[Al B Thayer]

After two years of use and development I have a new router lift to display. This is like no other router lift. It has two positions to mount the router. Vertical like the rest of the lifts and horizontal for mortise and tenon cuts.

Its very accurate and hasn't lost any abilities in over two years of use.

Easy to build with parts from the box stores. Less than $10.00.

Easy to change bits.

Very easy to adjust.

Adjusts from the top or under the top.

Easy to build with scraps in the shop.

Better in many ways than store bought lifts.

Wont sag your table.

Can be put in and out in less than a minute.

PM me for more details

Watch my Youtube videos for better understanding. Then lets discuss yea or nay welcome.

Al B Thayer

Router Lift 1 - YouTube
Router Lift 1 - YouTube
Router Table Tenon Cut - YouTube

 

[Rogerdodge]

Very interesting , Al . Thanks for sharing. I shall give this careful scrutiny to see I could
benefit from it.

Rog

 

[Alastair]

Can you give a bit more information of how it switches from vertical to horizontal. Also the link to Ebay.

 

[Al B Thayer]

Two positions

Can you give a bit more information of how it switches from vertical to horizontal. Also the link to Ebay.

There are two positions to hold the router. With a 7/16" wrench it clamps in place either in vertical or horizontal position. Quite simple and takes less than a minute. I think the video shows how it goes in the vertical position. The second position is below it.


<<<<Please contact Al for details,,,>>>>


Al

 

[Al B Thayer]

Very interesting , Al . Thanks for sharing. I shall give this careful scrutiny to see I could
benefit from it.

Rog

Please do. I'm counting on the group to rake me over the coals on this one. I don't think the system can be beat and the cost of the lift minus wood found in your shop is less than $10.

Thanks Al

 

[MEBCWD]

Al I like the sliding table for horizontal use.

Looks like it would be an easily built lift for someone that would like a lift for their router.

 

[Al B Thayer]

Al I like the sliding table for horizontal use.

Looks like it would be an easily built lift for someone that would like a lift for their router.

The lift is very easy to build. I'm not showing the section that sets it apart from all other lifts out there. But anyone can PM me for the details.

The mortise table is a Greg Paolini design. I have a version that is better but for the sake of getting this lift to a point where I can demonstrate its opperation. I put this one on it. The rails are 8020 and cost less than the skinny blue ones everyone is so fond of. Cost was a factor to make it posible for anyone to build.

Thanks for your vote on easy to build. Did you see the videos?

Al

 

[RainMan 2.0]

Impressive setup Al . I always thought having the table lift up off the router was a great idea .
I was wondering if your lift could inadvertently change height wise during use or is there a way to lock it down ?

 

[Al B Thayer]

Adjustments on demand

Impressive setup Al . I always thought having the table lift up off the router was a great idea .
I was wondering if your lift could inadvertently change height wise during use or is there a way to lock it down ?

Come on Rain, it does everything but the dishes. You can change height at any time from the top behind the fence. Behind the fence is another improvement over other lifts so as to not get in the way of hold downs and such.

There is a lock down for it but it hasn't needed one except when I was spinning a large bit on one of my older models. This is the third gen. The lock down can be loosened by reaching under or by lifting the top.

One full turn is 1/16" so if you want to move it 1/128" that is easy to do. Half turn is 1/8" and so on.

Thanks for asking.

Al

 

[WatsonComeHere]

Are you using 8020 aluminium on your sliding table? Are you using any type of linear bearings or just having it slide on the dadoes cut into the work pieces?

Nice looking setup.

 

[Al B Thayer]

Are you using 8020 aluminium on your sliding table? Are you using any type of linear bearings or just having it slide on the dadoes cut into the work pieces?

Nice looking setup.

Good eye. It is 8020. I don't know why it's not more popular than the blue stuff. Maybe guys don't know they can get about any of the profiles on eBay dirt cheap.

There are 5 bearing surfaces the lift opperates on. Each are 12" long. It's more than a simple dado. That's why it works so well. If you PM me I can get you all the answers.

Also if you think about how the lift moves. Only about 1 to 2 inches either way. It also moves really slow so it doesn't have any measureable ware over the life of its use. These are reasons this lift works well and there really isn't any need for expensive linear bearings. A fast simple adjustment can be made if the lift were to become less than perfect.

Thanks

Al

 

[Al B Thayer]

New YouTube

I've put together another short video to answer some questions I've been asked.
Router Lift 4 Al B Thayer - YouTube

Thanks Al

 

[paduke]

Nice Job Al!!!

 

[MEBCWD]

I've put together another short video to answer some questions I've been asked.
Router Lift 4 Al B Thayer - YouTube

Thanks Al

The new video does answer some of the questions people have been asking.

Changing from horizontal to vertical use is easy, just changing the router from one clamp to the other and tightening the clamp. Remember you will make the mounting clamps to fit your router so any router can be used and you can make mounts to fit several routers if you like.

Remember Al is showing the basic parts of the lift with the most cost saving hardware in use. You can change from a bolt and nut to a bolt and ratcheting handle on the router mount for quicker change over of the router. You can use small finger knobs instead of just nuts on the stops, this is up to you to modify the plan to fit your needs but remember the plans are showing you the cheapest method of construction. You might just want to have a dedicated wrench to use with the basic hardware so it will always be handy and save the cost of those expensive knobs. If you want to use knobs then check out the posts here on the forms for knobs that you can make yourself to save money instead of buying them.

 

[OPG3]

Al my friend, that is a nice-looking contraption! Your use of aluminum extrusions and high quality fasteners impresses me. Obviously, your accuracy in building this was very high. Keep-up the good work and please let me know if I can help you with anything such as drawings (2d or 3d) - done at no charge for my friends. I can send these to you as .pdf or .stl format for your use.

Otis Guillebeau from Auburn, Georgia

 

[Al B Thayer]

You aint kidding

The new video does answer some of the questions people have been asking.

Changing from horizontal to vertical use is easy, just changing the router from one clamp to the other and tightening the clamp. Remember you will make the mounting clamps to fit your router so any router can be used and you can make mounts to fit several routers if you like.

Remember Al is showing the basic parts of the lift with the most cost saving hardware in use. You can change from a bolt and nut to a bolt and ratcheting handle on the router mount for quicker change over of the router. You can use small finger knobs instead of just nuts on the stops, this is up to you to modify the plan to fit your needs but remember the plans are showing you the cheapest method of construction. You might just want to have a dedicated wrench to use with the basic hardware so it will always be handy and save the cost of those expensive knobs. If you want to use knobs then check out the posts here on the forms for knobs that you can make yourself to save money instead of buying them.

It has its share of Hillman knobs on it and they do add up quickly. I like the speedy ratchet wrench and used the same size for all. So a dedicated wrench for $12 might actually be cheaper.

Good idea on making them.

Al

 

[Al B Thayer]

Al my friend, that is a nice-looking contraption! Your use of aluminum extrusions and high quality fasteners impresses me. Obviously, your accuracy in building this was very high. Keep-up the good work and please let me know if I can help you with anything such as drawings (2d or 3d) - done at no charge for my friends. I can send these to you as .pdf or .stl format for your use.

Otis Guillebeau from Auburn, Georgia

Wow. Thanks so much for the kind words and offer.

Ive used 8020 on 6 different fixtures and machines. This is the first time using this profile. If one buys it on ebay it costs less than the blue t stop. It really has some heft to it too. 8020 has quite a few inserts that fit the slot for different applications. Some for sliding bearing and some for locking a stop.

This one is for mounting a swinging door. I used it to make this flip stop on my cut off saw.

 

[Al B Thayer]

Nice Job Al!!!

(bowing) thank you.

 

[60seagulls]

A link to your plans on ebay Please

 

[Al B Thayer]

When I posted this lift here. I was hoping to get more feed back on it. There are many guys on this forum with great advice and knowledge.

Any feed back would be great. Good or bad. What don't you like about the lift? What should I change?

Thanks

Al