Old table saw to router table?????

[Pat]

I have a defunct 10 inch direct drive table saw. You know the kind... light weight aluminum table on a plastic base. These units are not economical to repair as they can be bought new for less than the repair costs and used for far less.

I hate to throw stuff out if I can think of something to use it for and this saw is no exception. What about the idea of making a router table out of it? The rip fence is still functional and it has the groves to take a miter thingy on either side of the blade.

Have any of you genius but cheap (OK, frugal) woodworker types done this. Is there a big GOTCHA that I'm not recognizing?

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat

[egon]

Pat:
There are bolt on table saw extensions so a router can be mounted on a working table saw

Put the proper router in there and call it a moulder.

Egon

[Pat]

Ya Egon, mines fine hows yours? Close but no cigar. I don't want to BUY an extension or ADD an extension to my table saw, I want to trash the motor, blade, and guard and insert a router. That was the idea I was asking about.

What constitutes a proper router? and how does that make a router a molder? Seriously, I don't know a lot about wood working and ever little bit I pick up is a decent percent increase of what I know.

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[GaryM]

Pat,

You need to do a few things:
1. Assuming you have a suitable plunge router, buy one of the adaptors kits that let you adjust cutting depth from the bottom of the router. This will of course be the part facing up when the router is mounted in the table.
2. Obtain a phenolic or Lexon plate made to hold routers in router tables.
3. Machine a proper sized opening in the table to take the plate. An opening with a step to support the plate would be best. If that's notpossible you'd need to provide another way to support the plate.
4. Don't forget to provide a method of leveling the plate with the table surface.

A router is a "portable" tool used to turn bits at high speed. Usually have 1/4 or 1/2 inch collets. They may of course be mounted in a table or other holding device to make them able to do jobs normally done by a Shaper. Routers are ofter fitted with edge guides to make cuts a fixed distance from an edge.

A Shaper is a non-portable tool that uses cutters that are attached to a spindle. Shaper cutters have no shafts.

A Router can be used to create cuts in either the edges or surfaces of boards. A Shaper is normally only used on edges.

[AndyF]

Two questions - Will you be able to access the router pretty easily from underneath for bit changes and adjusting cutting height? How sturdy is the removable table insert which goes around the blade?

If your answers are yes and sturdy I would consider removing the plastic base on the router and figuring out a way to bolt the router onto the table insert. I'd also see if I could lock the table insert in place when I was bolting the router onto it so that the router couldn't rock.

The above, is probably as clear as mud, but I think it would be pretty easy to use the tablesaw as a router table once you pull out all of the tablesaw guts. The real question is whether you can do it in a way which will allow you to change router bits and adjust your cutting height without becoming a contortionist or having to take the router out of the table.

[turnagerg]

I realize that you're trying to recycle the remains of your table saw, but it sounds as if you need a router table also. I was given an OLD well made double pedestal desk a couple of years ago with a good flat top. I removed the legs and put it on a frame with casters, removed the center drawer, and cut a hole in the center of the top to mount the router. The drawers in the pedestals are handy to store bits, etc. When I built the frame for it I made the height the same as my tablesaw so I can lower the router and use it as an out/infeed table as required. This might be more functional and easier to do than having a hole milled in the tablesaw top.

[Pat]

Thanks Gary, I'll hold on to that "dead" table saw for a later stab at conversion. I learned a few things from your post and the rest went about like I suspected (but wasn't sure.) It didn't occur to me before but I should have asked if the typical el cheapo table saw's table is large enough to be a good router table.

I was attracted to the table saw to router table conversion for for two reasons: 1. I hate to throw anything away and 2. I thought it would be good to have a "rip fence" which I would face with a piece of wood to allow a cut out portion to clear the router bit and those cutouts for the miter thingy.

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[Pat]

Andy, The rear wall of the saw's "box" is fairly open. For a small investment in time and material I cold remove the aluminum table from the plastic stand and mount it on a base with a door or removable panel front to allow easy access to router without dismounting. I hope to also come up with a good dust collection scheme.

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[Pat]

turnagerg, Kudos to you, your conversion sounds really neat. I wasn't expecting to have to mill a hole in the table and will study on that and alternatives for a spell.

Outfeed...infeed... ohhh I will love to get set up properly in my new shop. Over the weekend I cut up some rough sawn 5/4 cedar to get bark and waste off the edges prior to stacking to dry. The slabs ranged from 4-6 inches wide at one end and 14 at the other with lengths of 10-18 feet. Being wet and heavy it was a bit of a hassle for my wife and I to rip them. Especially since my "helper" was NOT happy to see me cut up "PERFECTLY GOOD BEAUTIFUL BOARDS" to make stickers. I was advised that by stickering with stickers made from the wood to be stickered you would avoid any staining/discoloring problems.

It was our first time working with freshly felled and milled logs and hopefully the last without any in and outfeed support when ripping. Luckily we only had 4 logs to process. The ignition switch messed up on the mill before the 5th and largest(over 24 inches in diamer at base 3 1/2 feet above ground) could be sawn so I have to repair that for the mill owner to get back in production.

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[egon]

Pat:

Have you tried saran wrap or plastic around the stickers. Might let you get away with less lumber.

Egon