Freud 26 Piece Artisan Router Bit Review

Recently I have been using my router a lot.  I built two doors for my medicine cabinet, did all my own trim work for my bathroom, built 18 spindles for a staircase for a customer, a wood mirror frame for another customer and a couple other smaller projects.  I am sure any woodworker will tell you when it comes to bits, don’t go cheap.  Well again I found this out the hard way.  When I started doing trim for my bathroom, I just grabbed some older no name bits I had laying around.  Well it began to become a pain.  After each cut, I ended up having to do some sanding and had one bit break on me.  I am sure that was partly due to me being rough on the bits, but it still wasted my time.

So I wanted a quality bit which brings me to Freud and the 26 piece Artisan Bit Set.  Awhile back I bought one of these bits at Home Depot.  When I was doing my bathroom trim, this was one of the only bits that didn’t give me a hard time.  The cuts were clean.  I didn’t have to do any sanding and best of all, it stayed sharp and cut great throughout the whole job.  With that said I had to get my hands on more of these bits which is why I am talking about this set, which is one of the largest sets they offer.

If you have ever been to a woodworking or home improvement center, I am sure you have seen the name Freud.  In fact, at my Home Depot, it is pretty much the only bits they offer, well that and the Ryobi.  So who is Freud?  What makes them so good and what’s so special about this set?

Freud has been around and manufacturing carbide cutting tools for over 50 years.  They also own and operate six manufacturing facilities in western Europe, so they are no stranger in this market.  The way Freud is set up allows them to have complete quality control over the products.  I am sure you heard of Diablo, well that’s Freud.  Freud is not new to this market.  So let’s learn a little about this kit.

The 26 Piece Artisan bit set offers a wide range of bits.  The kit has:

• “V” Grooving
• Rounding over
• Roman Ogee
• Flush Trim
• Chamfer
• Other popular profiles

This kit is designed so all bits have a 1/4″ shank.  You can use the bits on hand held and table mounted portable routers.  They are designed for a wide variety of materials such as hard and soft woods, plus plywood.  The kit is nice because it offers the woodworker so many different options to create and produce different projects.

  Freud Router Bits

I really do like this set.  It offers a wide range of popular bits that are great quality.  The box they come with is a nice way to display and easily access any bits, plus there are directions on how to build another box if you want.  I have to say the two most common bits I have been using are still sharp and producing a good outcome even after using it on hardwood and probably pushing the wood through too fast.  So in the end I think this is a great buy.  Not cheap, but worth it.  If you are looking for a top notch quality router bit, I have no problems saying Freud is the way to go.