Router Table Fence

Foreword
Thank you for purchasing the plans for the router table fence. As this is the first set of plans I have
produced, there may be issues I have not identified at this stage. If you find something incorrect or
inconsistent, please contact me via email at paul@thewoodknight.com

Please take your time to read through the plans first before making your first cut. Not all
plywood (or any sheet goods) is created equally and thus there may be variation in the material youre
using. The most obvious place where the dimensions may differ with your material is the bracket
(parts B, D & E), so make sure to measure them against your table saw fence.
These plans are in millimeters (metric), to convert to imperial divide by 25.4. As somebody who is not
a native imperial system user I can do a straight conversion but it can be difficult to figure out what
the correct fractional equivelant is.
For example, 684mm is 25.92 or 25 23/25 - I dont know if 23/25 is considered correct or whether
that should be rounded up or down.

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Material List
Item
Sheet good

T-Track

T-Track Bolts
Washers
Knobs
Screws
Brads - 20mm

Quantity
1

684mm

4
4
4
3
Yes

Tool List
Tool
Table Saw
Router
or
Jigsaw/Coping
saw/fret saw/
scroll saw
Nail Gun
Drill
Drill bits

Description
Any stable and smooth sheetgood - MDF, melamine or plywood
- is suitable, and in just about any thickness (12mm or thicker).
Ive used 12mm (1/2) plywood scraps - some baltic birch,
phenolic coated baltic birch and poplar core ply.

Be aware that not all T-track is created equally, and while

the inside dimensions are likely to be the same, the outside
dimensions may vary wildly.
If your T-track is different, you may need to adjust heights or
thicknesses.

Failing knobs, wingnuts will suffice

For attaching T-track
As many short brads (I used 20mm) as you need to secure the
fence while it dries. This depends on how warped (or not) your
plywood is.

Specific Use

Cutting grooves for bolts in the back fence

Drill press preferably, hand drill will suffice

22mm Forstner Bit, for counterboring bolt heads
8mm Twist bit, for through holes
3mm Twist bit, for drilling pilot holes and through the t-track
60mm Forstner bit or holesaw for bit clearance slots

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Exploded View

Page 4

Assembled View

Page 5

Qty
1
1
1
1
1
2

Width
200mm
127mm
98mm
70mm
58mm
92mm

Length
684mm
684mm
684mm
684mm
684mm
334mm

Symbol
A
B
C
D
E
F

Cut List

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Bracket
To make use of the fence on the table saw,
the easiest way is to create a bracket that
cradles the fence. Then with the addition
of a small F-clamp and light pressure, it can
be secured and easily moved up and down
the table, and quickly locked in place.
Alternatively, you could use magnetic
switches (ie MagSwitch MagJig which can
be found on Amazon http://amzn.to/1kA4Ba9) and place those in the top (B) piece,
instead of using a F-clamp, to lock the
fence in position so (provided your fence is
magnetic)

58

70

127

684

Note: These are the dimensions for my table saw fence, the Sawstop T-Glide fence. If you have a
different saw fence, the dimensions may be different.
1. Cut the top (B), and two side (D & E) pieces. E should match the height of your table saw fence
minus the thickness of the material of A.

2. To assemble, place your base (A) piece (does not have to be cut to final dimensions at this stage)
up against the fence, with the short side bracket piece on top of it, then the taller side piece on the
other side of the fence.

3. Using several F-clamps, apply slight pressure to hold them snug up against the fence, but dont over
tighten.
4. Run a bead of glue along the top edges of each side piece, then place the top piece in position and
tack it down.

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Front Fence
1. Once you have your two front fences
(F), cut a 45 bevel on one short edge
of each piece.
2. These bevelled edges will face each
other when assembled, so it is
advised to mark the up direction so
they maintain the correct direction.
3. Mark out 100mm from either end
of both pieces, and 50mm up the
bottom.

4. Using a forstner bit, drill a

counterbore deep enough to
accomadate your bolt head and
washer. I went approx 6mm deep
using a 22mm bit.

5. Use a small (1-2mm) twist bit to drill through the center, using the dimple left by the forstner bit
spur. This pilot hole is to avoid tearout on the back face, which could effect alignment of the fence.

6. Flip the fence over and drill through with a twist drill bit large enough for your bolt to go through I used a 8mm bit.
334

50

22

92

100

100

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Back fence & Base

There are a few ways to achieve the opening
required for clearance of the router bit, but
either way requires finding the center point
along the length on both the back fence (C)
and base (A).

1.1. Using a table saw cross cut sled, make a

cut approx 50mm high and 30mm from
either side of the center line on both the
back fence (C) and base (A)

1.2. Then, using a 60mm forstner bit or hole

saw, drill a hole about 50mm up from
the edge of the back fence, and 50mm from the user side of the base.
OR

1.1. With additional guide lines marked out (see drawing below), use a jig saw or bandsaw to cut out
the entire opening. This does not have to be perfectly smooth

80

98

10

684

65

177

70

60

2. Mark out for the bolt slots on the back fence (A). Drill pilot holes at both ends of the slots. This
should give you four holes for two slots.

It is recommend the pilot holes (and subsequently the slots) are slightly larger than the bolts youll
be using. ie, with an 8mm bolt, use a 10mm slot. This gives you a little bit of slack if youre not perfect with your marking out and alignment, but ultimately wont effect the alignment of the fence.

3. To cut away the material between each pilot hole, again you have several options.

3.1. Using a plunge router, connect the dots by routing away the waste material. Take several passes
to get the depth you need.
With a full size plunge router, this can be difficult to properly control and support. It can be done,
just make sure you secure the work and add a spacer/support underneath the router base where
it is not on top of the back fence (A)
OR

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3.2. Using a router in a table, take very shallow passes and slowly lower the workpiece onto the router
using the pilot holes as start/stop locations. This is no different from a stopped groove/dado operation, except youre going all the way through.
This is the approach I used and is visible in the construction video.
OR

3.3. Use a scrollsaw, fretsaw, coping saw or a jigsaw to cut away the waste between the sets of holes.
If i was doing this again, Id use a jigsaw as it is just quicker.

4. At the table saw, cut two squares, approx 90mm x 90mm. Draw from one corner to the opposite corner
and cut them along that line to form two triangles per square.
5. In this design, the back fence (A) sits on top of the base (C). Run a bead of glue on the underside of the
back fence, and place on the edge of the base. Run a bead of glue on both 90 sides of the triangles.

6. Place two of the triangles at each end, then two near the bit opening. Use a nail gun to drive a few
brads through the back fence (A) into the triangles.

7. Using a square to confirm the triangles are in the correct position/nothing needs shimming/etc, you can
then tack the triangles down to the base (C).

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Final Assembly
By this stage you will have two sub
assemblies - the bracket and the back fence/
base.
1. Flip both the back fence and bracket
assemblies upside down, run a bead of
glue on the short bracket side piece (E)
then place the back fence assembly on
top.

2. Make sure there is no overhang inside

the bracket as that will make it difficult
to place over the table saw fence. Clamp
or use brads while the glue dries.

3. After the glue is dry, place one washer on each t-bolt, then place each bolt through the front fence
then through the slot in the back fence.
4. Add another washer and secure with knob. Make sure the fences are referencing off your router
table.
5. With the front fences attached, you can now attach the t-track by placing it on top of the front
fences, and screwing into the back fence
Congratulations, your router table fence is good to go!

Addendum
Finishing

While not required, if youre using raw plywood it is recommended to apply some sort of smooth
finish on all surfaces. This reduces friction, and makes it easier to clean dust up off it.

My standard practice is two coats of a 2lb cut of shellac, as it is easy to apply and dries within minutes.

Further Information

For further information on these plans you can refer to

YouTube construction video (online)

Fusion 360 file (Included in plan zip file).

To view/edit the F3D file, use Autodesk Fusion 360 which is free from Autodesk, available for Mac
and PC.
http://www.autodesk.com/products/fusion-360/overview

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