Flattening Boards with a Router Sled

If you don't have a jointer or a planer or you need to flatten something large or difficult to flatten, building a simple sled for your router is a great solution.

[tatkinsful]

Finally! Someone who thinks about the guy who just can't afford all those high-priced tools. Not everyone has those type tools they use! Thanks a LOT !

[jadebagwell]

thank you for your clarity
simple set up
quick, effective
no commercials, lousy music, or flashy transitions!
perfect

[justsaying...]

Talk about heaven sent. . .I just happened to find this video today, the very day that I decided a project I was working on was not flat enough. I don't have a joiner and don't plan to buy one. I've tried to find a commercial business in the area to flatten my slab but so far no luck. But I have a router and the bit and will give this method a try. Thanks Matt, you saved the day for me.

[billbee]

Man this video is 8 years old and I just discovered it. Huge shop saver.. Built a 24” sled for the router and picked up some poplar to practice. I milled it down to 1/2” for drawer fronts and they came out awesome.

[davidburns]

Nice job, no excess music, no big intro, no endless and unnecessary 'how-to' footage, just good - solid information! Compliments to the chef (or wordsmith ... or shop rat ... or whatever you call yourself) ;>)

[roberttill]

A flat bit is good for early passes over the workpiece, but the final couple of passes i would use a bull nose style cutter that will not leave an edge on the surface. I would also take thinner cuts as the process advances, as this will also leave less marks and deformity on the workpiece surface. I would also firmly fix the side rails to a base to stop them moving about, then clamp the base to your workbench. All in all your basic idea is sound, but i think a bit of thought could fine tune it immensly. Good video!

[guyh.]

Nice demo. 4 things for your sled. 1) Add "guides" to the underside of your sled. It keeps it straight and reduces the skips. 2) In addition to the shims, hot glue the work piece to bench to completely eliminate slippage. 3) Lengthen your rails to the full of your work bench so you can clamp all 4 ends. Again, reduces/eliminates slippage. And 4) Put wax paste on the sliding side of the sled. Let's your router slide more easily. Great video though. 👍👍👍

[shawnr]

Thank you. This is simple and easy to set up. I am a novice with a router.
This looks like a very good and safe way to handle a router.



I cut tree trunks into slices about 2 inches thick with a chain saw. Some of these are up to 4 feet in diameter.
I needed a way to flatten them as a finished product.

I believe this will work great. Thanks again.

[angelikast]

Thank you so much. I did not want to have to buy a planer. This helped a lot. Good job

[SunriseAt]

Love your videos! They are simple, understandable and doable for a hobbyist without access to very fancy or expensive equipment. Thank you so much for taking your time to create these videos!

[arthilliker]

Thank You so much !! I'm making a HUGE cutting board for a friend and needed to see how this process is done !! Clear, easy and to the point !! Thanks again so much !!

[DIYTyler]

Nice Matthew Cremona you present in a much simpler way the the other router sled videos I have seen.

[PapaJoeWalsh]

Great job! I don't have either a planer or a jointer, but I do have a router. Might need to get a bigger straight bit, which I think will be worth it. Thanks for posting a clear, helpful, no-messing-about video!

[mckvb]

I love the ease of your explanations. I am a beginner in woodworking. I’m 65 in about a month and just getting started in woodworking. So I am trying to learn any and all tips that are available. I have a hand planer but joiner. I’ve learned a lot from you and your videos so I truly am grateful that you explain things slow and understandable, no offense to anyone. If I would have seen this video before I made my Christmas gifts it would have saved me a lot of time and trouble, long story. Happy New Year and thanks again.

[SheAndMe]

Nice tutorial! I have a live edge slab that has a twist in it and I’ve been watching other videos on how to flatten, but they gloss over the specifics on making a router sled right down to a bit size suggestion. This was very clear and understandable. Thank you.

[DA-uzqb]

Excellent tutorial. No frills and very informative. Well done. Gonna use your model to build one for myself!

[deamn]

Excellent demo! Searching around youtube for 2 hours and finally your video gave me the answer! A great low-cost setup to flatten larger surfaces.
Thanks Matt

[СашаМакаренко-эх]

*I just finished building the handrail on my deck **MyBest.Tools** and used this great little router to clean up the top rail before the final sanding and stain. It was light weight but packed lots of power. Either size battery didn't seem to make it top heavy and I'm a 64 yr old women so I really appreciated how easy it was to CORDLESS only way to go !!*

[garthingram]

This is an outstanding video. Simple and inexpensive this is the only way to tackle wide live edge slabs!

[guyh.]

Simple set-up. Like it. One thing that would help you is after find the final depth is to take your router off &see how deep it is. Then you back off the depth & make multiple passes to get to your depth then go another 1/16th inch deeper to ensure everything is equal. Plus it doesn't work your router as much, especially 1/4" routers. Plus with 1/4" routers, use a smaller diameter bit. Just something I've learned