A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, at least for me.
I have been reading about woodworkers who prefer to have a finished router table top, either laminate or oil sealed, but with only a hole for the router and 3 or 4 countersunk screws to hold the router.
What is the good and bad about both the purchased plates and what I've described above?
And let's say that money is no object. (Yah, right!)
I need to make a decision about a table top but I need input first.
As you can see Barb, most members prefer using a mounting plate. The added features are enough of an argument for them, the difficult part is deciding which plate is right for your needs. The Rousseau (and Trend) is still the most popular plate in the world. They also have great accessories to assist you in installing the plate: a template kit that includes a guide bushing with a removeable collar for perfect cut outs, mounting alignment kits with the proper size screws for most routers and transfer screws to make marking the hole locations fool proof. These little kits also have a disk and centering pin to ensure exact alignment in the center of the plate. (Do not trust the circle marks on the bottom of any brand plate for centering!) I know these accessories work with the $20 HF plate and are well worth the money. I started with a Rousseau plate and installed several. I have since converted to using the Router Workshop plates. Flat and simple is better. Here are photos of the first table I built and my current Router Workshop table.
Barb,
In my opinion, I would mount the fixed base on your table, and use the plunge base for hand held routing. I will say that the plunge base is a little top heavy for some hand held routing chores, but when you need the plunge operation, you won't need to take your table apart.
This is not intended as a criticism of anyone past present or future that may use a router and potentially contribute to this forum.
ok, differences in philosophies here. I'll use a router and base for the jobs it was best intended. The plunge router is best suited for plunging through material. I thought, that when I got my first plunge router, I would have the cat's meow and would never need another router. Well, when I got the plunge router I suddenly found that the fixed base was good for a lot of stuff that the plunge wasn't good at and vice versa. So, my little "D" handle Makita got pulled out of the garage sale pile and pressed back into service.
I found that I would change baseplates probably as often as you change bodies. I have 7" Hitachi pattern, 7" Craftsman/Makita pattern both with 1 1/2" guide holes and only one with centering bearing capability. The other one is too old. Then I have the 11" variety, one for each then one 11" with a 3 1/4" hole for huge bits - it seems that every second job I do requires some huge bit. These are all square and from time to time I return to the original round baseplates that came with the tools. On the build schedule is the 7" wide centre baseplate.
I won't use plunge for edge treatment - setup is too much a pain in the butt. I will use (under extreme circumstance) fixed base with a square baseplate to plunge, carefully and with lots of fencing in place. I'll only use plunge with skis (just faster to setup using a 3-2-1 block.)
I will use the fixed base for any supremely accurate work in conjunction with a guide fence. I found this the best method to duplicate century old moldings.
I'm finding more and more jobs for my little laminate trimmer. I'm going to build a new baseplate for it and see if I can expand it's uses.
The moral of the story, use what you have to your best advantage and don't accept what other's say without testing yourself.
I agree whole heartedly, give each a try and see what works for you. You will find that the more you use your router, the more you find a need to have more than one, or two or ??
I welcome all experiences, opinions and philosophies. My introduction to this forum was titled "Know less than "0" about routers." I don't have enough knowledge or experience to do things my way because I don't know what my way is as yet. But I need a place to start.... that, I don't even know without guidance.
I am 67 years old, 5'3", weigh 115 lbs. and live with an injury to my upper back, shoulders and neck. I learned two ways to survive life. KISS, keep things simple, silly and adapt your surroundings to your needs.
The only experiences I have had with woodworking was with all hand tools from my father and both grandfathers. I thought about woodworking now only after I used my friend's brad/staple gun run by an air compressor.
And I have no problem admitting my wallet is a major consideration with my retirement income. Right now after surviving sticker shock, the first thing I think is that I could build it for far less. But this is a vicious cycle for me. I've got to learn to run the power tool before I can build it myself and save money.
I admit I have been stalling because I am completely intimidated by the Hitachi KM12MC I bought which contains far less than decent operating instructions.
After I've received opinions, experiences and different philosophies I will try them all and adopt what works best for me and my body.
I do so appreciate all the information I get... the more the better.
Barb, the Hitachi you own was styled after the Bosch 1617 which has been around for many years. The best way to take advantage of the combo kit is to mount the fixed base in your table. The handles will remove to give you more clearance around the router. In support of this consider that most table mounted jobs have the bit set to a fixed height, and plunge jobs are almost always done free hand. There are exceptions but we are talking about typical use. Brass set up bars make life very easy, and Rockler has a set on sale now for $15. We will be happy to walk you through any project so do not worry about the content of the manual.
I hope you have fun with your router. As said before, watching videos, reading books and practice. Please use safe work procedures. When routing with table, feed stock right to left and with fence covering most of the bit. When routing freehand on outside, left to right. Use push blocks and featherboards. When I found this forum, I read a lot of old threads that saved me grief, and ask question and get helpful answers. They have books at the Libary also. Try out different bits on scrap wood. Once you get the hang of it, you will be glad you brought a router.
Thanks, Frank.... maybe fools rush in where..... you know the rest. <grin>
And thanks to you too, Barry. I've been playing on a table that is lower. Right now I feel safer with the router there. And I'm building up muscles along the way.
Ron, you've made me excited to do the very basic things your instructed.
I am thinking about ordering a Router Raizer as well. But decided to wait until I get the table and see how I can adjust the heights with my different tables for adjustments in mind. I'm not out to wear muscle shirts this summer. <grin>
I am soooo glad I found this forum. You all have been everything I've needed to begin a long and productive relationship with my router. I just know it will happen.
Again thanks to all.
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