Thread: Best Material for Router Base Plate?

I need to make some special base plates for routers. I need opinions on the best material to do so. In the past I have used every thing from PVC sheet to even in some rushed cases plywood and an old polypropylene cutting board. I wish to replace these quick and dirty custom plates with more carefully made ones after finding the best material.

The stock base plates seem to be 1/4" molded phenolic.

What do you guys use?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Originally Posted by Scottl

I need to make some special base plates for routers. I need opinions on the best material to do so. In the past I have used every thing from PVC sheet to even in some rushed cases plywood and an old polypropylene cutting board. I wish to replace these quick and dirty custom plates with more carefully made ones after finding the best material.

The stock base plates seem to be 1/4" molded phenolic.

What do you guys use?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Cost is no object, last a long time, not rust or stain fine woods?
= Nickel Aluminium Bronze, heat-treated.


More practical, replace now and then, needs change, routers wear-out anyway:
= NEW Polypropylene cutting boards.



They go on "big sale" at the Local "Big Lots" remainderman store, I stash a few more for "projects". Same again LPE. And laminated Bamboo.

Time was, I lived near the DC Metro area's primo plastics distributor, I'd scavenge their "drops" box, put by cut-offs of everything from Teflon to Delrin to "wotever", to Old Skew; linen bakelite.

Small goods, cutting boards are just handier these days.

I've come to like clear acrylic base plates.

The last router base plates I made were from clear 1/4" polycarbonate.
Rick W

Phenolic sheet is not to hard to find. Just drop a chunk on your CNC router and have at it. OK, may not have a CNC router. Get thinner phenolic sheet and do it. I need to make a small router table very soon. But will prob use the laser to get me 99% done with a piece of stainless. CNC router will take a bit longer, and that space is colder than the space where the laser is.

I've used phenolic, acrylic & polycarbonate. All have worked just fine, but I like being able to see thru the clear stuff

Some really great ideas here.

Thanks to all.

I'll probably use the clear material for smaller bases and phenolic when I need more rigidity such as a special "D" base for my plunge router base. I've got the Porter Cable micro-adjustable fence but on the plunge base the small diameter mounting rods flex too much under load so I'm going to make a "D" shaped base with an aluminum block that bolts directly to the micro-adjustable fence. For that I'll use at least 1/4" phenolic.

My most rigid homemade base plate is a long "straddle" base of 1/2" 6061 aluminum that I made years ago. It is used with spacer blocks for in-place flush planing to adjacent surfaces or surfacing odd-shaped work mounted to a bench top. The aluminum is too heavy for most base plates.

Originally Posted by Scottl

Some really great ideas here.

Thanks to all.

I'll probably use the clear material for smaller bases and phenolic when I need more rigidity such as a special "D" base for my plunge router base. I've got the Porter Cable micro-adjustable fence but on the plunge base the small diameter mounting rods flex too much under load so I'm going to make a "D" shaped base with an aluminum block that bolts directly to the micro-adjustable fence. For that I'll use at least 1/4" phenolic.

My most rigid homemade base plate is a long "straddle" base of 1/2" 6061 aluminum that I made years ago. It is used with spacer blocks for in-place flush planing to adjacent surfaces or surfacing odd-shaped work mounted to a bench top. The aluminum is too heavy for most base plates.

Thinnest Linen-Bakelite I still have left must be 3/8". Used to use a LOT of it for making fixtures. My recollection it may be heavier than shiney-wood, though. Also has a nasty stench when cut too fast.

Carbon fiber give you the lower weight?

How about hardened TS, Aluminium Bronze, or SS, thin, only as a wear-plate, Then sumthin' light and/or cellular bonded to it as stiffener?