Shopsmith Forums

I'm afraid this may sound like charlese has gone off his rocker and is now employed by Rockler. HOWEVER THAT IS NOT TRUE! I just received a new catalog (get them frequently) and was wowed by their new shutter help plans and jigs/parts.

Some of you old timers might remember a few years ago when I was struggling to make shutters. I had to guess at louver spacing and width, and make a huge jig to hold a unit while gluing. Also, the hole spacing on the stiles was tedious to get exact. There was literally weeks of thinking,drawing, planning, and even to make a prototype.

Now there is a web site rockler.com/shutter where a person can just enter in the size of a window and choose the width of the louvers and - BINGO! the site will give you the correct dimensions of stiles and rails, along with a list of needed hardware. Also you can enter other design features like fixed or movable louvers, hinged or fixed shutters. Rockler offers a hole making jigs and bits (if needed) to make hole locations on stiles and louvers a no brainer. If I am going to make more shutters, I'll certainly use this help!:)

The only disagreement I have with their plans is the thickness of the wood needed for the rails. For me it is better to have the stiles be proud of the rails so as to allow molding detail on the stiles.

charlese wrote:I'm afraid this may sound like charlese has gone off his rocker and is now employed by Rockler. HOWEVER THAT IS NOT TRUE! I just received a new catalog (get them frequently) and was wowed by their new shutter help plans and jigs/parts.

Some of you old timers might remember a few years ago when I was struggling to make shutters. I had to guess at louver spacing and width, and make a huge jig to hold a unit while gluing. Also, the hole spacing on the stiles was tedious to get exact. There was literally weeks of thinking,drawing, planning, and even to make a prototype.

Now there is a web site rockler.com/shutter where a person can just enter in the size of a window and choose the width of the louvers and - BINGO! the site will give you the correct dimensions of stiles and rails, along with a list of needed hardware. Also you can enter other design features like fixed or movable louvers, hinged or fixed shutters. Rockler offers a hole making jigs and bits (if needed) to make hole locations on stiles and louvers a no brainer. If I am going to make more shutters, I'll certainly use this help!:)

The only disagreement I have with their plans is the thickness of the wood needed for the rails. For me it is better to have the stiles be proud of the rails so as to allow molding detail on the stiles.

Thank You for this. I have been putting off making 5 cabinet doors due to preconceived notions of complexity. You have removed that mental obstacle.

Where does it specify depth of louver slot? Min - 5/16" Max= ???

I think I will forego the template! A jig would be needed!

JPG40504 wrote:Thank You for this. I have been putting off making 5 cabinet doors due to preconceived notions of complexity. You have removed that mental obstacle.

Where does it specify depth of louver slot? Min - 5/16" Max= ???

I think I will forego the template! A jig would be needed!

It might depend on the length of the louvers. I just checked out a sample fixed louver that is 22" wide. The cut list said the rails should be 19" long. The louvers should be 19 5/8". That tells me the stile slots to hold the louver should be 3/8" deep. Since the template is 1/4" thick, then the depth of the router bit should be 5/8"

Hmmmm! I would love a template, held with clamps and used with a plunge router.

charlese wrote:It might depend on the length of the louvers. I just checked out a sample fixed louver that is 22" wide. The cut list said the rails should be 19" long. The louvers should be 19 5/8". That tells me the stile slots to hold the louver should be 3/8" deep. Since the template is 1/4" thick, then the depth of the router bit should be 5/8"

Hmmmm! I would love a template, held with clamps and used with a plunge router.

I concur with 'Charlese'!:)

I was hoping Rockler had an opinion that I 'missed'!;)

Maybe that piece of wisdom comes with the template!:rolleyes:

The best answer is for you my friend that is i could come up with is to go to the nearest home depot and buy them.
Already made and just hang them,if you insist on building them ask at the pro desk at said home depot.
They will point you in the right direction.be sure to do some practise staining before you do the shutters to get the right shade you want.

Shop fronts London

Today, I went to my local Rocklers to see the demonstration of their shutter system as explained by Chuck.
Needless to say, I was very impressed! The only question that a person has to ask himself is how they want to hang their shutters on the window, whether inside the window or on the outside. Also, you must decide on the width (2 1/2", 3",etc.) of the individual shutters, and whether they are moveable or not. After that, you take very careful measurements of your window, subtract the given stated amount from your measurements, go to their website and input the numbers. Out comes the cutting list, parts list and material list for everything, making ordering very simple.

The actual construction of the shutters with their shutter kit is very easy and straight forward. You cut your rails and stiles to length according to the cutting list. Then, you must make the decision on how to connect your rails and stiles (pocket hole, dowels, etc.) After that, their shutter kit does everything for you, which basically consists of three templates, and three template drill bits, providing you with a centered drill hole, along with the proper depth.

The process is as follows: You mark the width of your rail on your stiles, line up your template to his line, and start drilling your holes with the kit's drill bit. Your holes are automatically centered, the proper depth is correct.
Next comes the end holes on the individual shutters. You mark a center line on the end of one shutter, and align the template to that line, using the template's clamps. You only have to mark one center line, since the clamps hold the center position for you.
After that, you find the center of the length of the shutter, and again using the kit's drill bits and templates, you drill the holes for the movable shutter bar, and use it again to drill the actual shutter control bar.

Everything is then dry assembled, and checked. If okay, you can then paint, stain, etc. all the pieces before final assembly. Of course, you can rout the rails and stiles to your liking, and probably do a couple of other things that I cannot think of right now.

Rockler's shutter kit has removed all the pain from trying to determine measurements, etc.

Finally, did I buy a kit? Yes, I did.....months ago when they first came out, but just have not had the time to start making shutters, other priorities keep getting in the way!:eek:

FlashbacPT
John

And is a fun project - especially when they are mounted.