Posts Tagged ‘router tables’

A lot of people have asked this question.  I am partial to fixed based routers for router tables.  Does this mean you cannot use a plunge router in a router table?  The answer would be you can use a plunge router, but it does have some drawbacks that a fixed base router does not.  I am sure if you asked 10 people you would get ten different answers.  The key would be to ask ten people that have both types of routers, that would give you the best answer.  I will include a poll over time that will help with this dilema and help gather information over time.  There is also a good article about the subject of routers for router tables here.

Router Table, Custom, Reader’s Project

Here is another custom project router table from my friend Chip.  He originally posted it on Lumberjocks and has graceiously given us permission to reprint it.  It has some really good information and a lot of pictures.  One of the things I like about this router table is its enormous attention to detail.  It has been well thought out and its design leans more towards practicality and useability instead of upscale design and finish.  It has slide out bit drawers (one of my personal favorites and a design I use myself)  An Incra fence with a custom design for dust control and a stable cabinet stand.  Nothing against all the truely gorgeous router tables we have featured in the past, but this one screams out “please use me now”

Well, I am sure some of you have seen my old router table in my workshop pictures. It was thrown together out of necessity and time and material restrictions. Well last night I had a dream, no really, I had a dream I made a new router table out of some extra wood I had laying around in the shop. I was very specific in my dream how to make it too. So I followed my plans to a tee and holy shit, I had just the right pieces and just enough of them too to complete my task out of 3/4 inch Maple Plywood and other bits and pieces laying around.

I learned from past experience it is not good to put your router in a vacuum box and suck the waste from under the table. It works great for removing debris but it will destroy your router sooner than latter. and for those of you who have not made the switch to Ridgid Tools this can be a very expensive repair (replace) Lucky for me I have two Routers and I sent my Ridgid in and they fixed it for free. I also have a Dewalt, but it does not have the same features as my ridgid and would not work as well under a table. The Ridgid has a built in feature to adjust depth/ height from under the router with a T handle. So when you use it in a table you can adjust from the table top. It also has more horse Powers and better Speed adjustments suitable for under table mounting.

I also have an IncraJig fence with a custom Fence on it that I can hook up to my Dust Collection system, if you look you can see I can turn the section on and off at the table with a control handle that goes to the front of the table. This allows me to remove the fence, and unhook the vacuum line or rehook the vacuum line in to a dust should or other collector and have control of it from the table.

Hope you enjoy.
Chip

There was a very interesting question in the forum that really deserves to be revisited, I have posted it for your information.

Could you please explain why under the table vacuum port is bad in a router table? I thought it was pretty common. I was actually thinking of enclosing my router table from underneath for sound deadening and better vacuuming from underneath.

A router draws air from the bottom of the tool and runs it past the motor and bearings for cooling then it blows it out past the bit to clear dust and keep bit cool too. If you enclose the router in a vacuum box to suck the dust right back into the enviorment the router lives in you then recycle some of the dust through the router. PS some routers are not as noisy as others, my dewalt is LOUD! Back to dust, you can hook up an isolator to the bottom of the router to suck dust down and avoid going through the router case with it, but then you need to move more air than the router forces through its self, you need a big shop vac. Shop vac’s are noisier than routers. My Dust Collector moves more air than a shop vac but at a lower volocity so to keep particles in suspension you need to maintain airflow. My sugestion is to make the oppening for fresh air to the back of the table and have an access door on the front for ajustments to deaden the sound. I like this idea but I also like having access to the router more for speed adjustments and locking the case after making slight hight adjustments. So I opter to leave the front open and I push most of my excess dust and particles off to the rear and that could cause issues. Point is if you run your router alot you need to keep it clean and cool. Heat is the electric motors enemy

Bosch RA1181 Router Table

The Bosch 1181 is fairly easy to find router table.  Frequently you can find it at Lowe’s and several places online. It is a decent table with several features that would be a step up from something like a Skil.  The table has some full features like the drop in router insert plate, adjustable fence and power switch.  It even comes with a featherboard, which everyone seems to get excited about for some reason.  The base is plastic and the size of the fence is somewhat limiting in my opinion.

I think that for $190 bucks or so, you can have lots of options and can even get a full size table that you can grow with.  Some people prefer the bench top size, which is fine if space is an issue.  But the price is the killer here since I really believe there are some other bench top router tables that have a nicer fence and some better features.

There is a really good review here by new woodworker.

Bosch RA1181 Specifications:

• Amperage: 120V – 15AMP
• Height: 14-1/2″
• Depth: 18″
• Width: 27″
• Max. Fence Opening: 3-3/16″
• Max. Throat Opening: 3-5/8″
• Cord Length: 6′

Bosch RA1181 Includes:

• (1) Set of 3 Mounting Plate Insert Rings to adjust opening to bit size
• (1) Hardware for Mounting Most Bosch Routers
• (2) Adjustable Featherboards
• (1) Adjustable Clear Guard
• (1) Starter Pin and Guard
• (2) Outfeed Fence Shims – 1/16″ Thick
• Predrilled for following routers:
  BOSCH 1617 series*, 1613 series, 1619EVS; Porter Cable 690, 892-895 series*, 7529; Milwaukee: 5615, 5616; Hitachi: M12VC; DeWalt: DW616, DW618*; Makita: RF1100, RF1101; Ryobi: R161K, R162K; Craftsman: Fixed base models with 1/2? collet capacity

Pretty good setup for the money

Almost perfect

Great Table

Router Table Fence

This project comes from my friend Stefang on Lumberjocks.  He built a really nice tall router table fence and used some great joinery to make sure it lasts in his shop.  With his permission  I am reprinting here for your enjoyment.  If you have a project that you would like featured contact me at theroutermaniac at gmail

I needed a special fence for routing lock miter joints. I found one designed by Norman Ellis who sent it in as a tip to another website. The fence I made below is 7” tall. It can be clamped to your regular router table fence. I jointed the top and bottom edges of this fence making sure that they were parallel.

Here it is with the sliding fence mounted and another pic with a workpiece clamped onto the slider. When you rout it you should hold the lower portion of the workpiece with medium hand pressure pressing it toward the fence without getting your hands anywhere near the bit.

Some slider details: The 2nd shot is the back of the slider.

Here are two pics of a routed lock miter joint. Keep in mind that this is construction quality Fir. Note the tear out on the trailing edge. This is normal with LM bits, but a thin Ply backer between the slider fence an the workpiece might reduce that. I haven’t tried it yet. Unless it is plywood you should route lock miter joints in one go to prevent chipping.

More good news! you can also use this set-up to rout tenons. The faces are routed with the workpiece clamped in the jig as in the first photo.

I routed the edges by clamping one of the other tenon workpieces in the slider and then holding the current workpiece edge against the fence and it’s face against the edge of the one in the clamp. It was routed like this being hand held.

The tenon routing finished

The routed morise

Here the tenon edges have been rounded to match the routed mortise.

and finally a dry fit. What do you know? It came out perfect!

I hope you find something interesting here and get some use from it. Thanks for viewing.

So Fire up that router and get out in the shop and make some sawdust!

It has been an interesting week in reference to router table insert plates.  Lots of questions and lots of comments on different types of plates.  One of the biggest comments has been why are router plates all different sizes?

I think the best way to describe it is money.  If a manufacture can make their shape conducive to their own brand they will keep you locked in as a customer.  What I mean is this, say you buy a router plate from Bench Dog and later on you want to upgrade to a router lift.  If you made your table, or bought a Bench Dog table, you would have to buy a Bench Dog Lift because nothing else will fit.  Its that simple.  Most guys will not start over.  It is similiar to computers.  I am a PC, but  I would really love a Mac.  Why, well to be honest PC’s kind of suck.  They are bloated with a pig of a operating system, they crash a lot, have all kinds of problems and are always being exploited by hackers.  But I am “all in” because of the software I need and use is not available on a Mac and starting over from scratch seems more of a pain than its worth.  There is also the money.  The Mac costs more than the PC and there you have it.  Back to the plates, is one any better than the other?  Nope.  Just know you may be committing yourself to a brand in the name of budget and time.

Last thought.  There has been a lot of questions abot aluminum verses phenolic or acrylic.  Aluminum plates are very expensive so does that mean they are better?  Not necessarily.  You will always have the guys that have to have the very best of everything so aluminum is great for them.  But what you really need to look at is what size router are you hanging from the insert.  You should never store your router on the insert in the table.  Most of us do and that is where the problems start.  After a while the gravity bandit comes and your insert is now not flat (acrylic or phenolic).  To complicate the matter, some people thing they need the big 3 1/2 HP router in their table. (cause bigger is better right..uh no) So they buy this monster 23lb thing and hang it on a phenolic insert and let it sit in the table for a year.  You guessed it, bad news for the insert plate.  Why in the world do you need a 3 1/2 HP router in a router table in the first place is beyond me.  You still can only shave off so much in a single pass unless you love the smell of burnt wood and dull router bits.  If power is your game, buy a shaper.

Here is another readers project table and its a beauty.  In fact I think I would be afraid to scratch it.  This is a good example of detail if you are building your own table.  The fence is nice and high which gives you the ability to vertical router cabinet doors with a good degree of safety.  T-track is in all the right places as well.  Another great feature is drawers.  Drawers are key to keeping all your components for routing in one place.  I once built a table with two drawers and was amazed at how much stuff I had for my router table when I started gathering it all.  Keeping it in one spot will make you work more efficiently and keep things organized.  Again I found this table on Lumberjocks and asked Wisty for permission to post it here.  He has done an amazing job!

I love seeing other peoples projects, so I am always eager to show off what everyone else is building.  This makes the site more fun and more community oriented.  This one comes from a friend on lumberjocks, skywalker.  He took a rockler table idea and built out his own table using some recovered parts.  This is a great way to save money and use up items that you may have sitting around the shop already.  I really like the on/off switch to the four plug box under the table.  This is very easy to make and makes life easy if you want to plug in a shop vac or small dust collector. 

The fence clamps that grip the table are also beefy and very effective at holding your fence exactly where you want it.  Who says that a router table has to be white in color?  I really dig the yellow laminate.   

I have also enclosed the authors notes and thoughts about building this project.  Well Done!

I copied this from the version they sell at rockler. I just planed and jointed some 2×4’s to make up the frame. It is mortise and tenon construction and it is really sturdy. The top is 3/4” plywood with a solid oak edge band then covered with a yellow laminate. The track is from Highland Woodworking and the rulers are from Northern tool. I routed a tiny little groove to put the rulers into with epoxy. The rulers have etched out numbers and lines so that they don’t wear out over time. The router plate is 3/8” acrylic that I had laying around. I put small threaded inserts in the plywood top so that I can level the plate accurately with screws that go through the acrylic. The fence’s main part is the 1.5” aluminum angle. All the parts connecting to it are just solid oak. I’m not sure that this will cause problems later or not what with wood movement. I haven’t noticed any yet and it cuts a really straight line still after almost a year so I’m happy with it for now. The two halves of the fence can be spread apart to account for larger bits or putting the bit behind the fence for edge work. There are no slots for the fence, the clamps on the ends hold it in place, made out of rock maple and some bolts and threaded inserts. That way all I have to do to remove the fence for any reason I just loosen them up and slide it off the back or front. My table saw came with a router table insert and a dust collection piece that I salvaged and put on the back of the fence. None of the pictures show it but its basically a clear tube that folds down over the fence and above the bit. I really like it and it’’s quite accurate. dialing in precise measurements are real simple and it’s a joy to use.

 

This is the follow up for the router table that I reviewed here. I think that you will find that having a video can help you get a better idea of the features of the table and give you some more information. The fence turned out to be an interesting feature. I am going to post a separate video going over how it works and what makes it unique.

We did a review of the video series for Sommerfeld tools and its only fair to have a look at the router table that was featured in it.  If you are doing some research to figure out which table to buy, this table should certainly be included.  However it is not the cheapest and should be rightfully compared with router tables in its same price class.  It is well thought out and offers a very nice fence.  Below are the particulars for the table and the fence.  You can find the table at their website, www.sommerfeldtools.com

Table Top

Huge 36″ x 27″ extruded aluminum Table gives you plenty of support for your largest workpieces

3-5/8″ dia. opening (without Insert Rings) accepts even your largest panel-raising bits.Five pre-drilled holes for mounting Triton’s 2-1/4 or 3-1/4 HP routers. Tops with no holes predrilled are available for other router types.

2 Threaded holes for starter pin (included)Table end tracks, each with two T-slots. One for 5/16″ bolts w/1/2″ hex heads-one for 3/8″-16 weld nuts.Tabletop T-slots. Four accept 5/16″ bolts w/1/2″ hex heads-four accept standard 3/4″ miter gauge bar w/or w/o T-slot washers. Great for jigs, fixtures, featherboards, etc.
INCLUDES:(8) twist-lock Insert Rings (Solid, 1/2″,3/4″,1″,1-1/4″,1-1/2″,2″,2-5/8″ openings) w/Spanner Locking Wrench

(3) Zero Clearance Fence Inserts

(2) 5/16″-18 threaded Knobs

Screw-in Starting Pin

5/32″ Allen driver.

Nuts, bolts and assorted mounting hardware.

16-page full-color instruction book, DVD 3 Router Table Made Easy and 48″ x4-3/4″ of easy-adjusting Fence to guide your stock through the cut.Spring-loaded Pin allows rapid pivot adjustments of Fence from one end-or use Locking Knobs on both Fence ends if you prefer when working with cumbersome workpieces.

Fence can be swapped end-for-end, allowing work from either side of Table

4-step Dust Port slides captive over full length of Fence in dovetail slots. Slide out of the way to access bit area for cleanout-accepts 1-1/4″,1-1/2″,2″ & 2-1/4″ I.D. fittings.Three T-Slots for attaching stops, hold-downs or similar devices using 516″ bolts w/1/2″ hex heads. Another slot on Fence for mounting HDPE Sub-Fences.

HDPE Sub-fences slide left to right and lock in T-slot…can be shimmed from behind for outfeed support when making full-height edge cuts.

Zero clearnce Fence Inserts (3 included w/Fence) can be customized to match your bits.

This is a pretty neat video showing you some of the benefits of working with a monster router table.  The highlights of the video are:

Video summary Text

• Heavy duty gas operated lifting springs
• A 100lb top
• Locking knobs hold it down
• Easy router adjustments
• No router insert

You can also find this table at: