Freud 99-039 Variable Height Finger Joint Router Bit with 1/2-Inch Shank

by Freud

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

The Freud Difference
Freud manufactures some of the most innovative, technologically advanced woodworking tools and accessories in the world. To ensure that the highest quality products meet the toughest design standards, Freud owns and operates six manufacturing facilities in Western Europe. Freud is one of the few manufacturers of woodworking tools in the world that produces its own MicroGrain carbide with titanium, called TiCo -- a combination of titanium and cobalt. Freud develops different types of carbide for each application to maximize the cutting life and performance of the tool; and Freud also operates one of the most modern product development research centers in Europe. By overseeing the entire manufacturing process from start to finish, Freud guarantees some of the highest quality, most advanced products in the industry.

About Freud's Industrial Bits
Serious woodworkers choose serious accessories. They choose Freud. The Freud name equals quality, precision and craftsmanship. Freud router bits feature TiCo Hi-Density Carbide for maximum cutting life and are individually balanced; providing a cut above the rest. When you’re looking for a serious router bit, look for Freud red.

About this Variable Height Finger Joint Router Bit
This variable height finger joint router bit from Freud is fully adjustable to produce finger joints up to 1-25/32-inch thick. Use this bit for joining wood edge-to-edge or end-to-end. The actual joint produced with this bit is stronger than the wood itself.

Key Tech Specs:

• Overall diameter: 2 inches
• Cut diameter: 5/16-inch
• Bearing diameter: 1-3/8-inch
• Carbide height: 1-9/16-inch
• Shank diameter: 1/2-inch
• Overall length: 4-1/4 inches

Applications
This bit allows you complete freedom when producing finger joints. It cuts all composition materials, plywoods, hardwoods, and softwoods; and it was designed for use with hand-held and table-mounted portable routers.

Warranty
This bit is covered by Freud's limited lifetime warranty.

Product Description

Fully adjustable to produce finger joints up to 1 25/32" thick.Ideal for joining wood edge to edge or end to end.Produces a joint that is stronger than the wood itself.Replacement cutters available and uses arbor #60-152. Application: cuts all composition materials, plywood, hardwood, and soft wood.Use on CNC and other automatic routers as well as table-mounted portable routers.

See all Product Description

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004T7MB
• California residents: Click here for Proposition 65 warning.
• Item model number: 99-039
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #64,179 in Home Improvement (See Top 100 in Home Improvement)
  • #66 in Home Improvement > Power & Hand Tools > Power Tool Accessories > Router Accessories > Router Bits > Joinery Bits

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars good joints once you firgure out how to use it., December 15, 2004

By 

J. Baker (El Cajon, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Freud 99-039 Variable Height Finger Joint Router Bit with 1/2-Inch Shank (Tools & Home Improvement)

My only complaint (after practicing with the finger joint bit all afternoon) is the limited instructions that come with it. Safety advice only. You have to figure out yourself how to use this properly, but once done it makes tight joints.

First thing to know is that all cutter heads need to remain on spindle to have to nut engage the threads, cutters you don't need are placed above the wide top cutter and just "cut the air" above your workpiece.

I used it on a shaper with a mitre gauge. Was impossible to hold the workpiece tightly against gauge so I built a sacrificial fence (this also reduced chipping as the cutter exits the back side). First attempt was too deep a cut and bit pulled work free from my clamp AND knocked my mitre gauge off 90 degrees. This made next hour's worth of practice confusing as the cut was deeper on entering the wood than on exited. Getting the mitre gauge back to 90 degrees mitre solved this.

Cutter does indeed cut 5/16" deep as they say, so I started marking a 5/16" guideline on my workpiece and aligning this to the end of my fence; this allowed me to touch the collar bearing but also to clamp the workpiece to my fence. Pull the workpiece slowly thru as a lot of wood is being chopped if all or most of the cutter heads are used.

I had to adjust height of bit for mating halves. I measured from the side of the workpiece cut by the wide top cutter to where the last narrow cutter (one above collar bearing) ended. This distance became the height of the bottom cutting edge on the wide top cutter and it fits beautifully.

All in all a great product.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Practice first, February 28, 2008

By 

Peter Larson (Connecticut, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Freud 99-039 Variable Height Finger Joint Router Bit with 1/2-Inch Shank (Tools & Home Improvement)

What a neat router bit! It's long enough that you can join something thicker than a 2x4. I joined some 2x6 planks for practice, and I didn't need all the cutting blades. I used this with a 2 HP handheld router, and I used 5 of the 6 blades for cutting (the last was beyond the bottom of the wood, cutting air. It worked well. It takes some practice with this bit to get it right. I definitely recommend 2 passes: 1 deep cut, and 1 cleanup pass. The reason it gets 4 stars instead of 5 is because it comes with no instructions at all. If you have never seen how to use this for thinner pieces of wood, you might be puzzled. The trick is to move the thick cutter up the shank, putting the remaining cutters on the end.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Takes some practice, January 25, 2009

By 

Paul J. Schmidt "RandomTask21" (Indiana) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Freud 99-039 Variable Height Finger Joint Router Bit with 1/2-Inch Shank (Tools & Home Improvement)

Overall this is a great bit, as it should be for the price. This only thing missing are good instructions. There should also be an application guide, for example this bit makes almost the exact same cut as the Freud 99-031 glue joint bit on stock less than 3/4" thick. All in all a great bit, just a little more than the average guy needs.