Simple & Cheap Router Table

[Irish]

I've wanted to get a router table for several years now for a few small projects, but couldn't justify spending a few hundred bucks on a tool that wouldn't get used a whole lot. In addition, my "workshop" is pretty small, and I don't have a dedicated area where I could put another permanent piece of equipment. So, after scouring the web for different designs, I came up with this:

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7049.jpg

Here are some more pics of the assembly - overall it wasn't too hard of a project. The table top is made of 3/4" thick melamine MDF, so I have a nice, flat work surface that workpieces will easily slide on. First step was cutting out the opening for the router plate and creating a ledge for it to sit in. I did this with a router:

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_6562.jpg

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_6561.jpg

The router plate that I bought came with this hardware - they are threaded inserts with plastic screws that enable you to make fine adjustments to the ledge height, so you can ensure the plate is sitting flush with the table surface.

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_6564.jpg

My PC 690 router attached to the new base plate:

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_6566.jpg

The table sits on top of one of those fold up WorkMate benches, so I can store it away when it's not in use. I actually started using it at this stage, I needed it to make the riser for my new poker table. Afterward, I built a simple frame for the table top with some scrap wood, so it sits at a comfortable height on the WorkMate:

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7068.jpg

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7069.jpg

You could stop at this point and have a pretty functional router table for all of about $50. I went one more step further and built a nice fence for the table with a dust collection port, as I had knew I had another project coming up that would generate a lot of chips & dust. The fence is simple, and I went with the melamine MDF again to ensure it was flat and smooth. It's about 6" wide and 6" high, braced with some extra 3/4" plywood I had laying around. The most important part about making the fence is make sure the vertical leg is perfectly perpendicular to the table surface. I cut a half circle in the middle to allow for larger router bits. I also screwed on a 1/4" thick piece of plywood between the two middle braces and cut a hole sized to accept my shop vac hose for dust collection. It worked out really well:

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7051.jpg

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7064.jpg

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7052.jpg

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7050.jpg

I installed a few t-tracks in the top of the table to secure the fence in place. You could just as well use clamps, but this little addition makes setting up the fence really fast. Well worth the $20 investment IMHO. The grooves are routed with 3/4" straight bit (or you could use a dado blade on a table saw), and the track screws right in. Add a few holes in the fence for the bolt to protrude through and you're done:

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7065.jpg

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7067.jpg

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd106/irishpenguin75/forums/IMG_7063.jpg

Altogether, including the fence, it cost me about $80:

$40 for the router plate
$20 for two sheets of 3' x 16" melamine mdf
$20 for the T-track kit
free - scrap pieces of plywood & screws for frame

[Richard Cranium]

Very nice job!

[Quads]

Beauty!

[Randy2310]

great success and awesome work. And yeah I don't know how the fuck you have half of what you do in that basement. It's good you're not claustrophobic.

Any router work I need done I'm just bringing to your house!

[Wedge Rock]

Very nice, sir.

[The Rope]

awesome! nice job. where did you find the plans? Or did you improvise?

[Irish]

awesome! nice job. where did you find the plans? Or did you improvise?

There are several different designs/plans floating around, mine was kind of a mishmosh of several different ones. The site below was a really useful one, it's got links to almost 30 different free sites around the net:

ToolCrib.coms Ultimate Guide: 28 Free Router Table Plans | ToolCrib.com Blog (http://www.toolcrib.com/blog/2007/03/03/toolcribcoms-ultimate-guide-to-free-router-table-plans/)

[Irish]

great success and awesome work. And yeah I don't know how the fuck you have half of what you do in that basement. It's good you're not claustrophobic.

Any router work I need done I'm just bringing to your house!

I make do with what I have. :) You should see it when it's really crowded... ;)

[The Rope]

Danke