# Plunge or fixed base for router table



## timjea (Mar 28, 2013)

First post, new to routing. I've got a ryobi 175 plunge router that I have done a few miscellaneous job with in the past few years, but nothing really. I build ALOT of beehive equipment with rabbet joints, and have been doing this on my 10" table saw. Why not use the router with a rabbet bit? I probably should be. The rabbets are 3/8" x3/4" and 3/8"x5/8" on 1x pine and cypress. while eyeing some the table extension router tables - they sure are pretty - I think I'll just use a peice of 3/4" mdf and saw horses to get started as has been recommended many times in all the posts I've been reading here. 

Is using a plunge router under a table top a bad idea? More specifically, this router?

I'll need an insert. I see aluminum ones, and phenolic. How long do the phenolic ones hold up? What are the tricks to routering the inset for the insert to fit? Finally, with a 1/4" shank bit, and having to extend the bit out of the collet to accomodate the insert thickness, might I experience vibration or poor cuts? Should I make multiple passes to reach the final cut so as to not try and take alot of wood at once?

Well, that was more questions than I planned to ask in my first post. I did read the very long thread on My First Router Table and found it intersting, and I look forward to any advice this forum will offer.
Dane


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## Nickp (Dec 4, 2012)

timjea said:


> First post, new to routing. I've got a ryobi 175 plunge router that I have done a few miscellaneous job with in the past few years, but nothing really. I build ALOT of beehive equipment with rabbet joints, and have been doing this on my 10" table saw. Why not use the router with a rabbet bit? I probably should be. The rabbets are 3/8" x3/4" and 3/8"x5/8" on 1x pine and cypress. while eyeing some the table extension router tables - they sure are pretty - I think I'll just use a peice of 3/4" mdf and saw horses to get started as has been recommended many times in all the posts I've been reading here.
> 
> Is using a plunge router under a table top a bad idea? More specifically, this router?
> 
> ...


Maybe this might help...you may have seen this already...
http://www.routerforums.com/table-mounted-routing/11583-mounting-ryobi-r175-plunge-router.html


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## timjea (Mar 28, 2013)

I had not seen that thread. the extension is interesting but alas per the same thread it won't fit in my Ryobi as it has a 1/4" collet, and the extension requries a 1/2" collet.

I do appreciate you pointing me to a thread I had nt previosuly seen.
Dane


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

Dane, the $13 Grizzly mounting plate will work fine. Part # T10432047 I think.


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Hi Dane. Welcome to the forum.


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## timjea (Mar 28, 2013)

As I continue to read post on this forum, its interesting how many times Grizzly is referenced, and Rockler, but RouterTableDepot doesn't much (any?). Are RTD products better/worse/the same as Grizzly stuff?
Dane


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## nickrochon (Feb 8, 2013)

One thing I noticed right away was this table:

Large Deluxe Router Table, RM405 - Full Size Tables

looks identical to this:

T10432 Router Table with Stand

For half the price.


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

nickrochon said:


> One thing I noticed right away was this table:
> 
> Large Deluxe Router Table, RM405 - Full Size Tables
> 
> ...



That probably answers Dane's question. 

What appears to be a clone table sold under many guises for a lot less.

I have a similar table in Australia.....

PS; The RTD table insert is not recommended for 3hp routers. Wonder why?????


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## cagenuts (May 8, 2010)

jw2170 said:


> PS; The RTD table insert is not recommended for 3hp routers. Wonder why?????


Maybe the additional weight of the bigger router?

Perhaps the plate will flex.


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

I have used the same plate for 5+ years with a Triton TRA001 hanging off with no problems.

Although, I always take the router out of the table and store sitting on the base plate......I believe this is the same plate that Mike is recommending.


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## rjunique (Jul 21, 2012)

I have the RM 405A that has the aluminum insert and it is only about $15 more that will support any router. I haven't had any problems with it.
Richard


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

Those two tables are identical, RTD is selling it for more than twice the price. I am hanging all the 3+ hp routers on this table for the comparison testing. Photo one is the T10432 from Grizzly and photo two is the table from RTD.


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## timjea (Mar 28, 2013)

Fair enough. I ended up on their site looking at Router bit sets, and then happened on the Table Saw Router Table Extension, Contractor Size (I don't think I can post hyperlinks yet) for $179 including fence and free shipping. I went back to grizzly but did not find a comparable. I wasn't shopping for a table top, just saw it. I'm still pondering on whether to spend time using this router or not.
I see a very common theme on posts from newbies like myself - we are all asking for guidance on equipment to start off with, so as to not waste time or hamper our learning because of equipment.
I'm a beekeeper (passionately) and I see lots of people wanting to start beekeeping but don't know where to start or what they need. SO I developed 5 options that starts off with "Use what ya got or can scrounge up" and on the other end is a pretty fancy copper top garden hive. I think most of us are looking for the same kind of guidance. I know there lots of options and many will probably work to some degree for certain applications. And I truly see how the use what ya got until you know better what you need concept works at least as far as routers and tables and fences go. And probably a few other areas of life.

The joy needs to be in producing the end result, rather than a chore to figget with, constantly adjust, and get an end result that you see all the imperfections. Somewhere somebody is going to say very prophetically "its a journey".

Well, right now, I need to be able to route some rabbet's and get a good end result. And in the near future I do think I'll end up with a table saw extension table as I could use the table saw surface, and shop space is tight so a standalone router table doesn't make sense.

Dane


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## rwl7532 (Sep 8, 2011)

Consider using a jointer for some of your rabbeting if you have one.


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## timjea (Mar 28, 2013)

Nope, no jointer.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Yonico Brand sold by many pus they sale and make the yellow painted router bits that many sale.

Deluxe Router Table Fence and Stand Kit Yonico 21033 | eBay

Deluxe Router Table with Aluminum Router Plate Yonico 21035 | eBay

yonico | eBay

==


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## Willway (Aug 16, 2012)

Hi Dane, we have a commercial supplier for bee equipment on the forum, his name is Carl, I am sure he will chime in as soon as he sees your post. He supplies and builds everything, hives, frames the whole shot. He is near the west coast of South Africa. What type of table saw have you been using? The reason I ask is as a space saver you might want to consider an extended set of fence rails and build your MDF router table between them. This can be an inexpensive way to go (as little as $30), and a big plus to your table saw. You can simply remove the router fence and use it as an assembly table. As for the phenolic plate, phenolic was developed for the military and used extensively in fighter aircraft, need I say more? In my honest opinion it is best to deal with a company that stands behind what it sells, and Grizzly certainly does that! My father and I always built our hive bodies and supers out of 1X pine, the hard way, no power tools, but that was 60 years ago.


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## timjea (Mar 28, 2013)

The table saw is a crafstman with castiron wings, and I guess it is a stock fence - it does the job and is square. I put a zero insert in it to help with making the rabbets for when the board is on end. 
Dane


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

Dane, the economy table top/installing a mounting plate post at the top of this section is a good answer for your needs. The $13 Grizzly mounting plate is substituted for the no longer available HF plate. Two clamps to fasten it to your saw or bench top when needed and store it away easy when not in use. The photo shows how it looks with a Triton TRA001 on a Rockler aluminum mounting plate.


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## Willway (Aug 16, 2012)

timjea said:


> The table saw is a crafstman with castiron wings, and I guess it is a stock fence - it does the job and is square. I put a zero insert in it to help with making the rabbets for when the board is on end.
> Dane


Dane I have a real problem understanding why you would ever need to stand a board on end to cut a rabbet. It seems to me, in making hive boxes, it could be done flat on the table with a dado blade and a sacrificial fence, unless you do not have a dado blade. If you do not have a dado blade or set, forget about all about the BS you have read about wobble blades, it's true they are not suited for fine furniture, but they will glue up fine for hive bodies and supers. Plus they are cheap!


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

Dick, one edge of any cut is always the cleanest. Try two test cuts on a piece of scrap, one horizontal and one vertical and you will see the difference. This is important for cutting projects when one edge will show where it meets another piece. This may not matter on the hives but it is a good idea to learn this and always work the same way.


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## Willway (Aug 16, 2012)

Mike said:


> Dick, one edge of any cut is always the cleanest. Try two test cuts on a piece of scrap, one horizontal and one vertical and you will see the difference. This is important for cutting projects when one edge will show where it meets another piece. This may not matter on the hives but it is a good idea to learn this and always work the same way.


Thanks Mike, but I was speaking in relationship to hive bodies and supers. Usually these are built fast and are painted. If I am looking for a nice joint I will go to the router table.


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## timjea (Mar 28, 2013)

I don't have a dado blade yet. I wanted to just buy a wobble blade as I thought it would be appropriate for what I do, but with the bad image they have, I got stuck with indecision, and have been making a horizontal and a vertical cut for upwards of two years to make my rabbet. Its just finally time to do something different, and I decided I wanted to learn to use the router. The volume of work is forcing me to find better faster ways.
Dane


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## Willway (Aug 16, 2012)

timjea said:


> I don't have a dado blade yet. I wanted to just buy a wobble blade as I thought it would be appropriate for what I do, but with the bad image they have, I got stuck with indecision, and have been making a horizontal and a vertical cut for upwards of two years to make my rabbet. Its just finally time to do something different, and I decided I wanted to learn to use the router. The volume of work is forcing me to find better faster ways.
> Dane


Hi Dane, I just gave Carl (the bee supplier in South Africa) your user name and your name and a link to this post. I am sure he intends to contact you by private message. Be sure.to check them. If you entered an email address you will receive a notice in your email that you have a private message. He will be able to guide you with his past experience. He just finished an order for 3000 frames which he builds in his shop, and just received another large order.


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

Reminder: members can not respond to PM's until they have made 10 posts.


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## timjea (Mar 28, 2013)

Post 10. Sorry guys but I needed to do that.
Dane!


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## Willway (Aug 16, 2012)

timjea said:


> Post 10. Sorry guys but I needed to do that.
> Dane!


Way to go Dane!!!


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