Adding a MFT to Existing Bench

[sehast]

I have a multi-purpose router/assembly table that I made several years ago before the introduction of the Festool MultiFunctional Tables. It has a main table that is 36” x 28” and wings which extend it to 84’ x 28”. A large face vise allows many holding options and a screw jack mechanism allows height adjustment with a hand drill. With that height adjustment I can use it as an outfeed table and to otherwise extend the surfaces of the Shopsmith. The versatility has served me very well until now.

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After I purchased a Festool cordless track saw earlier this year it became apparent I needed a MFT and something had to give in my limited space shop. Before this year I just cleared the fence off my table and extended the wings to break down full plywood sheets directly on top of it with a Makita 3 3/8” cordless saw and TrueGrip straight edge. After I added a Woodpecker Micro Adjuster to my router fence it became a bigger pain to remove it and set it back up and with the Festool track saw and guide rails, a MFT has become a necessity. After looking at the Stanton MFT, I decided to do a variation that would go on top of my router table.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-SzRbVPob0&t=1473s

I decided to use Rockler bench cookies with the large extenders for supports. That would give me almost 5” under the table and keep the top clean when broken down for easier storage. It also is high enough to clear my router fence so it can remain in place and enough under table access to use clamping knobs for MFT dogs or other accessories. I also incorporated another large support made out of re-purposed 1 ¼” MDF and held in place with the face vice. I used two confirmat screws to attach the top to the support making the MFT very solid in use and easy to set up and take down.

https://www.amazon.com/HighPoint-Confir ... B0031TISY2

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It gives me a 42” x 48” surface that will support 90% of my needs in a fairly compact profile. I made it from ultra-light MDF so the weight of this top is less than a ¼ sheet of regular MDF and much easier on my back. I have two guide rails, one that is 42” long and the other is 75”. Both can be used with this table depending on the size of the stock. Quarter sheets of plywood are easily supported and even a half sheet is not a problem. Boards up to about 72” can be worked.
To break down full sheets of plywood the wings need to be extended and two additional MFT tops added. I clamped another MDF support on the end of the wings and used two more bench cookie supports. The wing MFT tops are attached to the supports the same as the main top so everything breaks down into easily storable pieces.

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The two wing MFTs (22” x 42” each) extend the area of the table top to 92” x 42”. My two guide rails can be spliced together for a 117” rail and now I have everything I need to break down full sheets.

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I used a trim router with this bit to put a small chamfer on all the holes and edges. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002Q ... UTF8&psc=1
It is pretty much done except for the finish. I plan to use Osmo Polyx-Oil. I would normally use danish oil and then some wax but decided to try this which is suppose to have both in one step and without as much oder.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FQ ... UTF8&psc=1

I am pretty happy with how things came out and not only does this serve as a great MFT but also is very useful when rolled up along side the Shopsmith tables to extend their working areas. The easy setup, breakdown, and compact storage is a must for my limit space shop. I used the Shaper Origin to cut the 231 20mm holes using a rather unique technique that I will explain in detail in a future post on the Shaper community forum for those who are interested.

https://community.shapertools.com/?utm_ ... 86c45de89a

[RFGuy]

Nice! I like the extension wing idea, height adjustment and using the MFT as potentially an outfeed table with the Shopsmith. This thread has some great ideas. I recently started watching a few of Mr. Stanton's videos as well and like his content. I don't have a track saw yet, but between this thread and some of the MFT table ideas that Ed posted recently, I have been trying to solidify plans for a new workbench arrangement in my shop. I really appreciate these posts from you guys. Hey, is that a DRO that you use for adjusting your router fence position?

[sehast]

No, it is for the router lift height. Have not seen the need to add one for the fence.

[RFGuy]

No, it is for the router lift height. Have not seen the need to add one for the fence.

That makes more sense. Good idea.

[reible]

OK now I see the motivation involved in the design you have. (We have discussed this outside this forum)

Do you have plans or is there a built in way to get the wings to align to the main table is that even needed in your application?

I also noticed the wings could be off the 96mm grid or is the space between the main table holes and the wings holes 192mm?

The finish is one I have seen a lot of the UK youtuber use and brag about, waiting to see how you see it once you have used it. I didn't even know you could get it here in the US.

I'm also interested to see how this goes with the holes already in place. I have worried that the MDF would swell if some got in the holes when applying. Interested in your experience with that too.

I like the router bit, will get one on order. I have a brass bearing version that I've found handy, will get a picture and post it as well as a link to where I got it later.

I also have the ujk tool for this purpose. You have to do it by hand, and I have used it on a few of my tops but not all of them. I guess I should do that but just haven't yet.

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Ed

[reible]

To lazy to go get pictures of the bits besides it is much more clear in the MLCS catalog:

https://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsit ... light=6612

I have the chamfer and one of the round over bits. The brass piloted bits work in smaller areas but I wouldn't use them for just plain everyday tasks as the ball bearing bits are much better for those applications. With the diameter of the brass pilot at about 3/16" you can do common holes in the 1/4" range and above.

Ed

[sehast]

I basically used the wings to refine my hole drilling process so they are not as accurate as the main board but are with 96mm spacing. I could align the holes better in the wings with the main board by letting the end supports float and forcing alignment with dogs and a guide rail. But I really don't have any intention of using them for anything other than clamping.
By the way I just finished my accuracy measurements for hole spacing. I laid a guide rail across the diagonals and the two corner dogs lined up perfectly with the center dog. That is I could not force a .001" feeler gauge between the guide rail and any of the dogs. I then put a fourth dog in each one of the other holes along the diagonals to measure for errors. Then repeated the whole process for rows up and across along the x and y axis. I did not measure all 221 holes, probably about 75-100 but it should be enough of a spot check for accuracy. The largest error was .004". The average error was .0023". Only 20% of the holes had any error at all. The hole diameters were also much more consistent than in earlier tries although I did not do any detailed measurements. I am pretty confident that this cutting process is the way to go. Now I need to get back to the Shaper write-up that will explain all this.

[sehast]

"I'm also interested to see how this goes with the holes already in place. I have worried that the MDF would swell if some got in the holes when applying. Interested in your experience with that too."

Ed, I ran a test over the weekend using Osmo Polyx on a scrape piece of MDF. On the left row of holes I purposely put finish in the holes. On the right row of hoes I carefully kept the finish out of the holes and the middle row no finish was applied at all.

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Putting finish in the holes definitely made for a tighter fit for the dogs. Putting the finish on the MFT and keeping it out of the holes did not have any noticeable affect on the fit, pretty much the same as the no finish case. Having a chamfer around the holes helps a lot to keep the finish out, if it gets into the chamfer it was ok. I experimented with different depths of 45 degree chamfer on this scrap and settled on the one with the least depth. That still may be deeper than the one you put on with your hand tool. Bottom line here is to put the finish on before you drill the holes but if not just keep it out of the holes and make sure to apply it to both sides to prevent any warp. Osmo Polyx Oil is the best finish I have ever used. It beats Watco and Waterlox by a mile which I have used for many years.

[reible]

I pre-finished two of the surfaces and that seem to work pretty well but I have another top with no finish and I was wondering if I wanted to try and finish it now or later or not. Yes, doing both sides is since and that is what I did. Used the Watco oil on it.

Good to know about the finish, will order some in the spring when I get active on this sort of projects again.

The tool I have was done so that the Parf Super Dog would fit flush with the top using that ring they have with the same small angle built in. These stops are nice since they tighten from above.

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https://tsoproducts.com/accessories/dog ... super-dog/

Ed

[BuckeyeDennis]

"... Osmo Polyx Oil is the best finish I have ever used. It beats Watco and Waterlox by a mile which I have used for many years.

I’m not familiar with that product, sehast. What does it, um, ”bring to the table”?