Woodworker's Journal 2004-28-6, страница 45

TOOL REVIEW

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Three Unusal Router Accessories

By Bill Hylton

Tired of humdrum and run-of-the-mill router add-ons? Here are three accessories that are anything but ordinary.

Every router user has some favorite gizmo or doodad that, for them, expands the utility of the woodshop's most versatile power tool. And every router user is on constant alert for seductive new router gadgets.

I've got shelves creaking under the weight of router jigs, fixtures and accessories. Some I built myself; others I bought. A few I use on a regular basis, while others are primarily supplements to my shop-wide, low-tech dust collection system.

Most router gizmos are modest. In size, if not in cost, devices like edge guides are small, though they have a myriad of applications.

Every now and then, some router-oriented Godzilla crashes down the shop door. Look at me, look at me! I'm big and flashy. I break down barriers. I cost a lot and do a lot. Pay me some attention.

Three of these rout-a-zillas forced their way into my shop recently, taking up space, making noise and sawdust, demanding my attention. All were intimidating at first, but once I got to know them, each turned out to be a top-flight helper in the shop.

The Leigh FMT

The Leigh Frame Mortise and Tenon Jig (FMT) is the least ostentatious of the shop invaders.

Legacy Ornamental Mill

It does one job — it enables you to ait mortises and tenons with a plunge router. What's unique about it is that it produces mortises and perfectly matched tenons with the same basic setup. Because the mortises are routed, they have rounded ends. But so do the tenons!

The trick is in the template that guides the router. With the guide pin in the slot inside the template, the router cuts the mortise. The template slot only allows side-to-side movement of the router, so the mortise width is determined by the diameter of bit you use. With the guide pin sliding around the perimeter of the template, the router cuts the tenon. The template's outside dimensions and shape are tailored to produce a matching tenon — with rounded ends — using the same bit.