# Is there a preferred height for router tables



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

I have seen a few tables and I believe most were 36" high .
I guess this may depend on a persons height to . I am 5'8" tall with short arms so I'm thinking I may find a 36" tall table more comfortable than a 34" . I find a few inches can be quite noticeable in certain situations .

Is there a table height that you experts here prefer, or is there such a thing ?


----------



## JOAT (Apr 9, 2010)

RainMan1 said:


> Is there a table height that you experts here prefer, or is there such a thing ?


In my experience, it is whatever 'you' are most comfortable with.


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

JOAT said:


> In my experience, it is whatever 'you' are most comfortable with.


I was afraid you'd say that 

I guess seeing as I've only done it on my TS extension I don't really know


----------



## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Theo is right. It is dependent on your height. Usually it is somewhere around elbow height.


----------



## IC31 (Nov 16, 2012)

JOAT said:


> In my experience, it is whatever 'you' are most comfortable with.


X2 or whatever the count is now. If I'm building another workbench, then I can easily adjust the height. Most commercially built tools are for the 'average' height which makes most too low for me, but I adjust my way of thinking. There is a chart giving the average height worldwide: Template:Average height around the world - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia with the US male being 5'10"


----------



## Daikusan (Apr 12, 2013)

Let me throw the curve, I like my router table higher than my work bench by at least 18 inches. Then again Im 6’4”, so experiment a bit before you build the final product.


----------



## Seasoned Oak (Jun 11, 2012)

I am 5'8 also and I built my router table 40 inches. Works really well for me


----------



## IC31 (Nov 16, 2012)

I just measured two of my work benches at 38" which is about right for what they're used for (more then just wood working). The Grizzly router table is 34 inches and really is too low by about 3-4 inches. But with that said, it does allow for pretty good control over my work piece but I might just add some to the height someday when I'm just hangin' around looking for a project. Oh yeah, I too am 6'4"


----------



## Garyk (Dec 29, 2011)

My rule of thumb is to stand relaxed, with your elbows slightly bent and your hands on the table top. That should work for you. The 36" has been a standard kitchen cabinet height for years but people weren't quite as tall when the engineers come up with that. Same thing for seats (18" standard). I don't know too many folks with an 18" wide bottom anymore. lol As a last choice you can fashion blocks to make it taller but they can be toe snubbers. Good luck


----------



## sunrunner (Apr 17, 2014)

I have built router tables for both myself and others. Generally as everyone else has said height is a big concern. My brother is 6'5" and his table is much higher than mine. The other consideration that I did not see anyone comment on is if your doing a lot of work on the router table for hours on end you may also want to consider seating and rollers. A seat can be a lifesaver and rollers can make seating more practical.

Both seating and rollers have limited heights in the commercial market and if you make your table too high you won't be able to find items to accomodate. Of course you could build your own but chair and roller set but that is up to you.

Victor


----------



## MikeMa (Jul 27, 2006)

My old router table, and my new router table are a little over 37" high. I am 6'2", and this has worked well for me.


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Ok I didn't want to mention this as it thought it might influence the answers , but I was hoping to make this router table double as an out feed table for my TS , but I really think 33.75 inches is to low and that's what it would end up being .

But I had this epiphany last night . Put a few linear actuators and drawer slides mounted inside the router table to adjust the height accordingly . I knew this was going to end up going from a simple table to yet another one of my major projects


----------



## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

I just measured my miter saw station. The bed height is 37 1/4". This make for a comfortable working height for me. I have my router table top attached to the end of it and support the outer end with an adjustable roller stand.

That accomplished two things...
1) more support for long pieces being cut with the miter saw.
2) more support for routing longer pieces.

Hope this helps.
Mike
5' 10" or thereabouts


----------



## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

RainMan1 said:


> But I had this epiphany last night . Put a few linear actuators and drawer slides mounted inside the router table to adjust the height accordingly . I knew this was going to end up going from a simple table to yet another one of my major projects


Funny you mention an adjustable height table. I am building one now! 

It will be about 26 inches high at the lowest position for cabinet assembly. Then adjustable up to about 37 1/2" high.

If I do put a router in the table, it will be towards one end. Simply drop it in or lift it out to change bits. I might even make a filler to cover the hole when I am assembling projects. 

Here is a pic of the bottom half with casters set in place. Attaching them will be the last thing I do.

I am currently trying to figure out the sizes for the supports for each leg. I will build the top last to insure I have at least 1 1/2" overhang for clamps. I am planning for the top to be about 30" wide x 36" long.

I guess you are wondering why I would put the router off center. Well, *this* is going to be my table lift!


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

MT Stringer said:


> Funny you mention an adjustable height table. I am building one now!
> 
> It will be about 26 inches high at the lowest position for cabinet assembly. Then adjustable up to about 37 1/2" high.
> 
> ...


Looks solid Mike . I will be watching your progress carefully . Thanks for posting and I'll keep my eyes open for any updates you may share with us


----------



## Goblu (Mar 5, 2012)

There are some very nice table top router stations made like this one by Bench Dog, that have many features of a full size table.
Bench Dog Products: Pro-Top Contractor

It seems that one advantage of them would be that it could change heights depending on the situation, and the height of the table they are on.


----------



## JOAT (Apr 9, 2010)

MT Stringer said:


> I guess you are wondering why I would put the router off center. Well, *this* is going to be my table lift!


And that is exactly why I am in favor of making your own table, then you get what 'you' want, and not what someone else 'thinks' you want. Good on.

A bit off topic, but I think pertinent. I have used a cane for years, and make my own. At present my daily cane is 37", but I am thinking of increasing the height an inch or two for the next one - that will allow me to give a bit more 'push' going up stairs, and a bit more reach going down. I've used longer before and they are comfortable for me. Recently my doctor decided I am 5'6.5", instead of 5'7". If you look at all the cane sites online, they all have charts of the 'proper' length cane for your height. And they all claim that if you are 6' tall, your cane should be 36". Bah. It's what you're comfortable with, and the shortest cane length I am really comfortable with is 37".


----------



## Daikusan (Apr 12, 2013)

JOAT said:


> And that is exactly why I am in favor of making your own table, then you get what 'you' want, and not what someone else 'thinks' you want. Good on.
> 
> A bit off topic, but I think pertinent. I have used a cane for years, and make my own. At present my daily cane is 37", but I am thinking of increasing the height an inch or two for the next one - that will allow me to give a bit more 'push' going up stairs, and a bit more reach going down. I've used longer before and they are comfortable for me. Recently my doctor decided I am 5'6.5", instead of 5'7". If you look at all the cane sites online, they all have charts of the 'proper' length cane for your height. And they all claim that if you are 6' tall, your cane should be 36". Bah. It's what you're comfortable with, and the shortest cane length I am really comfortable with is 37".


Go Otis
You are right on, what ever you are comfortable with is the correct size. Thank goodness we all were not made with a cookie cutter. If we were then one size would fit all.
Steve


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

^^^I agree it would be nice to build a table ideally . If you seen the kayos in my house right now you'd see I can't take on an 11th project at the moment.
Dam , and I have so many ideas for a table right now ! Plus it would be a fun project


----------



## Tiny (Aug 12, 2012)

Hi Rick.
In my experience the perfect hight is someware betwene your wrist and elbow. It depends on what kind of things you do, is it something small you must watch carefully I would do the table higher and if you mostly do long passes like profiles I would do it lower. It's right what the guys told you earlier. There isn't any standard or a code you should follow. Years ago I made my self a workbench for specialy for handcarving. It was way to high for asembly work. So how high was it? 130cm/51.5". It was lookin ridicilous when my wife was standing at the table because she is 162cm/64". I'm 6'11" and the table was ok for one job only. Good luck with your table!


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Sheeeesh , am I the only guy here under 6 feet tall lol , or are there two others . Wish they new about growth hormones back in the day as this 5'8" almost puts you in dwarf status


----------



## Tiny (Aug 12, 2012)

I can promise you Rick that the extra 1'3" havnt been cheap.


----------



## Tiny (Aug 12, 2012)

Could you tell me what "kayo" is. I tried with google image search but it really didnt help me. 
Besides. A guy 6'11" can allso be a "A-class hole". Well i'm not. I'm a nice Finnish restauration carpenter


----------



## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Hey Tiny... I think Rick was referring to "chaos"...<kayos> confusion/disorder....


----------



## Tiny (Aug 12, 2012)

Lol, thanks Bill!


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Tiny said:


> Could you tell me what "kayo" is. I tried with google image search but it really didnt help me.
> Besides. A guy 6'11" can allso be a "A-class hole". Well i'm not. I'm a nice Finnish restauration carpenter


Lmao sorry for the confusion . Even auto correct on my iPad isn't smart enough to fix my ill spelling.
I've been working nights so it's been adding to my brain deadness


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Tiny said:


> Could you tell me what "kayo" is. I tried with google image search but it really didnt help me.


I just googled Kayo and some girl come up and she's not hard on the eyes!


----------



## timbertailor (Oct 4, 2009)

I built a custom router table because 36" is too low for me to work at ALL day! I am 6 foot and a router incorporated into my table saw just was not going to happen.

My new router table sits at 40" high. 

Makes a HUGE difference after a few hours at the router table. Find a height you like. Belly button height is what I recommend.


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

timbertailor said:


> I built a custom router table because 36" is too low for me to work at ALL day! I am 6 foot and a router incorporated into my table saw just was not going to happen.
> 
> My new router table sits at 40" high.
> 
> Makes a HUGE difference after a few hours at the router table. Find a height you like. Belly button height is what I recommend.


Thanks Brad , sounds scientific to me . I'll measure my belly button lol


----------



## timbertailor (Oct 4, 2009)

RainMan1 said:


> Thanks Brad , sounds scientific to me . I'll measure my belly button lol


Disclaimer: Don't forget to subtract for "outies".


----------

