How thick is your top? I want to get an insert for my table so for now I
didn't cut the hole in the top, just used a hole saw drill and drilled a
hole for the bit to some out and drilled the holes in the top to bolt the
base on. I don't get the full height of the bit but enough for now and the
holes didn't have to be perfect since I wold cut that section out later.

Last night I laminated 2 pieces of 3/4" MDF to use as the top. I'll
wrap it in hard maple, so it should be pretty sturdy. The MDF chunk
is 24"x36" without the maple and weighs a good amount.

My wife and I are moving into a house in 4 weeks, so after the move
I'll build a base with drawers for the top to sit on. I thought about
just mounting the router to the bottom of the top, but at 1.5" thick,
I'll have no bit sticking up.

On another question, if I put poly over shellac over this MDF, will it
make it nice and slick? If I use paste wax, will that rub off on
whatever wood I'm routing?

It's my first router table (hell, the Ryobi that I bought this
December was my first router), so I'm trying to do it right.

Rob