Incra Router System Confusion (Long, sorry)

[Ken Massingale]

Morning,
I'm a relatively new member and am enjoying the vast depth of information available, and especially the friendly atmosphere.
I have a Ridgid TS3650 tablesaw with a Woodpecker router extension betwen the rails on the right side. The extension is 20" wide at the front and 15" wide at the back.(Ridgid back rail is shorter than front one)
The RT extension is equipped with a Woodpecker Quicklift.
I will soon be ordering an Incra router system to use with this setup.
At this point I am leaning toward the Pro 2 Ultra, http://www.woodpeck.com/pro2ultra.html

Question 1, can I mount the Ultra base to a piece of ply and clamp that board to the top of the tablesaw top to the left of the RT?
Like this but the assembly would be clamped to the cast tablesaw top.




Question 2, I would like to use this Incra to make blanket chests, say 20" high and 42" long, with dovetail joints. It seems that clamping a 20 by 42 panel to the 10" right angle fixture would not be practical. Is it practical to do two 10 by 42 panels and then join them? Would there be issues getting the dovetails to align?
Or is this simply not a practical application for the Incra jigs?
Are there any videos available on the net to see Incra jigs in use?
Thanks a lot for any comments,
ken

[Byron Trantham]

Ken, welcome to the Creek.

You're right about trying to dovetail a 42" "tall" board with the Incra system. I have the Twin Linear, a variant of the Pro 2, and it works fine for smaller things like boxes, drawers, etc. Trying to mount a board that is 42" tall and keep it stable would be problematic. Even if you had the other styles of dovetail machines, Leigh comes to mind, you would have to mount it 40+ inches off the ground, taller than most benches. It seems to me the best way to dovetail a board that long would be by hand.

As far as mounting your Pro 2 to the TS via clamp, I have been thinking about this solution for some time. I think it might be good to install a couple threaded inserts in the TS table top and use a 1/4-20 bolt to hold the Pro 2 in place. It's not the strength I would worry about but rather making sure it was placed correctly relative to the router bit. If you could then remove it easily and re-install it in exactly the same place every time. Just a thought. Good luck.

[Rod Arnold]

Regarding your dovetailing question, I had to do just that a couple weekends ago, with 3/4" cherry panels 18" by 40-something". I have the Twin Linear, and using the vertical extension it was no problem (other than moving my router table so the panels would not hit the hanging lights.
I would think stability is a prime concern: My router table is built with a cast iron cabinet saw table, so it is very stable.
One other concern: The Incra rails on my Twin Linear allow for cuts, I believe, totalling less than 18 inches. Smaller units would extend even less, so you would have to check the capacity of the unit you are considering.
Or use your original idea of cutting two smaller panels separately and trimming the end half-pins on the boards on the ends to be joined.

[Ryan Ricks]

Question 1 - Can you clamp it to the table? This is how I have my Incra mounted - the base is mounted on 3/4" ply, and the ply is clamped to the table. Works fine. The nice thing about a router, is it is simple to re-install. As long as the bit is centered in the fence, it works. Don't need to worry about exact placement.

Question 2 - wide panels - It could be done, but make sure you are very comfortable making joints with small panels before you attempt it. The pieces need to be carefully clamped, and if you are off the joint will not fit properly. Personally, I am looking for a second DT jig for larger panels (or learn how to hand-cut).


-Ryan

[Larry D. Wagner]

Ken,

I don't post to often, but I would opt for the 17" or 25" Super System. Yes, I think you can do what your thinking with the 25" system. An alternative would be to make your own templates and rout by hand. There was an article in one of the WW magazines earlier last year about this. I'll see if I can find it and PM you.

By the way I have a 17" super system on my router table and just love it. It's a little more money, but worth it. Also you might look at the complete table saw system as you can use it with both your saw and router. I do have a Ridgid TS3650, but do not have a router top or Incra fence installed on it.

Larry

[JayStPeter]

You can just clamp the system to the table. That's not a problem at all. I have my Jointech mounted to a piece of plywood with slides that go into some t-track on my router table. Makes it easy to remove and reposition based on application.

These type of router table joinery fences aren't good for things like blanket chests. I use mine often for drawers, but still think a regular DT jig would be better for that application as well. Smaller drawers, boxes, and decorative joinery are where these things shine.

The Incra Ultra is purely a joinery fence. You will not be happy with it if you plan to use it as a general purpose router table fence. The LS Super Systems or Jointech are better for this application. The Ultra fence only has a 1.5" square opening for the bit. If you plan on using 3" panel raiser, rail/stile bits, or even a chamfer bit raised for max cut you'll have to hack a bigger hole in the fence. I modified the heck out of my Incra Ultra system, but never found it to be as good for general purpose as the fences made to be.

Jay

[Brian Dormer]

Just thinking about clamping the Incra to the TS top. Why not make a base out of MDF or Baltic Birch Ply and put "lips" on it that hang down and register the base to the sides of the top of the saw? You might also make use of the miter slot. It would then be simple to get the Incra lined up in the exact same place every time - and be removable to boot!

I've put off buying an Incra for my router table (mainly due to space constraints) - but now.... You've got me thinking!

Hide the credit cards!

bd

[Jim Dailey]

Ken since you are planning to temporarily clamping the Incra to the right side of your TS fence, you may want to consider a "low tech" way of using you Incra positioner with your exsisting TS fence. Simply clamp/bolt the Incra to the back of your TS fence and clamp down the Incra, thus you get the indexing of the Incra on your TS. This is a quick safe way for example to rip thin strips that come off the outside of the blade, thus avoid the danger of a piece wedged between the blade & fence.

Hope this helps, jim

[Vaughn McMillan]

Ken since you are planning to temporarily clamping the Incra to the right side of your TS fence, you may want to consider a "low tech" way of using you Incra positioner with your exsisting TS fence. Simply clamp/bolt the Incra to the back of your TS fence and clamp down the Incra, thus you get the indexing of the Incra on your TS. This is a quick safe way for example to rip thin strips that come off the outside of the blade, thus avoid the danger of a piece wedged between the blade & fence.

Hope this helps, jim

I second Jim's suggestion. Before I equipped my TS3650 with the full Incra TS-III setup, I had an early model of the Incra jig, and I used it from time to time in a way similar to the way Jim mentioned. Since my old Incra jig had a workable fence, I'd temporarily clamp the Incra fence to the back of my TS fence, then clamp the Incra base to the TS top. Then I'd remove the factory fence, and use the Incra by itself. By using the factory fence as a reference point, I could quickly ensure the Incra was square to the blade. As Jim mentioned, by moving the Incra fence for each cut, you can safely rip very thin strips. For example, with my 3/32" thin kerf blade, moving the fence exactly 1/8" at a time (super easy with the Incra), I can cnsistently cut 1/32" thick strips.

- Vaughn

[Ken Massingale]

Many thanks to everyone for the comments and suggestions. I'm still on the fence as to which one to get, LOML is watching me closely since I have a Performax 10-20 on order from Amazon, but I have plenty of information from you folks to keep my head busy for awhile.
ken