When I first started using routers I was, to be frank, a little scared of using router tables. There seemed to me more chance of running a stray finger over an exposed cutter sticking out of a table, instead of having them safely on the handles on the router machine itself. It was when I was trying to mould the edges of some small table legs that I found myself putting the router upside down in a vice..??? In retrospect it was madness and I am lucky still to have my full complement of fingers. But it was at that point that I thought that a router table would be a very good idea.

Soon, equipped with a basic table from Trend, I was set up and going. But this table, good as it was, had its limitations. However at that time, no other table seemed much better.

I flirted with a very heavyweight table made in the Far East, but it wasn't much good without using a collet extension - something I am still a bit wary of cutters whizzing round at 16,000rpm.

I tried another portable router table, and got on with it very well. This had the advantage of being made to suit a particular make of router - and I had the router. Using this table conferred a whole range of advantages in terms of adjusting the cutter height easily and fixing the router to the table plate without having to drill a whole set of extra fixing holes. I have happily used this set-up in my workshop for years - but in truth, with the introduction of the Trend PRT (Professional Router Table) a few years a go, my green and jealous eyes were focused on getting a go with one of those.

So it was some pleasure that I eyed the seemingly huge box that arrived on its own pallet a few weeks ago.

The PRT box may look big, but once unpacked the components all look like what they are meant to be and are easy to assemble logically.

The key component is of course the large table -that takes up the space in the packing box.

One of the first jobs is to attach the tubular steel legs to the underside of the table. They are fixed in place with screw knobs and adjustable for uneven floors. Because the legs are all at an angle and facing away from the table top, the table is inherently stable and will support even quite heavy workpieces being fed through the cutter.

Made largely of extruded alloy, the table is easy to assemble around its metal frame. Using quick release turn screws it is simply slotted in place and tightened with a half turn of a big screwdriver, and the complicated-looking fence assembly is fixed in place using one of the channels in the extruded table. The fence is not an easily bendable pressed steel mess. The guts of it is a cleanly made cast alloy moulding. This is held in place with plastic handled screw knobs that are easy to tighten and stay tight in spite of the vibrations inherent from using a high-speed router in a table.

The fence assembly has a dust extraction port built in along with a series of adjustable guards. There is also a clearly marked feed direction indicator marked on the top of it. Very important for avoiding messed up work and even more messed up fingers.

As long as the user is attaching a Trend router, preferably one of the large half-inch collet ones, the attachment process is easy - simply tightening a few screws. Attaching other routers takes a bit more thought and effort, but mercifully, Trend has made it as safe and simple as it can be. The router plate, with the router attached underneath it, is then fitted to the aperture in the table and the router can be plugged into the plug socket under the table. This is, in turn connected to a nicely placed NVR switch on the front of the table where it can be easily reached.

Again, if using the appropriate Trend big router, depth setting and cutter changing are easily done since the table is set up for it. Other router models will need a bit more fiddling, but in truth, most big routers these days seem to have easy depth of cut settings and spindle locks at least.

A few more checks are needed to ensure that everything is all properly set up - and I must say that the Trend instruction book is a model of clarity. It uses good clear photos and standard English. Who knows what PRT users who speak other languages need to put up with??

I started doing some straightforward edge mouldings for some square table legs. The T11 routerI was using was easily powerful enough to do the job in one pass, but in fact a final thin finishing cut will give a better finish and is less hard on the cutter edges. Dust extraction was really quite impressive via the large dust port. Though I won't go so far as to say the a good sweep or vacuum up of the floor won't be needed at the end of the routing session, the normal cloud of fine airborne dust was kept to a minimum - and it is this dust that is most dangerous for our lungs.

One of the most useful features of the Trend PRT is the lead on pin. This allows me to put the moulding on my small table legs with minimal danger to my fingers. This brass pin is screwed into the table at a handy distance from the cutter and allows the work to be supported as it is fed into the cutter. A long way from my arrangement of the router in a vice....