t-bone Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 hey everyone, just wondering if anyone uses the incra router tables i am thinking about buying one,watched the vidio seems like a solid investment. I just want some reviews on them. you can see them on woodcraft.com 143163 item # any help would be great t-bone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vic Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 t-bone, a friend has one and love it. If you need repeatability, it's a great way to go. I use the router table almost exclusively for pattern routing, so it would have little value to me. It all depends on the work you do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
man of wood Posted April 10, 2011 Report Share Posted April 10, 2011 I found that making your own is a lot better. First, you can make it the size you want, have all the fetchers of all the the router tables out there ( the ones you like and no over kill) it will fit you router,it will be a project, you will love it more etc................... and the best thing........ if you do it right, you can make it for at least 87% cheaper than buying one. Thomas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick LoDico Posted April 11, 2011 Report Share Posted April 11, 2011 I've made a cabinet type table for the first time around, then put it under the wing of my saw, but bought the Woodpecker Incra table, top and fence this time. I kinda like this one best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sj2494 Posted May 12, 2011 Report Share Posted May 12, 2011 i have one and the magnetic plates on the top are so much better then screws and the positioner is great and if you have a tritan router like i do "little modification is required" you have to drill one hole works better then the old sears i had Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim0625 Posted May 26, 2011 Report Share Posted May 26, 2011 hey everyone, just wondering if anyone uses the incra router tables i am thinking about buying one,watched the vidio seems like a solid investment. I just want some reviews on them. you can see them on woodcraft.com 143163 item # any help would be great t-bone T-Bone!! I gots one! I just bought the table saw fence system with the router wonder fence set up. I ordered a router fence but it came dinged up so I'm having it refunded. I'm excited though because I have a new Master lift2 and a new Makita router for it....man I'm excited but so far I've used the table saw some and the fence system is amazing. Once it's calibrated, slide it to 5 inches, lock it down and CUT! No more test cuts, no more bumping and measuring...you need 5 inches "plus a hair?" ....ever said that? yeah me too... No more bump bump measure, bump bump measure....lock down...crap...a little short....noooo...just grab the Incra's fine adjustment and click 10 thousandths into it, 20, 30...click click click and you're there AND it's repeatable if you need to cut the next board. Watch the guy named Mark with Incra on You Tube with the beard. He makes that look so easy...now he's done it a few thousand times but the point is, he can cut something and get it right the FIRST time...no test cuts, no sneaking up on it. Incra system a pricey investment but I'm impressed and I think the router system will be just as impressive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nateswoodworks Posted May 27, 2011 Report Share Posted May 27, 2011 Glad you like it. I have the 25" LS with all the bells and love it. I made my own cabinet and added a lift, it gets used all the time for normal routing uses and if I have a ton of dovetails to do it is a heaven sent, if I don't have a butt load I still do them by hand. Bottom line-it's awesome and I am still amaized by it's accuracy even after about 8yrs of use and I'm sure you will feel the same. Nate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeanJackson Posted May 29, 2011 Report Share Posted May 29, 2011 hey everyone, just wondering if anyone uses the incra router tables i am thinking about buying one,watched the vidio seems like a solid investment. I just want some reviews on them. you can see them on woodcraft.com 143163 item # any help would be great t-bone I have the bigger LS, with a dewalt 618 under it at the moment; just used it earlier tonight to quickly cut a box joint. It's easy, and it works. I don't have a router lift, so getting the height right takes a bit, but it's something I can upgrade another year. A+++ on this gadget, as it's the most solid made-in-America tool I've had the pleasure of owning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim0625 Posted May 29, 2011 Report Share Posted May 29, 2011 I have the bigger LS, with a dewalt 618 under it at the moment; just used it earlier tonight to quickly cut a box joint. It's easy, and it works. I don't have a router lift, so getting the height right takes a bit, but it's something I can upgrade another year. A+++ on this gadget, as it's the most solid made-in-America tool I've had the pleasure of owning. On the height Dean, I also bought a Wixey digital caliper - the one that has the larger, magnetic base that sits on the i.e. table saw table...it's nice, just place it and raise the blade or router bit for the height you want...ok...I'm a sucker for gadgets but they work! I'm thinking of building my own router table top. I'm considering gluing together 2, 3/4 pieces of ply but I'm just wondering if it will turn out level? Lowes has sheets of formica I could laminate to the ply for $45...yikes. Get this...the lady at the floor covering place gave me 4 pieces of laminate (snap together) flooring to try. I'm eyeballing them and wondering about covering the top with those! Smooth, flat..slickery...they're flooring, so wear resistant...y'all please give me feedback on all of this...gluing the 3/4 & it being level, pitfalls you see...what router table do you use?...and WHAT ABOUT THE $200 PHENOLIC TOPS? Are they worth the investment??? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeanJackson Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 On the height Dean, I also bought a Wixey digital caliper - the one that has the larger, magnetic base that sits on the i.e. table saw table...it's nice, just place it and raise the blade or router bit for the height you want...ok...I'm a sucker for gadgets but they work! I'm thinking of building my own router table top. I'm considering gluing together 2, 3/4 pieces of ply but I'm just wondering if it will turn out level? Lowes has sheets of formica I could laminate to the ply for $45...yikes. Get this...the lady at the floor covering place gave me 4 pieces of laminate (snap together) flooring to try. I'm eyeballing them and wondering about covering the top with those! Smooth, flat..slickery...they're flooring, so wear resistant...y'all please give me feedback on all of this...gluing the 3/4 & it being level, pitfalls you see...what router table do you use?...and WHAT ABOUT THE $200 PHENOLIC TOPS? Are they worth the investment??? Thanks! I used a 3/4" piece of MDF with a few supports underneath for my first router table, and it worked just fine. It didn't slide like butter, but it slid smoothly and consistently. If the plywood is smooth enough that the same amount of pushing something across it moves the workpiece the same distance every time - if no place on the surface is sticky - I'd go with the plywood. If you put supports under it so it won't warp, it should be and stay flat. I eventually went with the $200 phenolic top. It's kind of neat... but I'm still not convinced it's worth the money it cost; I don't use the router table enough to justify it, but hell, if I'm still using this table in five or ten years, it'll have been worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim0625 Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 I used a 3/4" piece of MDF with a few supports underneath for my first router table, and it worked just fine. It didn't slide like butter, but it slid smoothly and consistently. If the plywood is smooth enough that the same amount of pushing something across it moves the workpiece the same distance every time - if no place on the surface is sticky - I'd go with the plywood. If you put supports under it so it won't warp, it should be and stay flat. I eventually went with the $200 phenolic top. It's kind of neat... but I'm still not convinced it's worth the money it cost; I don't use the router table enough to justify it, but hell, if I'm still using this table in five or ten years, it'll have been worth it. My shop is unheated or cooled. Here in SC, we have a lot of high humidity from May to Oct. I'm thinking the MDF may absorb moisture and warp over time. My thoughts were 3/4 AC exterior plywood and put two thicknesses to help the stability factor and also when I cut a channel for the miter track, it will still have plenty of wood underneath. What do you think about the flooring for the top? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeanJackson Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 My shop is unheated or cooled. Here in SC, we have a lot of high humidity from May to Oct. I'm thinking the MDF may absorb moisture and warp over time. My thoughts were 3/4 AC exterior plywood and put two thicknesses to help the stability factor and also when I cut a channel for the miter track, it will still have plenty of wood underneath. What do you think about the flooring for the top? Yeah, if it's not climate controlled, MDF is a bad recommendation on my part. :-) Thick plywood should work just fine. How wide are the pieces of flooring/how smooth do you think it would make it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim0625 Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 Yeah, if it's not climate controlled, MDF is a bad recommendation on my part. :-) Thick plywood should work just fine. How wide are the pieces of flooring/how smooth do you think it would make it? Each piece of laminate is 8 x 48 inches. I have four pieces. My table saw is 27" deep (along the miter slots) so the 32" of flooring is plenty wide enough. It's very slick when you pass a piece of raw wood across it - as slick as formica would be. I've just never heard of anyone using laminate flooring for a router top. Hey, it's a wood grain finish! I'm wondering about gluing it down. Scruff it up with 100 grit and use the same glue you'd put down a piece of formica to raw wood on a counter top? Maybe a thin layer of liquid nails? I know you mostly float these laminate floors but somebody has glued one down out there. (?) What do you think Dean? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeanJackson Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 Each piece of laminate is 8 x 48 inches. I have four pieces. My table saw is 27" deep (along the miter slots) so the 32" of flooring is plenty wide enough. It's very slick when you pass a piece of raw wood across it - as slick as formica would be. I've just never heard of anyone using laminate flooring for a router top. Hey, it's a wood grain finish! I'm wondering about gluing it down. Scruff it up with 100 grit and use the same glue you'd put down a piece of formica to raw wood on a counter top? Maybe a thin layer of liquid nails? I know you mostly float these laminate floors but somebody has glued one down out there. (?) What do you think Dean? If you're facing the fence, as long as the seams in the laminate were left to right, your workpieces would never hit a speedbump on their way to the bit. I'd try liquid nails on something else first; make sure you can get it thin/even enough that the whole thing stays flat? Otherwise, maybe just use wood glue (titebond?) with an ink brayer; just not sure how you'd clamp the thing down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim0625 Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 If you're facing the fence, as long as the seams in the laminate were left to right, your workpieces would never hit a speedbump on their way to the bit. I'd try liquid nails on something else first; make sure you can get it thin/even enough that the whole thing stays flat? Otherwise, maybe just use wood glue (titebond?) with an ink brayer; just not sure how you'd clamp the thing down. Please explain "ink brayer" and on the clamping, I'm thinking of clamping multiple pieces of angle iron perpendicular to the seams, but between the angle and the flooring, another sheet of ply to distribute the pressure evenly. On the liquid nails...man you'd have to work fast but have everything test fitted and ready to clamp and then spread it and use a thin bead, notched trowel like for working ceramic tile. That would keep the glue amount consistent. (?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeanJackson Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 Please explain "ink brayer" and on the clamping, I'm thinking of clamping multiple pieces of angle iron perpendicular to the seams, but between the angle and the flooring, another sheet of ply to distribute the pressure evenly. On the liquid nails...man you'd have to work fast but have everything test fitted and ready to clamp and then spread it and use a thin bead, notched trowel like for working ceramic tile. That would keep the glue amount consistent. (?) The ink brayer is a roller (like a paint roller for a wall) that's made for ink; it doesn't soak up the ink, it just spreads it. Marc used one in the butcher block cutting board videos, and it works pretty well to evenly spread glue. You can also use the side of your hand. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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