Shopsmith Forums

Majones1 wrote: ↑Sat Oct 30, 2021 12:46 pm 1. What finish should I use on the top to harden it and make it smoother? I will wax it after finishing to make things slide better. Like I said in my previous post, I currently have Old Masters Tung Oil Varnish and Watco Danish Oil, are either of those good for my needs? I’ve read that many people like to use shellac, but I would need to get some. Your thoughts?

Marc,

What you have looks fine to me. The only thing to check, in my opinion, is to make sure you have enough height between the bottom of this router table and the waytubes below it. Depending on the size of your router it may or may not fit here. For wood finishes it mostly comes down to personal preference. Don't get me wrong, there are pros and cons to every wood finish, but often times it is really personal preference, e.g. which one is easier to clean up, or has lower VOC's (odor) than others, etc., etc. Sometimes it just comes down to which finish you have on hand already in the cabinet.
For a project like this you do have to be a little careful though in that whatever finish you apply needs to be thin and uniform so as not to create high & low spots that could impact what you are routing (router table needs to be reasonably flat in area in/around bit at a minimum). I am kind of partial to polyurethanes myself and I like oil based over water based. It sucks because they smell and burn out your nostrils/sinuses while applying them, so you really want to wear a respirator with activated charcoal canisters. They also take days to weeks to cure fully which is less desirable. I just like them because poly is more permanent and longer lasting. Others prefer thinner, lighter finishes that can be easily patched and repaired, e.g. hard wax oils, Danish/Tung oils, shellac, etc. An alternative to wood finish is to apply laminate to the router table top, such as Formica brand or similar. These can give you a smooth surface (low friction) which is an advantage for a router table, but will also protect the top surface and hopefully maintain the flatness of the top over time.

Take it with a grain of salt but I have seen suggestions to coat MDF first with sanding sealer. The tricky part is getting a nice slippery top coat. Tung oil hardens well. It will take some time and good buffing to get a nice smooth hard finish.

I also endorse using a Formica type laminate top to make it very smooth and long lasting. It's usually available only in 4'X8' sheets that are a little pricey but countertop shops sometimes will sell you a smaller piece out of their remnants for a good price.

Re the three sided box - hinge them so they will lay down three layers flat.(back side in the middle layer)

The fence can be as simple as finding one from a old router table and using t track to attach it to the table ?

Sometimes one can purchase Formica countertops at Habitat ReStores. Remodeling contractors donate them when replacing with hard surface materials.

The table looks nice. That is good work.

Well, I’ve gotten some great guidance from you all, as usual. I also was doing some research on how others have finished their tables. I ended up doing something similar to what edma194 and someone on the Fine Woodworking magazine forums suggested. I wiped two light coats of Old Masters Tung Oil Varnish, used 0000 steel wool to buff it out, then two more coats of the Tung Oil Varnish. I got a bit distract when a couple neighbors showed up at my open garage door, so wasn’t careful on the last coat and wiped it on a bit too thick. That took longer to dry, and ended up gripping like it was a rubber table too. I let that set for two days, and then buffed it down with 0000 steel wool again. It feels nice and hard, and very smooth. I did three coats of Johnson’s Paste Wax, and now the top is slick! I did consider laminate, but it had three things going against it at this time: I was going to have to spend more money to get it, I was going to have to learn something new (and I just wanted to get it done), and it was going to add even more time to this project (with all the running around to get it, learn how to install it, and then install it). I may add laminate in the future.

Although it’s not in its final stage of completion, I think this table ready for me to use on my immediate project. Just need to finish leveling the inserts a little, but it’s ready. I only really need it to shape the edges of some smallish Baltic birch plywood pieces for my latest project (the cat scratching post), then I can finish two other projects that are in progress. After those are completed I can return to finish this table. I think I’m going to do as Hobbyman2 suggested and use T track for the fence and a miter slot. I already have some plans to build a fence, and it will use the T track. And yes, RFGuy, as you can see below, I did keep the height of the router in mind, but thanks for that reminder. I think there’s also enough room to add a board under the router, in the future, to enclose it for dust collection.

Below are some shots of the table in its ready to use state. It’s not fully complete, but I can use it to get some work done. The photos show how I used the front and back 3/4”x4” cross supports to grip the tables to keep the router table from moving in the x-y axes. Once I sit the router table in place, I can push the main table tight against it and then lock it down.

Thanks to everyone for their comments, suggestions, and kind words about how it looks. It’s not as good as what I’ve seen some of you experienced woodworkers do, but I’m just a beginner and learning a lot from you all with every project.


.

It looks great!

I have the same or similar router. One suggestion - Pick up a longer T-handle hex key, like a SS Tool Box except size, for adjusting depth of cut from the top. The one Bosch provides is short and likely to interfere with the fence. I want to say it is 3mm, but check before ordering. A poor man's router lift. (I still have to reach under to lock/unlock, something to keep in mind if you enclose it for dust collection.)

- David

Good Job!

Does MickyD have any idea of what he has caused to flourish?

JPG wrote: ↑Thu Nov 04, 2021 12:29 pm Good Job!

Does MickyD have any idea of what he has caused to flourish?

Thank you, and yes, MickeyD does know. I have sent him photos and talked with him about it. We took him and his wife to see the San Diego Symphony perform Beethoven's Symphony no. 7 on Sunday and had a nice dinner afterwards. It was a great visit, with little discussion of woodworking (so we wouldn't bore our partners).