As we’ve explored in a previous Advanced Power Tool Techniques article, a router table can handle a host of woodworking chores — template routing, jointing and cutting mortiseand-tenon joints. Handheld routers, meanwhile, are used most often for the edge-shaping and trimming tasks at which they excel.
But when outfitted with jigs or a specialized base plate, a router table’s handheld cousins take on a whole new range of useful abilities that prove once again why the router is the most versatile shop tool.
Routing Ellipses, Circles
You can cut circular shapes on a band saw if they’re not too large and with a jigsaw if they are. While both techniques are fast, the resulting shapes don’t always turn out perfect since the workpiece is cut by hand without guidance.
Circle-cutting jigs are helpful, but not for oval shapes. But a combination setup, like Rockler’s various ellipse/circle cutting jig options, enable your
