Woodworking Bit To Create A Rounded Shape On A Pole

I suspect it will be something like a tenon cutter. I didn't see one on the Lee Valley site, but didn't spend much time looking. Anyhow, it is an interesting and informative website. Here's their url: http://www.leevalley.com/en/Wood/Index.aspx

Oh, you might check out Rockler dot com too. Lee seems to have more interesting stuff, though

Hmm, okay - I'm familiar with the legal firm of Mortise and Tenon (sorry, we just have to keep things "light-hearted" on the weekend, if at all possible . . .).

Those joints/cuts can be made using a router, or a table saw, or sometimes even with a hand saw or even a wood chisel. Which of these tools do we think would be (optimally) used to drive that kind of bit? I guess maybe the website(s) (suggested) will provide a clue, although I've got a Rockler catalog sitting on the bed, right behind me (as sad as that sort of sounds to say . . .). Thanks. Other input?

That's all I got. If it were a one off project, I would likely start with a shoe or wood rasp and finish with abrasive (sand) paper, but that really doesn't have the appeal of a new tool, does it?

There are several router or shaper bits (A shaper is a declining use tool in home shops). Youd need to use the router table with the shovel handle secure and then you would "feed" the end stock into the bit until it mde the cuts.

Id suggest looking at a larger "Round Over" bit.

Also, Ive done blunt ends on walking sticks or home made chisel handles by using a bench grinder and a homemade "jig" that would hold the stock securely as you feed it toward the grinder stone.
You could imagine such a jig as a kind of "Cradle" in which the stock could rest and the cradle could be secured to the bench grinder table using hold downs or small clamps.

The only thing against using the grinder is that the wood tends to burn a bit, but that can be sanded off easily.
In order for you to make this look smooth, you need to keep your work stock securely held against any grinding stone or even using a table saw blade, (The use of router bit and table also requires the stock to be firmly held against the blade and the infeed be done in small "bites")

There is actually a tool that puts blunt ends on to canes or pointed ends for making rustic stool legs. You would feed the end stock into such a cutter and crank it by hand like a pencil sharpner. (It kind of looks like a thread cutter) I know a guy who bought one (I think from Rockler ) and he makes these rustic stools where he leaves some of the bark on the stool legs and makes a carved dowel like legs and drills holes to receive them . He sells the stools at craft shows .
I couldn't see buying such a tool for one one or two rustic stools and then never using it again.
If youre going to make these things as a routine maybe you should look for one.

IF you use a round over bit, you must feed your wooden stock into the bit "end on" so your jig hs to carry the wood facing the bit 90 degrees off from the plane of the router table guide. AND youll need to "roll" your workpiece around the face of the bit so, you must be careful to prevent a severe kickback. If you have a portable "infeed" table for use with a table saw, I 'd suggest that you use it to help hold your workpiece

I would suggest he do a few sample runs before tackling the one he wants to keep.

yeh, great point. Measure twice, practice thrice, cut once

Hmm, all good insights. Especially the measure and practice - twice, or maybe thrice, guidance.

So, just so everyone understands - there's no imminent "pole end shaping" on the horizon. It was just something I got to thinking about - although I have resorted to the rough shaping and then sanding approach in the past, when I've fabricated a short handle to replace the one used to raise my gas grill lid - which turned out pretty respectable (I thought).

I gave some thought to the router (and using a larger size, round over bit), although this didn't see like the best approach - especially since I've traditionally experienced "mixed results" whenever I've used a router in the past (although I did acknowledge my "amateur" status upfront).

The more I thought about this, the more I wondered about the "pencil sharpener" idea - since it was appealing for a host of theoretical and practical reasons, and who hasn't gotten satisfaction from grinding down a pencil to a sharp point in a pencil sharpener? I began to wonder when fixing wooden pole stock in a drill press, and with the right rotating drill press bit, that the end result would be the rounded shape you see on wooden tool handles. And candidly, that result I see on most of my large and small tool handles, does not look like it was the result of using a round over router bit. I'm still scanning some of my woodworking catalogs, to see if something (previously undiscovered) pops off the page at me.

The tool(s) normally used for making this sort of thing is a lathe and gouges. The lathe spins the wooden piece at a fairly high speed and the gouges... well, they gouge the wood. Gouges have different profiles depending on exactly what you are trying to do and you can use a template to repeat a pattern.

This setup is sort of the reverse of a router. With a lathe, the wooden piece actually being worked is doing the spinning and the "bit" (i.e. gouge) is stationary. Lathes are also used for making things like table legs, balusters, bowls, and a host of other rounded/sculpted items.