Making acrylic router base plate DIY

[@Blougheed]

I was really enjoying this.. when you started polishing the edges.... perfection!

[@josephberreth5705]

Very good demo. Your base looks excellent. If it was mine I would be in a hurry to use it.

[@johnliddil1942]

Just what I needed! I recently bought a 2 foot wide by 4ft long 1/4 inch acrylic sheet to make sub-bases for my set of various routers. This video is well sequenced, easy to follow and has excellent image quality . I can now make my base;s with extreme confidence. Thank you thank you. I look forward to watching further episodes.

[@CatLighting]

Thanks man! I'm glad the video is useful to you :) that means a lot to me.

[@JoJo-edge]

Respecting the trade…awesome work!

[@cliffcarlo180]

A very nice job there and the buffing of the acrylic was an eye opener for most who are thinking of doing the same.

[@CatLighting]

Thanks Cliff :)

[@cathyb2204]

Not sure why, but the little handles just tickled me to death! As others have said, the absence of "artful videography" is so refreshing. Will definitely make at least one now that I see how it's done.

[@pemtax557]

Some really fine work done here. It should add a lot of great utility to this router. Have fun with it and be safe ... cheers!!

[@braulioperez181]

Beautiful accesory for palm router. Looks better than OEM items. Thanks.

[@CatLighting]

Thanks too!

[@bharker6727]

I rarely comment on videos, but this was exactly what I was looking for. I'm about to create a base plate for my router, and have been wondering how i can sand/clean the edges to get the nice clear look. Your video showed me the way. Thank you for the great video.

[@CatLighting]

No, thank you for great comment :) You can use a bit thinner pmma, I used that because I had it.

[@sandersjones1577]

Better than store bought job well done

[@Mr9ballin]

I like to polish the edges of acrylic with a torch.After sanding it comes out real nice! Your way worked great too just might save a a little time!

[@CatLighting]

Yeah, a little more time... ;) unfortunately I always burn something with a torch.

[@billrichardsmusic1734]

VERY well done... the video as well as the project. Very educational without clutter and talking.

[@CatLighting]

Thank you for a great comment!

[@kerouacf0069]

Best base plate video iv seen so far . hope mine turns out as nice .

[@CatLighting]

Do not worry, this is super simple project, only polishing requires a bit of patience, unless you have a polishing wheel above 100 mm in diameter (of course on a bigger machine ;) ). However, small is useful for finishing the hole.

[@ladykenja2700]

- EXCELLENT job ! ! !

[@sheilaegeland]

Friggin brilliant 👏 awesome job Wished my husband thought of it. Lol

[@kenn1936]

This is such a nice job, such a pity to mess it up with sawdust after you got it so polished. Thanks for sharing.

[@robertjennings5558]

Great video! I'm building one. Love the dramatic ending. Cool!

[@davidlaw65]

Thank you for sharing! I have a same router and will be planning to duplicate this! AWESOME

[@CatLighting]

Thanks for watching and kind words! :) Have a fun work!

[@babaganoosh1969]

Great job..thumbs up for the fly flick

[@jrgal27]

nice quality workmanship well done and great idea

[@CatLighting]

Thanks!

[@ЛеонидПопов-п2й]

Великолепно! Вы настоящий мастер!!!

[@sheilaegeland]

I keep watching your video, its so Beautiful. I'm going to share with everyone I know. Again well done. BE PROUD

[@CatLighting]

Tahnk you :)

[@Blueboy9055]

Top quality work. 👍👍

[@CatLighting]

Thanks!

[@GregWallis]

Really nicely done.

[@choonwahyee9101]

Wons ! The best ' router based! Great DIY's video ! Number one ' !

[@ThePSMA]

Very, very well done - looks fantastic!

[@malcolmalexander5246]

Nice job. Got me thinking about trying that myself. Thanks.

[@e.t.preppin7084]

Nice job. Just had to build a couple bases

[@dannymeil3294]

Awesome job

[@vinpat9]

Brilliantly made, man.

[@CatLighting]

Thanks man!

[@zaratgreen2095]

Thanks. I got plenty of scrap acrylic from a friend, I use some to make these.

[@100nortonfan7]

Very nice presentation. Thanks for sharing this diy. I have a router that needs a new base plate and you have given me some excellent ideas. Regards.

[@CatLighting]

Thanks, I'm glad I could help! :)

[@Spaceman-jo5mz]

Excellent!👍

[@geraldmartin8195]

Excellent..! The all round best of its kind. Thank you.

[@CatLighting]

Thanks Gerald!

[@davidbenning7356]

Thanks for the video...helps me understand more

[@CatLighting]

Thanks David for comment! :)

[@egistosunda8179]

Fantastic work. Tanks from Sardinia italy

[@CatLighting]

Thanks from Poland! 🙂

[@coxlade]

Great work

[@robbrown6495]

Excellent video - now, where can I find acrylic on top of a mountain in the Philippines???????

[@patrickbroaden9820]

Great video...🥊🥊🥊🥊🥊🥊🥊

[@StudioShadoway]

Fantastic job! My respects to an excellent craftsman.

[@tombeck2792]

Super job buffing it

[@steveyoung8992]

Mate that looks factory made....Great work buddy...

[@CatLighting]

Thanks! :)

[@이상갑-k8x]

마음에 드네요.한번 만들어 보겠습니다.

[@JohnnySahn]

Beautiful!!

[@ecrusch]

Very nicely done and a great idea. Thank you.

[@CatLighting]

I thank you for watching and comment! :)

[@A.M.Independent.Consultant]

That's pretty....a beauty

[@CatLighting]

Thanks 🙂

[@mikeh4686]

Very nicely done video. Can I ask what the angled recess if for in plate. Thanks Mike

[@allenrosenblum3654]

Very nice!

[@wwfera00]

What was that specific compound you used to brush the acrylic clear and how long did it take? Looks like the sun was going down ha.

[@AngeliqueKaga]

Very nice and well done

[@CatLighting]

Thank you! :)

[@Beobout6]

It show-cases beautifully but does it work? I was wondering why there wasn’t a straight edge on one side. Could you show us a demonstration please. Thank you. Great work.

[@CatLighting]

Thanks! :) This plate is for freehand routing, it has to fit into the hands, it does not need a straight edge. I will try to upload the video from my work some time.

[@franciscocarlosbahia]

The idea is wonderful. . . With the acrylic you see what you are doing. But over time the piece will get scratched. But congratulations and success in the posts.

[@steviemacmuttley]

Where did you get the plastic inserts for the bolts???

[@GurinRex]

Perfecto. Gran idea y mejor acabado. Gracias. Tienes un like y un nuevo suscriptor.

[@CatLighting]

Muchas gracias Javier! :)

[@briantrend1812]

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GREAT

[@briantrend1812]

because the plates are usually non transparent it makes the critical placing and routing of the quad or thruster future fin boxes on surfboards so much more difficult as you cant see shit undernearth . it was blind guess work but this is going to help so much .From the front you can see an extended pencil line mark thanks so much first time router

[@CatLighting]

@@briantrend1812 thanks for comment! Eric Rhoten went a step further with adapting the router to such work, the base has a cut hole on the other side, thanks to it has more light on the work surface. You can see it on one of Eric's video kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z2TSe2SjmK93gdk. In addition, it has a base plate made of thinner acrylic than mine, which also improves visibility a bit.

[@blainethebaboonwilliams6897]

What did you use for the polishing

[@sapphodesigns2377]

Brilliant job

[@jamesdickson3616]

Nice job mate well done

[@CatLighting]

Thanks!

[@maderastudio8493]

Wow, really cool. Love the video, the project turned out awesome. I’m gravitating toward some router carving...... this would be really useful. Thanks for the vid.

[@CatLighting]

I am very happy that the video is helpful and thank you for the comment!

[@d100763]

perfection

[@jamoralesrivera]

Nice Job, 💯

[@Serega_Siniy]

Муха-самый важный элемент этого ролика!👍🔥

[@CatLighting]

😂

[@heladiorodriguez8802]

Eres mucha pieza maestro gracias

[@kettenadlerz2354]

Nice one

[@cyberlizardcouk]

if you blast the sides with a butane torch they will take on a glossy appearance - just don't melt it in the process.

[@CatLighting]

I've tried this technique before, but the acrylic always "bubble" around the edges. Later, I found out that acrylic absorbs moisture and must be dry for such a treatment. Thanks for comment!

[@kathyanne3587]

Great video, i figure one will need extra bolts screws as some are bound to get lost with changing plates, do you know what size they might be?

[@CatLighting]

Thanks! The screws are M4 and with such thickness the plates are about 15 mm long, but I think 12 mm (about 1/2 in) would also be enough.

[@ibrahimalbahrani9039]

Amazing 👍Great idea Can we use with GKF600 bosch router

[@CatLighting]

The manufacturing process is similar for every router.

[@Sanjay-eb6fe]

Fantastic work, great video. Just wondering.... Won't the acrylic pick up scratches from the work surface over time?

[@CatLighting]

Of course there are scratches, but it's a tool for the job ;) Thanks for your comment!

[@Sanjay-eb6fe]

@@CatLighting You have inspired me to build one. Thank you for sharing your know-how.

[@zoozolplexOne]

Cool !!!

[@angelmorales6274]

What did you used to polish the jig?

[@amitpatelpatel144]

Bro ! May you tell me which polishing instrument you use at 5:27, (amazing instrument)? And one more thing ... You are a great creative.

[@CatLighting]

Thanks Bro! For polishing I use a small Hobby Drill, it is good for small items, but with this plate it lasted forever... I wait until it's dead to buy a new one ;) But if I have to be honest, this little weak drill has done a lot of work for me.

[@mercuriallimit]

I like how you made the inlay (I think that’s what it’s called) for the hex nut at the beginning, how do you think you would do if to inlay the hex nut on to the acrylic itself?

[@CatLighting]

It is possible but instead of hammering the nut, you have to heat it up and push it into the hole. Something like with the screws in my last video kzbin.info/www/bejne/fnqvqIegi7KGaJY

[@mrb4408]

Spot on, just bought some Perspex to do the same build as this.. I was wondering how I could get this done.. and then came across your excellent vid. Subscribed. 👍🏼 Even got the Makita router the same too..

[@CatLighting]

Yeah, it's good stuff :) have fun at work and thanks for sub!

[@mrb4408]

CatLighting👍🏼 got the base done today. I’d send you a pic if I knew how.

[@CatLighting]

Awesome! My email is in About tab on channel site or you can post a pic on facebook CatLighting site, everybody interested will be able to see it there :)

[@valveman12]

Using a drill as a handheld lathe...Genius!

[@CatLighting]

I saw it somewhere else ;D

[@johncoonradtjr.5141]

Nice job beautiful

[@CatLighting]

Thanks John!

[@johnwelander9783]

Very nice job, I'm needing rather a lot of practice to reach a fraction of that skill level but very informative, thank you.

[@CatLighting]

You probably underestimate your abilities. In my opinion, the most often lack of skills or tools is not a problem, the problem is moving the ass and starting work ;) Thanks for comment!

[@jasonsahadeo5740]

I can't find the screws that fit this base plate in my local hardware. Can someone please tell me what screws they used?

[@CatLighting]

In metric they are M4

[@jtbmetaldesigns]

Soooooo Awesome!

[@53tboy]

Nice Job .

[@CatLighting]

Thanks 53tboy!

[@chrisadamson9556]

Nice job....

[@CatLighting]

Thanks Chris!

[@ElectroCarpintero]

Excelente trabajo, felicitaciones. Un Abrazo

[@andreasputzer9037]

TOP * BEST OF 💯 ***

[@CatLighting]

Thank you! 😁

[@wood4nothing284]

Cool ideas, great video so I've subbed to your channel can't wait for more of your videos Cheers Tim from Wood4nothing

[@CatLighting]

Thanks Tim :) Cheers!

[@marcobrazil8956]

Thanks for that instructive video, do you think could do the cutting en drilling needed for this with a dremel tool also?

[@CatLighting]

You're welcome, thanks for watching! :) Unfortunately, I have no idea how dremel works in acrylic, I never tried. But I suspect that it will be hard because dremel has quite high rpm even at the slowest speed. For example, on CNC at 5000 rpm and 1/8 cutter I need to have a very sharp cutter and cool the acrylic in the processing area so that it does not melt. It's just my guess, maybe it will not be so bad in this case, you need try to know :)

[@RJ-bn5uw]

How much usable shaft length was removed adding that plate ?

[@CatLighting]

The plate is 10 mm (~3/8 in) thick, but in practice this thickness is not felt, the router enters the base to the bottom.

[@mohamedelgendy62]

Will not work against a guide. Works very well for free hand routing.

[@GRADGRAD-jq9nk]

Great job. What type of compound did you use to buff the acrylic?

[@CatLighting]

I used a blue compound for aluminum ;D

[@MIWESTI]

EXCELENTE MAESTRO MUY UTIL MUY BONITO Y MUY BARATO : - ) : - ) : - ) : - )

[@CatLighting]

Thank you!

[@KnottenWood]

What a fantastic design for a base for a trim router to help with control and accuracy! Great job! If I may ask, what did you use to polish/buff the edges clear? Not the hobby drill, but the sanding disc in the drill? Thank you very much!

[@CatLighting]

This is a disk cut from the felt and attached to the tip, which is normally used for cutting discs. This disc is the maximum size that will pull this drill. I cut them myself because those in the sale are too small or too large. Thanks for the good words! :)

[@whoDatBeDare]

Catlighting Could you please expand on this answer? Id really like to do the same with my projects. Maybe a vid?

[@CatLighting]

Basically, it looks like this: You cut out a felt with a diameter you need, in the middle you make a hole for the screw to fasten, put the screw and attach it to the tip that you attach to the tool. If the felt circle is inaccurate (the tool vibrates when turned on) or it is too big (the tool has no power to reach full speed), you can smooth/trim the circle by clamping the tool in a vise and carefully collect excess felts from the rotating circle with a sharp knife. In the last phase you have to be very attentive, if we enter the felt with a knife to quickly, it can be taken out of hand. I hope that you wanted an answer like this and everything is understandable because I'm poor with English and I have to use a translator ;)

[@whoDatBeDare]

Catlighting an excellent response. Thank you. Just watched another KZbin video where someone was pushing actually he used 600 then 1200 period then 2000 grit sandpaper turned out looking pretty good. HTH

[@CatLighting]

And this is a great method! Maybe 2000 will not give a shine, but you can end up with a higher gradation or you can hand polish using a polishing paste for car (after 2000 grit it should go fast and smoothly).

[@slayer91340]

Awesome!!

[@riley165]

looks really good I have made one of these a little while ago. great job mate but isn't the Perspex a little too thick because your losing quite a lot of depth there. I used 5mm thick Perspex for mine and used some chrome handles off a wardrobe works really well. anyway great job all the same

[@CatLighting]

Definitely too thick! But I was in an emergency and I made of the material that I had at hand. On the plus side, I have now where to build lighting :) just mill a few grooves under the base and ready to mount LEDs.

[@fx1c333]

you could also build guide rails into it as well , great job. 5* @@CatLighting

[@CatLighting]

@@fx1c333 quite a good idea :)

[@williamhoward8319]

nice job i can not find the acrillac

[@H2Dwoat]

Hi, did you use a special hole cutting bit for acrylic for the centre hole? If so could you provide the details or a link to it. Thanks.

[@CatLighting]

To drill a large hole I used... diamond drill for ceramics :) It was just a small experiment, I thought there would be problems and the acrylic will melt, but as you can see it turned out ok. In this case it is important to have cast acrylic, not extruded, because it is easier to process it and has a higher melting point. Such drills should be available in most DIY stores.

[@RossPotts]

Is heat-polishing the edges with a torch an option?

[@CatLighting]

Naturally :)

[@mumihp]

Wow, this is a really nice base. This is something I want to make and I have tools to do so...really need simple jig. Also what did you use the smooth out the aycrlic, a compound and polishing wheel, do you have a link for that. Thanks

[@CatLighting]

Thanks for comment! The polishing wheel is a cheap felt tip for dremel, proxxon, etc. The polishing compound is for aluminum ;) I have it for 10 years, it was blue but it dried up and faded. Probably special to acrylic or car would be better choice.

[@jeannellesmith8022]

Yes and that good

[@lad60606]

I hope you made sure the screws lined up before getting it to the polished stage.

[@CatLighting]

Yes, I checked. Without it, I could have a depressing end to the day.

[@dsevero]

Excellent. What did you use to polish the acrylic?

[@CatLighting]

Felt disc and polishing compound for... aluminum ;)

[@CaseAgainstFaith1]

What type of hole saw was used for the center hole?

[@CatLighting]

This is a diamond hole saw for ceramics, I just had it but I wasn't sure if it would melt the plexiglass ;)

[@CaseAgainstFaith1]

CatLighting Thanks. If you had to buy a hole saw for the project, would you get that type, or something else?

[@CatLighting]

Definitely something with teeth, safer for plastic and more universal for other projects.

[@CaseAgainstFaith1]

CatLighting Thanks

[@winzikh]

What polish compound you have used?

[@CatLighting]

It was polish compound for aluminum ;) but he does a great job in acrylic.

[@winzikh]

@@CatLighting thankyou boss. 🙃