Axminster router lift - revisited

[condeesteso]

i got one of these about 9 months ago and have been very pleased with it. It is really well made, and works just as you would want - very accurate, repeatable and sturdy.
But there are a couple of issues. I was alerted to the fact that the Allen key recess underneath (to adjust cutter height) tends to fill with dust and is a real pain to clear out.
I have managed to get a fix which seems to work very well so far (after quite a bit of use).

Above the recess is a cast surface (U shaped) - I have stuck a sheet of thin rubber onto that, with a cross hole for the key to pass through.
So far very effective, and it's had plenty of use recently. If and when it does need clearing I can't see it being much harder than before - a long thin poker (long awl) and a vac nozzle close in seem to do it. But this really makes a big difference and I haven't needed to clear the hole out once yet, after maybe a few hours running.
The other thing is the location of the adjuster hole in the top. It is very close to where the fence ends up most of the time. I manage anyway, but it's a shame and maybe a bit of a design oversight.
I would almost certainly rotate the fitting of the lift 90 degrees anti-clockwise. I cannot think of any downside, but it would bring the adjuster port forward, away from the fence.

Apart from these 2 issues, I still rate it very highly and it is quite easy to live with. In particular the changing of cutters is a dream, and the precise height adjustment a real boon.

 

[flounder]

That is a neat fit Douglas, I will have to copy it as I have the same issue. If I was making another table then rotating it 90' as you mention would definitely be the way to go. I see in the latest version they have added a column lock which locates where the height adjuster would end up if rotated and the lock would then be under or around the fence, but for us 'old skool' owners this isn't an issue!

 

[condeesteso]

Just had a look at the new version - I never realised I needed a lock feature! I've never known it drift in use yet.
By the way the rubber - not easy to find I thought but local hardware store sells discs about 5" diameter, used for getting lids off jars and about £1 - ideal for this.

 

[jumps]

By the way the rubber - not easy to find I thought but local hardware store sells discs about 5" diameter, used for getting lids off jars and about £1 - ideal for this.

is this code for 'I found one in the kitchen'?

 

[condeesteso]

no Jumps honest. haven't nicked any device from the kitchen since the old carving knife... wipe a burr along the blade and it makes an excellent scraper for bigger boards. I got told off for that but it was half mine anyway, so my side of the blade's a scraper.

 

[Steve Maskery]

NIce fix.
ANother fix you could consider is the one used in the RouterRaizer system. It's a sort of poor-mans aftermarket setup sold by Roger Phebey at WoodWorker's Workshop. It's good. I don't know if it's as good as or better than the Ax, but I'm very [leased with it. ANyway on that, the height adjuster hole is counterbored and a small steel disk sits in it, preventing any ingress of detritus. To remove it, there is a tiny magnet on the crank. Pop out the disk, alter the height, replace the disk. Everything stays clean. Until, of course, you accidentally vacuum up the disk with everything else and you have to empty the shopvac to find it. But of course, I've never had to do that. :---) :---)