I am in the market for router table and raised panel bit set. I am going to
do a lot of raised panels so I want to buy quality table and bits but I have
a budget. I never owned or used router table before. Any recommendations
would be appreciated. I thought of buying a router table top with fence and
building base myself from MDF. Another question: do I absolutely need a
router lift or I can do without it? I have Makita RF1101 fix/plunge router
combo.

All a router lift does is let you make fine adjustments easier and faster.
They're a relatively new innovation too. People were making raised panels
with routers long before router lifts came on the market. If you have a lot
of panels to make and you're using the same bits for most of them, then you
won't be making too many adjustments once you've found your optimum setting.
A lift would mostly be useless in that scenario. Cut a few scraps and use
them as a template when doing a new setup. That's all you really need.

Would I buy a router lift if I had the money. Definitely yes, because I'm a
lazy bugger, but they're a convenience and certainly not absolutely
necessary.

"Alexander Galkin" wrote in message
...
I am in the market for router table and raised panel bit set. I am going
to
do a lot of raised panels so I want to buy quality table and bits but I
have
a budget. I never owned or used router table before. Any recommendations
would be appreciated. I thought of buying a router table top with fence
and
building base myself from MDF. Another question: do I absolutely need a
router lift or I can do without it? I have Makita RF1101 fix/plunge router
combo.

I want to buy quality table

Just make absolutely sure that your
router can be mounted under the table.
I just got a Craftsman that featured a
"universal" adapter plate that won't
work with my Ryobi, and anyway the
plate would lower the router base
enough to prevent the use of certain
bits like slot cutters. Getting just the
top sounds like a good idea, wish I'd
done it, but a metal top for sure, any-
thing else would sag in the middle after awhile and you start getting arcs in
your cuts.