I'm making the fluted fronts for the 4 columns. I set a fence with spacing for the center flute, and added a center line for the bit.. And I drew lines on the back of the faces for the start and stop spots. After I rout the center flute, I cut filler strips to add to the fence to do the following rows.
Turned out to be a nice even 1" strip and a 2" strip.
I drew a line on my table and set the fence 90 degrees off that. I also drew a line across the fences to line up the center of the bit. (transferring the line to the spacers as I added them.)
Flutes came out a little rough with burns at the ends. I might leave them with just a little sanding since it's a dark color, but I may take my ball grinder and try to clean them up. I would rather live with a little burn over a disfigured flute end. We'll see. Anybody have any better ideas?
Another thing I did was to wet the back side as I pushed them through the bit. This gave me exceptional grip compared to the first one I ran that my hands were slippery over the wood with the dust and all. On to sanding for the rest of the day.
Figuring out how to do something you have never done is what makes a good challenge.
