MOTHER'S ROUTER/SHAPER TABLE

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ROUTER MOUNTING

The router itself will be attached underneath the table, and fastened-with machine screws that pass through the plywood-to a 1/4" steel plate that's set into an indentation in the upper surface of the wood. You can determine the position for this inlay-as well as the corresponding recess on the bottom of the table by driving a 3" finishing nail through the wood (so that an equal amount of the spike protrudes above and below the board) at a point 24 inches from one short end and 5-3/4 inches from one long side of the working surface.

Then fit your router with a 1/4" straight face bit (adjusted for 1/4" depth), and carve a circle on the top surface-all around the nail-by butting the router's bottom plate against the spike. When that's done, readjust the router for a 1/8"-deep cut, flip the plywood over, and repeat the inlay shaping process on the underside of the board. Finish both inlays by removing the nail, reequipping your router with a wider straight face cutter (which still must be set for the appropriate depth), and routing out the interior of both circles.

The 1/4" metal plate-to which the router will be fastened-must be cut so it will fit into the 1/4"-deep inlay atop the table. Unless you're very handy with a hacksaw-or patient with a file-it would be best to have this disc shaped for you by a machine shop . . . and, while they're at it, you can also have the machinists bore a 1-1/4" hole exactly in the center of the circle. Once the metal forming is done, use the finished product as a template to rout out a 1-1/4" hole through the plywood . . . to accommodate the chuck.

Now remove the bottom plate from your router and use its mounting holes as guides to position matching bores in the 1/4" steel plate. Mark each location with a center punch, and drill it to the same diameter as the screws which hold the bottom router plate in place. Then countersink each one of these holes . . . just enough to allow a 1/4" flathead screw to fit flush to the surface. Finish the router mount preparation by continuing the holes through the plywood.

Next use the router's bottom plate again-this time as a steel-plate-to-table mounting screw template-by first lining up the holes and then giving the groover bottom 1/6 of a turn on the 1/4" disc. Center-punch the new set of points, drill them with a No. 7 bit, and thread the metal with a 1/4"-20 tap. You can now set the 1/4" plate back in the inlay, mark the positions of the new holes on the wood, remove the steel, and drill 1/4" bores through the plywood. Once you've countersunk the underside of the table to accommodate 1/4" X 3/4" flathead machine screws, you can cinch the plate to the wood. (Since you'll need your router to finish the job, don't attach it to the table just yet.)

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