In Part 1 and Part 2 I built most the cabinet and most of the top. I have now completed the top, attached it, and built the fence.
First up was test fitting the top. It had to fit over the base cabinet with no real rubbing and be tight enough of a tolerance to handle the piano hinge used to attach it.
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| From Router Table |
Once I knew the top would work, I did the layout for two slots that the fence bolts would ride in. Here is the layout lines.
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| From Router Table |
I used the plunge action of my router to gouge out the two slots. It took a couple of passes, but I ended up with two working guide slots.
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| From Router Table |
Just to make sure, I test fit the star knobs and bolts I am going to use to attach the fence.
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| From Router Table |
Now that I had the guide slots in place, I was able to put in the extra top pieces that will make sure the top fits and that the fence will work. Here are two additional braces along with the guide blocks that the fence will use to make sure it is in the guide slots.
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| From Router Table |
I used a piano hinge to attach the top to the cabinet.
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| From Router Table |
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| From Router Table |
Next up is the fence. First step was to glue up two 1/2" plywood sections together.
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| From Router Table |
Once dry, I started to notch out where the clearance for the router bits.
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| From Router Table |
Then I glued a base plate and a couple of gussets to make a complete fence. Once it was dry, I made sure it worked on the cabinet.
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| From Router Table |
Outside of mounting a fixed based router - that pretty much completes the project. Here are the final pictures of the cabinet ready for that router.
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| From Router Table |
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| From Router Table |
There are a couple of things I may add. Once is some sort of vacuum attachment to the fence to keep the sawdust from binding up things. The other is a single power switch that can control both the router and the vacuum. I have one from a cheap metal router table I have that I will probably figure out a mounting solution for.
Final Parts List:
| Item | Source | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Birch Plywood | Fine Lumber and Plywood | $35 |
| Panel Nails | Home Depot | $3 for a 6oz box |
| Gorilla Wood Glue | Home Depot | $4 for a 8oz bottle |
| 5 Star Thru Hole Knobs (x2) | Woodcraft | $3 for two |
| 1/4" x 2" Carriage Bolt | Home Depot | $0.17 |
| 1/4" Cut Washers (x2) | Home Depot | $0.22 for two |
| 1/4" Lock Nut | Home Depot | $0.10 |
| 5/16" Carriage Bolts (x2) | Home Depot | $0.48 for two |
| 5/16" Cut Washers (x4) | Home Depot | $0.48 for four |
| 24" Stainless Steel Piano Hinge | Amazon.com | $14.35 |
Final Total Cost: $60.80
