Low friction surface for router table top

[jacko]

Just make sure that you remember to put in some "T" track , two pieces running front to back to carry the fence, one parralel to the fence for a mitre slot.
Jacko
ps, I would use something manmade, dead flat and stable. My table is 45 mm of MDF with a laminate top, waxed occasionally. Just my 2 c's worth, understand that you want to iuse what you have already created. perhaps you could find soething else to do with it?

[kman-oz]

The weight of opinion is getting oppressive around here! I take your point and I might cut my losses before I get my heart broken, but what am I going to use a 600x900 hardwood top for now?

[Stuart]

A finishing bench, or a small fabrication bench (assembling small projects)

[kman-oz]

I guess you can never have enough bench space can you.

[Harry72]

Could re'rip it at the joins and reuse on something else. Or just put it aside till the day a project needs it!

[BobL]

The weight of opinion is getting oppressive around here! I take your point and I might cut my losses before I get my heart broken, but what am I going to use a 600x900 hardwood top for now?

Just to make you feel better I'd go the laminate or similar as well (my router table is a cast iron wing on a TS). Don't rush on using the 600 x 900. Set it aside and it will call you when the times comes and you will feel even better you made the right decision.

Cheers

[kiwigeo]

See current Australian Wood Review magazine for plans for a simple router table. They use 2 layers of 13mm ply glued together and then melamine glued on top of same. To keep the table level they have a plywood reinforcing channel glued underneath the table.

[kiwigeo]

Hi

I have an MDF top finished with tung/poly and wax as per pat warner style router tables.

See here;


http://www.patwarner.com/router_table.html

seems to work fine

goood luck

dazzler

Wow..I love the dovetail joints on that thing. A work of art!

[jaspr]

Just make sure that you remember to put in some "T" track , two pieces running front to back to carry the fence, one parralel to the fence for a mitre slot.
Jacko

There is a school of thought that you don't need either. A fence doesn't need to run in two tracks, it can just swivel from a point, for acurate setup. Unless you are using a linear positioning system like an Incra, but even then I don't think they have to be mounted to T track. And some people swear by not using a mitre track, instead running all jigs off the fence.

My preferred system is a swivel fence - its very quick and easy to set up a fixed distance from the bit. An when I want to use my Incra 'original' jig, it is fixed to a plate which is clamped to the back of the table.

[ubeaut]

Best surface is tempered masonite polished with wax.

If you want to keep the timber top. Sand to 800 grit apply a coat of shellac with about 5% pure talcum powder in it, sand with 1200 grit, apply a second coat, sand again and it should be smoother than a babies bum, have all the slip in the world and won't effect the surface of the timber being routed. For even more slip sprinkle a little talc on the surface from time to time.

The above is also very, very easy to repair if damaged.

See here for Talc and Shellac (french polish). Do not use talc straight off the shelf, in most instances it is not pure talc and can cause problems, including leaving white marks in the finish. The talc in the link above is pure and very much finer than body talk.

Cheers - Neil

[kman-oz]

Well, I've gone for the MDF top and hardwood frame. I'm doing the trimming and fitting now, what should I do to seal the top and make it smooth and low friction? I can't afford laminate, I've already blown the budget on this one. Estapol, light sand and autowax perhaps?

[Harry72]

Yep but dont use the autowax it contains silicons(unless its something like gold class Meguiar's), any wax will do the job just make sure there's none of that horrid silicon in it.
Ubeauts traditional wax is very good for this!

[keith53]

I did one a few years ago & used reinforced ply. I sanded it to about 600 grit & used beeswax. I only use it for rounding over since it houses a crappy 1/4" Skil router. Works well though. Every now & then it gets a bit of a sand and more wax.

Cheers,
Keith

[kman-oz]

Why no solicone? Bees wax I have, but I'd have thought an auto polish would be better, no?

[Stuart]

Do a search of this forum for silicon, and all will be revealed.