Feedback on Tablesaw Mounted Router

[Larry Nall]

I've just scored a PC 7518 router and a Woodpecker lift.
I'll be tossing the old table I threw together a few years ago and am researching what sort of new table to build.

I'm torn between a deluxe NORMesque table or mounting to the tablesaw.

I'm looking for some input from those of you with the saw mounted routers.

Other than being a stable platform and making existing tabletop real estate do double duty to save space, what are the other advantages of a saw mounted router?

Do you use your existing fence and rail system with the router or do you use a separate custom fence?

How do you handle dust collection?

How do you handle power, extension cord or tie into the saw's supply?

Do you find it inconvenient to have to breakdown the router setup to make a cut with the saw or vice versa?

How do you handle bit storage?

Thanks a bunch for your advice.

[Curt Harms]

Do you use your existing fence and rail system with the router or do you use a separate custom fence?

I made a separate fence. I have the Mule fence and the front rail is pretty simple. It's pretty easy to make another fence.

How do you handle dust collection?

I haven't done anything underneath the table. I have dust collection on the fence.

How do you handle power, extension cord or tie into the saw's supply?

Do you find it inconvenient to have to breakdown the router setup to make a cut with the saw or vice versa?

That's the advantage of having 2 fences. I can rip or crosscut about 12" without touching the router setup. It depends on the distance between the blade and the router fence.

How do you handle bit storage?

Thanks a bunch for your advice.

[Bruce Page]

Larry, I mounted the Bench Dog system in the left side of my Unisaw to conserve space. It is a very nice setup but I think I would rather have the larger table area of a Norm type table - if I had the room.
I also have a router mounted in the right side Woodhaven crosscut table but because of its position and my shop layout, it kills my back if I have a lot of routing to do.

[Craig Nickles]

Larry,


I use the benchdog pro max router table insert on my Delta X5 Uni. Here is a link to it http://www.benchdog.com/promax.cfm

I really like it. It comes with it's own fence, but I can also use my Bies. if I would like to. I have had no issues with it at all. It is stable, flat as he#@ and cannot imagine anything being much better.I has its own miter slot built in and the fence has a nice dust collection port and is easy to set up. I have a router cabinet that I built that is on rollers as well. I only use it in cases where I need to be mobile, if that makes sense.

I dont really use the dust collection for the router at my table at this point. I am in the process (long one..lol) of getting my DC set up properly. Not sure how I will handle it to be honest.

I am using a drop for power on the setup right now. Kinda a hassle but it works.

I have a cabinet mounted on the wall for bit storage.

I find it is not a hassle moving the bit out of the way to use the TS. I lower the bit and it makes no trouble at all. Like it wasnt there.

I would highly recommend the benchdog pro max to anyone as it works well for me.

Craig

[Robert Chapman]

The main advantage is the added table saw table area. I also sometimes use the talble saw fence for the router. I don't worry about dust collection with the router [although I probably should]. I have a Triton router which cranks right up above the table top for bit installation and removal, which I like. The Triton has a fitting for dust collection with a vac sized hose. I plug the router into the saw's power suppky.

[glenn bradley]

Other than being a stable platform and making existing tabletop real estate do double duty to save space, what are the other advantages of a saw mounted router?

- That's the best part. I can't give up 6 sq ft of floor when I don't have to.

Do you use your existing fence and rail system with the router or do you use a separate custom fence?

- Separate. I see no advantage in an attachment that straddles the TS fence vs. a dedicated one. Both must be stored.

Fence-Storage.jpg Fence-Storage-2.jpg

How do you handle dust collection?

- I built a cabinet around mine. The top bolts to the TS wing. The cabinet mounts to the bottom of the RT.

Closed-View.jpg Open-View.jpg

How do you handle power, extension cord or tie into the saw's supply?

- Custom extension cord feeds both. You need to be able to unplug for blade or bit changes.

Do you find it inconvenient to have to breakdown the router setup to make a cut with the saw or vice versa?

- I did not sacrifice a TS extension to add mine so it is rare that the RT fence / bit are in the way when I make a TS cut. Most of those TS cuts are long past by the time I get to the RT. Bruce is right; the BenchDog is really cool but way too small.

How do you handle bit storage?

- I built a cabinet around mine. It holds four of these. I should have made room for six. The Rockler plates in the left hand bin are moot now that I have the lift so I can store more bit-bins in there now.

Bit-Boxes-2.jpg

[Eric DeSilva]

+1 on the Triton/Bench Dog combo. Have it mounted to the left of my Unisaw, and I find it very easy to crank the router down when I need more real estate. I've got the router plugged into a separate switch--the one downside of the set up was feeling around for the power switch on the Triton. Now, I just hit the switch on the side of the extension. The BD set up also comes with hooks for their fence, which keeps that out of my way...

[alex grams]

I added a jessem mast-r-lift on my sawstop wing with a t track and a cabinet below it for storage/dust collection. I put a 4 inch port into the cabinet for DC suction and it works great. I still get some dust on the table, but i get as much dust on the top from about 20 cuts with the DC as I would with 1 cut without it. I like the size of the table and use the back of my table saw fence and clamp a router fence on it and it works great.

[Bob Ross]

I got lucky with mine. I bought a used Griz and the guy threw in a MuleCab sliding table. When I installed this it required that I move my Unifence rail to the right. This gave me room to move the left extension to the right side and to include my router table top. I made the router table top out of a Craftsman contractor saw top.

I increased my rip capacity when the router is in use and when it's not I can get almost 36". I use a ShopNotes router fence or my Unifence, depending on the job. I also built the ShopNotes dust collecting guard and the hose from this reaches my router table fence. I use a Freud router with a dust port for below the table DC.

[Jon Todd]

I have my Router in the tablesaw and I also use the 7518 and woodpecker lift. I clamp a router fence to my TS fence and have dust collection above and below.

[Mike Goetzke]

A little while back I built this router table into my saw - works out perfect for my garage shap:

[scott spencer]

Space savings is the primary benefit of the TS mounted router table. Typically DC suffers a bit if you use only top side DC. I use a separate fence for the router table and have top side DC there, and also have a roll away cabinet under it for storage and bottom side DC. There's a switched 4 outlet extension cord mounted to the side of the cabinet that I use as an On/Off for the router. I find it to be an excellent use space in a tight shop with only minor compromise.

Here's my old setup...the new will be similar when finished.
NRT5.jpg

[Pat Germain]

When I was getting back into woodworking, I thought about adding a router to my TS. I saw a number of posts here on SMC advising against it. Everybody seemed to want Norm's router table. I went to Rockler and asked about buying a router table extension for my TS. All the guys there advised against it. So, I figured I'd have to build a router table.

Early this year I was out to lunch with a fellow woodworker and related the negatives I had heard about putting a router on my TS. He disagreed and highly recommended doing so. Since this woodworker was David Marks, I decided to take his advice.

I'm very happy with the simple router plate I installed on my contractor saw. When I get a cabinet saw, I plan to build a setup like David's.

[Stan Smith]

Mine is just a simple set up. I use my inca router fence clamped to the wing but I think that i'm going to start usint the ts fence to clamp the inca fence to. There is a 2.5" dust port on the inca fence that I hook up the dc to.

For bit storage, I bought some of those foam rubber pieces that have holes for bits. I just put them in shallow plastic boxes and added some cleats underneath to slide them in and out.

Ironically, I had a nice router table but didn't have room for it after we moved. It was homemade and no one wanted it so I hauled it to the dump. So far putting the router in the saw extension wing has worked out fine. I have a hitachi mv70 router and am using a router raizer.

[John Eaton]

Personally I prefer a separate setup for a router table as I like having full access to my table saw if needed, but that's just me - I'm always doing multiple projects at the same time. If you can better manage your setups and especially if you are constrained space-wise, the table saw option is a good one.

-- John