Posts Tagged ‘bench top router table’

Bench Dog Router Table Extension 40-102

This is printed with permission from my friend Deke at Lumberjocks.  I will also add some more information about the table over time to give you a complete research.

Okay, this is slightly premature as this thing is half way mounted to my table saw, but already I can tell this was a smart purchase well over due for me. I have a small basement shop and space is tight. After a lot of reorganizing I can now do almost anything (table saw, bandsaw, jointer, planer, miter saw, drill press…) the minute I want to with no rolling things around and dust collection ready to go on all of it. The one missing piece was a router table. I recently sold my Bench Dog contractor table (positive review posted) and bought this extension for my tables saw.

The fit and finish is top notch. Absolutely no issues here. This thing is a beast at about 50 pounds and the miter and t-track slots on this new model are right there in the iron top. It is lining up with my top very well and I suspect it is flatter than anything else on the table saw.

I am being slightly unorthodox with this by mounting on the right side of my Delta contractor saw and attaching it to the existing right side iron extension. Instructions are clear – for this set up I need to reinforce with bolts through the rails for my fence on both sides to support this. I will also be adding legs, but in the future (maybe this weekend), I will build a cabinet to go beneath it to collect dust form below, support the table and give me some drawers for bits and other router stuff. The only issue was only two of the bolts on my table saw lined up with Bench Dog. I think this is due to my attaching to the Delta right side extension. So, I was able to use two of the threaded connections on my extension, but had to drill two holes in my table saw and am using my own bolts/nuts for the other two. Attaching to the fence rails will also require some drilling. Kind of surprising this all doesn’t “plug and play” with a Delta of all things, but my saw is old and lord knows what the original owner did when he put this together.

Nothing fancy here yet in terms of the router. I have a PC 690 and no lift. Some day I hope to upgrade to a triton or some other table friendly router, but I will be fine. I am new to routing (a year or so) and I can work with this. Of course I will may to shell out another $50 for a new insert from Bench Dog when I get a new router (depending on the router model), but I can live with that.

Will combining my router table and table saw be the smart move in the end? I have to say yes. I simply do not have space for a dedicated router table and this sort of “dual purpose” space is exactly the kind of thing I need to have a shop where not only everything fits, but is usable with little hassle so I can concentrate on wood working and not moving things around. I know there are many articles and advice on mobility in small shops, but I tried all that and taking the time to build a functioning shop with minimal mobility is better. It’s not easy, but it’s worth it. I think this Bench Dog product is a perfect fit.

Pickings are slim with this kind of product. MCLS has one, but without the t slot for feather boards on the table. I did not feel an mdf or phenolic table was what I wanted and wanted iron all the way.

TRM Note

I thought it was worth mentioning that this extension was formally the older model with a few design changes.  You used to get the insert with the tablesaw extension, but now you need to order one separate.  On that note, you can only use bench dog inserts since they are the only brand that fits this saw.  If you have another insert and think you can make it fit, you will be disappointed.  The good news is that all Bench Dog inserts are aluminum.

Shopping Comparisons

Bench Dog Tablesaw Router Table  Router Table Dep0t, $299.99

Rockler  $349.99

Resources

Another review of the Bench Dog

Review summarys

Customer Rating:
This is a high quality,

Customer Rating:
Installed on old Delta Table saw

Customer Rating:
Installed this on my Craftsman hybrid saw

Customer Rating:
I added this to my Jet JPS-10 ProShop table saw

Very Pleased, Typical Bench Dog Quality

well built,

great addition to saw

 

I just stumbled on a new bench top router table that is being offered at RTD. After looking at it for a few minutes I decided to buy it and do a review on it. After a few more minutes of staring at it, I noticed a few things about the table that is interesting. It resembles another brand table (kreg) in different colors. I will include the specs for the table so that you can look it over. The best part is the price, its well priced under $50 cheaper and it ships for $10. It may be a holiday thing or maybe an introduction price. I will be posting a video review of the table shortly. I really like the fence, it has the built in ability to do some jointing. Granted it is not a jointer, but being able to take off even 1/16th would help me with some of my projects.

Table Top

• 23 ¾” x 15 ¾” x 1”
• Laminated both sides
• Miter track, ¾” inside diameter (std) accepts all 3^rd party accessories
• Slotted for fence operation
• Finished edge

Insert

• 12” x 9” x 3/8”
• Acrylic
• Set Screws Levelers included in insert
• Starter Pin
• 3 snap out rings 4” , 2 5/8”, 1 ¼” (accepts Porter Cable Style Bushings and templates)
• Not pre drilled for routers, this is very easy and you use your router base plate for a template, see directions link below.

Fence

• 23 ¾” x 3 ½” Aluminum Core
• T-track built into front face and top of fence for versatile attachements of accessories such as featherboards
• Includes stop block
• Extensions are 12”x 2 ¾” x ¾”
• Router bit safety cover
• Unique offset bars included for jointing capabilities
• Through table adjustment
• Dust port

Stand

• High quality Steel
• Cambered out for extra stability
• Predrilled to accept a shelf of your design.
• Adjustable rubber feet

You can find this Bench Top router table here.

Here is a very interesting bench top design that can easily be built quickly.  Its simple design shows you how you can save some real money by not buy all the “official” router accessories and using some brain cells instead.  I really like the simple design of the fence.  You only need to small pieces of angle bracket to hold it square.  The all wood design really saves some money since aluminum fence cores are very expensive.  This builders project is sure to give you some great ideas on how to build your own custom table.  Be sure to incorporate the use of router bit storage into your design as shown.  This will help keep your shop neat and clean and keep all your router related items together in one spot.  We also would like to encourage you to submit your project to be featured on the website.  The aim is to help your fellow woodworkers with interesting or simple design and get good ideas yourself.  That is what woodworking is all about.

This was (is) my first Router table, and was made about 2.5 years ago. As you can see it is not a high quality piece of equipment, and has no finish on it.

I bought the T-track, cam-locks, and dust collection nozzle from Rockler, and the isolation switch from a local hardware store specifically for this job. I also bought the knobs from Rockler on special, but as part of my starting stock for future Jigs that I knew I would be making one day. Other than that, I had some plywood offcuts, some brandering and some Aluminium angle lying around from previous jobs. The power plug was also a leftover from a previous home repair. The sacrificial MDF fences were leftover from when I replaced my RAS sacrificial table. The table-top was rescued from a dumpster when my then office had some remodeling done.

I had seen a similar design somewhere on-line, but couldn’t find it when I decided to make this, so I basically went by memory. I didn’t “design” it so much as sketch a basic idea on my RAS table and the rest was done on-the-fly. The table-top needs to be replaced sometime soon as the old one is curving from humidity. I probably won’t replace the top,but rather make a new table for my new workshop while making the cabinets. I’ve done a basic design in SketchUp for the new table which includes better dust collection.