router lift vs router that adjusts from above the table

[Dave Loebach]

It seems the new routers that allow you to adjust the height from the bottom side make router lifts obsolete and are a lot cheaper than buying a lift and a router. It seems that you have full accesss to the collet/bit and can easily adjust the height. Why buy a lift these days? Can some experts provide a some insights?

Thanks.

Dave Loebach

[scott vroom]

It seems the new routers that allow you to adjust the height from the bottom side make router lifts obsolete and are a lot cheaper than buying a lift and a router. It seems that you have full accesss to the collet/bit and can easily adjust the height. Why buy a lift these days? Can some experts provide a some insights?

Thanks.

Dave Loebach

Did you mean to say "from the top side"?

[glenn bradley]

I'm no expert but have had experience with both. There are varying qualities of both lifts and router mechanisms designed for above the table adjustments. I would recommend reading as many reviews on the subject as you can. Digest the information rather than go straight to the final results. Some magazines that rely on advertising dollars seem to have "winners" that didn't really test that well.

Now that I've managed to sneak my little soap box speech in there . . . All camlock bodies, the type that lock the motor in position via a little lever that draws a gap in the base together to lessen the diameter, have a bit of a 'shift' when the mechanism is locked. The amount of this effect varies with the router base design. I found some of them to have more than I was comfortable with. If you find one with a deviation that is within your tolerance, you're good.

I narrowed it down to the Milwaukee 5625 and ran it without a lift for quite awhile and it was very usable. Relating to above the table features only:

Pros:
- Easy height adjustment.
- Minimal under the table access required.
- Motor drops right out of the body for bit changes without and twisting or special lineup.

Cons:
- Occasional 'jog' when latching if I was not diligent in my technique.
- Have to drop the motor out of the body for easy bit changes.

With this experience in hand and my father's requirement being a bit less 'Tim Allen' than mine, we set him up with the Triton MOF001. This 2-1/4 HP unit came with all sorts of goodies that are still in the case up over the rafters as he uses it exclusively in the table. Again focusing on above the table features, only:

Pros:
- Easy height adjustment.
- Minimal under the table access required.
- Collet extends high enough for above the table bit changes and is self locking.
- The built-in vac attachment on the base does a really good job of catching chips even without an enclosure . . .OK that isn't specific to the above the table stuff but, it is pretty cool.

Cons:
- Carriage lock is still an under the table knob that must be tightened although some people are OK with the carriage loose during operation.
- The power switch on the router must be in the off position for the collet to lock and has a safety mechanism that is a bit fussy to get it turned back on once the motor is lowered.

I'll try not to wander off and talk about specific lifts but, I had already decided that if and when I got a lift, it would be the Woodpecker PRL. This was based on actual hands on with several similarly priced units. It didn't hurt that they made a version that was built just for the 5625 without any adapter rings and such.

When the PRL v2 was first announced, the PRL 16TPI went on sale and I pounced. There is little comparison in the quality of the mechanisms of the built in above the table features in a router and a quality lift other than the fact that they make the motor go up and down. You might expect this for something that costs as much as the router itself but there are some in that price range that lack features that I was after.

I enjoy (but lived well enough without) all functions being performed above the table (except changing the speed, this will vary with your router choice and external switch type). The carriage is self locking on my lift, once you height is set, that's it, no additional operations required.

The newer routers with built in features are far and above their predecessors, Depending on your methods of work, tolerance and budget you could do without a lift. Is a lift better? IMHO at this point in time, yes. But the designers are catching up. ;-)