New Horizontal Router Mortiser with Tilitng X-Table

[jteneyck]

You may recall my recent post on my New Horizontal Router Mortiser. Well, I've been thinking about a tilting X-table for quite awhile, but it was Dave's comment that he needed to add some shims under the legs of some stools that he needed to route angled mortises in that prompted me to set about designing and building one. It took a couple of interations to work out the details, but I have a fully functioning model now.

The new table is the same size as in the flat X-table version and functions the same when flat. But by turning a threaded rod (handle yet to be added) you can raise the table to any desired angle up to 45+ degrees.











I'm not aware of any other mortiser so easy to use with so much capability. If you were on the fence about wanting one of these, maybe this added feature will be what it takes to push you over the hump. Please send me a PM if so.

John

[Alan S]

What if you hinged the back plate to tilt the router down, instead of the work up? Depending on the size of your work, that might be easier.

[jteneyck]

Hi Alan,

If you tilt the router you will not cut an angled mortise, you will make a sort of a wedged cut and the sides won't be parallel. Draw it on paper and you will see what I mean. There might be reasons to tilt the router, like for cutting raised panels with a straight bit, but it won't work for cutting mortises.

John

[mound]

very cool!

[jteneyck]

Here are a few photos to show you what an angled mortise looks like using the new tilting X-table.

Here is a workpiece, with the end cut off at 10 deg, sitting on the X-table, tilted to 10 deg.



After routing a 1/4" x 3/4" deep mortise, it looked like this with the loose tenon installed.



Then I cut a 90 deg mortise in the mating piece.



And the assembled joint looks like this:



This joint is similar to the joints between a stretcher and the front and back legs of a chair, although the angle would typically not be that high. Anyway, it should give you an idea of the capability of the tilting X-table feature.

It took no more time to make the joint than cutting standard, flat joints, except for the few seconds it took to raise the table to 10 deg. How do I know the table was set at 10 deg? There are at least three ways of setting the table angle. One way is to just eyeball it from so that the angled cut on the end of the work piece that was cut off at 10 deg. is parallel with the router mounting plate. A more accurate way is to use mechanical or digital angle finder to measure the angle between the router mounting plate and tilting table. Another way is to calculate the vertical height between the bed and tilting table at the far end, using the simple B^2 = C^2 - A^2, cut a shim at that height and angle, and crank up the tilting table until the shim just slides between the two. For very heavy work pieces, that provides a fail safe way to make sure the tilting table doesn't flex under the load.

John

[Ken Vick]

John, even from 6000 miles away, this looks really good. It takes the fear out of one of the most difficult parts of chair making. Ken

[BillN]

That's just amazing John. You seem to have a lot of energy, do you ever get out of your shop?

[jteneyck]

Thanks Bill. As a matter of fact, I was skiing last week, so I do occasionally come out of my shop, like Punxsatawney Phil, to see the light of day. But I love being in my shop, too. I used to design and build test machines and fixtures as part of my job. Since I retired I've turned my need to solve problems into designing fixtures and machines to make some of my wood working tasks faster and easier. The mortiser has sort of taken on a life of its own as I've thought about how to improve on the original one I built about 5 years ago. The tilting X-table was a big step forward. I'm sure there is more I can do with it, but it's a pretty well developed machine at this point and, as one user put it "It's simply a joy to use.".

John

[Dave Diaman]

John, that looks like it will work perfectly for chairs. Much easier than making wedges for the mortiser.

[Steve N]

John said

"There are at least three ways of setting the table angle. One way is to just eyeball it from so that the angled cut on the end of the work piece that was cut off at 10 deg. is parallel with the router mounting plate. A more accurate way is to use mechanical or digital angle finder to measure the angle between the router mounting plate and tilting table. Another way is to calculate the vertical height between the bed and tilting table at the far end, using the simple B^2 = C^2 - A^2, cut a shim at that height and angle, and crank up the tilting table until the shim just slides between the two. For very heavy work pieces, that provides a fail safe way to make sure the tilting table doesn't flex under the load."

Possibly what you are meaning by "using a mechanical, or digital angle finder." I am imagining a metal bar that I slide into the groove of the table slot, and affix a Wixey type angle finder device to the bar of metal. Requires less hands to hold the device, while I raise and lower the tables angle. This will make the tilted table, your TS blade kind of angle finding.


Getting thrilled about this design John