[ATM] routers in the old and new world

[Dominic-Luc Webb <dlwebb@canit.se>]

This posting concerns routers, supposedly the 3rd most common 
electric tool, and something a lot of ATMs use. I do not care 
to specify any brands.

I was just about to buy a router back home in Sweden. I did not 
actually like any of the ones I encountered because the speed 
was not possible to hold constant (a pretty basic requirement 
for a good router). Looking at several major brands, I noted 
that none of them had a simple on/off toggle switch on the 
chassis. Instead, they had pressure switches on the handle (maybe 
people in the new world call these "dead man switches"). In 
addition to the problem of holding the speed constant (speed 
changes a bit with amount of pressure applied), this seems to 
indicate that these are not intended to be mounted onto a table. 
Since the only switch is on the handle, the handle cannot be 
removed. Ability to mount onto a table is another basic property of 
any good router. Asking folks in the hardware stores, and checking 
manuals when possible, it was clear these routers were not intended 
for hands-free operations. There might be some safety laws behind 
this, but it seems that the purpose and versatility of a router 
has been undermined. So much for Europe. Now for what I found in 
the USA.

Visiting a friend, there was a book standing right in front of 
my eyes, a rather thorough American book about routers. I noticed 
that all of the routers in that book had toggle switches and many
had removal handles to be sure the router could be mounted 
onto a table or other mountings. The book is a bit old, but now 
I am curious. Are routers in the American market different? Are 
the Americans on this list finding/buying routers with toggle 
switches and removable handles? 

Dominic-Luc Webb
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