Retrofit router lighting?

[Jamie Buxton]

I'd like to put LED lighting in my Festool router, like the LEDs in my DeWalt laminate trimmer. In the past few months there has been some discussion here about this, but try as I might, I can't find that thread. So would y'all repeat your suggestions/experience?

[Robert Delhommer Sr]

On the Router Forum their is a series of articles by Harry Sin showing some of the things he has done. One is very elaborate but very efficient. He wrote a couple of very good articles about some of his projects with lighting the router. I don't know why all the manufacturers don't just include built in lighting other than to save $$$$$$

[johnny means]

I think most workers would find lights in routers useless. I can't think of one instance, and I use routers a lot, where a light would be helpful.

[Charles Lent]

I attached one of the 1" dia Harbor Freight 9 LED flashlights to the side of one of my routers with Velcro to do some free-hand sign engraving. Using the Velcro on an angled part of the router allows re-positioning of the light and easy removal of it for storage later. It worked quite well for me, and the light provided a very bright light on the work area at a cost of about $2 for both the flashlight and the Velcro strip. Harry Sin (short for Sinclair) gave me the idea, but I was never able to locate the metal spring clips that he used to attach these same flashlights to his routers (he lives in Austrailia). I gave up looking here and just used the Velcro, which worked very well for me.

Charley

[Robert Delhommer Sr]

A light on a router is very helpful when making free hand signs which is what I use a router for mostly.

[johnny means]

Oh, I realize there is a use for lights on routers for some. I was explaining why manufacturers aren't going to raise costs for the other 99.99% of routers.

[Mike Heidrick]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01pbGV9dHk4

Maybe that would give you some ideas.

[Nick Nelson]

I'm surprised that high dollar festool does not come with a light.

[Bruce Page]

Mike, great minds (?) think alike. A couple of months ago I modified my Kent dust shoe and installed a 100mm light ring. I love the extra light, especially when taking a light 3d cut where you don't need the DC.

[Thomas S Stockton]

Jamie
I used a small led flashlight with a gooseneck and velcroed it to the side of the router. works great and is about the size of an aa battery and under 10 bucks
Tom

[Roy Harding]

Mike, great minds (?) think alike. A couple of months ago I modified my Kent dust shoe and installed a 100mm light ring. I love the extra light, especially when taking a light 3d cut where you don't need the DC.

How is this useful on a CNC? I do a lot of 3D (well, 2.5D) carvings on my CNC - and I have never felt the need to see the bit. Of course, when I first GOT the CNC, I'd stand and watch it cut, but within a week or two, that fascination wore off. Now my CNC does its thing while I'm doing other things - no visual contact required.

I can see how a light on a hand held router would be useful - but I just don't get the utility of it on a CNC (or a table mounted router for that matter).

There may indeed be a good use for it, and I'm just ignorant of what it may be.

[Jamie Buxton]

Jamie
I used a small led flashlight with a gooseneck and velcroed it to the side of the router. works great and is about the size of an aa battery and under 10 bucks
Tom
Tom, that's what I'm going to try. I've ordered up a couple of small gooseneck flashlights, and I'll see how they do.

[Bruce Page]

How is this useful on a CNC? I do a lot of 3D (well, 2.5D) carvings on my CNC - and I have never felt the need to see the bit. Of course, when I first GOT the CNC, I'd stand and watch it cut, but within a week or two, that fascination wore off. Now my CNC does its thing while I'm doing other things - no visual contact required.

I can see how a light on a hand held router would be useful - but I just don't get the utility of it on a CNC (or a table mounted router for that matter).

There may indeed be a good use for it, and I'm just ignorant of what it may be.

Roy, there's probably no practical value other than my eyes aren't as good as they use to be. My cnc is used for hobby work, and piddling, as my wife likes to call it, is something I enjoy doing. As they say, different strokes for different folks. What a boring world it would be if we all liked the same things.

[John Sincerbeaux]

It's the ONE thing I have always wanted from festool. I use my festool 1010 for routing channels for inlay borders. It's pretty precise work. The router shields a huge amount of light from the business end. A built in LED light would make this almost perfect router perfect!

[Roy Harding]

Roy, there's probably no practical value other than my eyes aren't as good as they use to be. My cnc is used for hobby work, and piddling, as my wife likes to call it, is something I enjoy doing. As they say, different strokes for different folks. What a boring world it would be if we all liked the same things.

Yes, Sir - I understand what it is to have failing eyes. And I'm all over the different strokes for different folks thing - but I don't understand what you're trying to see (or what practical value it has once you DO see it) with these lights on a CNC.

That said - it makes no difference to me if you like lights on your CNC router, I'm just trying to understand if there's something I'm missing while using mine.

[Keith Weber]

but I don't understand what you're trying to see (or what practical value it has once you DO see it) with these lights on a CNC.

Roy, I don't have a CNC router, but I do do a lot of machining on a Bridgeport mill, which has a similar function. One thing I could see it being useful is the initial zeroing of the Z-axis (vertical). Say you want to make a cut 0.050 deep from the surface of your work piece. You first need to know where that surface is, so you lower the bit until it just makes contact with the work piece. A good light would allow you to see when you're there, and didn't go too deep (bit is pressing into the work piece) or not deep enough (air gap below bit). Anytime you change a router bit, you lose your Z-axis reference and need to reset it.

Also, not overly important if you were cutting a piece from a large, blank sheet, but if you were making a cut on a work piece that's already had a bunch of work done on it already, then you'd want to zero your X and Y axes on a particular point so the cut doesn't come out shifted from where you want it. Again, lots of light under the router would make this job a lot easier.

[Roy Harding]

Roy, I don't have a CNC router, but I do do a lot of machining on a Bridgeport mill, which has a similar function. One thing I could see it being useful is the initial zeroing of the Z-axis (vertical). Say you want to make a cut 0.050 deep from the surface of your work piece. You first need to know where that surface is, so you lower the bit until it just makes contact with the work piece. A good light would allow you to see when you're there, and didn't go too deep (bit is pressing into the work piece) or not deep enough (air gap below bit). Anytime you change a router bit, you lose your Z-axis reference and need to reset it.

Also, not overly important if you were cutting a piece from a large, blank sheet, but if you were making a cut on a work piece that's already had a bunch of work done on it already, then you'd want to zero your X and Y axes on a particular point so the cut doesn't come out shifted from where you want it. Again, lots of light under the router would make this job a lot easier.

Good point on zeroing X,Y axis - I usually leave tool path X,Y 0 at the lower left corner of my table (physical X,Y 0 if you will). But - if one has a need to move X,Y 0 around the table, then THAT is something I can see the light being useful for. All the machines I've used (including a large commercial one in a cabinet factory) have used a Z Zeroing plate of some kind - so again I don't need to see precisely where the bit is.

Thanks - when I made my first post to this thread I figured I was missing something, and I was right.

[Bruce Page]

From a practical standpoint the light helps me better see the chip load as it is being cut so I can make speed/feed adjustments on the fly.
I have a laser pointer for locating X&Y position and a touch plate for Z zeroing.

From a impractical standpoint, I like to watch it cut. :)