Here’s how to use your spindle sander to make accurate inside cutouts, for router templates and more. I’ve seen people use the table saw or router table to make closed shapes like these—by plunging the piece down on the blade or bit—but those types of cuts always seem sketchy to me. Instead, center your layout on the piece you are cutting, and then remove as much material as you can with a jigsaw. Place the cutout over your sanding drum and sand right up to the layout lines in one spot on both sides of the pattern. This will let you press the workpiece against the (non-spinning) drum and set up a fence along the opposite edge. If your layout is indeed centered, that same fence setup will let you sand both sides of the cutout perfectly. A little freehand sanding at the ends of the cutout and you’re done.

—LIN DRAKE, Amarillo, Texas

Illustrations by Dan Thornton
From Fine Woodworking issue #308