Workbench Router Table

[gee-dub]

I have been telling myself to setup a temporary mini router table for some time. When I batch things like door frames, box lids, picture frames and such a second profile for the light work could save me some swap over time. We're not talking about anything production level, just a helping hand. I have the making for a second router table but have become selfish with my shop space and am unwilling to commit. A small table for the Bosh Colt seemed like the answer.

I have a spare router fence that dad used to use on his drill press but a shop made would do as well. I need four boards of equal thickness and with at least one perpendicular side and end.

I use a hinge mortising bit. The bit diameter should match the plate's corner radius. This saves a lot of fussy fitting. I am making my own plate so I will just run the 1/2".

Stick your plate on your top in the position you want it. Then double stick tape the boards as shown and remove the plate. This method is shown in many magazines and online sources so I won't get too detailed.

I make my first pass shallow since I don't know this scrap laminated material that I was gifted. It seems to machine well.




Drill some access holes and jig saw out the center leaving a nice rabbet to hold the plate.

Not my best jig saw work but a Shinto rasp takes care of that quick and easy.

 

I drill bolt holes at my dog hole spacing and cut dowels. The dowels are drilled slightly off center. This will make sense later.

I meant to mention that you can see I only used the very finest quality "whatever's on hand" plywood for the substrate.

 

I am using a funny shaped washer that I had in the misc. can for the underside of the bench.

The trusty auto-adjust dado jig comes into play.

It uses the material that is going to fit in the dado for setup so things always fit nicely.

Here is an example of drilling the dowel hole slightly off center. This creates an eccentric fit. I twist the dowel untill it drops into the shallow counterbore, then twist back and it locks into place. This keeps them from dropping off while I am flipping the table over.

Here's one of the washers and knobs in place.

There will be a little structure under the table that will fight against the leverage of using the table.

I will come back and show that because I am already late for something.

 

I think there is enough here for you to get the general idea.  I will just drill a 1" hole in it and hang it on the cleat-peg rack when not in use.

 

[wtnhighlander]

@gee-dub, I missed something about the dowel holes. What are they off-center in relation to? The dog holes in the bench?

[gee-dub]

On 2/26/2023 at 10:44 AM, wtnhighlander said:

@gee-dub, I missed something about the dowel holes. What are they off-center in relation to? The dog holes in the bench?

There is a 3/4" counterbore about 1/8" deep in the underside of the top.  There is a through hole just off center in this counterbore that goes through the table.  There is also a counterbore on the top to accept the carriage bolt but that is not important here. A matching lightly off-center hole goes through the dowel.  This makes the dowel turn like a cam. 

When it is lined up the dowel drops into the counterbore.  When it is twisted it goes off-center and binds in the counterbore.  This just keeps me from having to fuss with the dowels falling off while flipping the table.  You could also just hot glue them in but I was "designing" on the fly.  By "designing" I mean flying by the seat of my pants

[Dave H]

On 2/26/2023 at 10:52 AM, gee-dub said:

  By "designing" I mean flying by the seat of my pants

I enjoy that kind of design. Make due with what you have and some how make it work. I like the cam solution It's better than what I would have done, like make some ears to clamp it to the table

[gee-dub]

Here's the supporting structure.  I had to wait to get the clamps off to get a good pic.  I stole this support method from a Paul Manning article in Fine Woodworking magazine.

At any rate, it hangs out here when not in use.

 

[RichardA]

On 2/26/2023 at 12:52 PM, gee-dub said:

There is a 3/4" counterbore about 1/8" deep in the underside of the top.  There is a through hole just off center in this counterbore that goes through the table.  There is also a counterbore on the top to accept the carriage bolt but that is not important here. A matching lightly off-center hole goes through the dowel.  This makes the dowel turn like a cam. 

When it is lined up the dowel drops into the counterbore.  When it is twisted it goes off-center and binds in the counterbore.  This just keeps me from having to fuss with the dowels falling off while flipping the table.  You could also just hot glue them in but I was "designing" on the fly.  By "designing" I mean flying by the seat of my pants

I've been told that most of my jeans have a very washed out look that comes from flying by the seat of my pants.

[gee-dub]

I don't mean to keep peppering this thread but I already have to declare this idea a success. I am batching out a bunch of picture frames which means I have to run a lot of lineal feet of blanks. The ability to run two profiles was really a time and effort saver overall.

Rabbet at one table and chamfer at the other.

[Coop]

Is there a reason you made the rabbet on the router table as opposed to cutting them on the ts? 

[Tom King]

I also use a lot of eyeball engineering, as well as designing by pants seat.

[gee-dub]

On 2/28/2023 at 6:37 PM, Coop said:

Is there a reason you made the rabbet on the router table as opposed to cutting them on the ts? 

No.  I do both.  I just happened to have a FTG blade setup on the tablesaw for the inlay recess this time around.  Sometimes I do the recess on the router table with a straight bit and the rabbet on the tablesaw.  The inlay happened to be an odd width so the tablesaw with the DRO was easier for this particular set.