Setting Up and Using a Router Table

Working with routers and router tables is often one of the most frightening tools for new users and often one of the most mis-understood by more seasoned woodworkers. Part of the reason for the fear and misunderstanding is that this tool is pretty unique ... the router spins at speeds that makes one think it could easily lift-off the workroom floor and if you are not careful, it can ruin a piece of wood on you pretty quickly or fling it out of your hand before you know what happened.

The truth is, working with routers and router tables is not really not that daunting when you have a baisic knowledge of the tool and an understanding on some of it's principals of operation. The first thing that anyone using a router will do is to decide on what bit they want to use. Many of todays routers like Bosche, DeWalt, Makita and Freud will use both 1/4 inch or 1/2 inch shank router bits and will include both 1/4 inch and 1/2 in collets with the tool. The collet is the name for the chuck or bit holder for the router. When installing any bit in a router, it is important that it be seated properly. This means pushing bit all the way into the collet as far is it will go, then drawing back out about 1/32 of an inch. This draw back is to allow for heat expansion. Router bits can heat up pretty quickly while cutting through wood and they need a small bit of area to expand into at the bottom of the collet. Next the bit needs to be tightened firmly. This does not mean you need to crank the nut so tightly you damage the machine, but it does need to be tight enough that the bit will not spin inside the collet or have any chance of coming out.

Once the bit is installed and the router is seated in the router table, the next thing to look at is the fence ...

The fence on many router tables does not run perfectly parallel to the bit. This means that the fence can be askew of the bit and still produce perfect cuts. This is because everything to do with a router table is centreed on the bit. The fence is adjusted according to bit so because the bit is round, it doesn't matter if the fence is parallel to anything or not as long as it is adjusted according to cut required from the bit.

To further clarify this, if you look at many router tables, you will see what appears to be a mitre gauge slot like that on table saws and band saws. This slot is not a mitre gauge slot, it is a featherboard slot. This is because it is NOT recommended to use a mitre gauge on a router table in conjunction with the fence. Just like you would never use a mitre gauge with the fence on a table saw - so should you NEVER use a mitre gauge on a router table in conjuction with the fence. The ONLY time to use a mitre gauge is when the fence is removed - on ANY tool.

So what we use on a router table instead of a mitre gauge is a wooden push block of suitable size, usually 4 inches wide 3/4 inch thick and about six to eight inches long is sufficient. This block is used to push smaller pieces and cross grain pieces on the router table. It is very important that the push block have 90 degree corners, otherwise your work peices run the rist of not havint square cuts particularly if they are shorter cross grain cuts such as in rail and style doof frames.

The final set-up concern is the the height of the bit. This is normally adjusted through height controls on the router table, or if you have a router lift attached to your router table. Once the fence has been adjusted properly and the height of the bit is set, you are ready to run a test piece of wood through the router.

Be sure not to take too bit a "bite" of the wood, particularly if you have a large router bit installed. You may need to make a few passes, taking off a smaller bit of wood each time until the full cut is made. With larger bits you will also want to slow the speed of the router down somewhat.

Now that you are ready to run wood through the router table, the next important thing to note is the direction. Because the bit of a router runs counter clockwise as you look at it from the bottom of the router, the wood you push through the router table MUST be pushed from right to left. If you push the wood through from left to right the router bit will often "grab" the wood and fling it through the router table. Just like with a table saw you always feed wood into the opposite direction of spin the bit or blade.

The best way to ease your way into working with a router is to go slowly, ensure you have good eye and ear protection because that helps to eliminate outside distractions, and just start of with small short cuts. Once you have that confidence, you can start working on larger works.

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Using a Jigsaw

The jigsaw generally gets a bad rap as a rough tool that’s best suited for kitchen installations and odd-ball carpentry jobs.

And while I do use my jigsaw for coarse operations – I also consider it one of my essential tools for building fine furniture.

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With the right blade, a little confidence and – most important – the right body position, you can do almost anything with a jigsaw that you can do with a band saw. Plus you can do a lot of things that are impossible to do on the band saw.

Here’s a taste: Recently we were installing a kitchen and had to remove 1" of the depth from a finished cabinet against one wall. The only tool I needed was a jigsaw, and it took just a few minutes to do the job.

Here’s another: Early in my cabinetmaking career I made historical reproductions for another shop down the road. A lot of these pieces had fancy bracket bases, but we didn’t know what the profile would be until the customers placed their order. So we had to cut the scrollwork on the base after the entire cabinet was assembled. This technique worked so well that it’s how I do many of my cabinets today.

These cuts on the bracket base, when done well, require little or no sanding. I can usually just hit the edge with some sandpaper and am done with it.
And, of course, I’ve used my jigsaw for rough carpentry: cutting vent holes in roofs, framing stud walls, cutting drywall, PVC pipe and sheet metal.

A lot of woodworkers lack the confidence to make finish cuts with a jigsaw, but I contend that it’s easier than you think. Read this article, then take some strips of plywood and practice some cutting in the shop. It doesn’t take much practice to get good at it.
Choosing a Saw
This isn’t a tool review, but there are some general guidelines I would follow when buying a jigsaw. First, if you cannot afford a good saw, I’d wait until you can.
What’s a good saw? When I buy a jigsaw I’ll first turn it on. If it’s relatively quiet and doesn’t shake too much, that’s a good sign – low vibrations contribute to a smoother finished cut.

I also don’t like it when a jigsaw heats up in use. Again, this is something that you can only check by turning on the saw and putting some time in on it.
I also prefer the barrel-grip designs to the traditional top-handle designs – although a Metabo top-handle design is used for this article because top-handle models are more common. The top-handle tools are good, too, but the barrel grips allow me to get my hand closer to the work, which improves my accuracy.

Preparing the Tool
Jigsaws tend to get handled a little roughly and are frequently knocked around or dropped. This rough treatment is hardest on the base of the tool.
Why should you care? If you’re having trouble tracking a line then chances are your base is ou...

The Best Woodworking Plans Are Found Here

Using a Mortise and Tenon

In furniture making, while carcases and drawers are dovetailed together, tables and chairs have mortise-and-tenon joinery. In this article, I make a through mortise and tenon three different ways. First by hand, second with a hollow-chisel mortiser and table saw, and third with a plunge router and band saw.

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In 1991, I had a very nice commission to make about a dozen pieces of Egyptian furniture for the Newark Museum in New Jersey. I had the opportunity to see the real, original ancient pieces and make measured drawings to do the work. The pieces I had to make are more simple ones which are less well known than the spectacular furniture from the tomb of King Tutankhamun.

This stool at left is a copy of a New Kingdom craftsman stool. I made it 2" higher than the original. The Egyptians were squatting before they had stools and the low height of the stool was designed for sitting in this squatting position.

All the stools have through mortise-and-tenon joints with the seat rails meeting above and below one another at the legs. Some of the stretchers are the same way. Some tenons are pegged and some are wedged; the ancient stools were held together by the webbing. I glued mine.

The seats on the stools are also different. Some have a solid, curved seat carved from four planks, others are woven with reed and rush fibers, while still others have holes on the inner edge of the seat rails and are woven with simple double-braided rush webbing that looks like caning. The ends of all the strands are carefully knotted below the holes and hidden from sight. I made a bed in this manner for the museum.

Chop and Saw by Hand
To do mortise-and-tenon joints by hand, you have to do a lot of marking. After stock preparation, you mark the corner of the legs with a scribble to indicate the outside corners. With a square and a sharp pencil, mark the thickness of the seat rail 1/2" below the top of the leg. Flip the leg and mark first under the lower rail’s location. For a through mortise and tenon, transfer these lines to the outside of the legs. Make sure you end up with pairs. Mark the location of the stretchers at the bottom in the same way.

To locate the tenon shoulder from the rail ends, mark the seat rails and stretchers, using the width of your leg as your guide, plus 1/4" (which is how much the tenon sticks out from the leg). Measure the width of your stool and mark your other shoulder.

Set the two cutters of your mortising gauge to the thickness of the chisel, as shown at left, then move your fence so the cutters are centered in the stretchers and mark them.  Do the same with the seat rails. Reset your marking gauge and mark the legs. Make sure you are in the middle. Clamp the leg to your bench and start chopping. Stay away from the pencil line and take 1/8" chips. Keep going deeper and pry out you...

The Best Woodworking Plans Are Found Here

Using a Mortise and Tenon

In furniture making, while carcases and drawers are dovetailed together, tables and chairs have mortise-and-tenon joinery. In this article, I make a through mortise and tenon three different ways. First by hand, second with a hollow-chisel mortiser and table saw, and third with a plunge router and band saw.

In 1991, I had a very nice commission to make about a dozen pieces of Egyptian furniture for the Newark Museum in New Jersey. I had the opportunity to see the real, original ancient pieces and make measured drawings to do the work. The pieces I had to make are more simple ones which are less well known than the spectacular furniture from the tomb of King Tutankhamun.

This stool at left is a copy of a New Kingdom craftsman stool. I made it 2" higher than the original. The Egyptians were squatting before they had stools and the low height of the stool was designed for sitting in this squatting position.

All the stools have through mortise-and-tenon joints with the seat rails meeting above and below one another at the legs. Some of the stretchers are the same way. Some tenons are pegged and some are wedged; the ancient stools were held together by the webbing. I glued mine.

The seats on the stools are also different. Some have a solid, curved seat carved from four planks, others are woven with reed and rush fibers, while still others have holes on the inner edge of the seat rails and are woven with simple double-braided rush webbing that looks like caning. The ends of all the strands are carefully knotted below the holes and hidden from sight. I made a bed in this manner for the museum.

Chop and Saw by Hand
To do mortise-and-tenon joints by hand, you have to do a lot of marking. After stock preparation, you mark the corner of the legs with a scribble to indicate the outside corners. With a square and a sharp pencil, mark the thickness of the seat rail 1/2" below the top of the leg. Flip the leg and mark first under the lower rail’s location. For a through mortise and tenon, transfer these lines to the outside of the legs. Make sure you end up with pairs. Mark the location of the stretchers at the bottom in the same way.

To locate the tenon shoulder from the rail ends, mark the seat rails and stretchers, using the width of your leg as your guide, plus 1/4" (which is how much the tenon sticks out from the leg). Measure the width of your stool and mark your other shoulder.

Set the two cutters of your mortising gauge to the thickness of the chisel, as shown at left, then move your fence so the cutters are centered in the stretchers and mark them.  Do the same with the seat rails. Reset your marking gauge and mark the legs. Make sure you are in the middle. Clamp the leg to your bench and start chopping. Stay away from the pencil line and take 1/8" chips. Keep going deeper and pry out you...

The Best Woodworking Plans Are Found Here

Using a Jigsaw

The jigsaw generally gets a bad rap as a rough tool that’s best suited for kitchen installations and odd-ball carpentry jobs.

And while I do use my jigsaw for coarse operations – I also consider it one of my essential tools for building fine furniture.

With the right blade, a little confidence and – most important – the right body position, you can do almost anything with a jigsaw that you can do with a band saw. Plus you can do a lot of things that are impossible to do on the band saw.

Here’s a taste: Recently we were installing a kitchen and had to remove 1" of the depth from a finished cabinet against one wall. The only tool I needed was a jigsaw, and it took just a few minutes to do the job.

Here’s another: Early in my cabinetmaking career I made historical reproductions for another shop down the road. A lot of these pieces had fancy bracket bases, but we didn’t know what the profile would be until the customers placed their order. So we had to cut the scrollwork on the base after the entire cabinet was assembled. This technique worked so well that it’s how I do many of my cabinets today.

These cuts on the bracket base, when done well, require little or no sanding. I can usually just hit the edge with some sandpaper and am done with it.
And, of course, I’ve used my jigsaw for rough carpentry: cutting vent holes in roofs, framing stud walls, cutting drywall, PVC pipe and sheet metal.

A lot of woodworkers lack the confidence to make finish cuts with a jigsaw, but I contend that it’s easier than you think. Read this article, then take some strips of plywood and practice some cutting in the shop. It doesn’t take much practice to get good at it.
Choosing a Saw
This isn’t a tool review, but there are some general guidelines I would follow when buying a jigsaw. First, if you cannot afford a good saw, I’d wait until you can.
What’s a good saw? When I buy a jigsaw I’ll first turn it on. If it’s relatively quiet and doesn’t shake too much, that’s a good sign – low vibrations contribute to a smoother finished cut.

I also don’t like it when a jigsaw heats up in use. Again, this is something that you can only check by turning on the saw and putting some time in on it.
I also prefer the barrel-grip designs to the traditional top-handle designs – although a Metabo top-handle design is used for this article because top-handle models are more common. The top-handle tools are good, too, but the barrel grips allow me to get my hand closer to the work, which improves my accuracy.

Preparing the Tool
Jigsaws tend to get handled a little roughly and are frequently knocked around or dropped. This rough treatment is hardest on the base of the tool.
Why should you care? If you’re having trouble tracking a line then chances are your base is ou...

The Best Woodworking Plans Are Found Here