How to Use a Router Table
Mount a router in a table, set the bit height, fence, and speed, fit the guard and featherboards, and feed right to left in light passes for edge profiles, grooves, and rabbets.
You will end up with a router mounted in the table, a bit set to the right height and speed, the fence, guard, and featherboards in place, and a first edge profile cut in light passes. A router table holds the router upside down beneath a flat top so the bit comes up through the surface. You move the wood across the router instead of the router across the wood, which is what makes edge profiles, grooves, rabbets, raised panels, and edge jointing repeatable.
The bit spins at 8,000 to 25,000 RPM, the range on Bosch's variable-speed 1617EVS, while your hands feed wood past it. Four settings carry the safety of every cut: feed direction, bit speed, cut depth, and fence position. Each has its own step below. Unplug the router before every bit change and every adjustment, and the steps repeat that rule wherever it applies.
A router with variable speed and a 1/2-inch collet A router table with insert plate and fence Router bits (1/2-inch shank preferred) Featherboards Push sticks or push blocks The bit guard and starter pin that came with your table Safety glasses Hearing protection A dust mask Shop vacuum or dust collector Combination square or bit height gauge Collet wrenches The manuals for your router and your table
Get to know the parts of your router table
Before you turn anything on, take a minute to identify the key parts. The tabletop is the flat surface where your workpiece slides. In the center is the insert plate, a removable panel that holds your router underneath with the bit poking through. The fence is a straight guide that clamps across the table and controls how much of the bit contacts your wood. A fence with two faces lets you adjust each one independently, and the dust port on its back connects to a shop vacuum. You will also find a miter gauge slot running along the table surface for guiding crosscuts. Look for featherboard slots or T-tracks where you can mount featherboards to hold your workpiece against the fence and table. Then find the bit guard and the starter pin that came with the table. Your table's manual shows where each one mounts, and step 6 and FAQ 6 below use them.
Mount the router and choose your bit
Unplug the router before you touch any of this. It is the first rule in Bosch's safety rules for router tables, which say to unplug the tool before setting up in the table, making adjustments, or changing bits, because an accidental start-up can cause injury. Porter-Cable repeats the same instruction at the head of its adjustment procedures. With the cord out, remove the insert plate from the table and attach your router to it from underneath, following the plate manufacturer's hole pattern. Drop the plate back into the table and use the leveling screws at each corner to make the plate perfectly flush with the tabletop surface. Even a small lip will catch your workpiece and ruin the cut. Now choose your router bit. Use 1/2-inch shank bits whenever possible, which is Bosch's own instruction. A 1/2-inch shank has four times the cross-sectional area of a 1/4-inch shank, so it is stiffer. Set how far the bit sits in the collet before you tighten anything. Push the shank in as far as it will go, then back it out slightly. Bosch specifies at least 5/8 inch of shank inside the collet with the cutters 1/8 to 1/4 inch clear of the collet nut face, which is what gives proper grip and keeps run-out (bit wobble) down. Porter-Cable words the same step differently, bottoming the shank and then backing it out about 1/16 inch. Never tighten an empty collet, which damages it. With the bit in place, tighten the collet nut firmly with the collet wrenches. If you are swapping bits partway through a session, let the cutter cool first, because a bit that has just been used is too hot to touch with bare hands.
Good to know: Wipe the bit shank and the inside of the collet before you insert the bit. Bosch's manual says both should be clean and free of dust, wood, residue, and grease before assembly, and Porter-Cable's begins the same step with the word clean. FAQ 2 below covers choosing a router for table work.
Set the bit height
With the router still unplugged, reach under the table and adjust the router's depth so the bit extends to the height you need above the tabletop. Hold a small combination square or a bit height gauge against the table surface to read the height. For edge profiles like roundovers and chamfers, match the bit height to the profile you want. For grooves and rabbets, do not set the full depth at once. Raise the bit about 1/8 inch per pass and work up to the final depth in stages, taking less in hard wood or with a large bit. FAQ 4 below explains where that figure comes from. After the adjustment, lock the router's depth clamp. Bosch's rule is to make sure every adjustment device is securely tightened after a change, because a loose one can shift during the cut.
Set up the fence
With the router still unplugged, set the fence, which controls how much of the bit contacts the workpiece. For non-bearing bits (straight bits, slot cutters), the fence position sets how much of the bit is exposed, and so how far it cuts into the edge of the board. Slide the fence back to expose more of the bit for a deeper cut, and forward to expose less. For bearing-guided bits (roundovers, ogees), the bearing limits the cut, and the fence supports the workpiece along its full length. Slide the adjustable fence faces in until the opening around the bit is as small as it can be without touching the cutter, so the workpiece is supported right up to the bit. Lock the fence down with both clamps. Then turn the bit one full turn by hand to confirm it clears the fence faces. If you plan to use the miter gauge, also check that the fence is parallel to the miter slot.
Set the router speed for your bit size
Larger bits must run at lower speeds, and the reason is rim speed. A 3-inch bit at 24,000 RPM has an outer edge moving at about 214 mph. Bosch's manual warns that accessories run faster than their rated speed can break and fly apart. Two limits apply, and you use the lower of the two. The first is your router's manual. Porter-Cable's manual for its 891 series, a 1/2-inch collet router running 10,000 to 23,000 RPM, allows bits larger than 2.5 inches only with the speed control set between 10,000 and 13,000 RPM, and 3.5 inches is the largest bit it accepts at all. The second is the bit, which carries a maximum speed from its maker. Find it on the packaging or in the maker's catalog. Bosch arranges its speed dial by application. Settings from 8,000 to 16,500 RPM are for larger diameter bits and cutters, and settings from 20,000 to 25,000 RPM are for smaller ones. The manual adds that exact settings are determined by operator experience and preference, and that the bit manufacturer may have a speed recommendation of its own. Then set the speed. Start small bits near the top of the range and turn the speed down as the diameter goes up. Run anything larger than 2.5 inches at 13,000 RPM or below, which covers panel-raising bits, and go lower still if your own manual or the bit's maker says so. A router with no variable speed cannot slow down, so keep large bits out of it (FAQ 7 below). When two numbers disagree, use the slower one.
Heads up: Do not mount a bit your router cannot slow down for. If the maker's maximum speed for the bit is below your router's lowest setting, or the bit is wider than your manual allows, it does not belong in that router. Bosch's rule is not to use bits with a cutting diameter that exceeds the capacity of the tool.
Fit the guard and featherboards, and put on protection
With the router still unplugged, fit the bit guard where your table's manual shows. Bosch's instruction for table work is to always use the fence or starter pin and the appropriate guard. Mount featherboards on the table and fence as the table's manual shows. A featherboard has angled fingers that press the workpiece against the fence or down onto the table, which keeps the wood from drifting mid-cut and keeps your hands away from the bit. Bosch's safety rules call for push sticks, vertically and horizontally mounted featherboards, and other jigs for that purpose. Put a push stick or push block within reach. Bosch says to use a push stick whenever possible when working against the fence, especially with narrow pieces. Connect your shop vacuum or dust collector to the fence's dust port. OSHA groups routers with sanders and shapers as the machines that generally produce the greatest amount of dust, and ties wood dust exposure to asthma, chronic bronchitis, and dermatitis. It also records that certain hardwoods (among them oak, mahogany, beech, walnut, birch, elm, and ash) have been reported to cause nasal cancer in woodworkers, particularly where exposure is high. The same page says conventional exhaust on these machines is not very effective, so run the extraction and wear a dust mask as well. Put on safety glasses and hearing protection before you plug anything in. Porter-Cable's manual says everyday eyeglasses are not safety glasses and that eye protection should meet the ANSI Z87.1 standard. NIOSH sets its recommended exposure limit at 85 dBA averaged over an 8-hour workday, and advises hearing protection whenever noise goes above 85 dBA, regardless of how long it lasts. We could not find an agency noise measurement for routers, so wear the protection for every cut. Bosch makes one more point about table work. Router cuts are blind cuts, but the bit still protrudes through the table, so stay aware of where your hands are relative to it.
Feed the workpiece right to left
Check the board before it goes near the bit. Bosch warns that cutting into a nail dislodges the carbide and throws it toward the operator, and it recommends against routing warped or wobbly stock at all. If you cannot avoid a warped piece, cut it with the concave side against the table so it cannot rock. Plug the router in only now, with its switch off. Start the router before the wood touches the bit. Bosch's rule is never to start the tool with the bit engaged in the material, because the cutting edge can grab the piece and take it out of your control. Let the motor reach full speed. Stand at the front of the table facing the fence and feed the workpiece from right to left. Bosch's manual says to always feed from right to left across the front of the bit, and the reason is rotation. The bit turns counterclockwise as viewed from the top of the table, so a right-to-left feed runs against the rotation, and you push against the cutter's resistance instead of being pulled along by it. Feed at a steady pace with light pressure against the fence. Bosch lists what each mistake costs. Feeding too fast overloads the motor, and feeding too slowly leaves friction burns on the work. Use the push stick or push block for the end of the cut and for narrow pieces, and keep the workpiece moving until it is clear of the bit.
Heads up: Do not feed left to right along the fence. That is a climb cut. Bosch's manual says feeding in the wrong direction makes the workpiece climb up on the bit and may lead to loss of control. FAQ 1 below covers the direction for cuts without the fence.
Make the cut in multiple passes
For anything beyond a light edge profile, make multiple shallow passes instead of one deep cut. Run the piece through at the light first setting from step 3. Before each change, switch the router off, wait for the bit to stop, and unplug it. Bosch's unplug rule from step 2 covers every adjustment, not only bit changes. Then raise the bit or move the fence by the same 1/8 inch step, lock it, and make the next pass. Shallow passes leave less tearout and put less load on the motor and bit. Make the final pass a very light one, which cleans up the marks the heavier passes leave. If you are routing all four edges of a panel, cut the end grain edges first, then the long grain edges. That order comes from Porter-Cable's manual, which says to make the first cut on the end of the piece across the grain so that any chipping is removed by the next cut parallel with the grain.
Run common operations
Start with edge profiling. Install a roundover, chamfer, or ogee bit, set the height, and run the edge of your board along the fence. For dadoes and grooves, use a straight bit. Set the fence to position the groove where you need it, set a shallow bit height, and make multiple passes, raising the bit each time. Rabbets work the same way but along the edge of the board. Use a straight bit or a rabbeting bit with a bearing guide. For raised panels, use a dedicated panel-raising bit and raise it about 1/8 inch per pass. A panel-raising bit wider than 2.5 inches falls under the 13,000 RPM ceiling from step 5. The router table also handles edge jointing with a straight bit. Offset the outfeed fence face forward by the amount you want to remove, and run the board edge along the bit. This straightens an edge without a jointer.
Make your first cuts on scrap, which is also Porter-Cable's advice before any cut on the real workpiece. Run a roundover along a board edge and listen to the motor. If the motor slows or labors, Bosch's manual gives three causes to check: feeding too fast, a dull bit, and a cut that is too large for one pass. If the edge shows burn marks, FAQ 5 below has the fixes. If the workpiece wanders off the fence, switch off, unplug, and reset the featherboards so they press it against the fence and the table. When edge profiles come out clean, move on to the grooves and rabbets in step 9, and reread step 5 before you mount a panel-raising bit. Woodworking also means the occasional splinter, and our guide on how to remove a splinter covers getting one out cleanly.
Questions we get asked about this
Answers from experience, not a textbook.
Feed against the rotation of the bit. Bosch's manual says the bit rotates counterclockwise as viewed from the top of the table and that the workpiece is fed against that rotation. With the fence, that means right to left across the front of the bit (step 7). Without the fence, look at which side of the bit the wood touches. On an outside edge, the wood sits between you and the bit, and the feed is still right to left. On an inside edge, such as the inner rim of a frame placed over the bit, the wood touches the far side of the bit, where the cutting edge is traveling the opposite way, so the feed reverses to left to right. Bosch's manual gives the rule and the fence case. The inside case is the same rule applied to the other side of the bit, and Porter-Cable's manual shows the same reversal for handheld work, where the router travels clockwise inside a template and counterclockwise outside it.
Choose by three features, since neither manual we read sizes a router for table work by horsepower. The first is a 1/2-inch collet, because Bosch says to use 1/2-inch shank bits whenever possible. The second is variable speed, because large bits need low speeds (step 5). The third is a maximum bit diameter that covers the work you plan. Porter-Cable's 891 series, for example, takes 1/4-inch and 1/2-inch shanks, runs from 10,000 to 23,000 RPM, and accepts bits up to 3.5 inches.
It depends on the maker, so check the manual before you do. Bosch says its RA1166 plunge base is not recommended for use in a router table, because damage to the base may occur, and says its RA1161 fixed base is designed to allow easy depth adjustment in a table. Porter-Cable's manual for the 891 series allows it, and describes removing the springs from the plunge posts to use that plunge base in a table. If your manual does not mention table use, mount the router in its fixed base.
Take about 1/8 inch per pass for grooves, rabbets, and large profile bits. Neither Bosch nor Porter-Cable publishes a maximum depth for a single pass. The right depth depends on the bit, the wood, and the router. The 1/8 inch figure is the step Bosch builds into the depth turret of its plunge base for deep cuts, and it is a sound step to copy at the table. Both manuals describe what a deeper bite costs. Bosch lists a cut that is too large for one pass among the causes of an overloaded motor. Porter-Cable says more than one pass may be necessary in exceptionally hard woods, and tells you not to crowd the router so that the motor speed slows excessively. If the motor slows under the cut or the wood burns, take less.
Feeding too slowly is the cause Bosch's manual names. It leaves friction burns on the work. Speed up the feed first, and keep the board moving past the bit without stopping. If the burning continues, check three more things in turn: a dull bit, a pass that is too deep, and a speed set too high for the bit's diameter (step 5).
Not always, but never with nothing at all. Bearing-guided bits like roundovers and ogees can work without a fence because the bearing controls the cut depth, which is what lets you follow a curved or irregular edge. Bosch is specific about what replaces the fence. When the table is used without one, piloted or bearing bits must be used, and whenever possible the starter pin should be used as well, along with the appropriate guard. The starter pin is the post that drops into a hole in the table beside the bit. Brace the workpiece against the pin first, then pivot it into the cutter until the edge meets the bearing, so the piece is supported before the bit touches it. Non-bearing bits like straight bits always need the fence. Where the edge is straight, use the fence anyway, since it supports the workpiece along its whole length.
Yes, for bits rated for its speed. A single-speed router runs every bit at full speed, which rules out large bits. Porter-Cable's manual allows bits over 2.5 inches only at 13,000 RPM or less, a setting a single-speed router does not have. Compare the maximum speed the bit's maker gives with the speed on your router's nameplate, and leave out any bit rated below it. Bosch's manual covers both kinds of router, and only its 1617EVS and 1618EVS models have the variable speed dial.
Yes, within its limits. If yours accepts only 1/4-inch shank bits, you are limited to bits made with that shank and to the largest diameter its manual allows. Check whether it has variable speed, because without it you cannot slow down for larger bits. Confirm that your table's insert plate has a hole pattern for it.