventually, I just need more hours in the day!

[@PeranMe]

That last shot of the cutting board dripping with oil... sexy! :-) Great project, thanks for sharing this!

[@dennisfahlstrom1257]

It’s the first round one I’ve seen and it’s very good. A nice, imaginative use of your router. A trammel arm could do the same thing. Use the 2 sided carpet tape as you did with the sacrificial template to put a pivot point in place for the center point then after the board is cut, do the shorter radius and the same bit can make the juice groove. There’s always multiple ways of getting a job done in woodworking and your idea shows how useful a router is when some imagination is put to use. Thanks much for your well done videos. Keep them coming.

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thank you for the feedback Dennis, I really appreciate it! I like to consider what I do Problem Solving as much as anything. It keeps me sharp.

[@mrsmiley9772]

I may steal your technique here, I love this idea!

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thanks, you're welcome to it!

[@denischristensen3813]

Holly shit man, a band saw and a circle cutting jig is the way to go. A few minutes on the sander and its finished. 1/2 hour start to finish tops.

[@nathan9137]

I'm just getting into woodworking, and I've been trying to figure out how to cut a round without a band saw (because I don't have one yet) and without putting a hole in it. Thanks for showing this technique.

[@GunflintDesigns]

I'm glad I could help!

[@ladykenja2700]

- INGENIUS ! ! ! GREAT IDEA ! ! ! Thanx 4 sharing.

[@donfillenworth1721]

Great idea! I’ll have to give it a try. Thanks for sharing.

[@GunflintDesigns]

You're welcome Don!

[@garyhicks8666]

Fantastic sir!

[@lylemorton8641]

I think this is a great idea. I’ll need to find some decent double sided tape or maybe use the old blue tape with activated glue trick. Good job.

[@Raptor-700R]

I like it. Might have to steal that idea for myself great video

[@Jborgeso]

Very nice. Great job

[@davidarcher8790]

You did GREAT!! Fantastic

[@WheresMyPencilUK]

Hello from the UK 🇬🇧. Really great video thanks. I'm planning to make a router table at the weekend so this will be a nice add on to do. 👍🏼

[@mikehauer3236]

Great work, glad I found your channel. Hope to see more videos soon!

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thanks Mike! I've got a couple more videos filmed already that just need to be edited. I've also got a big, ambitious design for a workbench that I just started to build that should be pretty cool.

[@southranchinc6896]

Great video!!! Thank you!

[@patrickholcomb9628]

great project, gorgeous! SUGGESTION ONLY: To prevent bit from heating up going through hardwood, possibly using the base-plate as a template (once stuck to project piece) and rough-cut close to final circumference line with band saw or jig saw (exterior diameter) then use same method to clean up final dimensions. I find I get longer life out of a bit using this method.

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thanks Patrick, that's a good call. I found i learned a fair amount from this experiment and would definitely do things a little differently if I do it more often.

[@atuttle]

I like that this technique doesn't put a hole in your workpiece, but I just finished building my first real router table so I don't want to go poking a bunch of holes into it. I'm trying to think of a way to make a similar circle cutting jig that would use a piece of inlaid t-track to make the radius adjustable. 🤔 I can kind of see an idea with an arm for the pin that rides in the t-track too, so that it can tighten down outside the circle radius, but it needs more thought...

[@reallyhorribleenterprises]

Exactly what I needed to get precise circle blanks out of 1" thick plywood.

[@jopperdepopper]

I think your jig works! Very nice little project, like how the handles came out.. 👍👍 Maybe taping around the outside when routing the juice groove might have helped... 🤔👌

[@glycerine3065]

Impressive ingenuity!

[@AutotechWoodworking]

I guess the same principle could be used on a circular board where you want to rout a roundover edge? I'm making a paper towel holder with a round base, and I want it to have a rounded edge.

[@danielhastings3167]

Great video. I wish you had explained what you were doing at the end with the oil. I was taught to rub it in with a rag. I would have thought immersing the entire work piece would apply too much.

[@christomaselli5417]

Well done Sir! Inspiring to say the least!

[@frenchriversprings]

Thank you for sharing!

[@toddtetterton7133]

Can you post a link to that router cutting bit used to make the circle cut, or a description of it ? Thanks great work.

[@Ouremovies12]

Nice work.

[@CasualDIY]

great project and awsome video!

[@harrykline3998]

great idea, great execution, and very nice video. I was wondering the best way to do this, thanks for the inspiration!

[@free-energy-systems]

With what I'm working on, it uses a somewhat similar principle. As you rotate your router, you're actually changing the center (it's fulcrum) of it's axis of rotation. And with rolling friction like cr tires have, little resistance. Pretty clever.

[@DazzaBo]

Really good idea mate. What are you using for the pin?

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thank you! I just used a large diameter nail with an even larger diameter head on it.

[@DazzaBo]

Cheers!

[@ricksgarage8069]

What did you immerse the board into?

[@MrTrashman48]

fantastic video...one question...what type of bit did you use to make the juice groove?

[@brianknowles7130]

Great job and good idea. Thks.

[@lmunoz7457]

How long did you leave the cutting board in the oil?

[@brookswade5774]

Thank you for this. I’ve wondered how to accomplish this same thing.

[@ScottKershawRX]

Great stuff, Mark! I really like how you explain the process step-by-step. How would you go about it without drilling a hole in the router table top? Tape down a sacrificial top and lose that much cutting depth perhaps? It was cute hearing you kiddo in the background, too. What a good looking board!

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thanks Scott! I didn't think about the people who might have a nice table that they don't want to drill holes in... but yes, in that case I think a sacrificial top would do the trick. I completely maxed out the height of my router and bit in my setup, so adding another board to the mix might make things tricky. One would have to find an even longer bit, or expect to use this method on thinner pieces. In going to a longer bit, you might have to jump up to 1/2 inch to avoid vibration/deflection - sounds like more experiments are in order. Another thought I had is if your table has t-tracks in it, maybe you could come up with an adapter that slides into the track and creates a moveable hole to pivot in. That might limit how small of a circle you could do, but it would keep the height problem at bay.

[@tthomasokc]

The option to finding a longer bit is to use the spiral bit to do the initial cut to at least 1/4 inch deep. Then use a bandsaw or jigsaw to cut off the scrap from the outside of the groove. Then switch to a flush cut bit and let the bearing index off the initial 1/4 cut and trim the rest of the circle to match the initial cut.

[@cliffordreaves]

Gunflint Designs or potentially do one side and flip it over? that way, your bit could be even shorter.

[@phillavender202]

Hey, a lot of you guys use what seems like a similar oil to finish your chopping boards with, I know it has to be an edible oil, but you emerse it in oil then leave it to dry on sticks, surely the oil makes marks where the sticks have been?

[@GunflintDesigns]

Hey Phil, the finish is just 100% pure mineral oil. It soaks into the wood and doesn't leave a surface finish in the traditional sense. I've never had a problem with Marks being left behind by the drying. I tend to wipe it dry before it completely air dries, that may help.

[@masrapidoypoderoso1]

great job....I learned a lot ! congrats !

[@anthonycammilleri4479]

Beautiful work! Where can I find the spiral bit and how much did you pay for it?

[@Iskelderon]

Looks great! What surprised me was that you didn't kiss the corners with a roundover bit to reduce the amount of damage it can cause.

[@GunflintDesigns]

I tend to just hand-sand the corners just to take the sharp edge off.

[@Sqwince23]

"nobody will ever know it's there" I'll know its there. will keep it between u and me buddy!

[@GunflintDesigns]

Haha, thanks for keeping my secret!

[@couchpotatoe244]

I've been wondering how to do something like this. I think I will get a better router before I try though, mine is about the same as yours. Good job!

[@edadan]

Very nice. What types of wood is that board made from?

[@GunflintDesigns]

That board is black walnut, ash and oak.

[@edadan]

I've been reading a lot about using oak for end grain boards. I hear that red oak is not suitable but that white oak is fine. Do you agree? Thanks again!

[@paddockpicker]

Very cool!

[@MisterZealot]

ok. that was a very clever way of doing this. nice job man.

[@GunflintDesigns]

Well thank you very much!

[@theirishman088]

How long did you put the board in mineral oil?

[@Affendog]

Good video. I subscribed

[@asztapaszta9]

That was fun to watch, thank you! I wanted to subscribe but then i saw that i already did... :)

[@optimistichorizon]

Definitely learned something.

[@optimistichorizon]

It looks good.

[@crispychicken2743]

What if you had 5000 pieces to trim and you wanted it to be fully automatic and your piece was WAX . AND YOU COULD ONLY USE 12 VOLTS AND 110 FOR THE ROUTER. WHAT WOULD YOU DO .

[@spicyhot1695]

excellent idea! Thanks for sharing

[@christopherstafford227]

great video, thanks!

[@wkearney99]

You'd do well to find a way to eliminate flex of the 'top' board of your router table. In the video I could see it flexing. And that's likely to potentially cause some of the banding. Some fancier router tables do this with a section of angled metal. A bit of L bracket held down through the top with recessed bolts might do the trick. That or some hardwood. For depth of cut you need the top to be thin, of course, but not so much that it allows the router to move due to flexing.

[@MultiTom1956]

fun to watch and very good job:-)

[@mehmethanaydn3113]

is the final liquid varnish application correct? Thank you.

[@GunflintDesigns]

No sir, just soaked in 100% mineral oil. It preserves the wood but is still food safe.

[@dennismagee9486]

Where did you get the hot stamp to personalize it?

[@GunflintDesigns]

I got that from Branding Irons Unlimited - www.brandingirons.com They were great to work with and I am really happy with mine!

[@stevenosman1356]

Hi, great looking board! I had two comments. do you think if you had cut the plywood down to the smaller diameter you could have mounted the board without worrying about that ring causing havok later? and second, here is something I read but haven't tried myself to avoid the chatter of adjusting the bit height: basically you set the bit to full height and shim the workpiece with multiple shims. then for each pass you'd remove a shim. in this case you'd need to make your pin longer and make sure your shims were each large enough to support the board. I saw that in the context of routing deep mortises and have been meaning to try it. Sauce

[@GunflintDesigns]

1- This might work and would be worth a try. My only concern would be if you accidentally put too much downward pressure towards the outside of the board while turning it, you could cause it to tip. Basically a teeter-totter effect. If you're careful I'm sure you could avoid that though. 2- That's an interesting idea and could work for some things, but for me I would be nervous about stacking that many layers and trying to drop the workpiece down over and over again. But it could be worth testing!

[@Robert-vo1rt]

Great idea! May I ask what kind of bit did you order and where from? Having trouble finding 1/4” with a 2” cut😎

[@GunflintDesigns]

This is the bit that I used in that video, but it only has a 1-inch cutting surface. That's why I had to move the router up a few times. amzn.to/2o7grxp

[@Robert-vo1rt]

Oki dok, thanks!👍

[@matthewrichardson828]

Rough out with band saw and use fence on shaper to route outer diameter of circle. You can't find the exact center you want that way, but it makes good circles. In retrospect, your way is better.

[@GunflintDesigns]

Good idea Matthew, there's more than one way to skin a cat right?

[@jocoseness]

Nice technique! Was the yellow wood Osage Orange?

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thank! There was no Osage Orange in there. I would guess you're seeing the cherry.

[@BronkBuilt]

Great work! I really like round cutting boards.

[@RobRobertson1000]

Well done! :)

[@99trampis]

Awesome! This was just what I was looking for! I plan on doing my first round cutting board this month. Can I ask where you got your branding iron done? Keep up the awesome work!

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thanks Michael, I'm glad it's of some use to you! My branding iron came from www.brandingirons.com.

[@99trampis]

@@GunflintDesigns Great thanks! Who woulda thunk...brandingirons.com haha. I just looked them up, wow, a lot of iron choices! Which one do you use?

[@GunflintDesigns]

Mine is pretty basic, just a block on a handle really. about 1.5 by .75 inches.

[@99trampis]

@@GunflintDesigns This weekend I made the circle template like you did and it came out great! I'm using a 1/2" bit though just because my block is fairly large and thick. I'm going to cut the board this week using the turntable after I run it through the drum sander to take it down a bit. How deep did you go in for your handles in order to make them still usable after you cut the block?

[@crispychicken2743]

P.s. Could you make a jig that was fully automatic from discarded car parts . How skilled are you? The 4th industrial revolution is here. There are no factories left and we need to think outside the box. Are you interested in this challenge?

[@thomazneto58]

Congratulations, very good your job.

[@richardspencer742]

Absolutely fantastic concept and execution. My only suggestion that may have helped is to rough cut your circle on the bandsaw. That would have reduced how many passes you needed with a spiral bit. Still great job!!!

[@phillavender202]

Richard Spencer not every small workshop has a bandsaw because if you think about the small amount that you might use a bandsaw it's very seldom, I used to work in a high end workshop and they had a bandsaw but never used it because it wasn't needed, there are other ways of doing the same things

[@llewgibson]

Just seen your channel mate, really love the content. Subbed straight away, We should connect!

[@GunflintDesigns]

Thanks man, welcome aboard! Looks like you've got a pretty serious channel going, I could probably learn something from you!

[@kyoopihd]

9:42 for a good time

[@GunflintDesigns]

That's a pretty rewarding shot isn't it?

[@diegobarajas4393]

Hello

[@robert_costello]

Ok, maybe I’m a little jealous at how good your work is. I don’t know why everything I try to build turns to gorilla shit. 😢 🦍 💩

[@terrorfirma2764]

Great video and a nice looking product at the end. Check out mtmwood, he has some great ideas for cutting boards. Well worth a sub.

[@GunflintDesigns]

I've been a subscriber of his for a long time. He doe's some really impressive stuff!

[@crackerjack3359]

Seems to me that you were running the router in the wrong direction

[@rashadalbawwab9264]

Oooooi.

[@dmstreet51]

At several points in the video he describes making a "jew screw", which sounds mildly anti-Semitic to say the least. I'm Jewish so I'm sensitive about these sort of references and would be interested in finding out how that particular feature of the cutting board came to be called that. If you Google the phrase, it doesn't come back to anything good or even remotely about woodworking...

[@tilted_skirm]

It's a juice groove don't be so sensitive

[@romanamerlene8554]

Awesome solutions for wooden project is Woodprix.

[@OmdatGamenKan]

*Hello there, I have requested your DVDs, for simpler and quicker approach to manufacture a shed **Allmy.Tips** I trust the substance are as you guaranteed it will be. Just I'm worried with the substance, it won't be anything but difficult to settle on a decision from the various plans.*

[@JensWoodworkingThings]

Would a ring of tape around the circular board have prevented the ring jump when you got thru the plywood so you could just keep going?

[@richie4ohio]

Very nice job!!!