How To Make Featherboard For A Canoe Bit Router?

This article provides instructions on how to make a featherboard for a canoe bit router, which is useful for router woodworkers working with stationary routers or power saws like table saws or bandsaws. The featherboard consists of an L-shaped hardwood base that holds three stiff hardwood springs, sized for a snug friction fit in angled slots cut. It can be planted on a narrow surface like a router table fence by applying clamps to the 1- to 2-inch-widc sections on one or two featherboards.

Featherboards are versatile tools, and this plan shows how to make one that can be used with either a table saw or a router table. The author explains how to secure them to your tools and ideas for customization. They use three feather boards: one to hold the strip down to the table, one to hold the strip against the bit and the fence, and two featherboards, just inches apart.

A featherboard helps maintain consistent pressure and control when routing, reducing the risk of kickback and ensuring safer and more precise work. The first router (on the right) is for milling the cove, while the second router (on the left) is for cutting the cove.

In addition to making a featherboard, you can also install a canoe bead bit, face frame rail, inside stile, and face frame stile. The process involves using a laser cutter to create a dual-purpose router bit that cuts both beads and coves, which then fit together to create curving forms.