Router Table: Benefits of Having One for Your DIY Projects
A router table is a stationary machine that has a spindle at the center that rotates at a high speed. The table also has a flat bottom. Although the older ones had simple designs meant to execute a basic function, they have evolved into advanced tools that make woodworking much easier and enjoyable.
Professional woodworkers, handymen, and woodworking enthusiasts consider a router table indispensable. If you are working with wood, you will find that a router table makes projects easier to execute and for some uses, it is an absolute necessity.
You may be wondering: Why all the fuss about Router tables? Well, here are some of the merits of having one in your workshop:
Precise and Quick
One of the key benefits of using a router table is its high precision and speed while working on any type of projects – DIY, professional, time-sensitive, large scale. You can argue that the precision is determined by an individual’s skill level but you cannot refute the fact that it is easier to achieve a good level of precision with it than with handheld routers.
You can move the wood quickly without having to worry about a poor cut because once you set the bits, it does the rest. In large scale or time-sensitive projects, speed and precision are vital.
Works With Various Stock Shapes
As you work with wood, you will encounter stock that comes in different shapes and sizes. Some of them render the handsaw ineffective and call for a more precise tool; the router table.
The most fundamental function of a router table is to enable woodworkers to make high precision cuts that would be otherwise considerably difficult to accomplish with handheld routers. You can, therefore, work with stock of different shapes and sizes with relative ease.
Can Make Different Kinds of Cuts
As you work on different projects, you will quickly realize that you require different types of cuts for the changing requirements. With some of the cuts, it is impractical to work with a handheld router – handheld routers cut in fixed geometric patterns and straight lines.
Woodworking with router tables, on the other hand, enables you to make grooves, slots, dadoes, stopped cuts, and other kinds of cuts. To be honest, if you are an enthusiast or hobbyist, complexity is more enticing than mere functionality.
Multi-depth Cuts
It is widely accepted that handheld routers make it easier to customize the depth of the cut. However, this assertion is only true if you are working on relatively simple cuts and are highly experienced, which most of us, unfortunately, aren’t.
A router table enables you to change the bits as you work, making it easier to modify the depth of the cut. With it, you can easily accomplish multi-depth cuts with average woodworking experience. On top of it, the resulting cuts are well-defined and smooth around the edges.
As long as you learn how to use your router table safely, you will enjoy working on your DIY projects more than you would if you used other kinds of tools. Given how advanced technology has become, you will find that newer variants of router tables have more capabilities. Still, the most basic router table can prove an invaluable asset to a woodworker’s workshop.
