How to Gang Cut Box Joints on a Router Table

Gang cutting wood is a process that eliminates the large amount of time spent cutting the same pattern on many pieces of wood. When precision cuts are needed for a project to come together perfectly, gang cutting is useful to guarantee the cuts match. On a router table, gang cutting box joints for a wooden box or drawer takes practice and skill to handle the larger than usual amount of wood passing over the bit.

4 pine boards, 12-by-6-by-1-inch
1/2-inch straight router bit
1/2-inch spacer fence
Router table
4 clamps
Tape measure
Pencil

Instructions

- 1
  Loosen the router collet. Insert a 1/2-inch straight router bit and tighten the collet.
- 2
  Attach the router to the table. The router enters the table from underneath and twists onto the connectors.
- 3
  Place four 12-by-6-by-1-inch pine boards together with the broad sides, not the 1-inch edges, touching. Make all edges even.
- 4
  Clamp the boards together by placing two clamps on one 6-inch side and two clamps on one 12-inch side.
- 5
  Clamp a 1/2-inch spacer fence to the router table 1/2-inch from the router bit.
- 6
  Place the clamped pine boards along the spacer fence. Push the boards over the turning router bit for the first cut.
- 7
  Place the newly cut 1/2-inch groove on the ridge on the spacer fence with each new cut. This makes a 1/2-inch space between each box joint cut. Finish cutting the entire 6-inch end of the boards using this spacer.
- 8
  Release the clamps on the pine boards.
- 9
  Attach two pieces of the pine wood to each other by connecting the box joints.

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