Would this make a good roter table top?

[BobSch]

24x32" 3/4" phenolic faced plywood.

http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?p...ginid=68781420

[RodKirby]

(IMHO) Perfect (I presume you meant "router")

[SARGE..g-47]

Ditto Rod but.... if you are going to hang a heavy 3 1/2 HP router under-neath.. I would re-inforce it by using another sheet of standard ply under it to give the top a 1 1/2" thickness. The ply won't sag as much as MDF but.. that is a lot of weight and I personally think it would sag over time. Maybe.. maybe not?

[chopnhack]

It is an awesome material for just such a purpose. If you decide to only go single sheet, build a frame for it from the underside (think like a stud wall with an area boxed out for the router). Of course if you want to add some mass and deaden the table a bit (++++) add on a second sheet and then connect this to a nice frame. Best of both worlds IMHO.

[cgallery]

Woodcraft caries a similar product and when I looked at the stock they had I noticed that each piece had quite a bit of bow to it. It would be fine to use for a router table top if I used a frame underneath, but not otherwise.

Maybe the Rockler stuff is flatter?

[chopnhack]

The plywood probably bowed if only one side was laminated with the stuff. I do believe the Rockler one said it had the laminate on both sides, iirc.

[LCHIEN]

it was very flat at Rockler this past weekend.

[drumpriest]

yeah, I agree, this material looks great for this purpose, maybe I should consider rebuilding mine...I did reinforce the bottom around the plate with a torsion grid. Seems to work well enough.

[poolhound]

If you can get to a store I think its only $19.

I have a piece of high pressure laminated particle board I was going to use for mine but I was thinking the same as you so I may well go back tomorrow and get some.

[cabinetman]

That is a good alternative to using Baltic Birch and laminating both sides with Formica. By the time you buy the plywood, laminate, and glue, it may cost more. Living with the size it comes in, might be a question.
.

[cgallery]

The plywood probably bowed if only one side was laminated with the stuff. I do believe the Rockler one said it had the laminate on both sides, iirc.

The Woodcraft stuff was covered both sides.

I was kind of astonished. Maybe something had gone wrong during manufacturing.

[cgallery]

I was gonna used the Woodcraft version (but as I mentioned above, it was bowed).

I ended up using 3/4" BB and applied Formica to both sides.

I use the result as a router table extension in my BT3K, with no other support from underneath (just attached to the rails).

When I selected my piece of BB plywood, I took one with a very slight crown to it, and aimed the crown UP. The weight of the router lift, router, and downdraft box pulls it down and the result is a nice flat router table. It has not sagged in a few years now, it is exactly where it was the day I connected it to my rails.

So if you plan on using this stuff for an extension, make sure if there is any crown whatsoever, it points UP. Or reinforce it with a grid.

I will say the stuff is nice and slick.

[BobSch]

Thanks for all the advise. My first thought when I saw the ad was a router top and assumed some bracing would be a required. I'll have to check to see how flat they are when I hit my local Rockler.

[vrbradley]

I made my router extension out of this material, I did not double the top, but I did mount the top on a tortion box made to accomodate the rails of my saw, works great and I've had it in service for about 3 years with no sag..

[poolhound]

The Woodcraft stuff was covered both sides.

So is the stuff that Rockler has. IIRC Phenolic ply is not so much covered as in a lamination as "impregnated."


From Whitecap.com

"Phenolic Surface Film is a resin impregnated paper overlay designed to improve the surface characterization of wood based panels used for applications such as concrete forming. The Overlay is a self-bonding sheet that cures under heat and pressure. This overlay extends the life of plywood and other engineered wood based panels"

BTW if you have a Whitecap near you its worth calling them and asking if they have any in stock. As far as I can tell they are one of the few wholesale distributors. Unfortunatley they dont stock in many places. I called the phoenix office and they would have sold me a whole sheet (4x8) for approx $80 but they would have to shipped it in from CA and as it was for just one I would have needed to pay for the shipping which made it non economic. If you are lucky enough to be able to buy a whole sheet without shipping its way cheaper like that.