standard vs insert cutters

[twelchPTM]

just looking for opinions, am not having a good experience with inserts and want to know if its just me and i shouldn't write them off just yet or if others have experienced issues with them as well

[gene]

what kind of tool Holder are you using ?

[zeykr]

I love insert V-bits. Would not use anything else.
Hersaf are the ones I'm using.

[Brady Watson]

I love insert V-bits. Would not use anything else.
Hersaf are the ones I'm using.

Werd...I'm using the Amana inserts V-bits. I am going to order a few more...Hands down the absolute best v-bits I've used ever. Forget the InGroove non-sense...I am talking about the larger diameter ones like the 1.75" 90 deg one. The angle is dead on exactly what it is advertised. If you run the numbers, they cost 2X that of a solid one and you can rotate the insert to get a fresh edge. Inserts are cheap $10-12 ea. WELL worth the investment.

-B

[twelchPTM]

I have the 4-blade spoilboard cutter but I don't like the way the scoring blades sit dramically lower then the cutting blades, not only that one surfacing anf the scoring blades need to be rotated or they burn the table, I called ammana and got the right feeds and speeds but still no improvement, I actually had to (upon the advice from ammana) remove the scoring blades to get optimal performance. Maybe I am lazy but it just seemedlike to much work to make a bit perform.

[ssflyer]

+1 to Brady -I do not like the InGroove bits, and haven't tried others, like Hersaf, but the big Amana's work very well...

[ssflyer]

Thomas,

I've never used their spoilboard cutter, but the only way I can imagine burring the table is to go deeper than the tool allows... as in the flat is hitting the table.:confused:

[knight_toolworks]

I had amana 22.5 insert bit and it was the worst bit ever. the grind was off it was about 24 degrees and screwed up the job. But also You could not put a new cutter in and get it lined up. there were no stops or anything.

[dlcw]

I've been using the Amana v-bit inserts for about 1.5 years now and honestly the cuts I get are not nearly as good as a v-bit from Centurion or Onsrud. The other problem I've had is that when working with something like melamine where I want to do a small bevel on an edge before I cut the part out, the Amana inserts end up getting a groove where it is cutting the melamine. I've never had this problem with one of the beefier v-bits. I think the Amana carbide is a bit softer then the full grown v-bits.

In soft woods like cedar and alder, when I use the Amana inserts I get a lot of crushing of the wood fibers instead of the cleaner cutting I get with the regular bits. With harder woods (oak, maple, hickory, walnut, cherry) I get cuts that are almost as good with the Amana inserts as I get with the beffier v-bits.

So, I've found I have to be very choosey about which v-bits to use on which material. Mostly I use the regular v-bits instead of the Amana bits.

Now, when it comes to surfacing my MDF spoil board, the Amana surfacing bit with inserts out performs the flattening bit that came from Shopbot. However, with woods like alder, cedar, fir, etc. the flattening bit from Shopbot works better on slabs then on MDF. The Amana bit produces more of the fiber crushing similar to the Amana v-bit inserts.

Not sure why this is. All my testing of the last 1.5 years has been done with NEW inserts not resharpened.