# My Lowest Possible Budget Router Table Build



## phillsam (Dec 28, 2012)

First off - this is my first post here (so if this is the wrong location please move it to the correct one)

A little about me:
I am 25 years old and work as a substation designer for a large power company. 
I have been married just over 5 years and live in Portland, Oregon with my wife and 18month old daughter (plus another due in july).

We recently began renting our first real house and the best part is the 300sq ft man-cave separate from the 2-car garage. Outfitted with cabinets, shelving, and long workbench, it is begging me to fill it.

THE ISSUE:
We are a single income family (we have made the choice for my wife to stay home with our children--which has proven to be a harder job than mine will ever be)

Aside from the standard hand tools and power drill I didn't have a large tool base.

I have began combing craigslist for deals on saws/woodworking tools to add to my collection. 

Recently I purchased a 10" sliding miter saw-Harbor freight brand ($15!!!), Older Craftsman Scroll Saw and blades ($15) and most recently Ridgid Router - Fixed/Plunge Base with a 20 piece carbide bit set ($75)

While using the router free-hand I decided I should probably have a router table.

I looked over a ton of router plans and also found some good deals on craigslist for beginner table top models. 
I thought it would be more fun to make it.

I have a reStore (habitat for humanity's surplus building supply storee) nearby my work and began gathering pieces.

Here is what I managed to get and the prices:

$2 = Countertop (18x33 - 1.5"MDF w/ Formica) 
$1 = Various lengths of Laminated MDF 
$1 = Steel Router plate randomly found on shelf
FREE = Tall Cabinet
FREE = Miter Gauge off Craigslist
$2 = Knobs for fence (from Ace Hardware)
$.50 = New screws for router baseplate (needed flat head for countersink)

TOTAL = $6.50

Take a look at the pics as I built the table. (Still need to finalize the fence)

Let me know if there is anything I'm doing wrong!!!

I have learned a ton from reading on here and am having a blast fumbling my way through this.


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Hi Eddie.

Welcome to the forum.

The only problem I see, is that the gap between the two vertical fences is way too wide.

You will have pieces moving into the gap as you move timber past the cutter.

I am assuming the photos are 'staged' photos as it looks like you are cutting a dado with a bearing guided cutter.

Still, a very good result for the money.


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## phillsam (Dec 28, 2012)

jw2170 said:


> Hi Eddie.
> 
> Welcome to the forum.
> 
> ...


Thank you for the welcome and the encouragement!
You are correct that these are merely staged photos. I was using the bearing guided ogee for a project and then decided to put the featherboard and vertical pieces on the table to show you guys more of what I had left.

The fence, when finished, will be closer together(the vertical pieces have not been screwed or glued) . Do you know of the recommended spacing? 
I may just go ahead and make the left side a sliding fence to adjust.

I intend to make a dust catch and attach a shopvac to the table as one will fit just fine in the cabinet.

I have been using a router for all of a month now and really have no idea what I will be doing the most of with my projects...
I am hoping to make some of the furniture/decor for our baby's nursery but we'll see what time permits.


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## rwl7532 (Sep 8, 2011)

You are definitely on the right track!

As you work with this design, you will think of some improvements. 

For some more ideas, take a look at pat's website:
ROUTER WOODWORKING

For instance, you'll eventually want to use better wood that's more stable over the long run. 

Pickup some thin laminate that you can just clamp to the outboard fence and you have yourself a router based edge jointer (with the correct bit of course).

Have fun and be safe.


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## Sawdust Don (Nov 1, 2012)

Right on Eddie!
In the last year, I have put together a pretty good shop off of craigslist, yard sales, junk stores, and pawn shops.
I found a used router for $80, that came with some cheap bits.
Just to get started, I installed a router in my table saw. Perhaps not the best way to go, but its a start.
Just getting started, and trying out things like fences made of free material, is going along way for me to just get the feel of things.
Then reading more about routing here makes more sense with that little bit of experience.
Good router bits are spendy, I just buy them one at a time when needed.

Don


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Hi eddie,

re;


> The fence, when finished, will be closer together(the vertical pieces have not been screwed or glued) . Do you know of the recommended spacing?
> I may just go ahead and make the left side a sliding fence to adjust.


There is no fixed spacing that I am aware of. The object is to have both fences a close to the cutter as you can. I would leave no more that 1/8" clearance on either side. Some people have a system whereby they insert a zero clearance piece into the fence.

Both side of the fence have to be adjustable, not just the left side.


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## N'awlins77 (Feb 25, 2011)

Eddie, I'd say you're doing pretty darn good so far. And congratz on the new little one. Enjoy those babies, cause they grow up waay to fast.


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## neville9999 (Jul 22, 2010)

Eddie I have said many times that routers and router tables are more about the user and how they use what they have than about a user having the best of everything, there is nothing wrong with what you have done, just buy good quality cutters and be careful as a router cutter can have your finger off faster than the blink of an eye, keep your work space clean and use hearing protection, watch the cutters and don't force the pace as it is often better to do a few light cuts to get to the finished cut than to try to do it all in one pass, from what I see then it is clear that you are on your way. NGM


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## meanbee (Jan 15, 2013)

Congrats on the lil one and welcome i too am just starting out and our situations are very similar. I too have been hitting the junk stores and craigslist haha. Hey way i see it gotta start somewhere.


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## mgmine (Jan 16, 2012)

As James mentioned there should not be a gap in the fence. You should make your fence in two parts the first would be the back and be solid with the exception of the dust port the front should be in two sections so that it can slide together or apart depending on the size of the bit. This is what I mean.
http://www.routerforums.com/attachm...ss-road-what-would-you-do-how-fence-front.jpg


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## Dale2992 (Dec 13, 2012)

Welcome to the forum from another Newbie. I am in the process of getting things together to build my first table so you are already ahead of me on that portion. Since it is in the single digits today and wind chill less than zero I will just be thinking of my table for now. 

Gratz on your soon to be addition. Glad to hear of other folks who value a Stay at Home Mom, though my wife is now a Stay at Home Grandma.


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## phillsam (Dec 28, 2012)

Thanks everyone for the replies, I was hopeful that this was an active forum! (i seem to be searching the past databases more than checking for new posts so i was unaware of how busy it is)



N'awlins77 said:


> Eddie, I'd say you're doing pretty darn good so far. And congratz on the new little one. Enjoy those babies, cause they grow up waay to fast.


Thanks, I'm happy with how it is turning out and it seems to really shave off time clamping a board onto my work piece as a guide! 

Lee, you're right, cant believe that little girl of a year and a half ago is already running around and becoming her own little person. Too fast.
Having a child has wrecked my world in the best sense of the word  Really shows you where you are holding onto selfish things too tightly. I can only imagine that the 2nd will reveal even more.






neville9999 said:


> keep your work space clean and use hearing protectionNGM



Neville, at the risk of sounding naive, I was surprised to read that hearing protection is necessary with a router. The sound is it puts out is much more tolerable to me than most other power tools. Im assuming it has to do with the frquency of the sound and not the volume?




meanbee said:


> Congrats on the lil one and welcome i too am just starting out and our situations are very similar. I too have been hitting the junk stores and craigslist haha. Hey way i see it gotta start somewhere.


David,
Thank you for the congratulations, we cannot wait.
Starting out can be frustrating at times (not having the right tool for the job...or not knowing what the right tool even is) but it sure is an adventure. I have started making various pieces for our home and it is rewarding to have pieces that have character and not spending the money on something store bought.

Plus finding great deals on craigslist/at 2nd hand stores just feeds the itch to keep filling the shop.




mgmine said:


> You should make your fence in two parts the first would be the back and be solid with the exception of the dust port the front should be in two sections so that it can slide together or apart depending on the size of the bit. /QUOTE]
> 
> Art,
> I appreciate the advice and would love to to incorporate that into my design. Unfortunately the picture you linked is about as bit as my thumb on my screen...any chance of getting a larger version of the image? or am i doing something wrong to view it?
> ...


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## OPG3 (Jan 9, 2011)

Eddie, Welcome to the Router Forums! We are glad to have you aboard. From reading your description you are well on your way to having a quite functional router table on a budget spending basis.
My wife and I have known each other since I was 6 and she was 3. We began dating several years later, blah, blah, blah. We agreed prior to getting married that she would stay home and raise the children that we wanted to have. It was financially difficult, but looking back on it now; we know that we made the right decision. Now, we have 3- grown daughters and all of them went to college on full academic scholarships and are very productive in their jobs. It is tough to keep Mom at home, but it is a great choice in most cases - and certainly offers the best potential for your children. The family stuff is vastly more important than woodworking will ever be! 
If your home projects are even half as well-planned and executed as your router table, you will be able to create some quite memorable home furnishings!
I still remember our first "dining table" was a wooden "cable spool", with a thin plywood top veneer to bridge the gaps - Joy could set-it-up where the family enjoyed every minute of it. I recommend that you make photos of what you build and use - in years to come, those photos will provide precious memories and many laughs.
We knew we would be as "poor as dirt", but Joy has an amazing ability to entertain and teach kids (me included) and by the time our girls were in school and most kids were learning the alphabet, our children were writing stories. Education must be fun! Home schooling is not for everyone - we put our kids through public schools, but Joy (and me sometimes) was involved in every aspect of their growing-up. Be the best parents that you can be and you will never have any regrets.
We took our kids bowling one time when they were quite young. Our middle daughter came home saying that was fun, but she wished we could do that at home. We saved-up [empty] 2- liter drink bottles for "our bowling pins" and used a small, soft ball for the "bowling ball"! We still laugh when we think back to what we all eventually referred to as "COLA BOLA". This experience triggered numerous other cheap methods of having family fun together.
For many years, I worked a 78 hour work week - (6) 13 hour days. When I left-out in the morning, my daughters were asleep and when I got home that evening my daughters were asleep. I always spent Sundays with my girls, after church we would would go out for dinner and then we would go home and play. One Sunday, Joy wanted to "get out" and do some shopping. I said "fine - we will just stay here at home until you return". Well, while Joy was shopping, our playtime got tiring and I fell asleep on our living room (carpeted) floor. My hair (although now it is 1/8" long) was about 3 or 4 inches long and our girls (ages 3, 5 & 8) decided they would play a joke on me (I am a very hard sleeper) and apply make-up, lipstick, hair curlers, etc. They were having a ton of fun while I was sound asleep. Since we lived in a not-perfectly safe neighborhood, we had a *"rule"* that the girls never answer the doorbell. Our "Deacon from Church" was out visiting after church. When he rang the doorbell, Joy had not yet returned home from shopping; and our girls being mindful of *"the rule"*, awakened their "highly decorated dad". I had no idea what the girls had done to me - so I simply jumped-up off the floor and answered the doorbell. I was wearing a pair of shorts and an undershirt, but to this day; I wish I had taken a photo of our "deacon" when he appeared. I said, "Howdy Melvin - come on in! Joy's out shopping but should be home soon." Melvin's facial expression was unlike anything I had ever seen before or after and he simply said, "Otis - it looks like I have come a bad time - MAYBE I WILL CALL AHEAD BEFORE MY VISIT - NEXT TIME." 
Picture this: *I still did not know* what my girls had done - so we went back to sitting in the floor and playing puzzles or whatever we were doing previously. Joy soon returned from shopping and I helped bring-in the groceries, dog food, etc. As soon as Joy looked at me, she said "You better get back in the house before someone sees you like that!" "Like what?" I said. Then I noticed my fingernails were painted, next I noticed my toenails were painted, then I said UT-OH Now I know why Melvin had such a funny look on his face! 30 some odd years later we still are laughing. 20 + years ago, Joy and I attended Melvin's funeral - when Joy started tearing-up. Since it was a funeral, I didn't consider it terribly unusual - after the funeral, when we got in our car Joy started laughing and said, "Do you think he died from shock after seeing you all "dolled-up".

Eddie, in addition to helpful exchanges of information back and forth among members, we sometimes are reminded of stories from our pasts. Keep your chin up! You have made a very important financial decision and I am proud of you for that!

Otis Guillebeau from Auburn, Georgia


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## JOAT (Apr 9, 2010)

Welcome aboard. I'd say you're not doing anything wrong. If it turns out not quite like what you want, then just change it.


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## Willway (Aug 16, 2012)

Hi Eddie, great finds on the pieces parts. You might want to take a look at Steve Ramsey's you-tube video at; 

Router table top and fence - YouTube

He also has the most simple, and economical build of a router table cabinet that I have seen. The cabinet is built entirely out of 1 sheet of 1/4 pine plywood and 1x3 stock. He is a rather odd individual, in his simplistic, strait forward approach to woodworking, in my opinion. The videos are well put together, but he expects an individual to use their own creativity. He very seldom gives measurements and refuses to offer any project plans.


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## OPG3 (Jan 9, 2011)

Also I would suggest you go to "Frugal Woodworking" by Gene Howe within this forum. Most of us have some interesting ways to save a few bucks here and there.


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## TJWoodworker (Jan 2, 2013)

It looks great to me. And the cost makes it even better. I was helping my son recently put together a routing jig for his guitar making efforts. We din't do quite as well. But we found various pieces of scrap wood and a 3D plan on the web. Our costs ended up in the $80 range once we got all the pieces he wanted from Rockler.


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## phillsam (Dec 28, 2012)

OPG3 said:


> Also I would suggest you go to "Frugal Woodworking" by Gene Howe within this forum. Most of us have some interesting ways to save a few bucks here and there.


Otis,
Thank you for sharing your memory and taking the time to reply. That's an awesome story! I will be sure to document my projects as I go. It will be fun to watch them evolve over time as I get more comfortable with how all the tools play together. 

And "Frugal Woodworking" has been bookmarked. Thank you so much!


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## mgmine (Jan 16, 2012)

"Art,
I appreciate the advice and would love to to incorporate that into my design. Unfortunately the picture you linked is about as bit as my thumb on my screen...any chance of getting a larger version of the image? or am i doing something wrong to view it?"
Click on my downloads and you will be able to see what I mean.


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## JOAT (Apr 9, 2010)

phillsam said:


> Neville, at the risk of sounding naive, I was surprised to read that hearing protection is necessary with a router. The sound is it puts out is much more tolerable to me than most other power tools. Im assuming it has to do with the frquency of the sound and not the volume?


I don't know what you're routing, but mine is loud when I rout. It is 'always' a good practice to wear hearing protection, as well as a proper dust mask, with almost any woodworking machine. I won't say my scrollsaw is loud, but if I'm using it for more than about 30 seconds at a time, I usually put on hearing protection. I don't know if it is loud enough to damage hearing, but I do know that listening for a bit 'is' tiring on me.


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## rwl7532 (Sep 8, 2011)

---Quote (Originally by phillsam)---
Neville, at the risk of sounding naive, I was surprised to read that hearing protection is necessary with a router. The sound is it puts out is much more tolerable to me than most other power tools. Im assuming it has to do with the frquency of the sound and not the volume?
---End Quote---

Is phillsam doing hand routing (router out of the table). When installed into a table, the entire table acts like a speaker box and amplifies the sound.

Lastly, what model router is phillsam using? A small trim router wouldn't put out much volume.

Either way, hearing protection is a good idea. Just because you can't hear it doesn't answer the question "is this harmful to my ears".


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## phillsam (Dec 28, 2012)

rwl7532 said:


> Is phillsam doing hand routing (router out of the table). When installed into a table, the entire table acts like a speaker box and amplifies the sound.
> 
> Lastly, what model router is phillsam using? A small trim router wouldn't put out much volume.
> 
> Either way, hearing protection is a good idea. Just because you can't hear it doesn't answer the question "is this harmful to my ears".


I am using a ridgid model router (2 1/4hp). Also, I am using it both in and out of the table. When in the table is actually seems quieter than when freehand? I picked up a pair of over-the-ear protection and am using that now. The earplugs always seemed to get lost in my mess and I wouldnt bother putting them in.
These larger ones are much harder to lose...


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## Maxmilon (Dec 24, 2012)

Sounds Like you are on your way. If you have any woodworking stores in your area walk through and look at the set ups they have. You can probably make any of the wood parts and use your other resources for the rest of the parts.


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## papasombre (Sep 22, 2011)

Welcome, Eddie.

You are right. Once we start to dig in here, you can´t stop. I started to build my RT from the very first time I came into this forum and from that day, it looks like an endless project because any new thing you find you want to install into your router table, keeping the costs as lower as possible.

As Mr. Otis wrote, pictures are a good way to keep our projects` memories and I have gathered many of them for my RT construction.

Mr. Otis is also right about your decision regarding to your family. We did the same and after 35 years, my wife and I are proud of our sons. Keep yourself in this way and share your developments with us.


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## Padawan Learner (Oct 12, 2009)

I was mining this web site to find ideas for a shop-made router fence and came across yours. I like the simplicity of your design. I like your whole setup. For a first timer, you hit all the right bells. Inexpensive, useful, and not too bad looking. It shows imagination, intelligence, and drive, really good qualities for a woodworker. Thanks for posting.

BTW: I am making a router table insert for my son's new Bosch table saw. I will use the table saw fence to mount the router fence. I may post my result on this site.


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## DarrenWK (Jul 2, 2013)

Great work. I'm a few weeks behind you and am very jealous of your habitat restore finds. I need to go check it out again. I wouldn't think to look for a router plate there.


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