New Router Table

My router table, from the early/mid 90’s, has been going down hill. Made from laminate covered MDF, it still was able to wick moisture in and swell, so it’s no longer flat. Well, as flat as I make stuff. :-) So, I knocked a new table together. Since the design survived years in my school shop, and my shop, I figured, if it’s working, don’t fix it. No miter grooves, or such. Just a simple table design that’s served me well for decades.

This time I made the router table from 3/4" ply. Not as heavy and shouldn’t swell, but I need to hit it up with some clear coat.

In making the new table, I decided that I wanted to make a new router base/insert, so . . . . I ran by Regal Plastics, in San Antonio, where I’d gotten glazing for the wife’s greenhouse. Regal sells drop offs, so I bought a piece of plastic, large enough to cut the insert and make another router base from. I also bought a small sheet of nylon, for making jig runners, The clear was $3 a pound and the nylon was $2 a pound. Both were two pounds, so I spent $10 for both. That’s less than a router table insert, alone!