Wood routers come in many sizes, but they all have the same basic design. An electric motor is enclosed in a frame, and a tool bit attaches to the motor shaft and removes material with the rotation of the cutting tool. There are small hand-held routers, plunge-type routers and large routers that are computer controlled that can machine entire sheets of plywood.
The Small Hand-Held Router
The small hand-held router is a high-speed cutting tool. It is useful for cutting openings for light switch boxes and light fixtures boxes in drywall and thin plywood. This lightweight tool also works well for routing decorative ends on small pieces of wood for tables or chairs because it's easy to manipulate around tight corners or small spaces.
Plunge-Type Routers
The plunge-type router generally boasts from 1 to 3 horsepower. This type is used for plunging holes in wood, creating decorative round-over profiles to smooth sharp edges on larger tables and chairs. With a plunge router, you can also set the depth on the movable table so the bit only enters to a certain point. This works well when creating a pocket for another piece of wood to fit into for joining two or more pieces of wood together.
Small Computer Numerical Controlled Routers
Computer numerical controlled routers or CNC routers come in many different sizes. They range from small tabletop models to routers that are used to cut profiles on panels for houses. The small tabletop routers are operated by a computer that controls the movement of the motor and plunge-depth of the tool. These type of CNC routers are used for sign-making and small two-dimensional carving. Slightly larger CNC routers are also used for cutting 4-by-8-foot plywood sheets into cabinet blanks and tabletops.
Large CNC Routers
These routers, although the same type of design as the smaller versions, can get large enough to cut out entire gable ends of houses from prefabricated panels. They may have a beam that carries the router motor across a table as big as 30 feet wide and 100 feet long. These specialized wood routers are used for the precision cutting of homes that are tightly fitted together in the field or home site. It may sound expensive to operate, but the routers are contained indoors to protect the precision electronics and mechanisms. An entire home can be cut in a matter of hours. With precision-cutting, the assembly at the job site takes only a matter of a couple of days as opposed to weeks.
