Solid Oak Router Table Cabinet Build

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Hi guys,

Wasn't sure whether this belonged in this forum so please let me know if it's a better fit elsewhere.

I wanted to document my router table build so far. I started last week and am part-way done at the moment. I just finished a fight between one of my fingers and a 12mm straight bit in a hand-held router so am out of commission for a week or so (I hope!) and so figured this is the next best thing to actually building. Typing one handed is no fun though!!

I needed a router table. Bought some Jessem bits and pieces and a cast iron top. But I decided to knock up a base for it myself.

Design brief was - sturdy and simple with some storage and dust collection.

I decided to build it from construction grade Tassie Oak since it's easy to get a hold of (Melbourne Australia) and cheap compared with other solid timber options. The downside is to get nice clean timbers you need to be very picky and sort through a lot of timber haha.

After drawing a quick front-view sketch to capture the critical dimensions I was off breaking down stock and milling, beginning with the primary components.

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I decided to go with traditional mortise and tenon joinery for the primary structure. While far from experienced in the few projects I've made I find I like to start with mortises.

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Then I generally cut the tenons slightly oversize (width) on the bandsaw and plane them to the correct offset and thickness using my LN Jack Rebate plane. I typically cut the haunches with a hand saw and shoulders either with a hand-saw and chisel to the line or on the table-saw. I went with table saw this time, but still had to chisel to the line for many.
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Close up of tenons after final paring.

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More to follow shortly.

Cheers, Dom

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

After the joinery was cut I did a quick dry fit. To my surprise and delight it all went together nice and tight and it was all bang-on square in every axis! Seems that paying close attention to hitting precise layout lines pays dividends. I've had previous projects that have requires some fandangling to get them square after cutting joinery so this was very welcomed!

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With the basic structure done it was time to figure out how to sort out drawers and the central cavity for the router / lift. I had decided to try to make the drawers slide on the wood structure of the cabinet rather than using metal slides as that is the technique I wanted to learn for future, more important, projects and figured a shop cabinet would be a good place to learn. I just didn't realise that it would require quite a bit of additional structure; particularly given the central "box" for the router.

I started with two lower horizontal dividers on the front and rear of the cabinet. Both would fit in dado's on the legs, with the front dovetailed in - again, a new technique I would like to try and want to learn for future projects.

I decided to use a piece of wood and a trim router to cut the bulk of the waste from the dado and chisel to the line/to fit. Then disaster struck! After cutting the dado I didn't wait for the router to stop and clipped the front edge of the leg with the bit - causing some ugly tearout to the visible front-edge. That dog won't hunt Monsignor! (sorry old Futurama reference).

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After swearing at it for an extended period didn't fix the problem I decided to remove the offending area, found some timber with similar colour and grain match and glued in a patch (so to speak). Turned out well. You can still see a faint line if you look closely, but you wouldn't notice if you weren't looking for it I think.

Routed away a strip between the two dado's:
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Glued in a matching strip-

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Turned out ok I think! Repaired Front Edge:

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And from the other side showing the repaired area:

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Cheers,

Dom

[Bill Carey]

Nice clean work Dom. One of my favorite times during a build is doing the layout of the joints after milling the lumber. Going from work that requires the Brute Squad to quietly making precise layout is an enjoyable transition. Are the mortises hand cut, or did you use a mortiser?

[Frank Pratt]

Very nice stock you're working with there, and a great recovery on that oops. Hope your finger heals quickly.

[Ole Anderson]

Nice work there! I presume the cabinet will also serve for dust collection? Looking forward to seeing more pics as you move on.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Nice clean work Dom. One of my favorite times during a build is doing the layout of the joints after milling the lumber. Going from work that requires the Brute Squad to quietly making precise layout is an enjoyable transition. Are the mortises hand cut, or did you use a mortiser?


Thanks Bill. I agree that the peace and quiet of layout is very enjoyable :).

The mortises were cut with a Jet chisel mortiser. I love this machine. I'm not a fan of hand chopping mortises - it doesn't give me the same enjoyment as most other hand tool only processes.

Cheers,

Dom

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

After cutting dado's in the legs, I notched the horizontal dividers to fit, leaving about 20mm of overlapping material to dovetail to the legs. I then cut dovetails on the ends of the dividers, transferred the dovetail to the legs and cut the matching sockets. This was done with hand saws and a chisel, but I used a forstner bit to hog out some waste from the sockets. I also cut dado's in the legs to accept 12mm marine ply panels to fill the sides and rear of the case.

I then milled up and cut some additional pieces to create web frames for the two lower drawers and a heap of dividers between the front and rear legs to facilitate 3 small drawers either side of the central router box. These will all be fitted with loose tenon joinery (Domino) as the joints aren't critical and using the Domino saved me some serious time. The web frame won't be glued at the rear to facilitate some expansion / contraction of the legs.

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Cheers,

Dom

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Then another dry fit.

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This is where I'm at to this point. Once my finger heals enough I'll continue the build. I need to box-in the central cavity, fit some ducting for dust collection, put some more rails in for the top drawers to run on, glue up, fit some adjustable feet to the cabinet, make a door, make and fit drawers, apply finish, and then fit all of the hardware. I'll actually probably leave the drawers to last and make them after I have the rest up and running.

Cheers, Dom

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Nice work there! I presume the cabinet will also serve for dust collection? Looking forward to seeing more pics as you move on.

Yeah, the plan is to build a box around the router as part of the cabinet and then run dust collection to that, as well as running a hose to the fence as well.

Cheers,

Dom

[Bill Carey]

Looking good. Take care of that finger - don't you hate it when you don't know you're cut till you get blood on the unfinished piece??

You are motivating me to rebuild my 6 year old POS router table.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Looking good. Take care of that finger - don't you hate it when you don't know you're cut till you get blood on the unfinished piece??

You are motivating me to rebuild my 6 year old POS router table.

Oh I knew I was cut immediately unfortunately haha - it was fairly violent. I knew I was doing the wrong thing but had gotten away with it for a couple of pieces and only needed to get through two more lol. I basically fed my finger straight into a 1/2" straight bit spinning at 22,000 rpm when the bit grabbed and pulled the piece and my hand in (and yes, I was an idiot doing a climb-cut whilst holding a 1.5" strip of wood and the router by hand cutting a 1/4" deep by 1/2" dado - not my smartest moment. If only I had a router table lol).

Cheers,

Dom

[Frank Pratt]

So, is that a router table, or a piece of fine furniture you're building there? I thought my router cabinet was nice, but you have put me to shame.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Very nice stock you're working with there, and a great recovery on that oops. Hope your finger heals quickly.Thanks Frank. The stock is actually construction hardwood from a big box store. Just a bit of sorting to find these bits :).

[Bill Carey]

......... If only I had a router table lol).

Cheers,

Dom

Ya, if only... At least your sense of humor is intact.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

So, is that a router table, or a piece of fine furniture you're building there? I thought my router cabinet was nice, but you have put me to shame.Haha. To be honest I started out thinking quick, robust and simple. Being familiar and happy with mortise and tenon construction I immediately go to solid timber... then here we are. I am also using this as a learning opportunity for some new techniques for me - so I don't have to worry if things go awry. Also, to be honest, I am not good at tailoring effort to be commensurate with the required outcome. I find I often spend effort in the wrong areas - both within a build and between builds. So i'll spend a heap of time getting a detail right that isn't seen for example and then skimp on something easy that would make a big impact. Just broken that way I guess.Cheers, Dom

[Jim Andrew]

I also built a solid oak router table cabinet. The top is 2 layers of solid ash, finished all surfaces. Showed it to my wife, and she thought i should move it into the house.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

I also built a solid oak router table cabinet. The top is 2 layers of solid ash, finished all surfaces. Showed it to my wife, and she thought i should move it into the house.Hi Jim,Did she tell you to take it out after you turned on the router and started running through 100ft of tongue and groove ? Haha. Cheers, Dom

[Tom Bender]

Will you connect the D/C to the left or right side? Will you switch it when you rearrange the shop someday? Easy to plan for that now.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Will you connect the D/C to the left or right side? Will you switch it when you rearrange the shop someday? Easy to plan for that now.Hi Tom,Yes very good point. I was going to run out the left side to suit my foreseable placement, but I guess it's possible that the right side may suit more in tbe future. Perhaps I should go both sides and cap the unused side. I'll think on it.Thanks for bringing it up.I was going to run 6" into the cabinet box and then run a 4" hose out the back, ported into the router 'box', to the fence (stepping down to the 2.5" fence port). Cheers, Dom

[Jim Andrew]

It didn't go in the house.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Late update on this build.

I had a bit of a break due to the finger, but then got stuck back in.

First up I decided I would indeed run dust collection intake ports on both sides of the router cabinet just in case I ever needed to change my layout. Rather than run ducting to both sides permanently using a 90 degree T, which would reduce airflow efficiency, I went with a gentle 90 degree bend using 6 1/2" flex hose to one side and I can always change that around in a couple of minutes if I need to (which is unlikely and will only need to be done if I re-organize my shop).

I cut the 6 1/2" holes for the ducting using a shop made jig I made for my Festool router. It works really well and utilizes the Festool micro-adjuster.

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Glued up the sides and then the rest of the case. The whole thing was also given a coat of OSMO Polyx Hardwax Oil.

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I then made the main bell-mouth intake port at the bottom of the router table "box". I installed this and the walls to create the rest of the box. There is a 4" port coming out the back that will serve to direct airflow from the fence.

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More to follow.

Cheers,

Dom

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Ok, so next I fitted some BORA castors as well as some adjustable leveling feet so that I could level the table at the correct height if I decide to use it as an out-feed for my table saw (the original idea). I will of course need to remove the fence when I'm doing this. I used some threaded inserts which worked out really well and were easy to install. I've never used these before.

Then I couldn't resist putting the cast iron top and Jessem bits and pieces on to see if they fit and how they would look. Surprisingly the Jessem Fence rails aligned with holes in the cast iron top from a different supplier so I didn't need to do any modifications that I expected to have to do. I did have to remove some cast iron to allow me to secure the lift using corner bolts but this was easily achieved in 20min with a round file.

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At this point I have to say that I'm really impressed with the Jessem hardware. It's expensive, but there don't appear to be any short-cuts or cost-savings made. All the knobs or adjustors are machined stainless steel or aluminium, everything has great fit and finish and moves smoothly etc. Places I would have expected to see plastic used on cheaper priced products are still stainless or aluminium. I've pleasantly surprised.

More to follow.

Cheers,

Dom

[Patrick Walsh]

That is by far the nicest router table I have ever seen.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

That is by far the nicest router table I have ever seen.

Thanks Pat! :)

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Also, I'm after a bit of advice please. I have the opportunity to buy a 1/4 hp power feeder with 3 rollers and 4 speeds at clearance from $999- to $399- at the moment and thought it might be a good match for this router table. I want to make some doors soon and will be using large cutters . I though that it might also allow for climb cutting to reduce tearout on interlocked grain woods like Sapele and some of our Australian natives. Good idea? Power feeders too aggresive for a router table? Would a larger 1/2 or 3/4 horse actually be better?

The feeder has a range of speeds from 17ft/min to about 33ft / min. The motor i'm using is the ubiquitous 2 1/2 hp round body 240v motor.

Cheers, Dom

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

The next step was to make a door to seal up the dust collection box.

I figured I'd give the hand tools and skills a bit of a workout/practice on the door so cut all of the joinery by hand. I used Tasmanian Blackwood for the door and will use the same timber for the drawers.


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Very happy with the fit of the mortise and tenon joinery - here's a little clip if you have Instagram (also please let me know if linking to this is not allowed - I couldn't see anything about it in the forum rules). You'll have to swipe across to the video.


https://www.instagram.com/p/B7eouSDA3Mi/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet



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Used some nice quality brass hinges from Gerner Hinges - nice and smooth, no slop. Very happy. Haven't decided on draw / door pull design yet.

Cheers,

Dom

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

To bring this thread completely up to speed I also made a modified dust shroud for the Jessem fence so that I didn't have to step down the 4" dust hose to 2 1/4" and to hopefully get a little more airflow in the process.

I used some acrylic I had left over from another project - the stuff is so easy to work with.

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It seems to work great! Plenty of airflow and on the first test I didn't get any dust escaping at all. Again, link to a 20s clip showing a test cut with the DC on.


https://www.instagram.com/p/B71nWJbAYHw/?igshid=101kyi472umah

Cheers, Dom

[Bob Riefer]

Wow, really great work and write up! Can you tell me more about working with the acrylic?

[Ole Anderson]

That is one sweet router table. Furniture grade work there Dom.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Haha. To be honest I started out thinking quick, robust and simple. Being familiar and happy with mortise and tenon construction I immediately go to solid timber... then here we are. I am also using this as a learning opportunity for some new techniques for me - so I don't have to worry if things go awry. Also, to be honest, I am not good at tailoring effort to be commensurate with the required outcome. I find I often spend effort in the wrong areas - both within a build and between builds. So i'll spend a heap of time getting a detail right that isn't seen for example and then skimp on something easy that would make a big impact. Just broken that way I guess.Cheers, Dom


Wow, really great work and write up! Can you tell me more about working with the acrylic?

Thanks Bob,

Not to much to say about the acrylic. It cuts easily with bandsaw, table saw, jig saw or fret saw. Edges sand easily on a belt sander. You can heat it and bend it easily - a few minutes in the oven at about 160deg C works well. It also glues really well with the correct glue - sets extremely strong but tacks quickly so you only need to hold it together briefly with a little pressure. Very handy for this sort of thing.

Cheers, Dom

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

That is one sweet router table. Furniture grade work there Dom.

Thanks Ole! Some stuff is good practice for future furniture projects.

Cheers, Dom

[Bob Riefer]

Thanks Bob,

Not to much to say about the acrylic. It cuts easily with bandsaw, table saw, jig saw or fret saw. Edges sand easily on a belt sander. You can heat it and bend it easily - a few minutes in the oven at about 160deg C works well. It also glues really well with the correct glue - sets extremely strong but tacks quickly so you only need to hold it together briefly with a little pressure. Very handy for this sort of thing.

Cheers, Dom

very good to know! I’ll have to give this a try as I’d like to increase hose size to 4” at my router table

[Jeff Monson]

super nice build! I will agree this is one of the nicest router tables I've seen.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Sorry i haven't kept up with updates. Nearly there with this. I believe I was about to start making drawers
I decided on half blind dovetails with contrasting Blackwood drawer fronts. I batched the top 7 drawers and will do the two larger bottom drawers afterwards.

Tools at the ready -

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Tails first. I gang cut all the pairs.

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Transfer to pin boards.

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Cut all the pin boards-

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Batching processes really saved some time

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Test fit

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Planed all the drawer bottom grooves.

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...

Cheers, Dom

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Then test fit and glued up all the drawers. I used dowelled dado joints for the drawer backs to save time.

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Then planed the drawer sides flush and to fit within the case.

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I settled on a fairly simple design for the pulls which i feel works well for this cabinet.

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And here's where it's at. Just the two lower drawers to make.

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Let me know what you think. I'm pretty happy with how it's turning out!

Cheers, Dom

[Michael Drew]

You have skills Dom. That thing belongs in a Fine Woodworking photo shoot.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

You have skills Dom. That thing belongs in a Fine Woodworking photo shoot.

Wow, thanks for the complement Michael, much appreciated. I'm hoping to complete the last two drawers this weekend. Will be good to have it done. Hopefully I can apply some of the lessons learnt to real furniture soon.

Cheers, Dom

[Von Bickley]

That looks more like "Fine Furniture" than a router table. Beautiful work and GREAT craftsmanship.

[Bill Carey]

That looks more like "Fine Furniture" than a router table. Beautiful work and GREAT craftsmanship.


2nd that, Dom - beautiful work. After looking at your router table I had to go down to the shop and throw a sheet over my router table. I didn't want it to see yours and feel bad. Nice job.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

2nd that, Dom - beautiful work. After looking at your router table I had to go down to the shop and throw a sheet over my router table. I didn't want it to see yours and feel bad. Nice job.

Thanks a lot Von and Bill. Nice one Bill, haha.

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Finished the last two drawers on the weekend. Glad to see this project essentially finished.

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Will upload complete pics tomorrow.

Hope everyone is looking after themselves and those around them during this crazy time.

Cheers

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Here is the finished router table. Looking forward to putting it to use and moving onto other projects. Things are looking pretty bleak at the moment but making stuff still brings me some comfort - hope many can still find some solice in making and continue to have the ability to do so.

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Cheers, Dom

[Von Bickley]

It looks too pretty to use... LOL

[Ron Bontz]

My goodness. A router cabinet with half blinds. Very nice. Who's router table set up is that? A curious question. Why did you not put ventilation holes in the top and bottom of the door? The top holes allow air to be pulled past the router assisting in keeping it cool. The lower holes with a deflector over them in side the door help blow the chips back away from the door and toward the vacuum.
2nd thought. Just ship the whole thing to me and I will take care of it for you and return it. Maybe someday.:D:D

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

My goodness. A router cabinet with half blinds. Very nice. Who's router table set up is that? A curious question. Why did you not put ventilation holes in the top and bottom of the door? The top holes allow air to be pulled past the router assisting in keeping it cool. The lower holes with a deflector over them in side the door help blow the chips back away from the door and toward the vacuum.
2nd thought. Just ship the whole thing to me and I will take care of it for you and return it. Maybe someday.:D:D

Hi Ron,

The lift and fence is Jessem, the top is a cast iron unit from a local retailer here in Australia but seemingly a generic, asian sourced item that i'm sure is sold under numerous brands.

I didn't put any holes in the door because it doesn't need any. The 5HP Clearvue and the 6 inch ducting to the router, along with a 4" duct to the fence pulls plenty of air. I've tried various bits from 1/2" straight bits to tongue and groove to large rail and stile for 2" thick doors and I get no dust or even chips getting away and the cabinet is perfectly clean inside. Maybe there will be some bit/cut combinations that choke the airflow down too much but it doesn't look like it at the moment.

So thanks for the generous offer but you won't need to trouble yourself drilling holes for me :). Haha.

Cheers, Dom