Yesterday in my small one car garage workshop, I was softening the edges of my new Saw Stallions (beefed up sawhorses) with a trim router and a 1/4 inch roundover bit. With so many edges, it got somewhat confusing as to which way I should push my router along the edge.
Here is a picture of the Saw Stallion and I have indicated the 7 faces involved in a quiz on router direction. Test yourself! For each of the 7 edges indicated, is the right answer A or B regarding which way to push the router. This is plywood, so there is no grain to worry about.
The basic rule is that you want to push a handheld router in the opposite direction that it would like to go on its own. In the USA our router bits generally rotate clockwise. When the bit engages with the workpiece it wants to climb in the opposite direction that the bit is rotating. My simple shortcut as to which way to push my router is to push it in the same direction that the cutting edge of the bit is moving where it is engaging with the wood. For clarity I am referring to the actual direction of the cutting edge of the bit and not the direction the router would like to pull itself.
The correct answers to the 7 questions are: 1 B; 2 A; 3 B; 4 A; 5 B; 6 A; 7A
Here is a picture showing the answers. Stumpy Nubs has the best video that I have seen on his YouTube Channel including when you purposely break the normal rule and engage in a "climb cut" on purpose. I highly recommend you watch his video https://youtu.be/mrE4HyXiwqs
