Rethinking Table Saw Rolling Base & Router Table

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Someone posted something similar previously and it got me to thinking about my own situation. It's been on my mind for a few years, but other more immediate things have pushed it back.

The other day I pulled it out, hearing for the umpteenth time one leg dragging on the uneven concrete floor, making a very loud screech. I've always wanted to integrate a router table into one of the extension tables and both are in bad needs of new tops. Another issue is the current version has poorly thought out storage. I built a plan from ShopNotes and it was certainly an improvement over the stationary metal stand that came with the saw. The pivot mechanism that enables you to raise it onto wheels doesn't keep the force in a vertical line, which won't work well over time, heat & humidity.

Another issue is the long wings are not supported at their ends, only along the front/back with the iron angle from the Biessemier fence I purchased 22yrs ago. The entire top needs to be in the same horizontal plane for accuracy and that's tough to do without supports.

I already know what the wings will be surfaced with to replace the Formica: White Corian. It's dead flat, easily machineable, I can write on it, the white color makes things easily noticed. When it becomes scratched up, it's easy to polish out. I can also get it at no cost. Having a built-in router set-up saves space which is at a premium in my garage. Most things are on wheels as the sled stays in the garage.

Bill Hylton has some great ideas in Router Magic. I built a set of concentric rings for a portable top and they came out very well. Another idea I'll use is no drop-in router plate. They catch dust, the clear ones sag causing joint alignment issues. I've made more than a few attempting to get one that's flat. I was considering milled aluminum plate as well. I'm currently using BB ply glued to MDF, with both sides covered in Formica to keep it flat. That's worked the best.

Another reason to ignite this project is to build some nice garage cabinets with a work surface below and big sliding drawers underneath so I don't have to get on my hands & knees! Plus it keeps the dust & spiders out. I watched a Norm Abram show where he built new fixtures for the NYW and he went with all drawers on 100# slides. Very nice indeed!

The true endangered species in my set-up is clear horizontal space and storage. Having it well organized would go a long way towards working efficiently. This cabinet construction would also be a prelude to building new cabinets in the kitchen.

I'm open to ideas, comments, suggestions from others who have done this. I've been collecting magazine articles for years on this. Time to move forward.
 
Is there an Ikea near you?
They have just changed their kitchen cabinet range, and you can buy a lot of the Los style stuff in their as is section VERY cheap.

Their Blum hardwear is very good quality.
 
Lee Valley (and others) makes a couple of inserts that can drop into any wood type top. I've got round one from Lee that replaces the base plate on my fixed base that stays in the wing on my saw. It's phenolic and doesn't sag. I made a sub-fence for the saw fence with dust control and replaceable faces. I also boxed in below the router for dust control. I did tie in the wings with angle iron to the saw for support, but it was needed anyway.

It's so much better than the table top setup I had. Less dust, better height, better fence and less noise.

That said, my router does have adjustment built in for working from a table like that. If yours doesn't, I'd look at an adapter that keeps things above the table. MCLS and many others do as well, or get it built into your router.

I too have small shop syndrome, but the biggest problem I have with moving tools around is where to put them to get them out of the way without making a bigger project.
 
I went with a "Woodpeckers" router top for Incra Fence and their ring inset kit. Not cheap but the table is excellent and the rings are dead flat. They also provide some really good idea from viewing their set ups.
 
My Dad made a rolling base for his Delta Unisaw (excellent table saw) and it basically has 4 casters that can rock up and out of the way or rock down and will support the table saw. Each has a small rod welded to it that points to the other front (or rear caster). To engage, you push both casters in a pair so the rods are horizontal and slide a small piece of pipe along the rods until it holds both rods horizontally. Now they are locked in a rolling position. Do the same with the other pair.

He made a base of angle iron which the casters are welded to. The saw sits in the base. Nothing is welded to the saw itself (how could one do that).
 
Originally Posted By: expat
Is there an Ikea near you?
They have just changed their kitchen cabinet range, and you can buy a lot of the Los style stuff in their as is section VERY cheap.

Their Blum hardwear is very good quality.

Yes. Not too far away. I regularly go to the "as is" section to see what's in there. I have several Blum slides and like them quite a bit. Good idea!
 
Originally Posted By: Wheel
Lee Valley (and others) makes a couple of inserts that can drop into any wood type top. I've got round one from Lee that replaces the base plate on my fixed base that stays in the wing on my saw. It's phenolic and doesn't sag. I made a sub-fence for the saw fence with dust control and replaceable faces. I also boxed in below the router for dust control. I did tie in the wings with angle iron to the saw for support, but it was needed anyway.

It's so much better than the table top setup I had. Less dust, better height, better fence and less noise.

That said, my router does have adjustment built in for working from a table like that. If yours doesn't, I'd look at an adapter that keeps things above the table. MCLS and many others do as well, or get it built into your router.

I too have small shop syndrome, but the biggest problem I have with moving tools around is where to put them to get them out of the way without making a bigger project.


I'm a big fan of Lee Valley and previously considered that circular router plate. Phenolic would be a good choice to prevent sagging. I don't have a big heavy plunge router and most all commercial plates are far too large. I once bought a piece of G10 thinking I'd make a router plate from it....wrong....waaay too hard to cut! I'd like a photo of your set-up, if you don't mind. My router is a PC690 with the different bases: Plunge, two fixed and a D-handle. One of the fixed bases stays attached to the insert plate of the current router table, so I just slide in the motor when needed. Very convienent.

Boxing in around the router would quiet it somewhat. I thought of using neodymium magnets and steel cups to hold it fast, yet allow it to be removable to save space.
 
Check this out:
router-table.jpg
 
Here's a Lee Valley top & fence. It's steel, no separate mounting plate, thus no snags. Their rings allow adjustment of the hole diameter.
router_table.jpg

I like the use of the bottle jack lift for those monster routers....
 
This has the right idea. Each end of a wing is fully supported from below. The whole thing is on wheels. Nice storage on the lower shelves and drawers/cabinet below.

DSC_0002.JPG
 
My setup isn't nearly as pretty as the previous pics. But here's what I have:

router%20over.jpg

Top of saw/router wing. Missing is the dust collection fence. The plans came from one of the big router books mentioned in this thread.

router%20under.jpg

Router mounted under, with front of dust collection box off.
 
Originally Posted By: sleddriver
Check this out:
router-table.jpg

My setup with a Jet cabinet saw is similar to this, but not at as pretty. Getting that big saw into the carriage is the hard part. I built mine around the saw with heavy metal angles under to hold it.
 
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