Craftsman Router Crafter

In my post about making my cedar candlesticks I mentioned my brother-in-law’s Legacy Ornamental Mill that was used.  I thought having one would be great but when I went to checking on the price I knew right away that buying one was out of the question.  But, as I did more research on the internet I discovered that there have been other companies that have made somewhat similar machines.  One that I began finding references to was a unit that Sears marketed for a number of years, the Craftsman Router Crafter.  It was much less sophisticated than the Legacy but for hobby use it sounded like something that would do what I wished to do.  However, I discovered that Sears had discontinued this piece of equipment.  Apparently a company by the name of Trend Machinery (now called Trend Routing Technology) had made this machine and had marketed their own, called a router lathe.  This machine had also been discontinued, apparently about 2004.

 

On a woodworking forum on the internet I saw that others had been referred to Ebay to find such a unit.  I started looking and found one listed that the individual stated was from his father’s estate, was still in the original box and had never even been opened.  I made a bid and later had to raise my bid a bit but did win the auction.  And, just as had been stated the unit was brand new.  Under the sealed flap I found the original invoice from QVC where it had been purchased in March of 1993. 

Here you see the unit set  up in a corner of my barn.  (I’m still working toward a woodworking shop!)

I’ve been “playing” with it the last few days, trying to learn how to do the various things it will do.









Pictured on the left is a piece of cedar limb I cut from the woods.  On the right the piece has been put into the machine and has been rounded down.

In this photo you can see that I have successfully turned spirals in the piece.  I’ve got to obtain a few more router bits but I’m about ready to attempt making another cedar candlestick.