[BLarge]

Climb cut only in a router table, IMO, and only when there is like the tiniest bit of material to take of. When I do a custom veneer door piece or something, and I don't have access to a helical shaper head, I'd climb cut very carefully that last 32nd or a inch of veneer where it meets up with the hardwood liping, thereby reducing the chance of tearing off/ out. I have also had the case when I was shaping a curve of some sort, got REALLY close to the shape with bandsaw, out the piece on the pattern/ shaping jib and CAREFULLY WHILE PRAYING climb cut some short grain and places where the grain changed… but that is a 32nd or ideally less material and and secure jig to hold onto.

Whenever I do anything on the router table that is not straightforward, I build a jig with handles that are pretty safely away from the cutter.

 

[BLarge]

I think the point is it is a LOT easier to keep a firm grip on a pair of big, ergonomic, rubber-coated handles than on a flat piece of wood, which usually has no handholds at all. Also, if the bit grabs and pulls on a router table, it is pulling your fingers directly TOWARD the bit. If a bit catches on a handheld router, it pulls the bit AWAY from your hands.

That said, there are ways to keep your fingers away from a router table s bit, including paddles and push blocks. So, I am not saying I would never climb-cut on a router table, under the right conditions. But I would be a lot more nervous about it that I would with a hand-held router. And that opinion is shared almost universally across the woodworking world.

- StumpyNubs

It's a good point to discuss technique when climb cutting on the table… you want your fingers no where near the path of the cutter or pieces you're routing, that's why it's so important to rig up a jig with handles far away from the action. I personally don't climb cut free hand with a router, very uncomfortable, but I get that some people feel with a hefty machine and nice handles it can be done carefully.

End of the day, don't climb cut unless you have no other choice.