[revg]

Good Morning, Community:

I have recently come into possession of an early 80's Delta Rockwell Heavy-Duty Shaper. Unfortunately, to convert my garage to have the proper electrical and a VFD will cost me more than twice what I paid for the shaper (probably should have thought of that before I jumped at it, but the price was too good to pass up). So, I turn to my Bosch 1617 kit and wonder if there isn't a way I can convert the shaper into a very heavy-duty router table....?

I've looked at the casting under the table and it's obviously much thicker than a router insert plate, so that's one issue. Has anyone given this a try that might shed some light on this for me?

I paid less for this shaper than I would for a decent router table top alone, and with its cast-iron top, enclosed body, and adjustable fence with killer dust collection I'd really love to be able to get my router in there.

Any help someone here might offer would be most appreciated!

Peace,
Shawn

 

[old55]

Welcome to the forum Shawn. I’m sure someone will be along to lend you a hand.

 

[marecat3]

Welcome to the forum

 

[sreilly]

Welcome to the forum Shawn. 1st thing I would address is the electrical issue. What is the required voltage and what is available? There are ways to get around some limitations that may be unknown to you. I have a 1/2HP 3 phase gear motor running for my observatory roof. I don't have 3 phase electrical at the house but a phase generator can fill the bill. I use a Motortronics ME2-2p5-M AC motor controller to generate 3 phase from a 220V single phase feed. About the size of an old wall dimmer switch.

 

[mgmine]

Can you mount the router so that it would sit flat and straight? Is the hole in the table large enough or an average size bit? If so then I don't see any reason why it can't be done. You might need an extension in order to get the bit to pass through the thick top but one can be had for around $50 dollars or less. As far as using it as a shaper even if you had the power do you need a shaper considering the cost of the bits.

 

[roxanne562001]

Welcome to the forum. I would think you should be able to mount a router to the plate if you have a flat area big enough.

 

[neville9999]

I think what you are referring to is a machine I call a 'spindle moulder' these machines fundamentally use a different set up, different cutters a spnidal is a great machine but hardly a home hobby item. N