Quick Advice Needed On Router Table Build

[Alan Gan]

Been working on my 1st Router Table, I have a question regarding the Fence.

Going to use T Track for the Fence rather than Slots for the Fence to slide back and forward on the Table. Should I use 4 tracks evenly spaced or just 2 one at each side? Most pictures I have searched show 2 tracks or Slots.

Is there any reason the Fence would want to be offset from one side to the other when Routing? If I use 4 Tracks I will lose that ability...

Thanks in advance!!!

[Art Mann]

I have now built 2 router tables that use T-track to secure the fence and one on each side is quite adequate, provided the fence is square and stiff enough. My opinion is that any more than that would just be extra work to build in and extra trouble to adjust. I have never wished that I had the ability to offset the fence one way or the other.

[Chris Parks]

Use a single pivot as it is much simpler and far easier to adjust but does not look as sexy as T track.

[Frank Martin]

Use a single pivot as it is much simpler and far easier to adjust but does not look as sexy as T track.

I think this is a great approach for simplicity. Make sure you can move your pivot point though for those cases where you need to rout in the middle of a piece, otherwise you may have to angle your fence quite a bit. Otherwise two tracks are plenty. You can even rout slots on the top and use bolts and washers to fix your fence too.

[Alan Gan]

Thanks for the help. I am still learning as I go.

I have searched and seen that the Fence does not need to be the same distance from the bit on each side to get a perfect cut, I am having a mental block at this point.

A couple things I am trying to understand is the Fence adjustments, for one the Pivot type Fence and the Micro adjustment, how does moving just one side of the Fence work?

[Rick Potter]

I built a router table type fence for my small shaper and just made it to overhang the edges, using a block to pinch the table. EZ and no holes in table, which in my case was sorta important because of the cast iron table. I used the same setup on a router table for years before buying a used table setup.

I forget who, but some company uses this method for their tables.

Rick P

[Chris Padilla]

Rick,

I think it was CMT (think orange) and Marc Sommerfeld (who spun off his own company) that had the router table fence on a single pivot point.

[Doug Ladendorf]

Alan, one reason some fences are made to offset one side from the other is to use your router for jointing the edge of a board. This can also be done using spacers so if that is why you were thinking of using four tracks I think it's less of an issue. Stick with two (or pivot if you choose).

Doug

[Andy Fox]

My preference is for no tracks at all on the table. I built my fence with tapered maple clamping blocks which clamp by tightening a wingnut style of plastic knob on each end from the top. A simpler way would be to use the vice grip style of clamp.

http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/400/80/805e35e8-d20e-4754-9d48-16917eee2db0_400.jpg

[Art Mann]

I may have misunderstood. Are you talking about clamping the fence to the table top or mounting a vertical subfence to the main assembly? If you are talking about the subfence then you will want to use 2 fasteners for each side of a split fence.

[Wayne Jolly]

I am another one that would rather not have the slots in my table top. I am currently building my first router table and I have opted for clamping the fence to the edges of the table. So far it is working fine for me.

Wayne

[glenn bradley]

I have worked with slots and without. The existence of the slots, whether track or through-slots has never caused an issue for me so, based on that experience I have no concerns about them. My current build is slots and unlike track, the spoil falls through so there's no fussing around with keeping the slots clear.

As to the fence being offset; if you mean one face proud of the other, I accomplish this by shimming one of the fence faces from the rear when I need that feature. If you mean not being parallel to the miter slot, this is a non issue. The bit doesn't care if the fence is at 90, 82, or 78 degrees to the operator, the material still passes the spinning center of the bit. If I am using the miter gauge or a miter slot controlled jig, the fence being parallel to the miter slot may come into play. Other times it is inconsequential to me in practice.