sarge...

[gad5264]

I did not want to hijack your thread about the septic tank, so I thought I would start another one to ask you a question.

Would you post more information and close up pics of your router table? Did you make ir or buy it? If you made it what one did you model it after or did you work from plans for it?

Thanks in advance,

[SARGE..g-47]

Morning Grant..

Was just going to get ready for work as I saw your post..... I will look and see what I have and post pics if they are in my folder. Any more needed I can do in the morning and will be glad too...

The table is home-made from scraps for the most part. Built about 6 years ago. The base is 3/4" scrap birch ply. Basically as all WW projects, just a box that has been added too or taken away to get an end result.

Shelf in center bottom to separate upper cab from storrage below. The table is made from one sheet of 3/4" MDF laminated to another piece of 1/2" on top. The 1/2" piece has a sizeed hole cut for the insert which is phonelic and purchased. The lower piece hole for the router is cut smaller giving a shelf ledge for the insert to sit on and then be adjusted to table height with on-board set screws. The table has been 3 coat poly'ed on both sides and a hardwood band added to the edges. Angular iron support braces has been added underneath for added support.

Fence is home-made from baltic birch ply laminated and 3 coat poly'ed also. Slots cut for adjustment of face and forward-backward motion. A slot was cut in the table face and a miter track added to let the spring-board ride in.

No plan or copy of another was used. I just sat down with a cup of coffee and decided what I wanted in and on a router table in lieu of what someone else decided was best for my needs. Boxes are simple.. just add to them or take away till you get what you want.

A Milwaukee 3 1/2 HP router got the call as it's a "hoss" and it has a built in above the table adjuster saving big bucks $$ on one of the fancy lifts. Why complicate something that can be simple?

Any questions ask.. I will answer as soon as possible and that will probably be late to-nite or tomorrow morning. Any additional pics.. ask!

Regards...

[movnup]

Sarge ... as I am finishing up my router table and accesories (waiting for parts) can you explain the long featherboard and how you like it. I track on the two left /right outer slits for compression but the long slit is that for the same purpose in some way ???

Where did the idea pop up from as it's unique e.g. do you ever use the regular finger style at all or just this one ????

[steve-norrell]

Sarge ... as I am finishing up my router table and accesories (waiting for parts) can you explain the long featherboard and how you like it. I track on the two left /right outer slits for compression but the long slit is that for the same purpose in some way ???

Where did the idea pop up from as it's unique e.g. do you ever use the regular finger style at all or just this one ????

Here is another version of the long featherboard. Its length matches the width of my router table and clamps match the location of T-Tracks that I installed in the table top. It works great for me and I recommend it.

The idea was "stolen" from Sarge some time ago. I use it, along with regular fingerboards on the router fence, when routing long pieces. The center slot, along with the outer slots, do compress and help in keeping the piece against the fence. I like the plastic because it reduces friction and resistance to feeding the piece into the bit. Wood works just as well, provided the 'face' (against the piece) is smoothly finished.

I'm sure that Sarge will provide additional information.

Regards, Steve

[SARGE..g-47]

Morning Movnup...

Steve has pretty much nailed the slots as both give or "spring" with compression to hold the stock tight. It's called a "spring-board" for that reason, much as a diving board springs at a pool when someone stands on the end or purposely jumps up and back down to compress it so it will spring them off higher with thrust to accomplish a dive.

I do always use a "spring-board" instead of a feather as it is more efficient IMO. I have one that I had been using for both the router and TS for years, but as of yesterday the one you saw will stay on the RT and I just finished a new one for the TS that meets the characteristics found on ripping there. You might be ripping narrow on the TS.. or you might be ripping wide, so a different design needs to be employed to cover both, IMO.

I got the idea years ago and to be honest, cannot pin-point who I got it from. I was at a seminar given by Tage Frid at Highland Woodworking (formely Highland Hardware) here in Atlanta and the idea was revealed by someone attending as I was. Frid liked it.. so I figured if it meet Frid's approval I would give one a try. After building one, I've never used a feather board again except in isolated incidences.

BTW.. nice set-up Steve N. has created with the plastic which as he states, has no resistance at all. But I use sanded poplar for the outer strips and they don't offer much resistance and poplar has spring. Instead of cutting slots, I just make the main piece.. and then rip two thin pieces of poplar. Cut off three little strips of a Home Depot paint stirring stick and glue them to the main body at the appriate place. Then glue the first outer strip to it. Then add another paint stirrer strip and the very outter piece is glued to it.

Saves time cutting the slots. And if you want to stay cheap with scrap and still get it baby butt smooth.. add a strip of that teflon 3/4" self adhering tape to the face of the outer strip. You can get a roll at Eagle America and I keep one on hand. Makes my Uni-saw fence slicker along with the SC BS fence. Good stuff and can be used numberous ways.

Pics to follow.. any further questions..... ask!

Regards...

[LCHIEN]

That is a good idea. One thing, though, a featherboard prevents "backing up" whereas this design does not. I guess some people would think that the anti-backup is a anti-kickback feature. I'll have to think about that some.

[SARGE..g-47]

That is a good idea. One thing, though, a featherboard prevents "backing up" whereas this design does not. I guess some people would think that the anti-backup is a anti-kickback feature. I'll have to think about that some.

Morning Loring...

Was ready to retire for the day, but thought I would answer first. Actually a spring-board will keep it from backing up as it placed on the stock firmly and the compression acts similar to the feathers on a feather-board. I thik when running a 3.. 5.. or more HP TS that neither will keep the stock from backing to some degree if the blade gets a good grab. So.. regardless of how well your machine is prepped.. some form of kick-back can occur under harsh cimcumstances.

To eliminate "kick-back" before the fact is good. But... I am not overly concerned with kicking back. The feather or spring has you protected for stock moving to the left of blade. The fence to the right. I use a European "crown gaurd" over-head which protects up. That only leaves kicking to the front (which is most likely due to blade direction spin) or to the rear of saw.

That's exactly where I want it to go in the harsh event of kick-back. Why?.. Because I implement the most basic fundamental of TS safety and that is.. KEEP THE LANE CLEAR.. ALWAYS keep the lane clear. You never stand in the direct path of the blade till it has totally stopped spinning.. Never!

So.. let it rocket off the front of my table. Will it hit the back wall and travel through. Not at my shop as I have intentionally placed the work-bench in a direct line of fire of the TS blade. And a Veritas twin screw vise is at the TS end. I open it and put a piece to ply between the 16" wide jaws. That is the cushion (and target) I want there to stop the missle from going completely down-range to the end of shop and wrecking havoc along the way.

BTW.. my TS never gets turned on when someone else is in the shop unless they are there to help and in that case they have been briefed not to distract while a machine is on and KEEP THE LANE CLEAR.

So far.. so good......

Regards...

[TheRic]

Sarge I'll have to take my hat off to you on the things you do for safety!!

[SARGE..g-47]

Afternoon Ric..

Thanks for the kind words... I see safety as just a fundamental you are personally responsible for not only you but.... your family and anyone that enters your shop for whatever reason.

Regards...

[movnup]

Thanks for the responses Sarge / Steve, I'm going to try it out a I am a "Router Rookie" as this looks like a great little project for practice and also for a better way to skin the cat in long board routing (which is my main current need for building the router table).

As to one more question / comment in the router example wouldn't you want to use two vertical featherboards to hold down the piece b/4 and after the cut and then the springboard for side pressure to reduce the kickback chance (fence / springboard for left to right, featherboards / table for top to bottom pressure) ????

[LarryG]

As to one more question / comment in the router example wouldn't you want to use two vertical featherboards to hold down the piece b/4 and after the cut and then the springboard for side pressure to reduce the kickback chance (fence / springboard for left to right, featherboards / table for top to bottom pressure) ????

Rather than featherboards or springboards, I suggest you use sleds that index the face of the fence. Featherboards are okay on a table saw, but are less-than-optimal on a router table.

As a self-described "router rookie," you might want to read everything you can find by Pat Warner. He'll change the way you think about routing, especially on a table.

[steve-norrell]

As to one more question / comment in the router example wouldn't you want to use two vertical featherboards to hold down the piece b/4 and after the cut and then the springboard for side pressure to reduce the kickback chance (fence / springboard for left to right, featherboards / table for top to bottom pressure) ????

In a word, yes. I almost always use a vertical featherboard to hold the piece down, sometimes two, one on each side of the cutter.

LarryG's suggestion about using sleds instead of featherboards is a good one. For me, I have enough trouble setting up the router cut with only the table top -- I think I would suffer irreparable frustration if I had to deal with a sled.

Regards, Steve