which router?

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please help me choose between the following fixed/plunge combo routers:

Ridgid R2200 comes with bonus Plunge router base, $179

+ has led light, clear plastic base. Fixed base under router table adjustment via table top
- push button/one wrench bit removal system, on off switch

Fixed Base Router-R2200 at The Home Depot

Milwaukee 2-1/4hp EVS multi base kit $235

+ Fixed base under table adjustment via table top

2-1/4 Max-Horsepower EVS Multi-Base Router Kit Includes Plunge Base and BodyGrip Fixed Base-5616-24 at The Home Depot

Makita 2-1/4 HP Router Kit # RF1101KIT2 $249

2-1/4 HP Router Kit-RF1101KIT2 at The Home Depot
 
I would absolutely get a Porter Cable, anything from the 690 series. It's 1.75hp but I've cut clean through cherry, maple, etc. with no issues at all. If you're set on a larger router, I'd still go with Porter Cable. They are legendary for a reason, and there are millions of compatible accessories.
 
I have owned a PC690 since the early 80's, and bought the plunge base for it in the late 80's.

It is a versatile machine for my home and hobby projects, but required a replacement armature and bearings in the late 90's. About that time I picked up a used Black and Decker Pro model 444 from a cabinet shop going out of business, and have used it for the heavy work since then.

While I'm not actively looking to replace the PC690, I must admit that it has several features that make it clunky and dated. It was definitely not designed to be used under a router table, where it lives most of the time in my shop. Under the best of conditions it takes two-and-a-half hands to change bits smoothly. The add-on plunge mechanism is adequate, but doesn't operate as smoothly as others I have tried - and sometimes I find it very locked up when I try to change bases..

It looks like the PC model 890 addresses several of these shortcomings in its design, but I haven't used that machine yet. Unfortunately, Home Depot and similar stores have no provision to let you do even a cursory "test drive" before buying a power tool. It's the wrong time of year, but woodworkers' shows usually give you an opportunity to do a test cut or two, practice changing bits, etc, before making a decision to buy. Of course, finding a friend who already owns the tool you're interested in would be an even better situation.

Dale
 
I picked up a PC 9690LR and didn't like the lack of a soft start plus fine bit height adjustments when mounted under the router table were difficult. Also didn't like that the cord ends up twisting around with the motor in the process.

My broke down Craftsmen i've had for the past 25years had a trigger on/off that i liked so i decided to bring home the Bosch MRF23EVS from home depot today.
I like the handle trigger on/off and LED light clear base. Although convenient i'm not convinced i really need a plunge base for the few speaker holes i'm cutting and decided to put the money into abetter fixed base model. We'll see how it goes...
2.3 HP Electronic VS Plunge-Base Router with Trigger Control-MRF23EVS at The Home Depot
 
You can't go wrong with Bosch either.

A little story about high quality tools. I have a rule, I always buy good stuff- not always the most expensive, but always top quality. I broke this rule a couple weeks ago and got a variac off of ebay. I tore my project apart five times before figuring out the variac was bad. Never again. You will never regret spending money on good tools.

And, you know the rule that tools don't count when you figure out a project's cost, right? ;)
 
I have the Rigid with both plunge and fixed bases and am reasonablly happy with it. The Porter Cable, Bosch, Dewalt, Makita are all good tools. The woodworkers seem to be going for the Triton. Porter Cable is so much the de-facto standard, there are more accessories that fit.

Bosch Bosch 1617EVSPK came out on top as best tool in the WOOD 2008 tests.

My old cheap sears has a lock on the spindle that stayed in place so you could hold the bit and wrench with your two hands. The Rigid takes three hands. The third to hold the lock pin in. I am going to make some kind of spring clamp for it. I also found the plunge stop can slip.
 
Not sure PC is what it once was. I've owned or used many of them over the years and they were fantastic (and the industry standard) when they were still made in the USA. Without spending the huge dollars for a Festool I'd be inclined to buy a Bosch if I was shopping for a router today. Maybe a Makita but they just don't spin as smoothly as the euro-tools or older American made tools.

If you could find a nice clean well cared for older PC or Milwaukee ... or Bosch you would have a tool that would last you for MANY years.

dan
 
I've got a DW615 from Dewalt and love it, so much so that I bought another one when the first one died after 10+years of use. I did consider buying one of Dewalt's more powerful models but had concerns that the extra weight would make it less manageable/responsive when doing lighter jobs.

I mean I've got another cheaper more powerful/heavier router that is horrible with regards to the feedback it gives you through the hand grips, making it more prone to mistakes where fine user control is required.

A more powerful router would be better for heavy work, like chopping up large amounts of MDF, or for using very large router bits/roundovers, but as far as all the DIY work that I've ever done is concerned, the DW615 has been more then enough for 99% of it and in those situations the lighter/smaller design makes it a lot easier to use.
 
Being a professional carpenter, I'll tell you that you won't be sorry for buying a Bosch 1716evs. Festools are great, but about 3 times the price they should be. I've built a lot of custom "one of a kind" items, and never regretted buying the best tools I can. Porter Cable is NOT the same quality it once was. Too bad they were awesome tools (in general) for the price of a Maikita. PC is now a subsidiary of Black and Decker. Uch.

Which ever brand you end up with, buy Whiteside router Bits. They come sharper and last longer than other big name brands like Ammana, Bosch, American Vermont (Crap), ect.
here is a pic of my grandaughter's crib. only 4 screws in the whole thing. 96 mortises........

Ron
 

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Deep - over sized router bits are hard to find . . .
I don't understand the comment you're making, or the question you're asking.

For the casual reader unfamiliar with routers:
The router bit in the link is designed to form a little "shelf" (rabbet) on the edge of a board or a cutout. The width of he "shelf" is set by the difference between outer diameter of the cutting flutes (1-7/8") and the outer diameter of the pilot bearing. The bit comes with 5 interchangeable bearings, so you have a choice of 5 different rabbet widths - in 1/16" increments from 1/2" to 3/4".

To change the width of the rabbet simply change the O.D. of the bearing. Some quick arithmetic tells you the bearings supplied with that router bit have 7/8", 3/4", 5/8", 1/2", and 3/8" O.D. Ball bearings come in standard sizes and are readily available from a variety of sources, such as real hardware stores (if you can find one), auto parts stores, appliance repair shops, commercial power tool dealers, industrial supply jobbers, etc. (If you're in a hurry, seed a search engine with "Grainger".) If the bearing OD you want isn't available with the correct ID (bore) size, you can shim the bore of a bearing with larger ID, or add a collar to increase the OD of the bearings in this assortment. Woodcraft may offer a kit of collars, or even additional bearing sizes, to fit this router bit. When trying to create an especially tight joint I have been known to carefully add a layer or two of duct tape or heat-shrink tubing around a router pilot bearing, to make small adjustments to the rabbet width. (Not a durable solution but good for a cut or two.)

The height of the "step" above the rabbet is infinitely variable by how far the bit extends past the router base - anywhere from a few thousandths of an inch, to 1" (the length of the cutting flutes). You could actually cut even even deeper than 1" if you do it in several passes - I can't think of any place where I needed even a 1" step depth in the projects I've done.

Dale
 
Clarification? Fair enough:

The width of the wings is important; popular sizes are (as shown)

1-3/8" 1-1/2" 1-7/8" (1960 Whiteside link)

There are drivers that need a "wide" shelf, 9/16" is pretty common; needed 3/4" not long ago.

The 1-1/2" wide wing can go to 9/16" if you can find the 3/8" mini bearing. A question would be where to find them? I have a couple borrowed from other bits. [I will check local]

Question II. Would like to send a handful of dull bits to be sharped, any thoughts?
 

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I was having problems getting an accurate depth adjustment in my router table with my Rigid. Easy to set as it has a T-handle to go in from the top ( base), but when I clamp it down, it moves. So I went to the store to see how all the rest are built, and the Rigid is actually one of the better. The Bosch is the same basic design, but seems to work a tad better. The problem is when you open the clamp, it is hanging buy the one block on the side, so it rocks in the base. This tilt is what causes the slop. So, either I fight it a lot, or I think that is why you buy a Bench Dog lift.
 
I can tell you what not to buy; I got stung on this router :cuss:

You can see some fixes in photo - however the worst part is the plastic base (threads/screws) wears out and the router rocks in the base.

It useless for anything other than cutting a edge or something easy.


I may PLUNGE this router in the river :wave:
 

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. . . if you can find the 3/8" mini bearing. A question would be where to find them? I have a couple borrowed from other bits. [I will check local]
It's somewhat inconvenient, but quite acceptable, to move pilot bearings from one bit to another when the sizes are compatible. If one of my bits breaks or the carbide gets nicked I remove and save the bearing. I've also bought bearings when, like you, I needed a particular capability that wasn't available from "stock" bits. Over the last 35 years I've accumulated about a dozen loose bearings to put on router bits as needed.

For starters, you need to know the inner bore diameter of your bearing. They come in both English and metric sizes and it's not unusual in woodworking to discover, for example, that your " 3/8" " bearing is actually 9 mm (or vice versa). If you can find a manufacturer's part number stamped on the dust shield it's easy to get the true dimensions. Ball bearing sizes are standardized across the industry, and the majority of manufacturers use the same basic designations in their part numbers. Just like a dozen different manufacturers make a " 3904 " transistor or " 741 " opamp, with slightly different prefixes, suffixes, etc to fit their part numbering system, a " 602ZZ " or " R166 " bearing (for example) can be obtained from several manufacturers. And, like electronic parts, there may be an alphabet soup of prefixes and suffixes to indicate things like tolerance grades, type of shields, speed ratings, lube temperature range, etc, etc. In spite of what you may think, a router bit pilot isn't an especially demanding bearing application: shields are necessary, the speed is high, but the mechanical load is fairly low.

Like I mentioned above, the no-effort first place to try is your nearest Grainger outlet. Here in St Louis there's also a power tool service center (Dewalt, Black & Decker, Porter Cable, and a few others) that has quite a few ball bearings but you need to hit them at an off-peak time so they can identify it by size, rather than by the part number on an assembly drawing. Last summer I suddenly needed a pilot bearing and found one about a mile from home at a hobby shop that carried a lot of stuff for R/C cars. (I was actually there for some small metric screws when I noticed the display of R/C car wheels and bearings.)

"MLCS Woodworking" lists quite a few replacement bearings at http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/orderstatus/html/smarthtml/pages/bushing_ball_bearings.html Many years (decades?) ago I bought router bits from them and was satisfied with the value but can't rate their recent service or quality.

Question II. Would like to send a handful of dull bits to be sharped, any thoughts?
My carbide-edged bits get dirty more often than they get dull, but the symptoms are similar. You can buy router bit cleaning solutions in expensive little containers but a moderately aggressive solvent - mineral spirits, turpentine, lacquer thinner, acetone - seems to work just as good. Either remove the pilot bearing (if present), or be very careful to keep the solvent away from the bearing!

For actual sharpening I use a diamond hone like these: http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=2414 For many years I only had the "Fine" grit and it worked well. There are several web pages showing how to use these hones, such as here: http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/careandsharpeningofrouterbits.aspx The important thing is to only hone the flat face of the carbide, not the ground cutting edge itself. I should probably set up some kind of regular schedule but I give my most-used bits a half dozen strokes or so when I first use the bit on a project, or when I put things away after a project.

I know there are places offering to sharpen router bits - I think they charge $10 to $20 each - but I have never used these services.

Dale
 
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For router bit bearings, try: Router Bit Ball Bearings - Lee Valley Tools

To clean bits, or blades, try Simple Green, available in grocery stores. Seriously, it works. Fine Woodworking tested a number of blade/bit specific cleaners a few years back, and Simple Green worked as well as any. Just immerse the bit/blade for a short time, and then scrub with an old toothbrush.

I've had bits sharpened, and if a shop knows what they're doing, they do a good job. If you do it yourself, you need to be careful to not change the diameter of the bit
 
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