fight with router, router won, obviously. recommendations

[wooden-inspiration]

Well been working away with my router attached to my table saw for a while now, running my pieces through it freely and quickly, but today even with all my concentration and protection, a couple of my little digits came into contact with the bit, now sitting with two big bandages on my fingers and a safety issue with my table as I am not using it in that way again.
My question is, are there and what would your recommendations be for a router table that would give safety to its users.
The router is a great piece of kit and I love using it, I am just reaching out to your experience to recommend a table with protection.
thank you from feeling silly, but accidents happen and i'm not having it again

Thanks

 

[wooden-inspiration]

would this table be good?

RECORD POWER RPMSR/MK2 ROUTER TABLE SUPPLIED WITH 1/2in COLLET EXTENSION

http://www.dm-tools.co.uk/product.php/s ... RPWRPMSRAV

 

[Mike.C]

Hi WI welcome to the forum. Sorry to hear about your accident. One of the best safty devices on either a router table or a table saw is push sticks, because they keep your fingers well away from the danger zone.

Cheers

Mike

 

[Oryxdesign]

Welcome, sorry you've had an accident. Perhaps you could show us a photo of what you were doing and we might be able to offer some good advice.

Simon

 

[wizer]

Sorry to hear that. You're not alone

 

[jimi43]

Most accidents with routers occur because you are doing one of a few things that routers hate doing...

Running wood in the wrong direction with respect to the cutter

Trying to cut too deep a pass

Working freehand

Attempting to route too small stock.

All of these are likely (not probably but likely) to pull the work suddenly. If your hands are guiding the stock at the time then they may go into the cutter.

There are many ways of preventing these dangers...

For directional safety read this article carefully

Always take very small cuts and then adjust and cut again. Stop the router between adjustments. It is better to take many small cuts than to over-egg the cut. Different woods require different progressions...generally the harder the wood the less you can cut in one pass.

NEVER WORK FREEHAND! Always use a fence or a guide pin...the latter is also dangerous if you don't know what you are doing.

Never use too small stock. Fix the stock to a sacrificial piece of wood and use the larger piece to guide the smaller piece.

Other helpful tips...

Use featherboards....

Use guards...Steve makes a superb one.

Use sharp, good quality cutters.

While you are recovering..hopefully totally...read as much as you can about router safety on the Net....there is loads out there.

Hope you get better soon

Jim

 

[OPJ]

Very sorry to hear about your accident. At the same time, it would be good to hear of the operation you were performing and how your table was set up...

It may be that this isn't strictly a bad table; it could be a lack of sufficient guarding, for example, which is something you could almost certainly 'fix' yourself (rather than buying a new table).

It's also very simple to make your own router table! :wink:

 

[thomvic]

Well been working away with my router attached to my table saw

I am confused somewhat. Why (and how) was it attached to a table saw and not to a router table?

Richard

 

[9fingers]

Well been working away with my router attached to my table saw

I am confused somewhat. Why (and how) was it attached to a table saw and not to a router table?

Richard

It is not uncommon to mount a router in a table saw extension to re-use the TS outfeed table as the router table. There have been a number of threads here talking about it.

Makes good use of space in the smaller workshop.

Bob

 

[devonwoody]

Very sorry to hear of your misfortune with the router.

I use the Triton router and Triton router table, the table has a plastic bit guard attached to the table fence. This has always given me confidence when using this equipment.

Has any member here ever had an accident when the guard is fitted?

 

[promhandicam]

As others have said it would be good if you post photos of your current set up. In terms of safety you need to (a) make sure your fingers stay well away from the cutter - use push sticks and (b) make sure the timber you are machining is adequately guarded / supported - use feather boards.

Steve

 

[wooden-inspiration]

thank you to everyone who posted replies, I take comfort from your comments, my injury was thankfully not as bad as wizer's, ouch that is super sore.
I am trying to post a few photos of the setup that I was using but cant see where to add pic any help on that?
The router was attached to a ryobi table saw, and I was using a bit with a bearing on it, I was feeding it through with hands and I haven't got a clue how it managed to slip and tickle my fingers, but I suppose it is a definite wake up call so have decided to get a dedicated router table, currently looking at the 'kreg benchtop table' anyone used, is it a good choice?
looking to get the pushblocks as well and anything else I can through at it.
love the router but dont want to be scared of it.

Andy

 

[jimi43]

Good to hear you will live to route another day!

Don't be scared of it...just give it the respect it deserves.

To post pictures you need to put them on a hosting site..just Google "free picture hosting" to find one you like.

Once they are posted you go to the picture and click on the URL for that picture and then post it in your thread:

Once the URL is posted...highlight the whole URL and then click "Img" at the top of your posting window on the right.

That will then show in preview to check that you have it right.

Hope this helps!

Jim

 

[9fingers]

Good to hear you will live to route another day!

Don't be scared of it...just give it the respect it deserves.

To post pictures you need to put them on a hosting site..just Google "free picture hosting" to find one you like.

Once they are posted you go to the picture and click on the URL for that picture and then post it in your thread:

Once the URL is posted...highlight the whole URL and then click "Img" at the top of your posting window on the right.

That will then show in preview to check that you have it right.

Hope this helps!

Jim

Here is a link that might help.
I find Photobucket very good for free hosting

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/addi ... 14776.html

Bob

 

[jimi43]

Andy...and you want to take advice from someone who's nickname is "9 Fingers"!!!!! :wink:

Only jesting...Bob is right..that's a good candidate for hosting.

Another one I found fascinating is the Google product "Picasa"....you can sort and upload your pictures directly from that programme. It is a really great free product...I recommend it highly!

Cheers

Jim

 

[9fingers]

Jim,

I could always change it to seven fingers and give you two !!
:lol: :lol:

Any good hauls at today's boot fair?

Bob

 

[head clansman]

hi

you were using your hands to keep it tight up against the fence as you fed the timber through the cutter, big mistake , use the magnetic clamp from axi to do that , thus removing the hands to use a push stick keeping your hand further out of the way, i 've said it here before, if yo lose a pinky it wont grow again , think about it . hc

 

[head clansman]

hi try using this sort of thing .

http://www.axminster.co.uk/product.asp? ... =1&jump=44

 

[ondablade]

Re. Bob and his missing digit. Maybe it qualifies him to advise. ;-) As before they used to say in my grandfather's sawmill back in the 50s that until a sawyer had lost a finger he didn't know his job.

It's so easy to get blase about routers. One of the guys at a plastics fabrication company i help out from time to time removed most of his little finger on one last month. Same sort of deal - flush trimming joints on boxes, long boring run of hand fed repetitive work against a guide - then the bit grabbed and pulled the box through unexpectedly quickly. He's been out of work for weeks, and in and out for plastic surgery in the meantime.

To be more constructive. On what HK says it seems that magnetic feather boards (and feeders) can be very effective on saws (when ripping) and planers (on smaller strip) too.

I've no great experience of router tables, but it seems quite a few are starting to use mouse power mini feeders on router tables for safety too. They can be set slightly angled so that as well as feeding they hold the work against the fence.

The Comatic Baby has been mentioned positively in this regard, I think it was in Fine Woodworking: http://www.axminster.co.uk/product.asp? ... =1&jump=44 It's not too expensive at about £200.

Some it seems are using feeders on planers and table saws too, and reporting benefits in consistency and finish as well as safety.

Anybody got any experience?

 

[head clansman]

hi

ondablade

wrote

To be more constructive. On what HK says it seems that magnetic feather boards (and feeders) can be very effective on saws (when ripping) and planers (on smaller strip) too.

actual it's hc but this is only any good if you have a metal base to your machine , Ali is no good at all.

I learnt my lesson yrs ago whilst using a college spindle moulder to cut tenons on . I forgot to tighten one of the clamps it sucked the short length of timber in to it and spate it out the other side in shreds ,imagine that to be a hand yikes don't bear thinking about :shock: , thank god it was not my hand, then when i started in the dockyard they had one a monster spindle moulder 60,000 rpm it use to frighten the crap out of me each time i used it , the lesson learnt was keep hands well away from any cutting blade whilst using any machinery , its better you chew up a piece of timber (push stick) and not your body any time . hc keep smiling