Advice on router wing for TS compared to dedicated table

I have less than a one car garage and I have a stand alone table and wouldn’t have it any other way.
I just use my router table too much to share it with a tablesaw and have to change setups one way or the other (lowering the bit to cut a piece of wood). I’m actually adding a shop built router table wing to the left side of the table for common operations like roundovers and flush trimming.

-- He who dies with the most tools... dies with the emptiest wallet.

Mike – I too have a very small shop. I added the Bench Dog Cast Iron extension from Rockler along with their lift mechanism and I personally love it. It’s well made and very solid. The few times that I need the extra table space are few and far between since I do most of my crosscutting on a RAS. Anyway, that my .02 worth. It’s been a great addition to my 1954 Delta Unisaw!

No room for a separate RT in my shop either. Putting it in the TS is a good space saver that I think is a very reasonable compromise. I put a rolling cabinet right under neath it for storage, and use the other side of my TS fence for a router fence. There are definitely some cons, but its a great space saver.

-- Happiness is like wetting your pants...everyone can see it, but only you can feel the warmth....

I start building my TS router extension tomorrow. That’s my Thanksgiving weekend project.

Now, if I can just decide whether to put it on the right or the left.

-- http://www.teamturpin.org/house/shop.htm

I have both a free standing router table and one on my table saw. I think if I had give up one it would be the router on my table saw ,the main reasons are that I don’t like tying up my table saw up and the fence on the table saw is the only way to use the router on the table saws side extension. If it works in your budget I would say add the router to your extension before your sell your free standing router table so you can see how you like the router on your table saw.

-- W James Brokenbourgh Custom furniture maker http://artisticwoodstudio.com/

I think a1Jim hit the nail on the head.

For your follow up question: No value, I’ll happily dispose of it for you. I won’t even charge a disposal fee!!!

-- Randy-- I may not be good...but I am slow!

I have a Benchdog wing on the left side of my right-tilting Unisaw. Equipped with a PRLv2 lift, Milwaukee 5625 router, Wixey digitals, and Rockler enclosure. This combination just can’t be beat, IMO.

For small shop owners, it’s a logical choice. But the side benefit is that the extra TS space created with the wing works in favor of both the TS and the router. I use an Incra TSLS fence to service both the TS and the router, so it’s a wonderful synergy of usefulness.

The only downside is when you need to use the tablesaw, but you don’t want to reset the router position when doing so; however, for me, the repeatability of the setup with the digitals and the Incra setup makes this less of an issue. It is a minor annoyance, however.

Even so, it’s hard to beat.

-- jay, www.allaboutastro.com

Dedicated.

-- Willie, Washington "If You Choose Not To Decide, You Still Have Made a Choice" - Rush

I’m in an over sized and dedicated two car garage. I’ve always had my router table as a right wing on my TS, at first on my contractor saw (on a base) and now on my Grizzly 691 with the router table on the right side, somebody’s MDF and laminated Formica sort of skin around it, and the big Triton router. The only improvement I would make at this point ( and it really wouldn’t matter much except for the cool factor) is an above the table raiser and a cast iron table with tracks in perpendicular lines, again right side mounted. I see no reason to take the extra footprint (unless space is not an issue) for a separate table. The TS top is way bigger than I will ever need for a router job. There are any number of fence configurations etc. etc. but for my money I’ll use that footprint for another tool (wide belt sander?)

-- Ken

I have both a free standing router table and a router mounted on the right side of my table saw. The free standing router table works as the outfeed table for the table saw. The table saw uses the Incra LS-TS fence.

Each has its advantages and disadvantages. The common disadvantage is that I have a router setup that I must preserve and I need the table saw. The design of the LS-TS fence and table saw router table mean that the router bit and the fence occupy the same space. Therefore I must lower the router bit to use the table saw fence with the saw. Similarly, with a setup on the router / saw outfeed table if I need to rip something long I can’t use the outfeed table.

In a large shop (and I am hoping for one) I would have two (or more) free standing router tables and an outfeed table for the saw. But, until I can afford a 3,000 foot shop I have to live with the compromises.

-- Jesse, Saint Louis, Missouri

I see several discussions about right wing mounts. On my steel city TS its left tilt and I hardly ever work (basically never) on the left side of the blade. I’m thinking I could dismount the left wing and replace it with the RT wing and not really lose any functionality on the TS and the fence wouldn’t be an issue. This link below shows a saw similar to mine in layout, though mine’s an older version.

I’m a one man fixit shop at my house, so in addition to the wood working tools I also have two big rolling chests of other tools/auto repair stuff plus a couple of shelves full of assorted other home maintenance/repair items. So while it sounds silly, the 9 sq ft of floor space the RT takes up is pretty impactful. With the thousands of dollars I’ve saved myself over the years on car repair and house repair doing it DIY, those items have definitely earned their place.

There’s a lot of good input above, I guess a lot depends on what type of work you are doing.

-- No honey, that's not new, I've had that forever......

Mine is an extension to the Shopsmith on the right side. A 7518 in a Jessem RLP. The way it’s set up, I use the same fence for both ripping and routing.

-- Gene 'The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him.' G. K. Chesterton

I have always had mine on the RHS with a separate fence. I have seldom needed to disturb a router setup to make room for a wide cut on the table saw.

I use the Grizzly cast iron router extension wing. Here is mine. I use a Triton router with its own lifting mechanism. Not cheap but I love it:

http://www.grizzly.com/products/Router-Extension-Table-for-Table-Saw/T10222

Price: $399.95
Freight: $49.00
Your Price:* $448.95
In Stock

Features:
Precision-ground cast iron table
Unique “double cross” 3/4” x 3/8” T-slots
Accepts most brands of portable routers
27” width fits most table saws
Aircraft grade extruded aluminum fence
Two large aluminum lock handles
Equipped with a starting pin
Includes an adjustable support post

Specifications:
Table size: 27” W x 20” D
Table T-slots 3/4” x 3/4”
Fence size (x 2): 12-1/2” x 2-3/4” x 5/8”
Table insert size: 4”
Dust port size: 2-1/2”

-- HorizontalMike -- "Woodpeckers understand..."