For woodworkers, the emergence of router tables to the market is one of the finest inventions of all time. When it comes to improving the quality of the work you do in your workshop, a router table may help you achieve a lot. It comes with many benefits that make it something everyone should have. However, the way you set up your router table and the router table accessories you choose will have a big impact on the results you get. Also, it is very important to get the right router accessories for the result you require. So, we have come up with a guide to help you choose the best accessories for your router table.
With this in consideration, we’ll go through several simple but extremely essential router table accessories which will make a massive impact on the accuracy of your cuts. They’ll also make your router table experience more efficient, and they’ll improve workshop safety by lowering risk levels.
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What Do You Need A Router Table For?
The first question that arises is, why do we need a router table and its accessories for? The answer to such a question is, one of the most important advantages of using a router table is its great precision and quickness when working on any project – DIY, professional, time-sensitive, or large-scale. Although you may argue that accuracy is dictated by an individual’s skill level, you cannot deny that it is easier to obtain a high degree of precision with it than with palm routers. Since the router table is a very efficient device, the accessories add more precision to it.
Router tables are useful woodworking tools that should be owned by every craftsman. Wood Routers are used for both simple and sophisticated tasks. Adjustable shelf pins are now standard on most cabinets, allowing for bespoke shelving arrangements. With the Woodpeckers Shelf Pin and Drawer Slide Template, you can drill shelf pin holes in installed cabinets just as easily as you can drill them in cabinet pieces before assembly.
Best Router Table Accessories
To enhance your woodwork, we have rounded up the 10 best routing accessories.
1. Router Lift
On the top is a router lift. At the top is a plate that fits into a hole in the tabletop. Underneath is a sled that holds your router’s motor, and a gear mechanism uses a wrench to move the motor up and down from the top of the table.
For many years, the router was only bolted to a standard fixed base plate, and the base of the router can be used to change bit height. It’s an inexpensive and common approach, and it works well. But unfortunately, it has some drawbacks. With this plate system, if the router base does not have the router height adjustment function, every time you change the height of the router or change the burrs, you will have to lift the panel and the router from the router table or reach out or bend over to adjust. And that’s a hassle, especially if you have a hard time squatting or bending over.
That’s why a router lift is better – once you’ve installed the motor in the riser and it’s under the table, you can leave it there. The router lift raises the motor so much that you can access the collet at working height to change bits and its gear mechanism is engineered for the precision purpose. Also, it is a fact that router lifts are expensive but if you want to take your router table to the next level of performance and convenience, this is the best way to do it.
2. Dust Extraction Box
Dust extraction is a lot tricky from a router table. To work effectively, extraction must be done from both above and below the table. Many Dust Extraction Box Companies trap almost all milling debris and have a 100mm diameter outlet at the back with a 62mm inlet and hose that allows simultaneous extraction from both above and below table. There is also an easy-access door with a magnetic lock on the front for quick height adjustment. Developed for Company Professional, Compact router tables, and other custom tables according to specific design.
3. Router Table Fence
Router table fence is an essential part of a router table. A straight reference surface can directly influence the results of the cuts one makes. If you have long lead and back areas, the router table top serves as a guide and keeps the material in and out of the bit. They are also among the router table accessories that are highly valued in terms of security. Company Professional router fence comes with a complete 63mm clear dust opening for efficient tabletop extraction. An adjustable clear guard is also included to protect fingers. Adjustable entry and exit stops can be opened and closed depending on the diameter of the blade used. A T-slot at the top and front of the fence makes it easy to add accessories making it more reliable and efficient.
4. Adjustment Knobs
One thing you can do is to replace the small fence with adjustment knobs. This accessory costs less than $10, and you’ll appreciate it if you’ve ever scraped a knuckle to adjust the buttons on the router table fence. It is one of the best router accessories. No doubt, people with a low budget can purchase this to make a huge improvement in their work. Most often these fence buttons are too short or too close to the fence body to be in an easy position with fingers. Companies like Rockler have a solution with new 5 Star fence buttons. They are over 4 inches tall, which is taller than most router table fences. This way, one can run fingers around these soft, star-shaped buttons, and surprisingly knuckles will never touch the fence.
5. No Volt Release (NVR) Switch
An NVR switch, also known as a No volt release switch, allows the user to control your router completely. The simple device eliminates the need to reach under the table to turn on and off the router. Install the 230V switch on your router table and connect your router or saw to the 13A socket. After that, turn on your machine and plug the NVR switch into an appropriate power outlet. When mounted on tables, the high-quality and adaptable NVR switch with an established 13A power socket enables you to remotely handle power tools like routers and circular saws.
6. Push Stick
A push stick is equipped with a long, angled shoe that secures the workpiece. This feature makes it suitable for routing narrow pieces of wood. The push stick’s heel keeps the wood piece against the fence and the table at the same time. This router table accessory allows you to push your stock past the bit without sacrificing the cut quality. The stress exerted on the wood piece ensures standardized and seamless cuts, making it an excellent router table accessory.
7. Insert Plates
An insert plate is a terrific addition to your router table accessory collection if you want to get the most out of it. The 10mm aluminum router table insert with a universal base is designed to fit the cast iron, phenolic, and MDF router tabletops. It’s unique in that it has a four-machine-screw-attached circular universal base on the underside of the plate. Many different types of router parts can be used with the pre-drilled base. This means you can easily mount your router without needing to hole the insert plate. This accessory can take your woodwork to another level.
8. Insert Discs
Inset disc is one of the top woodworking router accessories. Insert discs for router tables provide more stability across the table. They also aid in the reduction of hole size, which aids in extraction. It’s critical to choose the inserted disc based on the size of the cutter you’re using to ensure maximum safety and minimize the risk of wood chips flying around. The discs come in a range of sizes, as well as a blank insert that you can use to make your custom hole size.
9. Router Elevator
Finally, adding a router elevator to our list of router table accessories is a great idea. The router elevator’s main benefit is that it allows you to modify the cutter’s height rapidly and precisely from above the router table. This eliminates the need to reach beneath the table each time you use the router to modify it. You can adjust the height of the router and securely lock it in any position thanks to the locking mechanism. Routers can be attached directly to the router elevator or via the adaptor plate that comes with it. This router table accessory saves time, especially if you adjust the depth of cut frequently.
10. Feather Boards
When it comes to simple and effective router attachment accessories, feather boards are a good choice. They hold the wood against the fence and table and ensure that the workpiece does not move during the process. In addition, they provide another element of security by helping workers fingers away from the router. They have adjustable anti-kickback fingers that act like springs. This prevents any movement or bouncing and reduces the risk of injury. For added safety in your workshop, it is advisable to place several trampolines against the table and the fence.
Conclusion
Working with large pieces that require numerous passes comes the closest to necessitating the use of a router table. We’ve chosen a few simple but useful router table accessories from brands like Kreg, Jessem, Rockler, Bosch & Ryobi that will make a huge difference in the precision of your cutting. Personal choice and what you want to accomplish with your router table are significant deciding factors in what you choose, but we hope you enjoyed reading about some of our favorite router table accessories. Not only will you need to make many passes, but you’ll also need to be precise because you’ll be fitting sections that were routed separately together. We hope our article made a valuable addition to router table accessories.
