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Builders’ Tip: Affixing Router Templates to Surfaces
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Click for larger image. | In his Master Carpenter article, “Inlaying a floor medallion,” Charles Peterson discussed a technique where he used double-face foam tape to hold a template in place for routing. But I think his method has a few drawbacks.
I use a similar method to hold my templates in place that I think has some advantages because double-face tape is very sticky and can damage finished surfaces. The tape is so sticky, in fact, that I’ve found that there is no way to adjust the templates once the tape is applied.
- As shown in the accompanying drawing, I use ordinary hot glue and masking tape for these applications instead of double-face foam tape.
- First, I cover the area under the template with a layer of 3M blue masking tape.
- Then I squeeze a line of hot glue around the perimeter of the template and stick it to the tape.
- The router template in the drawing was made for outlet boxes that frequently need to be installed in kitchen-island cabinets.
This technique beats trying to run a saber saw on a lacquered surface at the edge of a raised panel.
I have used this method on all kinds of materials — finished and unfinished, vertical, horizontal and upside down. The tape prevents damage to finishes, and on raw wood it keeps the glue out of the grain.
If the template isn’t positioned correctly, I simply pull it off, scrape off the glue and then try again.
I always keep a hot-glue gun in my router box for just this purpose.
— Gregg Roos, San Francisco
Tips & Techniques provided by Fine Homebuilding.
©2009 The Taunton Press
To contact Fine Homebuilding, e-mail Christina Glennon.
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