Securing work while machining is a challenge all woodworkers face daily. MicroJig’s MatchFit system that uses dovetail profile clamps that slide in dovetail grooves is a clever solution. But making the grooves has been a challenge.

Now the company has come out with a clever router guide that attaches to most any handheld router and takes a lot of the measuring and fixturing out of the process.

 

Simple guide
Packaged in a kit with two router bits and a router base, the guide is easy to assemble and mount to your router following the clear instructions packed with the kit. The guide itself is very simple and consists of a universal router base, clamps to hold the router in place, and a sturdy handle to control the base in use.

You do have to use a router with a Porter-Cable style guide bushing adapter base plate. You don’t need the adapter itself, just the opening in the base. That mates with MicroJig guide to ensure the router is centered on the guide base.

No measuring
You can make grid guides of any size you need from 8 inches up. The secret of the system is a guide rib on the base that is exactly 4 inches from the center of the router bit. Two bits (included in the kit) are required: one to cut an initial clearance groove and another to cut the dovetail profile.

You start with the base riding on the outside edge of the board or panel you are cutting and then cut the subsequent grooves with the base indexing in the previously cut groove. Then you turn the workpiece 90 degrees and do it again to create the intersecting grooves.

Repeat the whole process with the dovetail bit to finish the grid. It’s important to hold the router securely against the outside edge for initial cuts and to clean out the channels after each cut so the guide cleat on the base can run smoothly in the channel. MicroJig has a great instructional video showing the entire process.

 

Grid uses
Once you make one grid and learn to use it, you’ll likely want to keep making more. The MicroJig MatchFit clamps slide securely in the grooves and offer versatile clamping options. You can use the system to make sleds that ride on a table saw, band saw, or router table. You can cover a whole work bench top with the grid to provide hold-down opportunities across the entire surface. The more you use it, the more ideas you will come up with. The kit sells for $99 online at many retailers. Learn more at microjig.com.