Table Router

[handi]

I had the big Freud Router and it was great, especially for the price.
I have the Triton now and it is excellent in the router table.

[Kansas City Fireslayer]

I have the big Triton in a table with external outlet and switch. All I do is flip the external “light switch” and it comes on/off without have to touch the router’s switch. The Triton more or less has a built in lift. Bit changes and adjustments are easy enough. I’d definitely buy it again. It’s a joy to use especially compared to the MV12 Hitachi I had. The Hitachi was ok but using the Triton is much more user friendly. If you watch Ebay you will find a new or near new one below retail.

[photobug]

I thought I had made it clear, for the cost of a spindle, the shaper can use your 1/4 inch bits.  All the shapers will linked will handle 1/2 inch bits.  They are easy to hook up to dust collection, and you don’t have to mount and un-mount your router.

The pricy lifts plus a table still don’t make sense to me.

I got one of these.
http://www.routertechnologies.com/routerraizer.htm

Not sure how a high end lift would be different, but for $100, i would not be without this lift, it makes working with my table a breeze.

[R Clark]

I'm repurposing a 25-year old kitchen cart made from hard maple that was just about the right size.  Other than $25 for double locking 3" casters, all the rest came from materials I already had on hand (including the cart which was being used in the shop as a materials cart.)  I'll repurpose the switch off my old Porter-Cable bench top router table.  I still need to get a small piece of plastic laminate for the top.

My big purchase is likely to be the Triton router and Kreg plate.

So, for about $350, I'll have the router table all set, including the router.

[ez-duzit]

My router table cost me ~$25 for a used, cast iron table saw top, and another ~$65 (IIRC) for the under-table router bracket/mount. The rest of it I built myself from leftover aluminum, steel, plywood and acrylic that I had on hand. I built it onto the right side of my Unisaw so I could also use the Unifence on the router table. No lift is necessary. And I've been using this same setup for decades. The Stanley 3-1/2 hp router had come with its own portable base, just like most any other router, so is often used as just a heavy duty router for extra large bits. The entire setup cost a fraction of that of a shaper. I buy only carbide bits, also a fraction the cost of shaper cutters.

[Eric Commarato]

I thought I had made it clear, for the cost of a spindle, the shaper can use your 1/4 inch bits.  All the shapers will linked will handle 1/2 inch bits.  They are easy to hook up to dust collection, and you don’t have to mount and un-mount your router.

The pricy lifts plus a table still don’t make sense to me.

I couldn't agree with you more.  I own a PM 26 that I have had for 20 years, but earlier this year I purchased a Jessum router Lift $350, an Incra 17"LS positioner and fence, another $300 or so.  The reason I'm getting into the router table scene is that a shaper won't spin a router bit at the proper rpm to get a clean cut.  I think my PM 26 runs about 12,000 RPM, most router bits spin in the 15-22,000 RPM range to achieve an effectively smooth cut.  Just saying...

[Pondracer]

The shaper is nice, my brother loves his.  But for me I went with the router table and the monster PC router with the variable speeds.  I wanted the Incra fence system, I needed it sort of portable and I needed the storage space.  I think its a question of what you want to do, and how your shop is setup.