Router... what to buy?!

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zodiac

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Hi,

I want a router. I haven't got one so obviously I need to buy one, then I will have one. Easy! Nah... never is!

I messaged the guy selling this :

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Wolfcraft-Rou ... 2334b6271f

as it is near me but replies have dried up and you can't see the router very well in the photos so I haven't bid (this isn't too far from me) ...

Alternatively brand new similar router tables which still have the feather boards etc which that one may or may not have can be had for £40 on ebay right now, or I could just make onefor a lot less than that and buy a brand new router. Which brings me to the next part...

Screwfix have one for £29.99 at the moment with 4/5 review score and then nothing with the same score until 99.99 which I don't have to allocate to this.

http://www.screwfix.com/p/energer-enb46 ... 240v/31457

It has a plastic baseplate though which I don't like the sound of.

A quick ebay last night turned up this half price bargain...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/131051456347? ... 1438.l2649

but that has mixed reviews...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Decker-KW ... B000Y8ZEVI

I am a tinkerer, learning woodworking but mostly making things for myself or the kids, not millimeter-perfect precsion or furniture but still I don't want a rubbish machine! Any opinions on what I've posted or even suggestions of a recommeded router in this kind of price bracket would be appreciated as I don't know which way to go with this and it is starting to become head work !! Thanks :)
 
I'd suggest keeping an eye on the eBay link you've posted.
That's an old Elu router under there (a MOF 98E I think) and, if in good condition, is worth £75 alone.
But before bidding ask if there are any accessories included with it.
It stops being a bargain if there's no fence for handheld work or spanners for the collet, plus there should be a depth stop that isn't shown in the photos.

As others have said a good router will be a long term investment, so buy the best you can.
 
If it's going to be table mounted, forget the Energer one from Screwfix. You need one with a 1/2" collet and at least a 1500w motor for 110v or 1800w for 240v. Anything much less will struggle and won't last as long.

Edit: don't bother with the B&D either, my cousin has one and it struggles with anything that could be vaguely classified as hardwood. Plus it comes with 6mm 1/4" and 8mm collets and he found out you can't retrofit a 1/2" collet into it.
 
HI
I have three routers, I am a hobby woodworker, not a tradesman. I used and Elu Mof 96E (1/4", 900W ) in a homemade table and handheld, still do. It's perfectly adequate in a table, well it has been for me, just take many shallow passes. YMMV depends on what you intend to make. I also have a second hand Black & Decker KW850E (1/4", 1100W), it cost me £15 and is in tip top condition. Frankly I wouldn't recommend it and if someone offered me £15 for it and could come to collect it I'd sell it. (I got it to replace my Elu when it's bearings were shot, I have since changed the bearings). I do use it occasionally, it's only really useful for handheld as the switch is one that has to be held on. Furthernore the fence rods don't go parallel to the base when tightened and there is no fine height adjuster. I do use it with a guide bush or in a jig with a separate guide.

So based on my experience and bearing in mind that you don't seem to have £200+ to spend, I'd recommend looking for a high quality 1/4" machine, like a MOF96E clone such as the Dewalt 615 or Trend T5 - I have no experience of these or their build quality though. I personally wouldn't spend much on a secondhand machine and not if I couldn't view it first. I took a punt on the B&D but I was able to visit the sellers home to test and collect it and for £15 I wouldn't lose much if it was a dud. My reason for the caution is that I'd be worried that the machine was stolen or worn out.
 
Appreciate you are on a budget but buying a cheap router will get you just that - a cheap router.

Also the pressed metal and alloy tables are very rough and the safety mechanisms / bit guards are flimsy to the point of useless.

If you end up with low quality kit it may put you off altogether.

My own advice based on my own experience would be to save a little more and get something half decent. Buying the ebay packages of tables and routers is usually a false economy.

That said the ELU router is probably worth it at that price however I would advise eyeballing it first. If its not too far, ask if you can have a look and take some cash. If the router is serviceable, shows no sign of abuse, runs okay and has the ancillaries then make a cash offer for the router alone for £40 (ish). That way he still has something to sell and he gets over half the starting price of his advertised kit in hand. Remind him that ebay will take its cut and show him the cash - this works wonders and easily justifies most sales no matter how much cash is involved.

If however he still fails to communicate, walk away.
 
I did get one reply from the Elu seller who said the whole lot had cost him £300 originally but I didn't know the brand to know if that was true. The questions I haven't had replies to were does it have the guide fence etc so ti can be used hand held.

Without a photo of it out of the table on the auction I didn't want to bid in case it didn't have one, the first auction ended and he has relisted it but not checked his messages?!

I am wondering whether to just dip my toes in with the screwfix one for 29.99 ... my requirements are probably minimal compared to others ... also the B&D model is in current budget without having to save up (and wait!!) ... half inch models on screwfix (I look on there first usually as they have customer reviews so you can quickly eliminate what is clearly junk) start at £150 and seeing as I also want a bandsaw, circular saw and some other toys it will take me ages to get the workshop set up :-(

confused.com lol
 
I can supply a fair few,
we have this 1500w 1/2" one at around £52 http://www.silverlinetools.com/products?search=264895

this one is a bit more robust and more powerfull at 2050w just over £70 http://www.silverlinetools.com/products?search=124799

or we go all the way up to triton professional range 3 1/4HP at around £220 http://www.tritontools.com/en-GB/Model/TRA001

Links are not to my site, they are to manufacturers

Can probably knock a bit off them if your interested.

Cheap routers are ok to see if its something your interested in BUT, they usually more difficult to get a decent finish with, often discouraging people before they've really started.
What a decent router can do in one run, can take 2 or 3 runs from a cheap router as the spindles arn't as solid or there is a slight slop in the plunge mech, or the motors lack the power to take as big a cut.

I have used budget routers before now and while a router isnt something i use much at all, im perfectly happy to to use an "inferior" router and take the extra few passes on the work.

If i was doing it all day every it would be a differant story.

P.S a router table is something you can make extremely easily!
 
Thanks for your reply tool-me-up I will take a look today :)

I've also seen this on ebay (haven't done an extensive search just seen brands I recognise within the budget!) :

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/261353839789

not sure if that's any better than the B&D though.

I also missed the end of the auction for this which might have been good?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/271366964366? ... 1438.l2649

although still a 1/4 inch.


Saw this as well.... the woodworking for mere mortals guy has a Ryobi so it can't be total junk? lol

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/181296640522? ... 1438.l2649

Don't even get me started on my search for the other power tools I want... none are going much easier than this !!
 
zodiac":6rng7tqy said:
I'll take a look now :)

The original ebay seller from my OP has now replied saying he's added another photo to the auction... I don't know what might be missing though (yet, newbie lol)...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/151208208159? ... 1438.l2661
Click to expand...
Fence is there, and so is the fine height adjuster which will be handy for table use. :)

Also the depth bar for hand held use is shown, so it might have everything needed. =D>
 
Where are you in South West Wales Zodiac? That Elu is down the road from me.

Also, do you know if the router body is complete? It looks like the handle is missing on one side - not an issue in a table, but rules out safe hand held use. You can probably get the spares, but I would question if anything else that is crucial is missing.
 
Yeah I thought one handle was missing too. I'd go for it if I could get timely replies to questions but 3 days isnt timely! !
 
Getting replies now !! Just as I was thinking just get the 29.99 screwfix one to try out for now, and save up 200 quid for something to last years and years, I can take it back if it's total junk plus it's got a 12 month guarantee and won't be missing any parts!

I have queried about the missing knob and asked for a decent photo of the router on it's own, out of the table. We shall see.

I thought this would be easy, buy router, insert bits, apply to wood! Depth guages, collets ?! Any links to an silly person's guide to routers anywhere? What do I need to look for in a router etc you know?

:)
 
If you buy used you need to consider the life that the machine has already had, at least new it's going to work properly and have a guarantee. Cheap routers in my opinion are not very good and are likely to put you off the sport. You'll be wressling wih their limitations rather than taking pleasure in the job that they ought to do for you. You don't say what you want to use it for, you may not know at this stage. Here are a few things I would recommend you look for if you want this machine to serve you for years as your skills develop.

Ability to fit a fine height adjuster, this is useful for use in a table, essential for use in precision jig such as a dovetail jig. This would actually be a deal breaker for me.
Latching on/off switch, essential for table use though you can work round it.
good dust collection. It goes everywhere, get a shop vac to go with the router.
Is it OK to run as a stationary machine ? My B&D says it isn't, presumably it's not intended to run for more than a few minutes at a time.


things I couldn't live without though I would expect all machines to support these

Guide bush system
fences
threaded holes in base to allow fitting of subbases, attaching to a table etc
fence rods that remain parallel to the base once tightened, my B&D does not, there is no support beneath the rods at the point where the screw applies preasure.

nice to have

soft start


I wouldn't dismiss 1/4" machines too quickly, as I said I used one as my sole machine for years.
 
Thanks again for all replies so far :)

I went to screwfix today on the way to work and asked if anyone knew anything about routers but apparently none of them do... weird for a tool shop (or am I being old fashioned here? lol). I decided not to buy one as I noticed the Energer one doesn't seem to be a plunge router?

http://www.screwfix.com/p/energer-enb46 ... 240v/31457

as in it doesn't have locking knobs on each side? Or am I just getting confused.com again??

I've asked for a decent photo of the ebay Elu router on it's own and if he has the other knob for it or not, still waiting.

I should have just asked "What router should I buy for under £80 in my OP shouldn't I? lol
 

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