Thread: Bowl end of large diameter dowel on router table

Welcome to the forums! That looks to be an interesting project you've taken on.

Personally, I have serious doubts that this can be done safely on a router. Not without some serious investment in jigs to safely hold and feed the material.

Apart from my safety concerns, this would be basically a plunge cut into end-grain material and I believe you'd have major problems with parts of the lip splintering away. You could possibly drill a 42mm hole in a 1"(ish) thick offcut to make a re-inforcing collar while you do the routing but I'd take a long look at other approaches if I were you.

I suspect that the pictured items were turned from square section stock on a lathe, with the end being dished first and then the length being rounded. I don't think I'd want to turn them out in commercial quantities in any other way, unless I had access to a dedicated, fully guarded, hands -off automatic machine.

Without access to a lathe - or if I had to use round stock - I'd possibly look at using a drill press instead. I'd work out the profile I wanted, then use drill bits of increasing diameter to create a "stepped" dish. The steps could then be sanded out to give the final curve, or if I was in a rush I could use a modified spade bit (one I ground to profile) to remove the bulk of the steps before final sanding.

I know this is a more complex, slower process... but it's much more controllable.

I'm sure that if you ask on these forums for alternative methods, eventually someone will suggest a method that you'd feel comfortable with.


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I would agree that plunging the end grain on a router table would result in tear out or damage to the perimeter lip. Other than turning on a lathe the only other powered method I can think of would be a wood carving ball gouge.

Dremel option may be the safer bet for smaller projects if it's only a few to do. Could rough it out with a Dremel using the bit in link below and then sand to final shape.

High Speed Cutter 7,8 mm Carving/Engraving/Routing | Dremel

Similar really to making a spoon. See Dremel's guide in the following link for the required tools and attachments.

Step-by-Step Guide to Carving a Wooden Spoon | Dremel

Don't do it; I'm in agreement with the others in that there is no safe way to perform a vertical plunge cut onto a core bit using a domestic router table.

Why concave? That to me smacks of form over function; I'm imagining the furniture designer spruiking this as "no-one else does this so it'll stand out as design feature".... Mind you I'm also unimpressed by the sticky-out stainless steel pins that perform double duty as a method of mounting the fabric arm rests and providing a convenient method of bruising thighs.

A concave depression will hold dust and dirt; is less resilient to knocks etc and it wouldn't be particularly comfortable to put you hand on to help you get in and out of the chair. A rounded over end makes much more sense and is much easier to produce.