LumberJocks

Router circle jig

Project by sry posted 124 days ago 1736 views 12 times favorited 16 comments Add to Favorites Watch

As you can see in the pictures, I’m currently in the middle of constructing a round table (my first real furniture project!!!), and needed a circle guide for my router. This is the design I came up with.

The jig attaches to my router (Bosch 1617) with two 3/8” steel rods, which are held together with a walnut block. They are attached to the block with epoxy and some small pins (nails, actually). The long bar is a piece of 3/4” extruded aluminum, epoxied into the block. The pivot pin is a small finish nail that I cut the head off and epoxied into the bottom of another walnut block. A thumbscrew through the top allows the pivot to be locked in place for a circle radius anywhere from about 8” up to over 40”.

One thing I didn’t think about beforehand is that the router is much heavier than the guide, and when I was routing the outside of my table top a counterweight (the clamp in the pictures). With a proper counterweight, I found that I could give it a little shove and the jig would spin freely almost 2 full revolutions before stopping. Another issue is that I couldn’t use any of my dust collection attachments with this jig, hence the pile of chips in the second pic. And that’s just from taking about 1/8” off the inside curve!

Total cost of materials: about $5

I have a sketchup drawing as well if anyone’s interested.

Comments and critiques are welcome and appreciated.

-- Steve -- University Heights, Ohio


16 comments so far

View PetVet's profile

PetVet

266 posts in 459 days


posted 124 days ago

Great jig, Steve. I love homemade setups like this.

-- Rich in Richmond

View RouterManiac's profile

RouterManiac

76 posts in 252 days


posted 124 days ago

You would have probably paid $50 for that circle cutter and it would not have given you the dimensions you needed. Good job, would love to see the finished project.

-- Ken, Florida, www.theroutermaniac.com

View RexMcKinnon's profile

RexMcKinnon

1045 posts in 166 days


posted 124 days ago

Nice jig and looks like the beginning of a nice table.

-- If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail!

View lumberdustjohn's profile (online now)

lumberdustjohn

159 posts in 138 days


posted 123 days ago

Nice jig. What type of joinery did you use to put the table together with?

-- John Stoler Apple Creek Ohio

View sry's profile

sry

139 posts in 579 days


posted 123 days ago

I assembled the table top in 2 rings of 12 segments each with dowels at the joints
Once the glue was dry on the rings, I glued them on top of each other with the joints staggered
When I was cutting the segments I mostly had to worry about the angles, since the excess would be trimmed with the router

I’ve been taking pictures of the whole project and might blog about it later (after delivery, since this project is supposed to be a surprise)

-- Steve -- University Heights, Ohio

View Pdub's profile

Pdub

262 posts in 151 days


posted 123 days ago

Great jig! I’ll have to put this on my To-Do list. Thanks for sharing.

-- Paul, North Dakota, USAF Ret.

View Wingstress's profile

Wingstress

230 posts in 486 days


posted 123 days ago

Great Jig, going in my favorites…

-- Tom, Simsbury, CT

View jockmike2's profile

jockmike2

7903 posts in 1218 days


posted 123 days ago

Nice jig, send it in to shopnotes and win a prize. Or wood or popularwoodworking or Whatever.

-- Mike from Michigan - mwurm13@yahoo.com

View Jack Barnhill's profile

Jack Barnhill

132 posts in 337 days


posted 123 days ago

It looks like you’re off to a good start on the table. I, for one, would like to see the SketchUp model. Good luck on the rest of your first real furniture project.

-- Best regards, Jack, www.PixelsandSawdust.com

View tomakazi's profile

tomakazi

255 posts in 254 days


posted 123 days ago

Great jig!! I done some round frames like this for stained glass. Like an extior door jamb. About 1 1/2” on the outside and 3/4” on the inside. I would just keep building it up until I got to the thickness of the wall. I would make the trim on the bandsaw. At the time I didn’t know about Lumberjocks so I didn’t take too many pictures. Next time.

-- I didn't go to college, I was too busy learning stuff - Ted Nugent

View Kent Shepherd's profile

Kent Shepherd

1170 posts in 257 days


posted 117 days ago

Very nice. I always like to see new jigs. It certainly helps to be able to learn from others.

Great job
Thanks for sharing.

-- Kent Shepherd * The goal is-----More Tools!

View a1Jim's profile (online now)

a1Jim

23650 posts in 548 days


posted 117 days ago

Good route trammel and nice start on your table too.

-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop, custom furniture ,maker, woodworking school, http://www.heirloomwoodshop.com/

View Dudley's profile

Dudley

568 posts in 231 days


posted 52 days ago

Nice. How is the ring fastened to the jig table?

-- Dudley Young USN Ret.

View sry's profile

sry

139 posts in 579 days


posted 52 days ago

The ring is fastened to the table with double stick tape, as is the center block that the pivot pin slides into.
Although in this case it wasn’t all that necessary, since the squeezeout from gluing the ring together dripped and very firmly held it in place…oops

-- Steve -- University Heights, Ohio

View JAGWAH's profile

JAGWAH

282 posts in 55 days


posted 52 days ago

Great jig! I built a 13’ dia. waterwheel using the same principle except I had to walk a bigger circle 1/4” plunge cuts at a time. I really like the versatility of your jig compared to my bandsaw circle jig in that it will do inside circles. I have a circular picture frame to build and your idea wii save me a bit of time.

Photobucket

-- ~Just A Guy With A Hammer~

View GaryK's profile

GaryK

9820 posts in 959 days


posted 52 days ago

Infinitely adjustable, I like that!

-- Gary - Never pass up the opportunity to make a mistake look like you planned it that way & "We are what we repeatedly do, excellence then is not an act, but a habit" -Aristotle

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