router

router, portable electric power tool used in carpentry and furniture making that consists of an electric motor, a base, two handle knobs, and bits (cutting tools). The motor has a chuck for holding the bits by their straight shanks on one end of its shaft and fits upright (chuck down) in the base. The motor can be raised or lowered relative to the base to adjust the depth of cut made by the bit, which protrudes beyond the base. The bottom of the base, a circular plate with a central opening for the bits, provides a flat, low-friction surface for the router to slide on. Some bits have noncutting pilot pins that extend below the cutting edges and control the sidewise depth of the cut when the router is working on the side of a board. The bits have a straight shank and three or four cutting edges shaped to suit the work being done. The shapes of some of the bits can best be described by considering their silhouettes. For example, to cut a beveled edge on a table, or a V groove, a silhouette of the rotating cutter would have a V shape; to cut a semicircular groove the silhouette would be a semicircle with the diameter perpendicular to the shank; to cut a beaded (rounded) edge on a table the silhouette would be a rectangle with quarter circles cut from the lower corners. The cutter rotates very rapidly, and the base of the machine is constructed so that the cutter can be guided over the work by the operator, who holds the handle knobs.

The router is a versatile tool that in addition to its usefulness in cabinet work can do many ordinary household jobs, such as cutting fancy edges for shelving, grooves for storm windows and weather stripping, circles and ovals with smooth edges, and round corners on work of all types. The electric router and its bench-mounted analog, the spindle shaper, have largely displaced hand routers, either pushed like a plane (see also plane) or pulled like a drawknife, formerly used by woodworkers for cutting grooves and shaping edges.