For what it's worth, here are my opinions on the HTC 2000 mobile base.
For several months now, I have been trying to get my son to bring over a wire welder he has stored, so that I could build a mobile base for my Delta horizontal boring machine, and my Jet spindle sander. I have had the square tubing all cut and ready to go for a while.
Well, Rockler put the HTC 2000 universal mobile base on sale for $50, and I decided I couldn't wait any longer to move this stuff, so I bought one to try. The base is rated at 500#, the Delta weighs 370, and the Jet weighs 330, so either should be ok, right?
Assembling the base was fairly straight forward, but the instructions were not too good. I put it together with little problem though. Now, I have several old HTC bases and they were built really heavy duty. This one is pretty lightweight compared to the old ones that were built for specific machines. I believe the company has changed hands, and all they make now are the universal types.
I like the concept of adjustability for various tools, and this base will fit a large range of sizes. I like the idea of having two wheels that lower rather than the one on many bases, should be more stable rolling the tool around.
What I do not like however (and I am being subjective here) is the light weight construction of the unit. There were also a few design glitches that bother me. First, bolt for the stationary rubber feet next to the wheels goes into a simple tab of maybe 1/8" angle. This 1/8" is threaded for the bolt, and it comes with one jam nut that goes on the top. Well, I do not want to depend on two threads holding after repeated up and downs with the lifting mechanism, so I mounted the jam nut below the tab, and put another on top to lock it all in place.
Second, if you want your tool level you need to level the base to the height dictated by the stationary rear wheels. This can be done, and it works out to just the right height when the pads are all the way up against that jam nut I put below the tab. Sounds good, but when the base is level with or without the extra jam nut, the wheels do not retract enough to take weight off them. You can get the wheels to retract by lowering the pad bolt, but then the base is no longer level. To me, this is pretty basic engineering.
Third problem is the lever system to raise and lower the wheels. I may be off base here, but I just don't see the plastic/nylon cam surface working very long without wearing or more probably deforming. This issue is also exacerbated by the fact that there are two sides to the cam lever but only one is doing all the work. It will probably be fine with a lighter tool, like a router table, but 500# is a pretty big tool.
Fourth problem is the swivel wheels. They must have got them from the HF discount bin. They have the smallest ball bearings of any swivel I have seen. They also don't swivel if you tighten them up more than finger tight. No lie, I can tighten the nut enough with my fingers to make it a little rough to swivel (yes I oiled them), and if I tighten them at all with a wrench, they are useless.
Now, as I said, much of the above is percieved inadequacy, but I have decided to not use the base under either tool. I have it assembled, and am going out of town for a few weeks, so I will probably not be able to return it. I guess I will put it in the shed till I need it for a less heavy tool. If so, I will upgrade to HF wheels.
I am sure others are satisfied with this model. As I said these are subjective views (except for items 1-4).
Rick Potter
PS: The kid (41) promised to bring home the welder.
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