Large and small renovation projects are beneficial in many ways. Whether you’re renovating your entire entertainment space or just a few rooms, you’re guaranteed a fresh and new atmosphere with a different feel.
You need the right team to work on your remodeling project. Fair quotes, honest answers and reasonable promises are some factors to consider when hiring a remodeling team.
If you’re undecided whether to renovate your entertainment space or not, here’re a few reasons to keep you motivated:
- You’ll get more entertainment space
- Increase your property value
- Reduce future maintenance
- Increase comfort
- Add a touch of personalization
6 Ways to Renovate Your Entertainment Space with a Router Table
A router table enhances the functionality of your router. Ranging from cutting long moldings to smooth edges and safe use of the table to molding small projects, you can use your router table in many ways when working on a renovation project.
1. Make your own moldings
Router tables are perfect for cutting your own moldings. Unlike when using just a router, the table makes work faster and easier because there’s no need to clamp the board.
What’s more, a router table makes it easier to shape narrow boards when working on your renovation project. Protect your fingers with a push stick and feather boards.
Mount the router onto the base, tighten the bit into it and adjust its height. It’s okay if the fence square gets to the table because it can’t tamper with this kind of cut.
Lay a straight edge along the fence if the bit features a bearing guide. Adjust the bit until a thin space remains between the straight edge and the outer bearing edge.
Clamp feather boards to the fence and the table to hold your work against the bit. As a result, you get time to focus on pushing the board.
Feed the board steadily to prevent burn marks from the router bit. Wood type you’re working with and the bit determines the feed rate.
Experience will teach you how to gauge the best rate through listening to the router and feeling the resistance against the board.
Your router table cuts over 3/8 inches deep and can strain your tool’s motor, chip or roughen wood, and exert unnecessary pressure on the bit. Adjust the fence to remove almost 2/3 of the wood on your first pass using the bit to prevent the issues.
Make the final pass after readjusting the fence at a faster rate of feed.
2. Perform end-grain routing
Unlike using a handheld router for end-grain routing, using a square push block and a router table to shape the end grain has several benefits. With the fence guiding your cuts, you’re not restricted to just bearing-guided bits.
Secondly, it’s easier to rout narrow and work with larger boards. The push block supports your cuts to prevent wood chipping and tear-outs that occur due to end-grain routing.
You can use a square push block to support and guide your work square to the fence all the way to the bit.
3. Plane straight edges on plywood or boards perfectly
Setup your router table to plane the edges of your plywood or boards for renovating your entertainment space. The router bit leaves a smooth and straight surface for creating invisible seams if you want to join or glue edges of wood to your plywood.
During setup, shim out the left half side of the fence and make sure it aligns to the bit. Use a double-sided tape or adhesive to attach a plastic laminate piece to the face of the fence’s left half side if it doesn’t adjust. This ensures you can easily remove the piece when done.
When done with the setup, you can use your router table to accomplish the following tasks during your renovation project:
- Remove saw marks left at the edges of ripped boards
- Plane plywood panel edges prior to working on wood edging
- Straighten the boards’ edges for easy joining or gluing to each other
4. Use a starting pivot for freehand routing
Your router table makes it easy to shape small pieces that aren’t easy to hold down when working with a handheld router. Choose a bit with a bearing guide designed to run against the pattern.
For instance, a half-inch carbide bit for flush trimming can help you duplicate patterns.
With this technique, you can also utilize any router guided based on bearing to shape the edges of tiny pieces. Position the starting pivot block against the pivot wood to gain greater control over bit contacts.
Instead of using a pointed stick, some router tables are made with starting pin holes for a similar purpose. Whatever you decide to use as a pivot, make sure it attaches to the table firmly about 2 to 3 inches away from the bit.
Cut your desired pattern from the tempered Masonite or medium-density fiberboard (MDF). To ensure no imperfections are transferred to your work piece, sand the edges of the board to make them smooth.
Use a jigsaw to rough-cut your work piece. Use hot-melt glue, small nails or double-sided adhesive or tape to attach the pattern.
5. Create your desired cabinet doors
You can also make simple cabinet doors using your router table during your remodeling project. The repeatable process involved is fast and easy; you only need a router table and two bits to get the job done.
6. Clamp your work pieces together and make accurate cuts
Clamping your workpieces is easier with a router table. The only thing you have to do is guide your work over the table and beyond the bit.
You need the largest tabletop on your router table to get more precise cuts on long working pieces. Consider particleboard or wood parts mounted onto a single-piece solid metal fence with two replaceable and adjustable wood.
Shim out a single side of your plane board edges or move its sections tightly to the bit of the router to get rid of additional space near the bit.
With an easily adjustable bit guard and table slots for mounting feather boards and related accessories, you can easily clamp your work. Use removable plates at the base of your table for easier router mounting. If you want to change bits and height adjustments, mount and take out height adjustment for your renovation project.
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