Freud FT2000 router problem

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fluffflinger

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Just acquired another Freud FT2000, and although it runs absolutely fine as it speeds up it gives a little jerk, very minor. I didn't pay very much for it and it's not done a lot of work I imagine, judging by the wear on the base plate and general condition.

Does anybody know what is causing this? I have a Draper Expert (same router) in a table and I love it so I am rather hoping this isn't going to be a developing issue of any consequence.

Anybody?????????
 
It might be the fact that it may not have a soft start motor fitted. My routers both start up with a kick. At least you know its on :D
 
There does appear to be a difference between routers with regard to soft start. We had an old elu soft start and it really was a soft smooth start.
Same shape router but dewalt this time. This to was meant to have soft start -Best way of describing it was a short delay then followed by a jolt. Finally added another 'soft start dewalt' to the collection and this seems to sit somewhere in between- not caramel smooth :cool: but not sour candy jolt :twisted:
I do wonder if there's a little screw adjustment somewhere in the circuit that would allow it to be tweaked......... :ugeek:
 
It might be one of the components (capacitor?) ageing in the soft-start/speed control circuit. If it gets worse you might need a new module, as they tend to be potted in resin and not practical to service. It might actually get better with use, as electrolytic capacitors can self-heal in some circumstances.

If you change the speed when it's on, does it do that smoothly, or kick sometimes as you turn the thumbwheel?

Keep an eye on it and look for a mail-order Freud spares supplier meanwhile. If the speed control/soft start does go, it's not a terribly complex repair (or shouldn't be) anyway, as long as you can get the module. They aren't dreadfully reliable (the speed controllers), as they're very much built down to a price.

They really don't like damp, nor excessive periods of very dry heat. Household room temp and humidity is best overall - goes for anything with a brushed motor and a speed control really. It used to be a common problem with analogue electronics - in damp or very hot dry conditions (such as being on for long periods of time (years)), tracks would crumble away. It's one reason why volume knobs go crackly.

As a general "care+feeding" rule, don't leave the speed setting anywhere in the middle of the range. It's good practice to turn it to the fastest setting when you're finished with it. This means there's no point pressure on the middle of the pot's carbon track whilst it's being stored. Also, if any damage does happen, it'll be in the area least important. I say 'fastest' because cutter speed tends to be more critical on slower settings, and you'll want to protect that bit of track as much as possible.

Hope that's useful.

E.

PS: I have an old audio mixer that spends most of its life in its flightcase these days. It's got around 200 pots on it. They're all stored set to the end of the tracks (faders too), and amazingly, although it's around 30 years old, nothing's gone significantly crackly. Faders should be left fully "on" for long term storage, incidentally.
 
Thanks Eric very interesting, I appreciate your suggestions.

As I now own two of the same machine albeit with different names I thought it might be wise to buy a speed controller module as the these routers are know to have problems with this item.

Struggled to find anybody selling parts and the only one I found http://www.knighton-tools.co.uk/acatalog/FREUD_POWER_TOOL_SPARES.html want £83.90 plus postage :!:

Anybody know of any other sources for Freud Router Spares?

Shame as they are great routers and offer great value for money if you want a powerful handheld or something for a table.
 
I think Freud is now owned by Bosch, so you may need to go through them for spares. Email me if you need a contact there for parts.

Nick
 
Sorry - Nick mentioning Freud prompted another thought:

Miles Tools and Machinery Centre in Yeovil are spares agents for Bosch. Although not specifically Freud, they have exploded diagrams for almost all the brands they stock spares for (and they stock a lot!). If you can find a similar Bosch model, the speed controller may be the same (depends when Freud were taken over, I guess). Might be worth a look, as they were quite good value when I refurbished my little POF500A.

Regards,

E.
 
Takeover was pretty recent, so I don't expect there are common parts yet. I suspect Bosch were after Freud's blade supply and business rather than the routers, though Freud routers are respected, especially in tables.

Nick
 

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