Router safety

[jackj]

Have always been petrified with table-based routing.  Projects like door making mean working with narrow strips of lumber...dry hands, dusty wood...very unnerving. There a couple of router bit guards in the market, $135 or so, not expensive where safety is paramount but think I made a very good one.  I'm open to criticism/comment.

Saw is a circa 1990 Ryobi BT3000, bought for its accurate fence.  The Ryobi router table (w/vg dust removal) comes with a fence of its own...the maple is mine. The white piece on the bit guard is porcelain steel so the work slides through.  For me, necessity is the mother of invention.

Jack Casey[attachimg=1]

 

[travisj]

I prefer a clear blade guard.  It would be unnerving to me to feed into a blind cutter like that.  I like to see how the cut is lining up and how the wood is reacting.  I feel there is much more control of the process if you can see what is happening.  I also would not be comfortable having metal (porcelain steel) that close to the bit.  If it were mine, I would change the actual blade guard you are using to one of these from Rockler:

http://www.rockler.com/clear-router-table-bit-guard-kit

They also offer it without the hardware:

http://www.rockler.com/clear-router-table-bit-guard

 

[Stoli]

I loved my BT3K, but absolutely hated the router fence.  Looks like you replaced it already. 

If you put t-tracks into the fence, you can also have featherboards to hold the work down to the table.