How do I make a simple inexpensive router table?

Question

Compact in size for small work area.

Answer 1

use a piece of good 3/4 in plywood.sit your router on top and draw a pencil line around the table of your router.
set your router depth at about 3/8 in. and cut a place for your router to sit in.
drill a hole in the center for you router to fit through.use 2 strips or wood to hold the router tight against the table and secure them with short screws.
for a fence use a straight piece of wood and keep i place with a couple screws.
this is probably hard to picture but it works great.if you need a detailed drawing contact me via e-mail and i will be glad to send one.

Answer 2

The truth is they are just about too cheap as it is to bother making one, as others have answered. Better yet, check on line want ads in your area for someone itching to get rid of the one taking up too much room in the garage. the whole in the plywood is the normal quick route, but you'll want to clamp it down on those milk crates so it can't jump when you use it. You'll also need a fence to run your project up against. two more clamps and a board or 2X4 works great. Safety goggles would be a must with all the flying wood chips! Be careful!

Answer 3

the tables are inexpensive to buy, but sometimes,we need to store things in places that dont exectly resemble a workshop.
i have made my own already.
what i spent was this;$9.00 for a piece of handyboard(2'by4'),two small wood clamps($1.00 a piece at your local flee market),one can of flat white and a can of polyurethane spray paint($3.00)one tube of wood glue and two saw horses(already had.).
first cut the board down from the four foot length to whatever length you would like.(would recommend you keep the lenghth to three feet.)
Then take the handy board ,rip a one inch, two inch, and a three inch strip off of the long side. Cut one inch off of the end of the 1" long board.Center the 1" board onto the 2" board attatching it widthways with the wood glue and clamps,making sure that one edge is linear.After the glue dries,you take the three inch wide piece,and attatch it to the face of the other two boards at the lilnear length.now you have the 1"board on top of the 2" board with the three inch board attatched to the face ,making the width of the 2"running parallel with the thickness of the three inch board .It should look like this: =l(kind of)this concludes the making of your back rail.
Now you paint everything with the flat white paint
next step is to drill the center hole *three inches in diameter(*more or less depending on the size of your router) centered longways,and widthways.now you take a blak pen and mark both ends of your board with your desired measurements.(i bought two thin metal rulers[$1.00 a piece]and recessed them into the ends of my board,with the 9"mark as the center line for my router hole.)After you mark the board,coat everything with the poly.
attatch your router onto the underside with whatever bolt in you need,making sure you use a locking washer or nut,and recessing the top bolt under the top plane of your table.
Now set up your two sawhorse and screw the tabletop to them.(If your table wont span the gap of your sawhorses,attatch a couple of long 2x4s to the bottom of the table and then to the sawhorses.
REmember the two small wood clamps? those will hold your backslide in place while you route.
this table will cost you around $20 dollars,so if you think self made is better,go for it!

Answer 4

buying one is pretty inexpensive now days. They fold up when not in use. Or get a piece of 1/2" plywood, cut a hole in the center and stack it on the milk cartons

Answer 5

Buy one.
I considered trying to make one, but a router table has to be very well made or your router-work will suffer.

ww.rockler.com

Answer 6

Justcurio uses my method. I bought an extra router base and leave it attached to the bottom of my workbench. If you need a guide screw a board to the top of the workbench.

Answer 7

bolt it under your workbench upside down plung it through to make a hole. Use lock washers to hold it in place. Keep the cordless phone nearby just in case.911 speeddial. But it really works.

Answer 8

They're 39.99 at Sears. Why bother making one.

Answer 9

stack some milk crates.