How to make a DIY jig for your router in order to use it as a planer

Tools and materials:

Table saw

Bandsaw

Cordless drill

Cordless Impact Driver

Angle grinder

Hole saw

Plunge router

Stick welder

Air compressor, nail and staple gun kit

I know many garage woodworkers don't have access to a thickness planer. Make this simple jig to help you flatten your boards. You can even use it on end grain which is something you can't do with a thickness planer.

I made my jig out 15mm birch plywood.

I begun by making the base. I cut my pieces to size on the table saw.

I glued the pieces together. I used my nail gun to nail the pieces in place, while the glue dried. I predrilled pilot holes and counter sunked them. I then added the screws. 

To secure my material in place while routing, I made a small clamp out of a big nut and a metal angle. I had these pieces from an old project, so I cleaned them up a little bit with my angle grinder. 

I then used my stick welder to weld the metal pieces together. Then I did a couple of fine tunings with the grinder. 

I made a handle for the clamp from an old nail. I hammered one side to make a head so it could  not escape from the threaded rod. 

Then I screwed the clamp in place.

I sanded the rails of my base so they could run a bit smoother. 

Then I had to make the piece that is screwed on my router’s base. I used my router’s plastic base as a template to mark my hole positions. Using a hole saw I drilled the main hole. Then I drilled the rest of the holes and counter sunked them. I then cut the pieces to size based on my jig. I didn’t want extra material to carry around. 

To plane the wood I just use the largest straight bit I have in my shop. I try not to go deeper than 4mm per pass. If the router can’t go deep enough, I like to use a flat surface underneath my stock to lift it up a little bit. Usually I use MDF, plywood or plexiglass.

I screw a stop block from one side and then I use the clamp to secure the material in place. 

My jigs works really nice, you have to do a little sanding after you are done with the router, but the surface you get is pretty flat.

Anyway I hope you found my little jig useful, because that was it, see you soon with a new project video.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, that at no cost to you, I get a small commission if you click through and make a purchase.