pinnacle router lift (woodpeck)

[Jay Yoder]

I was in my local woodcraft and was looking at the pinnacle branded Woodpecker VRL2. Nice piece of machinery. Only issues i had which could not be answered was the warranty, the salesman was unsure and thought maybe it could have been the store's 90 day policy. i looked at the Jessem while i was there and it had a "screw tensioner" that allowed one to adjust the tension which holds the router in position without slop. Me being O/C about my tools, and unsure of the warranty period, is this lack of tension adjustment an issue? Compounding it all the woodpecker has a 10% off sale ending at midnight tonight. any thoughts.

[glenn bradley]

My original PRL has automatic carriage lock and a backlash control. There are also eccentric gears for chain adjustments should that ever become necessary. I don't have personal experience but find it hard to believe these features would be left behind in the new model.

Ooops, I just looked at the manual online; the brake is applied with a hex wrench in the v2. You gain the quick lift feature but lose the automatic brake which they state is not usually necessary(?). I believe this is still a fine lift but am very happy with the original so hopefully a v2 owner will chime in.

I would be leary of Jessem. Do a search on them here. They seem to be hard to get ahold of whereas Woodpecker answers their phones and emials quickly and are very helpful. At the WWing show I mentioned a funny feeling in the crank on my unit which is very slight and I was more curious than anything. One of the tech guys gave me a full walk through on a unit at the booth as to what to look for and adjust if required.

He said if I had any problems or concerns about doing it myself to call him and he would send a pickup slip for the unit and set the unit up for me and return it if I could stand a 2-3 week turnaround time (mostly shipping). I'm OK with that kind of company.

P.s. the Incra version (http://www.amazon.com/INCRA-MASTER-LIFT-Magna-lock-Router/dp/B000W05DU0) uses magnets to lock in the inserts as opposed to threads and a spanner wrench if that appeals to you.

[John Lucas]

Nice unit. That is what I am using these days. Woodpeckers and Woodcraft offer the unit and their warrantee are published on their sites. I have never had need to make use of it. The lifts tend to work as promised.

http://www.woodshopdemos.com/woodpk13.jpg

It is a beautiful piece of machnery...typical of what Woodpecker is putting out these days.

[Jay Yoder]

Thanks for the replies. I spoke with Wooodpecker today and their statement was if they made it, they warranty it for life under normal conditons. This applied even to the Pinnacles. Talk about impressed. what a great company. Only thing i wished was that had picked it up yesterday when I was at woodcraft! It was great to get my hands on it! I loved the quick lift feature. Much better than cranking forever!

[Alan Schaffter]

As was mentioned, the INCRA/Woodpeckers version of the PRL V2 has inserts held by rare earth magnets which are much nicer. I have an older WP Plunge Lift. It is a great unit, but I have issues with the inserts- they fit nice and tight, maybe a little too tight, but they are tightened by turning a spanner in the opposite direction of standard screw thread. They are lefty tighty, righty loosey and designed that way so they won't spin out if contacted by an insert, and while logical, is annoying. I often forget and try to loosen it by turning it left. Since they are identical in all other respects I would go with the INCRA/Woodpeckers PRL for that reason alone. An item made in the US by a respected manufacturer, made even better by another respected US manufacturer.

[Michael Tartamella]

I have one of the original units and can assure you their warranty is for life. I had a minor issue with mine, after 8 years and had the parts at my door within 2 days at no cost to me, not even shipping. Their customer support is the best I've seen.... other companies should learn from their example. You won't be sorry, great product!

[Randal Stevenson]

I had thought about the Pinnacle branded one, to support the local/excuse to visit Woodcraft, but I haven't been able to find out if there are different models, or shims for the motors (5625 Milwaukee unit).

[Ed Labadie]

I had thought about the Pinnacle branded one, to support the local/excuse to visit Woodcraft, but I haven't been able to find out if there are different models, or shims for the motors (5625 Milwaukee unit).

Different pads for different diameter routers. Woodpeckers will put together whatever you need. In my case a bench dog plate size unit with Milwaukee pads.

A warning on the 5625 unit. The way it was designed, the clearance hole for the adjustment shaft is located so the on/off switch & speed control end up on the BACK side after the lift is in the table. You can't see them!
One little piece of poor engineering on an otherwise perfect product.
I chose to enlarge one of the holes in the main body so the router was rotated 180 degrees. Now the speed control is right in front of you when making an adjustment.
FYI: removing Milwaukee's adjustment shaft requires disassembly of the motor end cap (bearings, brushes etc.) I didn't feel this was a viable option, once in a while, I need to use the router handheld.

Ed