Best way to make centering rings?

[BEAR]

I have been cutting a bunch of plywood centering rings and I use a circle cutter in my drill press. One thing I do that I have not seen anyone mention is that I have a piece of particle board with laminate glued to it, like the stuff you might get at Home Depot or Lowes for a cabinet face/ side or for a counter top. I have a piece that is about 18″ X 18″. I take some heavy duty double sided carpet tape and stick my plywood stock to the laminate surface and then I can cut my rings out. No clamps are needed and the heavy duty carpet tape normally holds the ring in place. I do sometimes clamp down base material to my drill press table, but as long as I keep my spindle speed below 600 rpm and I cut slowly, I tend to be OK. I also set the depth of my cut to within about 1/64″ of going all the way through. It is easy to finish the cut with an X-Acto or if it is thin enough, just push it on through. I would also add, keep your cutting tool sharp, and do not go too fast. This has worked for me on up to 8″ circles so far. I have also done this with fibreglass and aluminum, besides wood and different types of plastic or laminates.

[Author]

Posts