We may receive a commission when you use our affiliate links. However, this does not impact our recommendations.
A great router table for little cost and just a few hours to build.
By Robert W. Lang
Pages: 74-75
From the June 2009 issue #176
Buy this issue now
The original version of this router table was born out of necessity. I needed a router table at a job site, and I didn’t have the space or the desire to carry my large one. I cobbled it together quickly, screwed the router’s baseplate to the bottom of the tabletop, and made a simple fence. A dozen years later, it still serves me well.
It’s easy to get carried away when making a router table, building something the size of a 5-horsepower shaper, full of drawers for storing every router bit in the catalog and accessories for every imaginable circumstance. If you’d rather keep things simple, or need a second table in your shop, this will do everything you need without taking much time or space. And if you want to jazz it up, this is a good starting point.
The top measures 16″ x 24″ – large enough to handle all but extremely large panels and small enough to store below a bench or on a shelf. The small size also helps to keep the top from sagging, a common issue with super-sized router tables.
The height of the table will be a compromise between a comfortable working height, and ease of getting the router in and out to change bits. I chose a router that clamps in a fixed base and can be quickly removed for changing bits. I left plenty of room for this operation, which leaves the top a bit high when placed on my workbench, but just right when set on sawhorses.
Online Extra
To view a video showing a simple method for insetting a base plate in the top of the Router Table, click here.
From the June 2009 issue #176
Buy this issue now
Here are some supplies and tools we find essential in our everyday work around the shop. We may receive a commission from sales referred by our links; however, we have carefully selected these products for their usefulness and quality.
