Re: OT Turning a router table into a jointer



stryped wrote:

x-no-archive:yes

I have read that it may be possible to edge joint wood turnign your
router table into a jointer of sorts by shimming the outfeed side of
the fence 1/32 or 1/64 of an inch or so. Then leveling the straight cut
bit with his side of the fence, therefore leaving a 1/32 or 1/64 "gap"
from the blade to the infeed fence.

I am just getting into woodworking. WOuld this work? What could i find
at my local harware storwe that would allow me this 1/32 - 1/64 gap?



It'll get you by but as other's have said, the shortcoming is the fence length. As a general rule of thumb, the longest board you can make a straight edge on is the length of the outfeed support. Of course reality is you can come pretty close on a longer board with care.

You also have to be careful about feed speed...most jointers have a fairly large diameter cutter so slight feed variations don't leave scallops or burns as easily. With a smaller diameter router bit, if you hesitate or feed too fast you will not get a smooth surface. It's also a little easier to snipe the ends of the board using the router method. I tend to leave the boards long and cut any possible snipe off after.

Really good quality router bits will make a big difference also. Stay away from the bottom dollar bits and search out better ones. 1/2" dia shank bits are going to be your minimum so don't even bother if your router will only take 1/4. A good high horsepower router will also make a big difference.

So...after all the warnings, be advised that it DOES work with care and you CAN get good results. It's not a good substitute for a jointer if you are doing more than the offhand job but it'll get you by in a pinch.

Koz

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