Re: [ATM] Suggestions on a router?

[George Anderson <tillerman1@videotron.ca>]

This holds true in many cases, but with routers (and other power and
hand tools) there are pitfalls to the cheaper ones on the market.
1) A poorly made collet or chuck will not hold the bit properly and
therefore allow it to slide up or down during use. The Craftsman 600
router is a prime example of this, in woodworking circles it is referred
to as "random depth setting".
2) The collet may not be perfectly centered on the shaft, this will
introduce vibration and an uneven cut. Combined wih the above it makes
for a very dangerous combination. Ever seen five ounces of steel and
carbide spinning at 22000RPM (not unusual for a router) suddenly come
free and choose its own path of destruction?
3) The collet may not be perpendicular to the base, again resulting in a
poor cut.
4) the router may not have a softstart feature, this results in a sudden
torquing of the router body when it is switched on.
5) Insufficient power, motor HP in tools is a hotly debated subject and
the current HP ratings are questionable as (IIRC) they are based on the
HP developed just before stall. Not the running HP. With a router you
want nice steady HP, always on tap, no speed variations as you cut
through different parts of the wood.
I could go on and on about the pitfalls of cheap tools, I own several
and they serve as reminders and dust collectors. As for the Taiwan and
Chinese tools they are improving in quality every day, but for the most
part they require some "cleaning up" by the owner before they can match
the quality of a brand name tool.
One does not need to be a professional woodworker to appreciate the
value of a good router, much as one does not need to be a profesional
astronomer or optician to appreciate a the quality of a good mirror.
Quality and expensive do not always go hand in hand, but cheap rarely
comes with quality.
Quality tools cannot make a bad craftsman rise above his own skills, but
poor quality tools will lower a good craftsman down to the level of the
tool.
The PC390 router is not an industrial grade router, it is a good quality
router at a reasonable price.
You buy fine annealed glass and well selected grits and polishing
compounds when you grind a mirror in order to achieve quality. Why not
put the same effort and quality into the rest of the scope?

George Anderson 
Montreal Canada

Clear skies and good health


Vladimir Galogaza wrote:
> 
> Some general thinking about  "recommended router".
> 
> Thinking that high or best quality router (or anything else) will
> warrant a same quality product is wishful thinking.
> The same is with legend that cheep tools will warrant bad products.
> 
> The high quality of some tools matters mostly in their prolonged, heavy use
> by professionals. Situation very uncommon with most amateurs.
> Therefore "my favorite router" kind of advice can be serious taken only
> from persons realy having opportunity to intensively check many of them.
> We can then expect that such a person is very experienced or proffesional.
> 
> The best possible tool in inexperienced hands will not reveal
> its quality and vice versa, experienced craftsman will do with
> any tools that are SUFFICIENTLY good for a task at hand.
> 
> Today there are many tools designed  and produced for use by
> do-it-yourself public, and their price is incredibly low.
> Some of those tools come directly from China or thereabout
> and some are repacked to disguise their origin and sold with
> somewhat or substantially higher price than their honestly declared
> twins.
> 
> Do to the incredibly low price of such tools it is not unwise to
> buy them in order to check their usefulness in our hands,
> for our specific needs, to check our dexterity with such tools
> and  to do some experience gaining job without taking too much
> care if we shall inflict some damage to the tools on learning curve.
> 
> Than, and only than can we perceive what matters and what does not,
> what we need in addition and only then can we fully understand,
> accept or refuse advices from others and recognize advertising & marketing
> hot air.
> 
> What I said about tools, I think mostly does not apply to accessories,
> like router bits and similar stuff. We benefit from their good quality
> almost immediately and  their bad quality can really spoil the product.
> 
> (My 2 Lipa to this thread).
> Vladimir.
> 
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