Replies

1. 
   57robbie | Sep 12, 2006 12:08am | #1

   Hi Allison

    

   I recently bought The Bench Dog table saw extension and lift and have been very pleased with it.

   What ever you buy...

   Concerning lifts check the backlash on the assemlies if the lift adjustment  has alot of free play you should avoid it. Compare between the various suppliers.

   Concerning the tables there are alot to choose from, My eyes glaze over with all the options. I just went with the cast iron table extension to minimize floor space.

    

   Good luck

    

   Malcolm

    

    

2. 
   cadiddlehopper | Sep 12, 2006 12:46am | #2

   I have a PC 895PK & Bench Dog top & fence. You don't need a lift. You don't even need the tool that comes with the PC 895PK. You can reach all the controls of the PC 890 easily from the front if you mount it as I did. If I were doing it aagain, I would go for the cast iron top. It can be mounted on a table or on your table saw.

   Cadiddlehopper

3. 
   nikkiwood | Sep 12, 2006 01:09am | #3

   I don't know if this is the case, but it sounds like you are just getting started with routers.

   You've already settled on a router and a lift mechanism (Jessem).

   Even if you have the budget, you might consider holding off on either buying a manufactured table or making an elaborate one of your own.

   You can make a perfectly acceptable router table by doubling up 2 sheets of ply (say something about 24" X 30"), clamp it to a couple of saw horses, and have at it. Any kind of straight stock clamped to the table can function as a fence.

   I suggest this only bcause there are many types and styles of router tables. Even a little bit of experience with this elementary affair I have recommended will give you a very good idea of the kind of table that would best suit your purposes -- either one you make or one you buy.

   ********************************************************
   "It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."

   John Wooden 1910-

4. 
   9619 | Sep 12, 2006 01:17am | #4

   ACV,
   I can understand your wanting to get your router up and working in a table right away. But my suggestion is to build your own table. Buy any of the router books on the market and you'll see plenty of designs. I prefer the simplest ones. Go to Pat Warner's website and look up his approach to router tables -- just put a hole in some MDF and attach the router. Make a simple fence. Make a strong simple frame to hold up the piece of MDF with the router attached.

   I suggest that you use your first simple router table to make a better one later. As you play with them, you will see what features you want and which you dont.

   Take the $200 you save by making your own, and buy some bits. Read FWW to find out which to buy first. There was a good article recently.

   Have fun. You are a woodworker. Make your own tables. Don't buy things you can make easily and cheaply. If you don't like your $15 router table, then buy the Bench Dog or Jessem.

   Whatever you do, don't pay too much attention to advice. It comes at you from all sides and you can't tell which is best.

   Whatever table you decide on, use it a lot and learn a lot from experience. Don't buy and not use. Every month, weigh your sawdust. You are doing well if your sawdust/month is always increasing. :-)
   Enjoy,
   Mel

   Measure your output in smiles per board foot. 

5. 
   ACV | Sep 12, 2006 02:05am | #5

   Thanks for all the info.

   I looked at the Bench Dog extension for the table saw and think that could work out very well for me considering it can be applied to a home build table at a later date.

   I will be also investigating the home built models in more detail.

   Allison

1. 
   Tom7 | Sep 12, 2006 02:46am | #6

   Take the time to read all the articles, advice and plans on http://www.patwarner.com.  Pat is the most no nonsense guy about routers I have run into.  After 20 years of working with router tables with inserts and the inevitalbe sag, I found his advice on an MDF top with a torsion box below to be fantastic, absolutely no sag at all.  His fence is the best and can be built for less than $100.

2. 
   Mumda | Sep 12, 2006 03:32am | #8

   I have the Benchdog Promax cast iron router table extension wing and I love it! The fence goes on and off in seconds. It's heavy duty and excellent quality. Even the dust collection actually works.I also have the same PC router that you're thinking of and it works great under that table. Very good fine adjustment. No need for a special wrench, just reach under the table.

1. 
   ACV | Sep 12, 2006 03:42am | #10

   Hi Mumda,

   Nice to know you have the setup I am thinking about.

   I am just wondering what type of table saw that you might have?  We have a Rigid.

1. 
   EdHarrow | Sep 12, 2006 04:47am | #11

   I, too, have Promax.  My issues were twofold.  One, lack of space, which this solved.  Two, I've read too many complaints about table sag.  If this doesn't solve that problem we're all in trouble!

   I'm using a Triton router (no lift required).

   The entire deal was bolt-on.  The Bench Dog manual indicated two people were required, but I did the install myself with no problem.  I did have a little trouble with the 'square' washers, I think they're a little out of place, but it's all done, it's flat to the saw top and, as was already noted, the dust collection actually works.  (Actually it works on both the table and the router.)  Also, the proper 1/4-20 screws required to attach the Triton router to the plate were NOT included with the Benchdog hardware kit. 

   Confession time:  I've only just installed this and have barely used it.

1. 
   Mumda | Sep 12, 2006 05:50am | #13

   It sure is a nice piece isn't it? I was very impressed with the fit and finish. Mine is ground so smooth you can almost see a reflection in it, and that's not easy with cast iron.Well worth the $$$ in my opinion.

2. 
   Mumda | Sep 12, 2006 05:48am | #12

   Mines a Delta. There's instructions included that reference the Ridgid.

3. 
   cadiddlehopper | Sep 12, 2006 03:41am | #9

   I forgot to tell you: The PC890 router can get jammed up with chips under the table. There is a dust port in the fixed base. I hooked a dust collector hose there as well as on the table top. That greatly alleviates the problem but is not quite a total cure. It can be lived with, however. Otherwise, you should love the 890.The reason I wish I had bought cast iron is that the fence can slide on the slick melamine top. Cast iron should have a better coefficient of friction for our purposes. First rout I made, the fence moved from the force of router bit cut.Someone else was concerned about economy. WRT economy, buy the router without the lifting tool (PC 893PK, I think)& forget about a router lift. You just aren't going to need it. (I'll sell you my PC lift tool cheap! I don't need it.) What you would probably like to have is a crook-necked collet wrench which you don't get with 895PK but which you do get if you buy the PC lifting tool separately. Figure that.Again, Cadiddlehopper

6. 
   Pondfish | Sep 12, 2006 03:16am | #7

   There are many kinds of tables you can buy or make.  But since you say you're a beginner, let me mention that fingers tend to be limited to ten, difficult to repair and harder to replace.

   Before going gung ho with a router table, be sure to read up on router table and general router safety.   Make the jugs needed for routing small or awkward pieces--don't rely on your grip.  Know that climb-cutting on a router table is a definite no-no. Don't make the mistake others have made, thinking "it the work starts to slip, I'll just get my hands out of the way."  By the time the nerve impulses for that brainy idea are halfway to your hands, your fingers will have already gone through the bit.

   That's the caveat.  At the same time, a good router table setup and the right safety procedures will give you many, many hours of enjoyment and tremendous piles of sawdust.  Good luck selecting a router table set up (and don't neglect the dust collection aspect, either).

   Recommending the use of "Hide Signatures" option under "My Preferences" since 2005