JEBishop

Hey everyone, Well have gotten all of the bugs worked out of my Ryobi router Table and it is doing pretty good. Have been playing with it and routing every scrap of wood I can find. I know this is mostly user preference, but what would be a good height for a fence? I have a temp fence on it now, but would like to move up to a better setup! Thanks in advance John

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curiousgeorge

Hi JEB. The height of the fence is determined by what type of routing you will be doing. For instance if you are going to be routing wide boards in the vertical position you would need a taller fence and vice versa. The guys on The Router Workshop just use a very short (around 3/4 to an inch) fence most of the time so there really isn't a specified height. It's up to you and what makes you feel comfortable.

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bobj3

Hi JEBishop

This just my 2 cents


I like the fence to be 4" to 5" tall , not to short and not to tall,,,,in that way you use the top of the fence as a jig,,,,,by clamping the stock to a slide block on top of the fence,(works great when you need a taper slot,incline,wedge type slot, etc.) plus you can put in a tee-slots in the fence to hold fixtures...(by using a tee-slot router bit)

Here's a link to a quick made fence
http://wealdentool.com/acatalog/tips_24.html
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Mike

John, both George and BJ have given you good information. The application really determines which type of fence is best. Most tables have fences in the 4 - 5" height range. Having tried both the Router Workshop style fence and one I built myself as shown in the photos below, I discovered they gave identical results; both provided a straight edge guide for the work to follow. Here is the important difference: The Router Workshop fence works best with the Vac-u-plate system for through the table dust collection and taller fences provide a mount for above the table dust collection.

Attached Thumbnails

     

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harrysin

John, as the guys have said, personal choice based on you're own experience. In my own case I use this tall fence for just about everything, as Bj mentioned it's great for clamping things to, such as zero clearance sub fences made from 1/8" MDF or end stops etc, etc.

Attached Thumbnails

     

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Harry

Thrifty Tool Guy

Harry,

Is that a sliding table unit? If so, how do you like it?

TTG

seawolf21

John the one I built can accomodate low and high stock and it has been improved since this picture was taken.

Gary


http://www.routerforums.com/attachme...plit-fence.jpg


http://www.routerforums.com/attachme...e-p6250143.jpg


http://www.routerforums.com/attachme...e-p6250142.jpg

JEBishop

Well for now I am going to have a solid fence, I am making it out of 3/4 melamine. Does anyone think I will have any problems wit it. Again thanks for all of the info! John

curiousgeorge

Melamine will work fine as long as you have it braced well. (see previous attachments for the bracing).

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harrysin

Yep, the fixed part is cast iron and the front is a sliding Aluminium section with Tee slots. There are several gadgets that fit to it. It has lots of possibilities for jigs. I'm not too keen with the very complex looking fully adjustable fence that came with it, hence my own. I hated it for a long time as it was so heavy to raise for cutter change but eventually an after market kit containing gas lifts was released which made it a breeze, however soon after fitting them I bought the Triton which rises above the table for cutter change!

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