Review on Freud 87 108 Signmaking Router Piece by Victor Garro

Every Freud router I've owned - and I've had quite a few - is of the same high quality. This is no exception. If you've recently purchased a CNC machine and need a bit set, or need to fill holes in your existing collection, these sets from Freud are a great place to start. The two sets have different purposes. The 87-208 is more for general CNC threading, while the 87-108 features two narrow tapered ball-point cutters designed for sign making. Attempting to use them in a hand router practically guarantees that they will break quickly. The three bits in the 87-208 set are O-shaped, highly polished and optimized for cutting soft plastic. (The Onsrud dot com website has an excellent article on O-slot cutters.) All other cutters are more versatile and can be used for most applications. At work, all the cutters I've used cut beautifully. They are perfectly balanced and very sharp. With the right cutting settings, you can use them on wood, plastic, aluminum and many other soft materials. They are expensive but this reflects their quality and care in their manufacture. I can unreservedly recommend this set. Here are the contents of both sets: (All bits are ¼" shank unless otherwise noted. Dimensions are shown as cutting edge diameter x cutting edge length.) 87-208: ¼" x ½" Up Cut Spiral Ball -Bit - Solid Carbide (P/N 72-101) 7.5º x 3/16" Engraved V-Groove - Solid Carbide (P/N 70-103) 1/8" x ½" twist drill with flute facing up - Solid Carbide (P/N 73-762) 3/16” x ¾” Spiral Top Solid Carbide (P/N 75-101) ¼” x 7/8” O-Slot Top Spiral Solid Carbide (P/N 75 -025) 1/ 8 ” x ½” O-groove, straight VHM (P/N 71-040) 1/2" V-groove 90° (P/N 20-104) 1/2" V-groove 60° Solid Carbide (Part #20-152) .87-108: ¼” x ½” Spiral Ball Point Up – Solid Carbide (#72-101) Spiral Ball Point ¼” x 1-1/8” – Solid Carbide (#72- 202) Tapered Ball 6.2º x 1/32" - Solid Carbide (P/N 72-300) 5.4º x 1/16" Tapered Ball - Solid Carbide (P/N 72-400) ¼" x 1" " Solid Carbide Spiral Up (P/N 75 - 102) 1/8” x ½” Bottom Spiral Solid Carbide ( kind #76-100) 3/4” 90° V-Nut (#20-108) ½” Shank, ½” Carbide 1/2" 60° V-Nut Solid Carbide (#20-152)