Carpentry and Woodworking - Routing with birch wood

I'm renovating our kitchen and making doors of birch rails & styles with oak-finished ply panels. I made a few practice runs at routing some embellishments on the frames but the birch seems to keep splintering. Is it that birch is not a good wood for routering or could it be I just happened to have a bad example of this wood?
I need to know before I buy a run of expensive wood that won't finish well.
PS I'm using the birch to give some contrast to an otherwise all oak finish.
Thanks

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Steve

Yellow birch is an excellent choice. According to "Wood" magazine, you need to go slow and make shallow passes. If routing in one direction causes a lot of splintering, turn the board around and go in the opposite direction. This hits the grain from a different direction. The splintering is caused by the bit digging into the grain. Going the other way stops that.

Once you see which direction to feed the grain, remmeber that for subsequent pieces.

Another way to avoid splintering wood while shaping it is to "climb cut" with your router. What this amounts to is moving the router backwards along the workpiece instead of the regular feed direction. You will find out immediately why it is called climb cutting because the bit will want to dig into the wood and come towards you. Practice this technique on some scraps so that you learn how much force you need to keep the router under control. You will find that by taking shallow passes and climb cutting, that you can rout some of the most splintery woods without splintering it.

Another thought:
Are you using a SHARP carbide tipped router bit? A high speed steel bit or an old, dull carbide can cause the splintering (usually accompanied by blue smoke) too!

Thanks for all the tips. I think I shall have to practice that 'climb routering'. I'm not over knowledgeable about routering although I have previously successfully routered some pretty bad woods. I am was using a steel bit though and now am using a carbide tipped small ogee and thanks to the tips give it seems to be going well so far. Thanks, guys.

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Steve