1 HP router - okay for small project?

[Florin Andrei]

Hi, I'm new to woodworking. I'm doing this small project (a telescope mount, the thing that the tube is mounted on):

http://stellafane.org/tm/dob/

The material is 3/4" plywood - or maybe I'll use poplar or pine instead of plywood. I need a tool to cut the plywood, I'm especially concerned about the big circular cuts. I was told a router with a circle guide could do the job. Okay, I'm going to purchase a router, maybe I'll use it for other things in the future.

Basically, it's down to these two choices:

A small 1 HP router:
http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-PR20EVSK-1-Horsepower-Fixed-Base-Variable-Speed/dp/B000ANQHTA/

A regular 1.75 HP router:
http://www.amazon.com/Porter-Cable-690LR-Amp-Fixed-Base-Router/dp/B00005QEVQ/

I've been told to just get the regular-size router. But I'm very tempted by the small one. This is a very small project, it's not like I'm making barn doors. I played with both routers at the store, and the little one is so easy to handle. It also seems easier to use when cutting small pieces. And it will definitely be more comfortable to use for mortising hinges, things like that, working in tight places hard to reach.

This is a tool that I'm going to use very rarely. I'd hate to buy the large one and see it collecting dust in a corner. I'm much more likely to cut a sheet of plexi once in a while (and the little router would be perfect for that); but woodworking, not that much.

Am I really going to hate the little router when cutting the 3/4" plywood for the telescope mount? Speed doesn't matter, this is a one-off project and I have all the time in the world. And, after all, it has near 60% the power of the big one, and I know people who did a telescope mount with a Dremel Trio, which is 1/3 the power of the small router.

Please let me know if I'm missing something here.

[Bruce Page]

Florin, welcome to SMC. I have both the 690 & the Colt. The 690 is by far the more versatile. It has a large stable base, it accepts 1/2" shank bits and it is more powerful.

[Andy Sowers]

Not knowing how a telescope mount is constructed from wood, I just quickly checked out your link... You're going to need more than just a router. Routers are versatile tools, great for lots of stuff. But they're not suited to cutting 3/4" plywood parts to size by themselves. You'd be much better off buying some kind of saw (handsaw, circular saw, jigsaw, tablesaw, etc.) to cut out your parts. A router with a circle jig would work just fine for the circular cuts your looking at doing. But personally for the circular cuts, I'd first rough cut with a jigsaw, scrollsaw, or bandsaw to near the final size, then finish it off with the router if it needed to be a perfect circle.

Andy

[Florin Andrei]

It has to be a perfect circle. That part is an altitude bearing, so it better be as close to the ideal shape as possible.

Can I do the cuts with a router in multiple passes? E.g., cut 1/4" first pass, then another 1/4, then another. Time is not an issue, in fact I enjoy working on this project.

I'm reluctant to buy more tools since the budget for this thing is already exceeding the expectation.

[Michael Simpson Virgina]

Even with my large routers I do multiple passes when I do most of my cuts. Keep this in mind. You should not cut at a depth thats more than the width of your bit. Also keep in mind that you will probably be using some sort of sacrificial board if you are cutting all the way thoough, so you have to add that to the depth as well.

Your set up will have to be perfect so I recomend practicing the cut on scrap. I own a colt and even though its rated at 1/HP there is no way it holds up to other 1hp routers.

[Josiah Bartlett]

I find a router with a circle cutting jig to be a great way to make perfect circles in plywood. A router, a circular saw, and a good straight edge can get you any shape you want in plywood.

[Kent A Bathurst]

........ a router with a circle cutting jig to be a great way to make perfect circles in plywood....

Bingo. Homemade circle jigs are easy to make.


I know nothing about the Colt. I do know, however, about the PC690x - have 3. Really only need 2, but someone here had one for sale at a price I could not refuse. Don't know what you have to do to kill one - Lord knows I've tried everything. I'm not a "router guy" - no table, etc., so nothing bigger than the 690, but it can do everything I've ever needed.

And yes - multiple passes is the ticket. 1/4" sounds good to me, but an expert here advised me to go 3/16" per pass, so that's what I do [other than 1/4" in very soft wood].

[Rich Engelhardt]

A Dremel 4000 kit will come with everything you need. It includes a circle cutting jig that'll make up to a 12" dia. circle.
For anything larger, I'd spring another ~ $30.00 for the plunge router accessory and treat it just like the Colt of PC690.
You'll probably get a lot of use out of the Dremel 4000 over the course of the rest of your life.

Another option would be to scan Craig's list for a Roto Zip. If you're lucky you may fond one with the circle cutting jig. If not, you can pick one up from Lowes. I don't believe it's all that expensive. Just post them back on CL when you're done. A Roto Zip is a wonderful tool - if you have a lot of drywall to do - beyond that they have litte use - which is why they pop on on CL so often.

Third on my suggestion list would be the Colt. Buy it, use it, sell it. Make sure you hang on to everything that comes with it - including the packaging. You'll get a decent return since they are usually in pretty high demand.
However - - DeWalt just introduced a small trim router to go head to head w/the Colt, so, that may affect price/quick sale.

Last would be the PC 690 or any other 1.5 and above router. Great for woodworking!!! Not much good for anything else.
(Well - expect for really - and I mean really annoying a neighbor. They scream like an old Offy powered Indy race car winding up...)
Unless you have some future plans of getting into WW'ing, it's going to spend the next several years getting moved around from one spot to another and eventuallly get seperated from the wrench, extra collet, case, manual and just about everything else it comes with - been there/done that w/more things over the years than I can shake a stick at....

One of those "things" BTW was a pretty nice 3" refractor I got for Christmas in 1969.



Am I really going to hate the little router when cutting the 3/4" plywood for the telescope mount? Speed doesn't matter, this is a one-off project and I have all the time in the world. And, after all, it has near 60% the power of the big one, and I know people who did a telescope mount with a Dremel Trio, which is 1/3 the power of the small router.

Opps - forgot...
You'll need to make multiple passes. Even w/a 3 hp router you'd still want to make multiple passes in 3/4" stock.

No - you won't hate making multiple passes.
Yes - you will hate it if you try to do it all in one bite. The router bog down & when it does, the bit will grab & you'll have a mess. Been there/done that...

Re: power - it's all relative to the maximum size of the diameter of the bit the router can use.
The 690 can take a 1/2" shank bit., the Colt can only take 1/4" shank bits. The Dremels and Roto Zip use 1/8" shank bits.
That's an overly simple answer BTW & there's more to it than that - but - you get the idea.
A 1HP router spinning a 1/4" bit is doing pretty much the same thing as a 1/2HP router spinning a 1/8" bit.

[Michael Simpson Virgina]

Its because of cutouts just like this that I built my own cnc machine. All the same rules apply but since you have more control over the router I tend to make smaller cuts. If however Im doing real soft wood I will up the depth. I never exceed the width of the bit when routing though. Not because of the power of the router but instead because of bit shank bending.

I used the colt many times in the past using templates. Its small base is problematic. I find larger routers with larger based to be much more stable when using templates. The PC 690 is easyer to get template bushings for as well.

[Bill Huber]

The problem I see with both of those routers is they are not plunge base routers. I would think cutting a circle would not be as easy to cut with a fixed base router.

The other thing to look at is this going to be the only woodworking project you do or are you just getting started and this is your first project?

I know this is a lot more money but you get a plunge base and a fixed base, both are good to have for different jobs.
http://www.cpopowertools.com/dewalt-dwp611pk-premium-compact-router-fixed-plunge-combo-kit/dewndwp611pk,default,pd.html?start=2&cgid=dewalt-routers

I had the Colt and it is a very good little router but the depth adjustment is not that great. The 611pak is 1.25 hp and works very well, it has 2 LEDs that shine on the work as you cut.

[Justin Jones RDH]

Well if you are wanting to cut holes it will be easier on a plunge router. If you are truly convinced that you will never use this tool again than i dont know why you are even considering purchasing one. Rent or borrow one from a friend.

IMO you should you should get this http://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-5615-24-1-75-Horsepower-Multi-Base-BodyGrip/dp/B000QV35AK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1294592810&sr=8-1 and you will have a great smaller router capable of so much more should the need arise.

Also- like others have said- you will need another tool to cut the straight pieces- a table saw would be choice to make sure the cuts are straight. Again- you could probably borrow one from someone and ask them to show you how to use it.

[Florin Andrei]

That's a lot of information - thank you.

Reading some replies here, I'm starting to realize that using the router for everything may not be the best idea. I'll see if I can find a cheap jig saw, or something like that, for the straight cuts. That's more expense, but I can delay the router purchase for a while. That will also give me more time to think about what I'm doing.

One more question - is this the right kind of bit for cutting the circles with the router? I'm not asking about the exact model/make, but whether it's the type of bit that should be used for this job.

http://www.amazon.com/CMT-191-008-11-4-Inch-Diameter-1-Inch/dp/B000P4HOEQ/

[Justin Jones RDH]

Depending on how good you want this project to look you could do it all with a jig saw (with a circle guide) to avoid purchasing 2 tools. Circles can easily be cut with a jigsaw- especially ones that large. The straight pieces can be cut too- just make sure to clamp a straight edge to the wood to use as a guide-although this is not the best method.

If you choose to use a router (which is a better method) than you will also need to make/ purchase a circle cutting jig. Just FYI if you have no experience using a router or cutting circles, you should plan on cutting this on some scrap 1st. Search routing circles here for some ideas/pictures.

[Florin Andrei]

For the circle cutter, I think I figured it: I could replace the plastic piece on the base of the router with a long narrow plexi sheet, longer than the radius of the circle, with a hole where the center is, and just pin that hole to the material and gently rotate the whole assembly while the router is cutting the plywood.

Is a guided jig saw precise enough for long straight cuts? On second thought, it seems like jig saws are not quite ideal for cutting long straight lines, they seem better suited for cutting fancy contours, but I could be mistaken.

[Justin Jones RDH]

Search for router circle cutting jig- you will have plenty of info.

[Andy Sowers]

A Jigsaw was among one of the first woodworking power tools that I purchased (not THE first). One of the problems I have with my somewhat cheap jigsaw is that the blade doesn't always cut 90deg with respect to the wood. In other words, the blade deflects causing the cut to bevel the edge of the wood. This has happened even when using a straightedge as a guide. Granted, my jigsaw isn't nearly as good as one of the top of the line Bosch or Festool ones... but it can happen.

My first recommendation to make the straight cuts in your ply would be a tablesaw. If you can't swing that right now or can't find someone to help you, my next recommendation would be a good circular saw with some kind of guide (could be as simple as a straight board, and as complex as a guided track saw).

You're on the right track with the circle guide. It doesn't have to be super complex, esp if you are just making this jig for this specific project.

[Jim Rimmer]

I'm not trying to be a wise guy here but that seems like a pretty involved project for someone just getting started. Maybe you have experience in other disciplines that will give you an edge. There seems to be some angles, the semicircle cuts, the base cabinet, etc. Quite a few precison cuts. You will need a lot more than just a router.

[Mike Heidrick]

Check lowes and see if they have the $89 Hitachi M12VC 2.25hp router for $89 still. Great router at a great price.

That being said, I do like jasper circle jigs with a plunge router (the above router is a fixed base model) attached for making circles myself.

What other tools do you already have?

Welcome to SMC as well!

[Florin Andrei]

my next recommendation would be a good circular saw with some kind of guide (could be as simple as a straight board, and as complex as a guided track saw).

Sounds like I'm going shopping for a cheap circular saw. Performance won't matter since I'm not cutting miles of material per week. Anything in particular I should pay attention to when choosing it? If it's not powerful and fast, that's okay; as long as it's not too expensive and it doesn't break down in two days, it should be fine. There's a ton of reviews on Amazon, I'm going to use that information as well.

I'm going to clamp a straight edge to the plywood and guide the saw. I'll do some practice first on some scrap material in the garage.


What other tools do you already have?

That's the thing, I don't have many tools. I'm a computer geek who suddenly decided to build a telescope. I did a little bit of woodworking as a kid, but that was ages ago in a very different context, this is the first time I'm going to use power tools on wood. I worked with metal many years ago, including welding, working with a lathe and whatnot, but I realize this is pretty different. So that's why I'm here asking questions, and I'm learning a lot. This forum is great, thanks everyone.

[Justin Jones RDH]

To be honest with you, I really think you should try to find someone who has the proper tools and experience to help you. You may end up spending a lot of money on a project that you are not happy with or may not function as intended due to alignment issues. IMO cheaply made tools, especially power tools are never a bargain.