What do you use your router table for?

[Christopher Charles]

Hi all,

I've a hybrid workshop and am heavy on the hand-tool side. But have an itch to upgrade my router table set up and have some cabinet projects looming. I don't use my current one all that much because it's a pain. I have an older 2 1/4 Bosch plunge router mounted to a plate that adjusts from underneath and don't trust it to keep depth at this stage.

So I'm wondering if it is worth it to me to upgrade with a heavier router and/or a lift (i.e., 3HP with Incra Master Lift). Some perspectives on how folks use their tables, thoughts on lifts, and how much difference an upgrade to 3 HP makes would help me spend (or save!) my money.

I did have an incra ts system with wonder fence that I sold/am selling. I liked it a lot but got a new table saw and rearranged the shop. And am shifting to metric. Will almost certainly end up with a dedicated router station.

Many thanks,
Chris

[Bryan Hall]

I don't use mine a ton. Pretty much just T&G cutting for cabinet doors and shelves.

[Michael Schuch]

I find I use my shapers much more than my router table. I paid considerably less for both of my used shapers than a new top of the line fancy lift router table would have cost. After I added a power feeder to my bigger shaper I hardly use my router table at all.

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I paid $100 for this Walker Turner shaper 20+ years ago and have gotten a lot of use out of it. To me it is easier to use a shaper than a router table and I usually get better results.

[Mitch schiffer]

I had a older frued router table that was always a pain to use. I found that when I upgraded to a jessem set up I used it much more since it was more user-friendly. I haven't really had a issue with power on my medium sized router but if you are running large bits such as a panel raising bit a larger router may be more useful. I have since purchased a nice shaper so I don't use the router table as much as I used to. As to the shaper vs router table I believe a shaper is more useful but the cutters can get quite expensive. If you plan to do a lot of repetitive work I would highly recommend you look into a small power feeder for the router table. I have gotten much better results after installing the power feeder on my router table when it come to things like t&g or cabinet doors.

[Thomas Wilson]

Raised panels and cope and stick joints for cabinet doors. I used to make beaded face frames with a molding cutter on a table saw. I can’t use the molding head on my SawStop so I bought a set of Kreg beaded face frame bits for future projects. I make most of my cabinet molding (nothing complicated) on the router table usually.

I sometimes use the router table for dadoes and rabbets but mostly those are easier on the table saw.

I use it a lot.

[Brian Runau]

I have a Kreg and love the under mount and ease of adjusting the fence and height compared to manually adjusting from below. Brian

[Derek Cohen]

Hi all,

I've a hybrid workshop and am heavy on the hand-tool side. But have an itch to upgrade my router table set up and have some cabinet projects looming. I don't use my current one all that much because it's a pain. I have an older 2 1/4 Bosch plunge router mounted to a plate that adjusts from underneath and don't trust it to keep depth at this stage.

So I'm wondering if it is worth it to me to upgrade with a heavier router and/or a lift (i.e., 3HP with Incra Master Lift). Some perspectives on how folks use their tables, thoughts on lifts, and how much difference an upgrade to 3 HP makes would help me spend (or save!) my money.

I did have an incra ts system with wonder fence that I sold/am selling. I liked it a lot but got a new table saw and rearranged the shop. And am shifting to metric. Will almost certainly end up with a dedicated router station.

Many thanks,
Chris

Chris, my methods are close to yours - good use of power tools, but defer to hand tools by preference.

My router table use is small in comparison to other power tools. I would rather use a plough plane when grooving, or a saw and chisels when dadoing. All my dovetailing is by hand. Tenons get done either on a bandsaw or tenon saw, while mortices are either a router table fixture or mortice chisel.

This does not leave a lot of need for a router table. Yet I took the time to re-build mine. Partly because it does get used - in the main, for edge work where a hand plane is not the best choice, or bevels where the work piece does not suit a table saw. Since my furniture pieces are one-offs, and time is not a big factor, rebates are usually made with a hand plane. However, where the work piece is awkward to grip in a vise, or the wood grain does not have accommodating direction, a router table is there to be used.

I built my router table to a fairly high level but using parts which made it economical:

http://www.inthewoodshop.com/Powered%20Tools%20and%20Machinery/RouterTableAdventure.html (http://www.inthewoodshop.com/Powered%20Tools%20and%20Machinery/RouterTableAdventure.html)

The build was enjoyable, however I could not justify spending more than I did.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Greg Quenneville]

I used my router table for far more than I should have*. Now that I have a shaper it sits unloved in the corner. You can buy a used shaper, often with some tooling, often with a power feeder, for less than a good router table set-up. Mine cost $1000.00

I will keep my router table for little chores like round-overs etc, but really probably just reach for a hand plane.

*I built a new old house using just the router table…25 doors, 32 shutters, wainscoting, some mouldings. I used the shaper for all the baseboards, handrails, stair nosings etc. The difference is night and day better than a router table for speed and quality of finish.

[Warren Lake]

I put my coffee on it when I had one. Top was laminate and it didnt leave a ring like cast iron.

there will always be things routers can do that shapers cant, like work into small radius things where a shaper cutter head cant go. I like using routers and trimmers hand held so I can climb cut. Table is good as it helps stop you from tilting at times when there is not lots of part for router support.

[Richard Coers]

What don't I do on a router table would be a better question. The only reason not to use a router table over hand held is when it becomes a task to lift and move the stock on the router table.

[Warren Lake]

or climb cutting cause you want to be close to 100 percent sure no blow out

[Bob Jones 5443]

I see I'm in the minority here. I use the router table for most routing applications. An exception is making mortises: for that I use a jig after Young Je's design (YouTube), with a 1-3/4 HP plunge router.

I find the precision and safety of the table convenient. I upgraded a couple of years ago from the Porter-Cable 690 that had been in my table for ~18 years (with no lift) to the monstrous and now archaic Porter-Cable 7518 3-1/4 HP. I think I found the last one, haha. It's a beast and greatly enhances the process. Nothing I throw at it bogs it down. (Maybe it's not that much of a difference if you already have the midsized router.)

The star of the setup is the Mast-R-Lift II. Mine is the JessEm branded version (also available with Incra's imprimatur, identical innards but fancier throat plates). I can adjust the bit height within about 0.001" with confidence (the lift's markings are 0.002" apart, but they're spaced almost 2 mm from each other). Before installing the lift, adjusting height was a primitive trial-and-error affair, emphasis on error. The z dimension is now a breeze!

Both the lift precision and the hog power are a joy every time I fire it up, which is nearly every time I want an edge profile. I'll grab one of the much lighter 690s and hand-hold it only if I need to profile something too large to fit on the table.

[Warren Lake]

ive had really good luck with those large porter cables, several worked very hard for years and still work nice.

[glenn bradley]

My router table is probably the second or third most important (and used) power tool in the shop. Joinery and edge treatments are the main focus for me in that order.

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Mine is colocated with the tablesaw station and the additional table area is shared by both.

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Router tables, like a bandsaw or a jointer . . . there are folks out there who never use them or drastically under-use them. I wouldn't be without one and someone else may wonder what all the fuss is about. What you do and your approach to doing it will define the importance of any tool or technique.

[Darrell Bade]

I use it for all routing unless it can only be done with a router by hand. Never felt I needed a shaper for what
I build. I have a nice table with the PC 7518 and while the setup was stupid expensive I like it. Before this table I had a couple cheapies for 25 years with a mid power Bosch plunge router in it, still got the router and it still works,
I always liked the micro adjust on the plunge in the table.

[Tom Bender]

Occasionally I make a special purpose face pad for my router. This one it replaced the table for most of my work. It mounts in the vice in a few seconds. For panel work it functions hand held.

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When a fence is needed I just clamp on a piece of wood. The surface is peel and stick vinyl flooring. For a mostly hand tool shop this is enough.

[Ron Citerone]

I have access to a router table with a lift at my group shop. I use it a lot and love the results and the acuuracy. I had a home made router table without a lift and found it to be time consuming and frustrating for making joints.

[Christopher Charles]

Thanks all for the good replies, keep them coming :) Here's my current set up-now fenceless after selling the table saw. While perfectly workable, could use some improvement :)

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Derek, thanks for the link, I had missed that one.

Glenn, I really like the table that rolls up to the left side of the table saw. I had the table above as an insert to the left of the blade on my old table saw but can't do that with my SS PCS and I don't have room on the right side.

I'm likely to take an approach similar to Derek's. I have a PC 690 as well, so may buy a lift, fab a fence and then upgrade the motor down the line. Unfortunately, the PC routers aren't available anymore, the Milwaukee 3 HP routers are pushing $400 and there don't seem to be many other reasonable long term options that I've found.

Best,
Chris

[Jim Dwight]

My router table is home made. The layout is like Norm, on new yankee workshop, used. The motor is in the middle, "drawers" (more like sliding trays) for bits on either side and a large drawer on the bottom. Dust collection from the router compartment and from the fence. The router compartment suction point is up near the collet so the DC does not fight the fan of the router motor. I incorporated a lift based upon plans in an old American Woodworker. It has 2 1 inch diameter machined steel bars attached to the 3/4 plywood back of the router table. The carriage for the router motor has oilite bearings that slide on the steel bars. It moves up and down using a piece of 5/16 all thread so 1 revolution is 1/16 inch. I like that but you could put in a metric all thread if you prefer. I initially had an old 13.3 amp R-500 Ryobi plunge router motor. After more than 10 years use it melted down the bearing area and I put in a PC 7518. It's a much nicer motor with lots of power. With my home made lift switching motors was just a matter of making a new clamping block for the motor to attach to the carriage.

I used to use a different setup in the side table of my table saw sometimes with a PC 690 motor on it. I have 4 bases so I just left one on the table and moved a motor to it when I wanted to use the router table. It worked fine and I made cope and stick doors with it but I had to take 3 or 4 passes to do the raised panels. Cope and stick was one cut, however. If you are willing to make an additional cut or two when you are removing a lot of material, I think a mid-sized router works fine.

I use the router table when the piece I need to route is relatively small. Big stuff I do with a hand held (I even have a fixed base for the 7518 but I've never used it). Recently it's been mostly making up loose tenon stock for my domino. I need to get busy and make a buffet, however, and if it includes raised panel doors those will be done on the router table. If I have only drawers, they will probably have a bevel around the front of the face but those I normally do on the table saw where I have more choice of angle.

[William Hodge]

I have a router set up under plywood on tiny cabinet. It's a light duty Porter Cable router. I am still able to bend my knees, so adjustment is no problem.
I use it for small curved moldings, using custom made router bits. The bits match the corrugated back cutters on the shaper. It gets awkward running a 5" long piece by a 4" diameter molding head on a shaper. The router is perfect. I put a baby stock feeder on it, and tilt the feeder so that one wheel feeds the work.

[Michael Schuch]

My father built this fence many years ago for his router table. It is a very simple but effective design.

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The toggle clamps go under the table top and clamp the fence very securely but are also very quick to reposition.

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https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?228109-Simple-aluminum-extrusion-router-table-fence&highlight=fence

[Christopher Charles]

Michael,

That's a good looking fence and plan to make something similar.

[Zachary Hoyt]

472311472312472313472314I had one of those tabletop Craftsman router tables that are marginally better than nothing, but I had to clamp it down to use it or it would walk off the workbench. A couple of years ago or so I made a folding router table that mounts to the end of the rolling workbench. It is held horizontal by a swing-away support, or I can swing it down below the table when not in use, or I can swing it up above the table to adjust bit height, change bits, etc. Online Metals is still selling off more of these 18-1/4" square by 3/8" thick 6061 aluminum sheets at a very good price. I'll attach some pictures.

[mreza Salav]

Many years ago built a good router table, with a lift, and a big router. Good fence. I have used it EXTENSIVELY over the years (especially when do it a ton of work when we were building our house). Many times I had a feeder mounted on it to do the repeated work. I do have a shaper too but don't use it as often....

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[Patrick Kane]

I have a 5hp shaper, and mostly use the router table for tight radius template routing, or when workpieces are very small. You really dont want to manually feed a 10-12" workpiece through the shaper--atleast, i have no desire to do that. This is pretty safe and controlled on the router table using pushblocks, but would force me to make a specialty workholding jig for the shaper. In the past, i used the router table for mortises on smaller workpieces, edge treatments, and rail/stile stick and cope cuts for cabinets. Im definitely in the group that under utilizes the router table, even though ive had two separate Jessem setups that were very nice. I prefer dados and rebates on the table saw--tooling last longer, feedrate isnt comparable--and i also prefer to use my OF2200 router with an edge guide whenever possible for mortises. Personally, i wouldnt spend $1-1,500 on a tricked out router table setup.

[Jared Sankovich]

I put my coffee on it when I had one. Top was laminate and it didnt leave a ring like cast iron.

there will always be things routers can do that shapers cant, like work into small radius things where a shaper cutter head cant go. I like using routers and trimmers hand held so I can climb cut. Table is good as it helps stop you from tilting at times when there is not lots of part for router support.


The only thing i can remember using a router table for (vs handheld or shaper) is glass rebates on doors if I don't have a head that cuts them when sticking.

[Bruce Mack]

I never got a proper dust collector so between the noise and the mess I’ve used the homemade table for only inset lids on small boxes. It trims the overhang/inset faster and perhaps more precisely than my shoulder plane. With the small lids I used a foam push block or two. I’ve found this upside down routing to be the most threatening of my machine woodworking.

[Christopher Charles]

Mreza, that's a pretty flash set up-is that laminate or veneer? Thanks for posting because I will plan for a way to add a feeder. I wouldn't buy one solely for routing but have been eyeing for the bandsaw for cutting veneers.

I also considered a shaper but most do smaller scale work like boxes. Very handy for rabbeting the back of through-dovetailed boxes to accept the bottoms/backs on a router table. A bit exciting when small, as Bruce notes, but better than when hand held in my experience.

I have a lift on order and will stick to my PC router until I need to swing a big bit (and have an excuse to drop the $$$ for a 3 hp motor).

Please keep 'em coming for inspiration!

Best,
Chris

[mreza Salav]

Mreza, that's a pretty flash set up-is that laminate or veneer? Thanks for posting because I will plan for a way to add a feeder. I wouldn't buy one solely for routing but have been eyeing for the bandsaw for cutting veneers.

I also considered a shaper but most do smaller scale work like boxes. Very handy for rabbeting the back of through-dovetailed boxes to accept the bottoms/backs on a router table. A bit exciting when small, as Bruce notes, but better than when hand held in my experience.

I have a lift on order and will stick to my PC router until I need to swing a big bit (and have an excuse to drop the $$$ for a 3 hp motor).

Please keep 'em coming for inspiration!

Best,
Chris

Router table top is laminate. Those pictures are when I was making our interior doors (31) for our house and all the mouldins:

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I have used this (Steff) feeder on shaper, router table, bandsaw, jointer when I had a ton of work to do. I made a mount that can transfer from machine to machine.

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[Jacques Gagnon]

Router table top is laminate. Those pictures are when I was making our interior doors (31) for our house and all the mouldins:



Very nice design and ingenious adaptation for the feeder.

OP:

I have used the router table for tasks such as edge profile, rabbets, dadoes, sliding dovetails, cope and stick. Went from a shop-made panel to a Veritas steel table to a Jessem Mast-R-Lift. I love the precision and ease of use already mentioned above.

In the process of learning how to use shaper/feeder approaches. I have difficulty imagining how to safely process smaller pieces on the shaper, so the router table is still called upon.

[Roger Feeley]

What don't I do on a router table would be a better question. The only reason not to use a router table over hand held is when it becomes a task to lift and move the stock on the router table.

I resort to handheld if there’s a bad warp of some sort so the board won’t lay flat.

after the drill press and the table saw, the router table is probably my most frequently used machine.

[Rod Sheridan]

I don’t have one, I have a tilting spindle shaper with a sliding table.

I do have a couple of electric routers that get used every few years for something, and a router plane that is used much more frequently

Regards, Rod

[Jim Becker]

My router table gets "general utility" use, honestly, but even with the CNC, there are still some operations that are more appropriate to run on the router table, such as edging, grooving and other treatments of long stock and certain kinds of furniture components.

[Mike Ontko]

I have the Bosch RA1171 benchtop router table and use it with a Bosch 1617EVS 2-1/4 router and the Bosch RA1165 under table lift. It's a pretty basic setup but will do most of what a serious hobbiest would want to use a router table for.

I've used it for cutting edge profiles and rabbets. But the main reason I wanted it was for my barnwood bed project (https://sawmillcreek.org/album.php?albumid=902), where I created what look like 4x4 posts by using a lapped miter bit set that I bought from Infinity.

https://sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=381876&d=1521487287

[jack duren]

I use mine for cabinet doors…