Take a look inside almost anyone’s shop and you’ll see the regular assortment of power tools. You’ll see a table saw and a band saw, and you may stub your toe on a jointer and planer. Those machines are most useful at the beginning of a project, but as you get into the project, there … Read more
Executive editor Robert W. Lang takes a Makita Compact Router kit for a test drive with both the standard and plunge bases. Complete review is in the August 2012 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine. – Robert Lang
Bigger doesn’t always mean better.
By Robert W. Lang
Page 16
Small routers are easy to handle, and the addition of multiple bases makes them good all-purpose tools. The basic 1⁄4″-collet router that comes in the new Makita compact kit (RT0700CX3) has good power and variable speed. The motor slides in the base and clamps firmly, with rack-and-pinion fine depth adjustment. A plastic shield contains chips, and there’s a fitting for hooking up a shop vacuum.
The kit we tested included the standard base, a tilting base, an offset base and a plunge base. Swapping bases is easy – no need for any tools. The plunge mechanism was a bit stiff out of the box, but a squirt of lube fixed that. The handles are comfortable, but due to the motor orientation, the switch and plunge lock are reached with the left hand.
Makita: www.makita.com
Video: Watch the trim router in action. Read more
If you follow my woodworking habits, you are well aware that I enjoy using my routers with pattern bits chucked in the collet. The piece I’m working on for the August issue requires repetitive stop cuts that are a 1/4″ wide. As far as I know, pattern bits with a 1/4″ or 1/2″ shank in … Read more
