DIY milling elevator. Elevator for a router: several options for making it yourself Milling elevator universal router lift

The milling lift that Victor Traveller uses in his, as I understand it, extreme table. So to speak, newest model. The milling cutter uses the same long-suffering interskol FM32.

The most interesting aspect of this lift is the ability to adjust the position of the router without bending over or crawling under the table. This is done with an imbus key directly from the countertop.

The entire block together with the router can be easily dismantled and replaced with a circular saw. Let's take a closer look at the structure of this lift.

The lift itself consists of two U-shaped halves that move relative to each other. One is fixedly fixed relative to the base of the router, the other is movable (it pushes the head of the router up)

They are connected to each other (that is, a bolt with a hexagon head and a pin of the appropriate diameter) using a pair of nuts (main and locking). In this case, the hexagon bolt remains on top, flush with the table surface. By means of a wide nut, rotation is transmitted to the pin, from which, respectively, onto the mortise nut in the lower half of the slide, which, due to rotation, is pulled up.

Using a router table, you can perform professional woodworking. Connections, end profiling, door and window frames, baseboards, frames for photographs and paintings are placed on the table neatly and conveniently. A factory-made table can cost a pretty penny if its quality is dubious. Why not make it yourself? Moreover, the design is not at all complicated; further drawings will be analyzed in detail.

Main parts of the milling table

homemade router table

There are many options for milling tables. As a rule, craftsmen create unique drawings to suit their needs. But the basic design is the same regardless of the size of the machine. Here is a table 90 x 48 x 30 cm, the table top and supports are made of plywood No. 27, the legs of the workbench are welded from angle steel.

The main elements of a table for a manual router, the quality and design of which will determine the ease of use and functionality.

First you need to decide on the type of future machine:

If you plan to work on location, a small drawing will do. portable design. For constant work in the workshop, a reliable and powerful stationary table will be convenient. It can be installed on wheels and moved around the room. And for a small workshop, the modular option is good; it is an extension of the tabletop of the sawing machine or its rotary version.

Cover material

The most practical tabletops are made of chipboard covered with thin plastic or MDF with a melamine layer. This material is very easy to cut with a jigsaw, and it will last a long time.

Pressed countertops are not suitable for working in damp rooms or outdoors! To prevent them from swelling, all edges will have to be carefully processed and sealed.

Very good homemade countertops from plastic sheets. They are smooth, even, and easy to process. This machine can be used in any conditions.

Metal countertops are more difficult to make and are heavy. And aluminum sheets must be additionally clad - covered with a layer that prevents contamination of parts.

Groove for stop

Typically, a milling table is used for processing longitudinal edges. To be able to process the transverse ends when creating homemade machine it is necessary to provide a movable stop that moves in the groove. The built-in groove is also used for attaching clamping devices.

Fixing the router

There are two options for attaching a manual router to the table:

  • directly to the bottom surface of the tabletop;
  • to the removable mounting platform.

When making a milling table with your own hands, they often use the first method, as it is simpler. But the mounting plate equipment has several advantages in operation:

  • frees up to 1 cm of the processing depth of the part;
  • The router is easier to remove to replace cutters.

Therefore, we recommend that you tinker a little longer and equip the mounting plate. It must be flush with the surface of the countertop, otherwise the workpiece will touch the protrusions. Even more convenience is provided by a lift for the cutter, the design of which will be discussed in detail below.

Longitudinal stop

It serves as a guide for the part, so it must be level. You can make a stop with a T-slot into which clamping devices and other devices are inserted to make work easier.

Homemade table

The most primitive drawing homemade table for a router - this is an MDF tabletop, in which a hole is made for the router to pass through and a guide ruler is attached - an evenly planed board. This tabletop can be placed between two workbenches or installed on its own legs. Its advantages are the simplest and quickly manufactured design. Such a device is unlikely to allow you to carry out serious woodworking. Let's consider more functional options, including a rotary one.

Small router table

neat and small table

A tabletop model for a hand router, which you can make yourself in a few evenings. Lightweight construction and mobile, fits on a shelf, takes up little space, and its drawings are simple.

  • The working surface and side racks are made of thick laminated plywood No. 15. The size of the table top is 40 x 60 cm, the height without the corner stop is 35 cm, the height of the stop is 10 cm. Three grooves are selected in the surface of the work table for installing rails. Various auxiliary devices are installed here and moved along the tabletop.
  • To make the structure stable, the legs are made of chipboard or MDF No. 22. The legs are placed with a slight indentation, leaving a little space for attaching templates and clamps using clamps.
  • To cover the mechanism, a front panel made of plywood or chipboard is installed below.
  • The side stop has grooves along which it moves. Locked in the right place using bolts and wing nuts. The emphasis can be dismantled and any convenient device can be installed in the free space.
  • A pipe is connected to the stop to remove chips that are released in abundance during operation. The chip drains of the router and the table are connected through plastic corrugations from the sewer siphons by a splitter for the water supply. A hose from the household vacuum cleaner. It turns out very efficient system removal of chips, they practically do not fly around the room.
  • Since the machine is designed for a manual milling machine, a special on/off switch is not required.
  • The stop consists of two parts, which are moved closer or further depending on the diameter of the working body. A wing nut is provided to secure the sash. The good thing about the proposed model is that the tool can be easily removed from the frame to replace the cutters.
  • The mounting platform for the router is made of textolite or plexiglass. The plastic platform from the router kit is first dismantled. The recesses for the mounting area are selected with a router, and the hole is cut with a jigsaw. When the hole is ready, the plexiglass is adjusted to its size and shape. It should fit tightly and without protrusions into the window.

You can make several mounting platforms of the same size with holes for different cutter diameters.

This option is convenient for small hand tools. If a stationary table is being made for a large router, insert rings for different cutter diameters are attached to one mounting platform.

To ensure that the workpiece moves smoothly, motion stoppers are installed on the side stop. Clamps are also attached to the side stop, which hold the part near the cutter during operation. Additional convenience create a slide along which the workpiece moves at a right angle. And to make the work safe, pushers are manufactured.

The table is ready for use; its drawback is the lack of adjustment of the processing depth. This is done manually by pressing on the tool. Get into it the first time desired depth impossible. Therefore, we recommend equipping the table with a lift.

You need to make a hole in the frame into which an adjusting bolt with a wing nut is inserted. The depth of milling is smoothly changed by twisting the lamb.

Some craftsmen adapt old car jacks for a lift for a powerful router. The device is attached under the router; a hole is made in the side wall to bring the jack handle out. The jack handle can be bent at the desired angle; when rotated, the router smoothly moves up and down in 2 mm increments.

Another model of a homemade milling table for a router in the video:

Examples of milling table designs and their drawings

Design 1

Design 2 with drawings

Lifting mechanism for hand router

Lift for router. Part 1 Diy Made Router Lift – AgaClip – Make Your Video Clips

What operations can be done using a manual milling machine - MASTREMONT.RU

DIY Universal Milling Table

manual milling machine woodworking VK

Homemade lift lift for router – AgaClip – Make Your Video Clips

Lift for router. Part 2 Diy How To Make Router Lift – AgaClip – Make Your Video Clips

DIY lift for a router: principle of operation, examples of products

Do-it-yourself milling table for a manual router - drawing, video, instructions o-builder.ru

DIY table for a hand router: instructions (video)

Do-it-yourself milling table with a lift for a manual router (drawings)

Elevator for the router Elevator to the router

Do-it-yourself wooden machine for wood

Homemade wood cutters for a hand router

ElkoPro. Assembly and use instructions

Templates for a manual wood router

Lifting mechanism for milling machine

DIY MILLING TABLE. Discussion on LiveInternet - Russian Online Diary Service

GNTI - Homemade milling table - Video reports from the world of science and technology

Format saw Italmac Omnia-1600 - buy, prices in the TekhnoSnab online store

Milling machine, textures, icons, images

Popular:

Accessories for hand router

Lift for a router made from a clamp

If you regularly use a router mounted on a router table, you know how difficult it is to adjust and adjust the height of the bit in the router. There are milling elevators for lifting the router, but they are usually quite expensive. So I created a simple homemade router lift from available materials. This lift saves a ton of time and I find that all adjustments with a router are much easier to make effortlessly using a lift mounted under the router table.

To make the elevator I took steel pipe 3/4 in diameter? (nipple length will depend on the size of your router) then made a miter coupler and a second 3/4 nipple? connected to a flange (nipple length will also depend on the size of your router table) as shown in the drawing below.

Then I did wooden base to support the router. I drilled a 3/4 hole in the base. This hole allows the base to slide smoothly over the nipple. The clamp is screwed to the base and serves as an adjustment mechanism. I then installed the router lift under the router table (see photo).

To get maximum adjustment, be sure to set the router lift to its lowest position. The curved handle of the clamp makes it easy to adjust the router and move up and down the steel nipple. This makes it easy to adjust the router to any position you need.

Lift for a router from a spark plug key

The lift for the router is extremely important and useful device. It's fast and convenient way adjust the cutting height of the cutter. Correct installation cutting depth will not only create cutting accuracy, but will also simplify the adjustment of product joints.

I made the lift for the router from a regular spark plug wrench for a car and a nut of a suitable size. The nut must match the external size of the spark plug wrench, and inner diameter nuts - according to the size of the bolt used.

Using nylon or other soft material, drive the nut into the bottom of the key. Handle on back side I made a spark plug wrench for ease of adjustment. A nylon retaining ring between the nut and the base of the router will help prevent spontaneous free rotation during operation.

This router lift can be used on various hand routers such as Hitachi, Festos, Mafells, Dewalt, as well as small Bosch models.

An essential requirement is that you need to consider the location of the bolt on the base of the hand router, its length and easy access during operation.

Note: The easiest way is to use a nut with a nylon insert inside the key.

Make a lift for the router yourself, or buy a ready-made one? Let's answer this question.

When using a manual router installed in a stationary table, two questions arise:

  1. How to adjust the depth of immersion (extension) of a cutter.
  2. How to quickly change replacement tips.

Unscrewing the tool from the plate every time is too troublesome. In addition, a statically mounted router works in the workpiece only at a fixed depth.

This problem is solved by installing a height-adjustable suspension on the router. And once you were able to make a full-fledged milling table, installing an elevator of your own design is not difficult at all. In addition, a self-made device is developed taking into account all the requirements of the master, even those that are not provided for by the factory device.

Why do you need a lift on the milling table, and is it possible to do without it?

This useful device called the third hand of the master. Those who have tried a milling cutter with a microlift are finding new applications for it:

  • Maintaining a power tool is not difficult, as is quickly changing cutters.
  • You can change the cutter reach height in a matter of seconds, and most importantly – safely.
  • You can change the immersion depth “dynamically”, simultaneously with the movement of the workpiece on the table. This expands creativity.
  • Due to the fact that you no longer regularly dismantle the tool for maintenance, the plate and its fasteners are subject to less wear.

Buy or make it yourself?

There is a wide choice of offers on the power tool market. Industrial microlifts look good and work without failures, but their cost is the same as that of a new router. True, the device is quite well equipped. The kit includes rings for the copy sleeves, and a very high quality mounting plate.

Industrial microlift for a router with a set of copy rings

All that remains is to electrify the device - and you can get a CNC machine. There is only one drawback, but it outweighs all the advantages - the price itself. Therefore, for periodic home use this is an unaffordable luxury. So our Kulibins make whatever they can. However, there is a lot to learn from them.

There are quite primitive lever-type designs

Homemade design lift with lever mechanism

This technique even allows the use of a “foot” drive. It is not suitable for precise reach settings, but with the help of a similar mechanism you can raise the router in one motion working position, and it’s just as easy to lower it for changing attachments or servicing. This elevator has a fairly long stroke; it does not allow for adjustable milling. Materials for manufacturing are literally lying underfoot, the cost tends to zero.

Using a Screw Adjuster

Another example of a homemade elevator for a router

The design is more advanced and allows relatively precise adjustment of the reach. However, using such a microlift is inconvenient; to rotate the handle, you need to crawl under the table, and then make a control measurement of the height of the cutter. But reliability is high, and production does not require expensive materials. Such an elevator can be made “by eye” without using drawings.

The following flywheel design not only makes it possible to precisely adjust the reach in small increments within 50 mm, but is also quite convenient.

Lifting design with flywheel

It will take more time to make, but the result is worth it. The flywheel allows you to adjust the height of the cutter, while simultaneously visually monitoring it above the working surface. In principle, it is already possible to dynamically change the cutter offset.

The main advantage is the still low cost of components for manufacturing, with increased functionality. Instead of a flywheel, you can install a gear and a motor with a gearbox. But this will require additional costs.

Option with car jack

Quite expensive, since at a minimum you need to purchase a jack. Diamond-shaped designs are ideal.

Using a screw jack as a lift for a router is also possible

This microlift lift is reliable, and thanks to the handle located parallel to the tabletop, it is convenient and quite accurate. Positioning the mount is quite simple. It is enough to install a strong shelf parallel to the tabletop.
An electric drive option is available.

Then, in general, you can install a foot pedal and free both hands. And if you add a programmer to all this, you have a homemade CNC router.
However, this goes beyond the concept of an economy class device.

Option from an advanced master

Since the possibilities of a craftsman are limitless, you can come across completely unexpected designs. This microlift is made using the very same router for which it is intended.

Original design hand made elevator

The design involves not only precise adjustment of the reach, but also changing the angle of inclination of the router axis. With this potential, you can significantly expand your woodworking tasks.
The drive of the worm gear of the stud – the height regulator – was originally designed.

Gears (gears) are made using the tenon method " dovetail" This allows the gears to be moved outside the mechanism, eliminating the need for lubrication, and making adjustment smooth.
The material used is moisture-resistant plywood 20-25 mm thick. The microlift is executed with such high quality - that I would like to suggest that the author organize industrial production.
Of course, such a design requires a preliminary drawing.

Assembly drawing in 3D for a microlift

Moreover, it was made using a three-dimensional modeling program. Making such a device is painstaking work. And here financial side question - the cost of a sheet of plywood and a screw stud. When performing custom work, this design will quickly pay for itself.

The verdict on this topic is as follows: when using a homemade milling table, you cannot do without a microlift. Other designs, such as a quick-release plate for a router or a hinged table cover, are only suitable for servicing power tools. And for precise positioning of the cutter above the table, you need a microlift.

Elevator for a router: several DIY options

A lift for a router, which can be purchased in a serial version or made by hand, is a device that allows you to improve both the quality and accuracy of processing performed with hand-held power tools. The results of the latter strongly depend on how accurately and confidently the user manipulates such a device. In order to minimize the impact human factor Based on the results of processing performed with a manual milling cutter, special devices were developed.

Homemade elevator for a manual router, made of plywood and timber

One of them is mechanized lifting device for milling power tools, which, in full accordance with its functionality, is called an elevator. As mentioned above, such a device can be purchased in a serial version, but it will not be cheap, so many home craftsmen successfully make it with their own hands.

Why is such a device needed?

A lift for the router, which ensures precise movement of the machine mounted on it. hand power tools V vertical plane, is necessary in many situations. Situations in which the quality and precision of processing of wood products are of no small importance include decorative finishing. furniture panels, making technological grooves and lugs on elements of furniture structures. The quality of processing in such cases will not depend on the experience of the master performing it and the firmness of his hands, but only on the accuracy of the device settings and the degree of its stability.

Even a person with good physical fitness gets tired when working with a hand router, the weight of which can be 5 kg or even more. This directly affects the accuracy and quality of work. In addition, the precision of processing that a manual milling machine mounted on an elevator can provide cannot be achieved when manipulating a power tool manually.

For most routers, standard adjustment when installing the tool in the table becomes simply inconvenient

The need to invent such a useful device as a lift for a router was led by the fact that the variety of types decorative finishing wood products have expanded significantly, processing techniques have become more complex of this material, and the requirements for the accuracy of its implementation have also increased. All of the above factors require that manual milling electrical equipment combine high mobility of its working body, as well as the accuracy of the movements it makes. It is these requirements that are fully met by a lift for a router, with the help of which the power tool used is quickly raised and lowered to the required height above the workbench, and also held at a given level for the required amount of time.

The convenience of using a milling elevator also lies in the fact that it is not necessary to install a power tool on such a device each time. This contributes to both simplification production process, and increase its productivity.

On what principle does the lift for a router work?

In order to raise or lower a manual router using a router lift, you can use a crank, lever or any other lifting mechanism suitable design. Such functionality, which the lift for the router has, is ensured by:

  • quick and accurate setting of the dimensions of grooves and other relief elements cut on the surface of a wooden workpiece;
  • Possibility of quickly replacing tools in the milling cutter chuck.

If we summarize the design options for the most used models of milling elevators, we can describe the operating principle of such a device as follows:

  1. A support plate for the router, which is made of a sheet of metal or textolite, is mounted on a work table or workbench.
  2. Two racks arranged in parallel are fixed to the support plate.
  3. The manual router itself is mounted on a special carriage, which has the ability to move freely up and down along the racks installed on the support plate.
  4. The carriage with the milling power tool installed on it and the entire elevator move to the required distance due to the fact that they are acted upon by a special pushing device.

Use in construction metal parts will significantly increase the accuracy of the homemade milling elevator

Let's consider the basic requirements that should be followed when planning to upgrade the router with your own hands using a lift.

  • The frame for placing the router and all other structural elements of such a device must have high rigidity. Compliance this requirement will not only improve processing accuracy, but also make the user’s work safer.
  • The lifting system with which such a device is equipped must be designed in such a way that it can ensure not only quick removal and installation of the router used, but also prompt replacement milling heads On him.
  • The working stroke of the milling elevator should not be made too large; it is quite enough if the working head of the power tool moves within 50 mm. This is quite enough for high-quality performance of most technological operations.
  • When developing drawings, it should be ensured that the working head of the power tool used can be rigidly fixed in a given spatial position.

The simplest milling lift can be made from a jack or a tubular clamp

What is needed to make a milling elevator

In order to make your own milling lift, you must prepare the following kit Supplies, tools and technical devices:

  1. directly the manual router itself, from which it is necessary to remove the handles;
  2. electric drill;
  3. standard car jack (if lifting mechanism the device will be of the jack type);
  4. sheet of metal or textolite;
  5. wooden blocks of square section;
  6. aluminum profile;
  7. sheets of plywood and chipboard;
  8. guides made of metal;
  9. threaded rod;
  10. Screwdriver Set various types and size, spanners and pliers;
  11. drills of various diameters;
  12. bolts, screws, nuts and washers of various sizes;
  13. epoxy adhesive;
  14. square, ruler, measuring tape.

In general, only the motor and stands can be used from the router, especially if the tool does not have high accuracy of movement along the telescopic guides

Possible design options for the device

Today, home craftsmen have developed many designs of milling elevators, but the most popular and, accordingly, worthy of attention are two options for manufacturing such a device:

  • a lift for a hand router, driven by a car jack;
  • device, structural elements which consists of a support disk, a threaded rod and a flywheel disk.

Option one. Elevator from a jack

The operating principle of a jack milling elevator is based on the fact that the working head of a manual router mounted on a support plate is raised and lowered by controlling the jack built into the structure.

Milling table with jack lift

A do-it-yourself jacking router is made as follows:

  • A box made of 15 mm plywood or chipboard is attached to the bottom of the desktop, which will simultaneously serve as a supporting device and a protective casing for the entire device.
  • In inner part Such a box, the dimensions of which must be pre-calculated, accommodates both a jack and a hand router connected to its moving part. The jack, when placed in the box, is screwed with its sole to the underside of the support casing, and a manual router through a special metal sole is connected with its upper part to the inner surface of the workbench table top. At the same time, in the tabletop it is carried out through hole, through which the working head of the milling cutter with the tool fixed in it should freely pass.
  • A sheet of textolite or metal of the appropriate size is used as a support plate for installing the router, which, under the influence of force from the jack, moves in the vertical direction along two fixed racks.

Option two. Threaded rod lift

The manufacturing diagram of the device using a support disk, a threaded rod and a flywheel is as follows:

  • A circle is cut out of a board 18–20 mm thick, which will act as a support platform for a hand router.
  • A hole with a diameter of 10 mm is drilled in the central part of the support disk, into which a threaded rod of the same diameter is inserted. The length of the pin, which is connected to the support platform using two nuts and washers, must be selected in such a way as to provide the router with a working stroke of at least 50 mm.
  • The lower part of the pin, passed through the plywood bottom, fixed between the legs of the work table, is connected to the disc flywheel. Keep in mind that the hole in the bottom through which the bottom of the stud will pass must have a flange nut built into it. It will ensure the operation of the lifting mechanism.

Elevator diagram for a router using a threaded rod

Option for a homemade elevator with a threaded rod

Using milling elevators in conjunction with mechanisms that will additionally provide lateral movement of power tools, you can make an even more functional device that will turn your hand-held equipment into a full-fledged 3D milling machine.

Option three. Chain drive elevator

Making this milling elevator will take much more time, but as a result you will get a clearly working system for raising and lowering the tool.

Chain Drive Milling Elevator

PCB sprocket Mounting plate Chain drive
Chain tensioner Standard switch pusher Power button lever

Design this option milling elevator is discussed in detail in the video review below.

Every craftsman who works with wood knows how inconvenient it is and how many unnecessary actions have to be performed to set the desired cutter height when working with a hand router, or to replace one cutter with another. To do this, you even have to remove the router from the table.

In order to significantly facilitate this task, it was invented long ago special device, called a milling elevator, which is, in fact, the “third hand of the master”, which helps regulate this process.

Currently on sale a large number of a wide variety of milling elevator models. The best elevators are made in the USA and are quite expensive.

Not long ago, in one of the woodworking magazines, the design of a homemade elevator designed for a hand router was shown. This design will allow you to quite accurately adjust the height of the cutter, and make it yourself for good master will not be difficult. Besides there is detailed photo With detailed description the entire process of producing such a model.

First of all, you need to make a disk 18 mm thick, on which the router will be attached. Now, using a Forstner drill with a diameter of 20 mm, we drill a recess with a depth of 13 mm in the center of the disk, then a through hole with a diameter of 10 mm.

Install in the hole we drilled threaded rod M10 and secure it with two nuts and washers. Select the length of the stud so that the vertical stroke of the router is about 5 cm. Just above the middle of the stud we install a flywheel for adjustment; for fastening we use a nut with a washer and a flange nut. We will attach the flange nut to the stud using epoxy glue.

Finally, install the plywood bottom into the table, positioning it about 75mm from the bottom ends of the legs, insert the flange nut into it and screw the bottom end of the stud into it. Now, when the flywheel rotates, the entire structure will rise or fall relative to the flange nut fixed in the bottom. If you use a standard M10 stud with a thread pitch of 1.5 mm, when turning the wheel one turn, the amount of movement of the router will be 1.5 mm, by half a turn - 0.75 mm, etc.

IKEA kitchens in the interior: practical and convenient

In kitchen design important role plays design kitchen set. For small rooms, custom-made kitchens are best suited, taking into account all the features and inconveniences of the room layout, but IKEA kitchens in the interior small room will not look.

Residential complex Podkova

The Podkova residential complex is located in the Vsevolozhsk district. Its developer is “Russian Fairy Tale” together with “Arsenal-Real Estate” and “Polis Group”. Construction of this facility began in 2012. The complex will be built on the picturesque shore of the lake, just a couple of minutes walk from the Ocher River.

Accessories for hand router

Lift for a router made from a clamp

If you regularly use a router mounted on a router table, you know how difficult it is to adjust and adjust the height of the bit in the router. There are milling elevators for lifting the router, but they are usually quite expensive. So I created a simple homemade router lift using readily available materials. This lift saves a ton of time and I find that all adjustments with a router are much easier to make effortlessly using a lift mounted under the router table.

To make the elevator, I took a steel pipe with a diameter of 3/4? (nipple length will depend on the size of your router) then made a miter coupler and a second 3/4 nipple? connected to a flange (nipple length will also depend on the size of your router table) as shown in the drawing below.

Then I made a wooden base to support the router. I drilled a 3/4? hole in the base. This hole allows the base to slide smoothly over the nipple. The clamp is screwed to the base and serves as an adjustment mechanism. I then installed the router lift under the router table (see photo).

To get maximum adjustment, be sure to set the router lift to its lowest position. The curved handle of the clamp makes it easy to adjust the router and move up and down the steel nipple. This makes it easy to adjust the router to any position you need.

Lift for a router from a spark plug key

A router lift is an extremely important and useful device. This is a quick and convenient way to adjust the cutting height of the cutter.

Do-it-yourself elevator for a milling table: design and assembly

Correctly setting the cutting depth will not only create cutting accuracy, but will also simplify the adjustment of product joints.

I made the lift for the router from a regular spark plug wrench for a car and a nut of a suitable size. The nut must match the external size of the spark plug wrench, and the internal diameter of the nut must correspond to the size of the bolt used.

Using nylon or other soft material, drive the nut into the bottom of the wrench. I made a handle on the back of the spark plug wrench for ease of adjustment. A nylon retaining ring between the nut and the base of the router will help prevent spontaneous free rotation during operation.

This router lift can be used on various hand routers such as Hitachi, Festos, Mafells, Dewalt, as well as small Bosch models.

An essential requirement is that you need to consider the location of the bolt on the base of the hand router, its length and easy access during operation.

Note: The easiest way is to use a nut with a nylon insert inside the key.

Compiled by Patlakh V.V.
http://patlah.ru

© “Encyclopedia of Technologies and Methods” Patlakh V.V. 1993-2007

Make a lift for the router yourself, or buy a ready-made one? Let's answer this question.

When using a manual router installed in a stationary table, two questions arise:

  1. How to adjust the depth of immersion (extension) of a cutter.
  2. How to quickly change replacement tips.

Unscrewing the tool from the plate every time is too troublesome. In addition, a statically mounted router works in the workpiece only at a fixed depth.

This problem is solved by installing a height-adjustable suspension on the router. And once you were able to make a full-fledged milling table, installing an elevator of your own design is not difficult at all. In addition, a self-made device is developed taking into account all the requirements of the master, even those that are not provided for by the factory device.

Why do you need a lift on the milling table, and is it possible to do without it?

This useful device is called the third hand of the master. Those who have tried a milling cutter with a microlift are finding new applications for it:

  • Maintaining a power tool is not difficult, as is quickly changing cutters.
  • You can change the cutter reach height in a matter of seconds, and most importantly – safely.
  • You can change the immersion depth “dynamically”, simultaneously with the movement of the workpiece on the table. This expands creativity.
  • Due to the fact that you no longer regularly dismantle the tool for maintenance, the plate and its fasteners are subject to less wear.

Buy or make it yourself?

There is a wide choice of offers on the power tool market. Industrial microlifts look good and work without failures, but their cost is the same as that of a new router. True, the device is quite well equipped. The kit includes rings for the copy sleeves, and a very high quality mounting plate.

Industrial microlift for a router with a set of copy rings

All that remains is to electrify the device - and you can get a CNC machine. There is only one drawback, but it outweighs all the advantages - the price itself. Therefore, for occasional home use this is an unaffordable luxury. So our Kulibins make whatever they can. However, there is a lot to learn from them.

There are quite primitive lever-type designs

Homemade elevator design with a lever mechanism

This technique even allows the use of a “foot” drive. It is not suitable for precise reach settings, however, with the help of such a mechanism, you can raise the router to the working position with one movement, and just as easily lower it to change the attachment or service. This elevator has a fairly long stroke; it does not allow for adjustable milling. Materials for manufacturing are literally lying underfoot, the cost tends to zero.

Using a Screw Adjuster

Another example of a homemade elevator for a router

The design is more advanced and allows relatively precise adjustment of the reach. However, using such a microlift is inconvenient; to rotate the handle, you need to crawl under the table, and then make a control measurement of the height of the cutter. But the reliability is high, and production does not require expensive materials. Such an elevator can be made “by eye” without using drawings.

The following flywheel design not only makes it possible to precisely adjust the reach in small increments within 50 mm, but is also quite convenient.

Lifting design with flywheel

It will take more time to make, but the result is worth it. The flywheel allows you to adjust the height of the cutter, while simultaneously visually monitoring it above the working surface. In principle, it is already possible to dynamically change the cutter offset.

The main advantage is the still low cost of components for manufacturing, with increased functionality. Instead of a flywheel, you can install a gear and a motor with a gearbox. But this will require additional costs.

Option with car jack

Quite expensive, since at a minimum you need to purchase a jack.

LIFT FOR MILLER. ANYONE. WITH EXPLOSION DIAGRAM using the example of festool 1400 (ROUTER LIFT)

Diamond-shaped designs are ideal.

Using a screw jack as a lift for a router is also possible

This microlift lift is reliable, and thanks to the handle located parallel to the tabletop, it is convenient and quite accurate.

Positioning the mount is quite simple. It is enough to install a strong shelf parallel to the tabletop.
An electric drive option is available.

Then, in general, you can install a foot pedal and free both hands. And if you add a programmer to all this, you have a homemade CNC router.
However, this goes beyond the concept of an economy class device.

Option from an advanced master

Since the possibilities of a craftsman are limitless, you can come across completely unexpected designs. This microlift is made using the very same router for which it is intended.

Original elevator design made by hand

The design involves not only precise adjustment of the reach, but also changing the angle of inclination of the router axis. With this potential, you can significantly expand your woodworking tasks.
The drive of the worm gear of the stud – the height regulator – was originally designed.

Gears (gears) are made using the dovetail tenon method. This allows the gears to be moved outside the mechanism, eliminating the need for lubrication, and making adjustment smooth.
The material used is moisture-resistant plywood 20-25 mm thick. The microlift is made so well that I would like to suggest that the author organize industrial production.
Of course, such a design requires a preliminary drawing.

Assembly drawing in 3D for a microlift

Moreover, it was made using a three-dimensional modeling program. Making such a device is painstaking work. But the financial side of the issue is the cost of a sheet of plywood and a screw stud. When performing custom work, this design will quickly pay for itself.

The verdict on this topic is as follows: when using a homemade milling table, you cannot do without a microlift. Other designs, such as a quick-release plate for a router or a hinged table cover, are only suitable for servicing power tools. And for precise positioning of the cutter above the table, you need a microlift.

Articles on a topic that interests you

Make a milling table...

Make devices for...


  • Miter saw with broach...

  • How to bleed a hydraulic...

  • Make a drilling machine...

  • DIY circular saw...

    Wood disc for grinder –...

    Metal cutter for drill –…

    • 1 Why do you need an elevator? milling table, and is it possible to do without it?
    • 2 Should I buy it or make it myself?
    • 3 There are quite primitive lever-type designs
    • 4 Using the screw adjuster
    • 5 Option with car jack
    • 6 Option from an advanced master
  • How to adjust the depth of immersion (extension) of a cutter.
  • How to quickly change replacement tips.
  • Unscrewing the tool from the plate every time is too troublesome. In addition, a statically mounted router works in the workpiece only at a fixed depth.

    This problem is solved by installing a height-adjustable suspension on the router. And once you were able to make a full-fledged milling table, installing an elevator of your own design is not difficult at all. In addition, a self-made device is developed taking into account all the requirements of the master, even those that are not provided for by the factory device.

    Why do you need a lift on the milling table, and is it possible to do without it?

    This useful device is called the third hand of the master. Those who have tried a milling cutter with a microlift are finding new applications for it:

    • Maintaining a power tool is not difficult, as is quickly changing cutters.
    • You can change the cutter reach height in a matter of seconds, and most importantly – safely.
    • You can change the immersion depth “dynamically”, simultaneously with the movement of the workpiece on the table. This expands creativity.
    • Due to the fact that you no longer regularly dismantle the tool for maintenance, the plate and its fasteners are subject to less wear.

    Buy or make it yourself?

    There is a wide choice of offers on the power tool market. Industrial microlifts look good and work without failures, but their cost is the same as that of a new router. True, the device is quite well equipped. The kit includes rings for the copy sleeves, and a very high quality mounting plate.


    Industrial microlift for a router with a set of copy rings

    All that remains is to electrify the device - and you can get a CNC machine. There is only one drawback, but it outweighs all the advantages - the price itself. Therefore, for occasional home use this is an unaffordable luxury. So our Kulibins make whatever they can. However, there is a lot to learn from them.

    There are quite primitive lever-type designs

    Homemade elevator design with a lever mechanism

    This technique even allows the use of a “foot” drive. It is not suitable for precise reach settings, however, with the help of such a mechanism, you can raise the router to the working position with one movement, and just as easily lower it to change the attachment or service. This elevator has a fairly long stroke; it does not allow for adjustable milling. Materials for manufacturing are literally lying underfoot, the cost tends to zero.

    Using a Screw Adjuster


    Another example of a homemade elevator for a router

    The design is more advanced and allows relatively precise adjustment of the reach. However, using such a microlift is inconvenient; to rotate the handle, you need to crawl under the table, and then make a control measurement of the height of the cutter. But the reliability is high, and production does not require expensive materials. Such an elevator can be made “by eye” without using drawings.

    The following flywheel design not only makes it possible to precisely adjust the reach in small increments within 50 mm, but is also quite convenient.



    Lifting design with flywheel

    It will take more time to make, but the result is worth it. The flywheel allows you to adjust the height of the cutter, while simultaneously visually monitoring it above the working surface. In principle, it is already possible to dynamically change the cutter offset.

    The main advantage is the still low cost of components for manufacturing, with increased functionality. Instead of a flywheel, you can install a gear and a motor with a gearbox. But this will require additional costs.

    Option with car jack

    Quite expensive, since at a minimum you need to purchase a jack. Diamond-shaped designs are ideal.



    Using a screw jack as a lift for a router is also possible

    This microlift lift is reliable, and thanks to the handle located parallel to the tabletop, it is convenient and quite accurate. Positioning the mount is quite simple. It is enough to install a strong shelf parallel to the tabletop.
    An electric drive option is available.

    Then, in general, you can install a foot pedal and free both hands. And if you add a programmer to all this, you have a homemade CNC router.
    However, this goes beyond the concept of an economy class device.

    Option from an advanced master

    Since the possibilities of a craftsman are limitless, you can come across completely unexpected designs. This microlift is made using the very same router for which it is intended.



    Original elevator design made by hand

    The design involves not only precise adjustment of the reach, but also changing the angle of inclination of the router axis. With this potential, you can significantly expand your woodworking tasks.
    The drive of the worm gear of the stud – the height regulator – was originally designed.

    Gears (gears) are made using the dovetail tenon method. This allows the gears to be moved outside the mechanism, eliminating the need for lubrication, and making adjustment smooth.
    The material used is moisture-resistant plywood 20-25 mm thick. The microlift is made so well that I would like to suggest that the author organize industrial production.
    Of course, such a design requires a preliminary drawing.



    Assembly drawing in 3D for a microlift

    Moreover, it was made using a three-dimensional modeling program. Making such a device is painstaking work. But the financial side of the issue is the cost of a sheet of plywood and a screw stud. When performing custom work, this design will quickly pay for itself.

    The verdict on this topic is as follows: when using a homemade milling table, you cannot do without a microlift. Other designs, such as a quick-release plate for a router or a hinged table cover, are only suitable for servicing power tools. And for precise positioning of the cutter above the table, you need a microlift.

    When using a manual router installed in a stationary table, two questions arise:

    1. How to adjust the depth of immersion (extension) of a cutter.
    2. How to quickly change replacement tips.

    Unscrewing the tool from the plate every time is too troublesome. In addition, a statically mounted router works in the workpiece only at a fixed depth.

    This problem is solved by installing a height-adjustable suspension on the router. And once you were able to make a full-fledged milling table, installing an elevator of your own design is not difficult at all. In addition, a self-made device is developed taking into account all the requirements of the master, even those that are not provided for by the factory device.

    Why do you need a lift on the milling table, and is it possible to do without it?

    This useful device is called the third hand of the master. Those who have tried a milling cutter with a microlift are finding new applications for it:

    • Maintaining a power tool is not difficult, as is quickly changing cutters.
    • You can change the cutter reach height in a matter of seconds, and most importantly – safely.
    • You can change the immersion depth “dynamically”, simultaneously with the movement of the workpiece on the table. This expands creativity.
    • Due to the fact that you no longer regularly dismantle the tool for maintenance, the plate and its fasteners are subject to less wear.

    Buy or make it yourself?

    There is a wide choice of offers on the power tool market. Industrial microlifts look good and work without failures, but their cost is the same as that of a new router. True, the device is quite well equipped. The kit includes rings for the copy sleeves, and a very high quality mounting plate.

    Industrial microlift for a router with a set of copy rings

    All that remains is to electrify the device - and it can be produced using CNC. There is only one drawback, but it outweighs all the advantages - the price itself. Therefore, for occasional home use this is an unaffordable luxury. So our Kulibins make whatever they can. However, there is a lot to learn from them.