Hi All - my main router table is the Veritas steel one w/ an excellent right-angle attachment, but the bit I may want to use seems never to be in the table - UGHH! Now, I have a 'small' Rockler portable table (about $60) that just seems not very useful except for trim routers.
A second table w/ a different bit (e.g. a straight in one table & a profile bit in the other) would be convenient, but needs to be relatively inexpensive, small, and portable just to get out the way quickly. Today I received the flyer below advertising the Bosch table @ a great price - now I know they offer a better table, too; the Bosch Reviews are great AND negative (overall, 3.6/5) - SO, what are some of your favorite secondary commercial router tables (know that there are plenty on the market) - thinking of a few hundred bucks - and I know there will be a LOT of 'build your own' recommendations, so please post those too (although that's my second choice). Thanks for any comments. Dave
Gave one to a friend, but I still have and still use 2 of the older c-man tables. I had to redrill the holes to mount PC routers in there. I just move them to wherever and c-clamp em down.
Fence is reliable, dust control is ( ) unless you shroud them in.
Steve
Missouri
The Revos apparently are designed to clamp railroad ties and pull together horrifically prepared joints
WaterlooMark 02/9/2020
One quick method I saw was a sheet of 3/4" Baltic birch plywood. The guy used his router to hog out the mounting location to just 3/8". No insert. He mounted the router directly to the plywood.
He suspended the sheet on top of two saw horses. It gave good access for changing the bits and height of the cut. And like a lot of good things, it is inherently simple.
The only down side I see is if the sheet and the router start sliding as you push the stock. I think that problem could be overcome by placing the router "table" against a wall.
It is:
Cheap--just a sheet of plywood
Guaranteed level mounting for the router--no insert to level
Portable and light
Quickly made
No animals were injured or killed in the production of this post.
I have that Bosch table. I had considered building one for years, but kept putting it off. One day I was browsing the tool corral at Lowes and saw them on sale and it became sort of an impulse buy. For occasional use, I think it would be fine for you. I like it because it was light years above what I had used for a long time (a cheap C-Man alum table). I do have concerns about the bolts that lock down the fence. I don't think the head are large enough and I suspect they will eventually pull through the slots in the table, if I'm not very careful to avoid cranking them down too much. Otherwise, I think the table has a lot of functionality and features for the money.
If you are going down a river at 2 mph and your canoe loses a wheel, how much pancake mix would you need to shingle your roof?
(04-04-2018, 11:41 AM)Bill Wilson Wrote: I have that Bosch table. I had considered building one for years, but kept putting it off. One day I was browsing the tool corral at Lowes and saw them on sale and it became sort of an impulse buy. For occasional use, I think it would be fine for you. I like it because it was light years above what I had used for a long time (a cheap C-Man alum table). I do have concerns about the bolts that lock down the fence. I don't think the head are large enough and I suspect they will eventually pull through the slots in the table, if I'm not very careful to avoid cranking them down too much. Otherwise, I think the table has a lot of functionality and features for the money.
Thanks ALL for the further comments - the Bosch tables (the other AL) look pretty good although some reviewers had complaints on Amazon and elsewhere (table flatness, bent router plates, etc.) - just looked at the Rockler 'mini-table' (first pic below) that I own but have never used; drilled an extra hole in the base plate to fit the 3 screws on my old P-C trim router (second pic) - lot of variable reviews on the Rockler website but will give it a try tomorrow - cost me about $70 w/ the dust collector attachment, so will see - have a couple dozen 1/4" router bits - if I'm happy then will use for 'small' jobs like making molding and shallow edge cuts. Dave
I had that Bosch table for several years, before upgrading to a larger router and table. It was generally pretty good, but I found configuration of the featherboards to be frustrating (it uses a combination of a bolt and plastic spacers -- hard to describe). I didn't have any problems with the flatness of my table or plate, but that seems to be a common complaint.
If I needed a small router table, I'd probably look at the Kreg -- always been impressed by their products and customer service.
(04-04-2018, 04:48 PM)Harthag Wrote: I had that Bosch table for several years, before upgrading to a larger router and table. It was generally pretty good, but I found configuration of the featherboards to be frustrating (it uses a combination of a bolt and plastic spacers -- hard to describe). I didn't have any problems with the flatness of my table or plate, but that seems to be a common complaint.
If I needed a small router table, I'd probably look at the Kreg -- always been impressed by their products and customer service.
I know exactly what you mean about the hardware for the fence feather boards. They can be a challenge to get lined up to install. Once the bolts & spacers are in place, they seem to work and adjust well enough, but if you have to take them off and put them on repeatedly, they will frustrate you.
If you are going down a river at 2 mph and your canoe loses a wheel, how much pancake mix would you need to shingle your roof?
(04-01-2018, 10:53 AM)giradman Wrote: Hi All - my main router table is the Veritas steel one w/ an excellent right-angle attachment, but the bit I may want to use seems never to be in the table - UGHH! Now, I have a 'small' Rockler portable table (about $60) that just seems not very useful except for trim routers.
A second table w/ a different bit (e.g. a straight in one table & a profile bit in the other) would be convenient, but needs to be relatively inexpensive, small, and portable just to get out the way quickly. Today I received the flyer below advertising the Bosch table @ a great price - now I know they offer a better table, too; the Bosch Reviews are great AND negative (overall, 3.6/5) - SO, what are some of your favorite secondary commercial router tables (know that there are plenty on the market) - thinking of a few hundred bucks - and I know there will be a LOT of 'build your own' recommendations, so please post those too (although that's my second choice). Thanks for any comments. Dave
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) unless you shroud them in.
