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Thread: Ready2Rout - Installation, issues, thoughts

  1. #1
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    Ready2Rout - Installation, issues, thoughts

    Well, I've started to install my Ready2Rout. I wanted to start a separate thread, to not steal Rick Potter's thunder, so I'll let him put out his thoughts when he gets his installed.

    The unit came in several boxes, nicely packed. No issues there. The instructions were a little outdated, but the newest ones were online on their website. The extruded aluminum fence came already installed, as opposed to the instructions, which was nice.

    I had to drill a few holes and epoxy in some threaded T-nuts in the extension table for my table saw, so this process all took a few days. I also built a sloped holder to hold the controller at the proper level and angle. I glued 4 rare earth magnets to the bottom of the bracket, which easily holds the controller at a easily visible location.

    Once the holes were drilled, and the Ready2Rout fence installed and perfectly perpendicular to the miter slot, there is a learning curve to get the fence zeroed in. The touch plate came with the unit.

    Ready2Rout1.jpg

    Installing the router in the Ready2Lift router lift didn't go so well. The PC-7518 router (which the unit is designed for) just wouldn't fit in the clamps. I replaced the screws, and tried for several days. The clamp was just too tight, and I couldn't get the unit even remotely square.

    I called Next Wave Automation, and they readily agreed for me to send back the router and lift, and they installed it for me. I haven't received it back yet, but should in a few days, and I'll post more.

    One thing I have noticed, is that the extruded aluminum fence has a large gap in the middle to accomodate larger bits, but no way, without an attached auxillary fence, to reduce the size of the opening. I missed this feature from my Incra LS positioner fence that this unit replaced.

    Also, it was very noticeable that the fence could lift up from the table. This would decrease the accuracy of the unit, as hold-downs could lift up the whole fence slightly while routing. I'm working on a few steps to eliminate that. For one, I adapted the auxillary fence from my Incra table (which is 1.5" thick MDF with a melamine surface, and the Jessem Clear Cut precision stock guides, which I love). This is heavy, and will clearly help the fence stay down on the table. In addition, I think I'm going to build two L-brackets with rare-earth magnets on the table side. Since I have a cast iron router table, this should make the fence stick to the table in a rock solid fashion, yet easily move or be removed.

    Here are some pictures of the Ready2Rout fence. I'll try to link some video of me using the unit once I learn to use it, and receive the Ready2Lift unit back.

    Ready2Rout Fence with Auxillary Fence 1.jpg
    Back of Ready2Rout Fence unit with controller bracket.jpg
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  2. #2
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    Keep the info coming Alan,

    I got an e-mail today, telling me Woodcraft has shipped my reducer ring. I am gonna use a 690 router I have, rather than removing the 7518 in my other router table.

    One suggestion about the lifting of the fence. I can see it may be a problem with the fence mounting so far to the rear. Try putting less pressure on the Jessem Stock Guides, They may still work well that way. I just used my Jessem table saw guides to rip a bunch of rails and stiles to final width today. I used much less pressure (a finger push) on them and they worked great on the TS that way. It was not heavy ripping, just cutting an 8th inch off of 72 pieces of varying lengths.

    EDIT: About that fence lifting...to go along with your rare earth magnet idea...... perhaps a couple switchable magnets on the back side of the fence? The back side of the fence has T slots also.
    Last edited by Rick Potter; 03-01-2017 at 3:10 AM.
    Rick Potter

    DIY journeyman,
    FWW wannabe.
    AKA Village Idiot.

  3. #3
    I don't understand, all that to move a fence back & forth?
    There must be something I'm missing.
    What's the advantage of such a thing?

  4. #4
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    1.) It's cool.
    2.) It's cool.
    3.) Needless precision (although it appears more precise than my Incra LS positioner, which was already more precise than I likely needed.
    4.) Can automate certain joints like box joints (although the iBox kit does that quite well).
    5.) Not sure yet. Still working on it.
    6.) I wanted to replace my Incra LS positioner with a fence system that took up much less of my table saw width capacity. With my old system, and the absurdly long arm on the Incra, I would have to remove the Incra fence every time I wanted to crosscut more than 27". That was a huge pain. This gives me an additional 12-13" up to 40". Big difference.

    You could make the argument that CNC machines are overkill too, as most if not all of their functions were accomplished with hand tools for years, much less normal router table setups. I do see your point, Pat, and hesitated buying one of these, though I've known of them for about 3 years. Time will tell if I think it's awesome, or just another gadget (which I love anyway). I think the precision for the router lift will simplify many operations. The fence seems less important.
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  5. #5
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    I just learned that the carbon fiber top is just a piece of something lightly glued on to the top (it's not a solid carbon fiber casing. I found this out as the magnets fell right off (interestingly, the epoxy didn't stick to it much, so I'm assuming it isn't carbon fiber.

    I drilled four 1/16" holes through the plastic (taking GREAT care not to drill too deeply), and put on metal magnet washers. The controller holder now stays on it rock solid. An alternative would be to fashion a mounting plate to use the back of the extruded aluminum fence on the right side, but I like this location better.
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  6. #6
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    BTW, want to compliment customer support at Next Wave Automation. The router/fence came back fully installed and perfectly square, and they are nicely replacing the router rings that I must have misplaced from unpacking.

    Really have been very helpful thus far.

    The lift is installed, and will be trying it out once I learn from the manual. The last pages of the manual provide a method for zeroing the fence to the front of the bit, which is the only part that makes any sense to me. Their automatic touch plate does it to the back of the bit, which, while easy, just doesn't appear to be helpful. Or it's just a different paradigm that I'll have to learn. But I think I'll stick to the front of the bit setting.

    The router plate for my MLCS cast iron router table seems a little small in width. I'll have to shim that with something to keep it from moving. Also, no easy way to adjust the height or dimensions of the router lift insert (there are many things about my Jessem MastRLift II that I miss already. It's table top plate was superb).
    Last edited by Alan Lightstone; 03-04-2017 at 12:23 PM.
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  7. #7
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    OK. Getting more used to the system. I still don't think like it does. I might more if I was experienced with CNC machines, but I'm getting the hang of this.

    I've made a few modifications.

    1.) The CNC metal touchplate with attached magnet for zeroing the fence and bit height has too short a cord to reach under my router table and make contact with the bit. So as supplied, I'd be unable to zero the bit height. So I took a sufficiently long wire, and soldered it to two magnets - one on each end. One of the ends I countersunk inside a small block of wood with the magnet inside the hole made with a Forstner bit. This provides a secure electrical and magnetic connection between the stock magnet, and the extension one. Basically, this is an electronic extension cord, that attaches electrically and magnetically on both ends. This works like a charm, and allows me to easily zero the bit. Of course, if their cord was longer (plus it needs a little stronger magnet), this would be unnecessary. Here's a picture of that:

    IMG_0521 for web.jpg

    And a picture of it attached to the stock touch plate and magnet:
    IMG_0522 for web.jpg

    With this, I can now easily zero for the bit and fence.

    Unfortunately, it appears that you have to rezero the bit and fence every time you turn off and turn on the unit. Since I don't want the display on 24/7, this may be every time I use the unit.

    2.) I also built those two L supports I previously mentioned that attach to the back of the fence, with rare earth magnets inset into the bottom of them and T-bolts with knobs to attach to the extruded aluminum fence. These make sure the fence doesn't lift up during use, and are a nice modification. It slides very easily, so the magnets don't pull down offer too much friction. Of course, this will only work if you have a cast iron router table, which this happens to be:
    IMG_0532 for web.jpgIMG_0534.jpg

    The 1/2" rare earth magnets are the perfect strength, both for the touch plate extension cord and for the fence hold-downs.

    I also had to shim the gap between the router lift top plate and the opening in my MLCS cast iron table saw extension router table top. I liked the system of closing that gap better on my Jessem MastRLift II router lift, as it had nice adjustable set screws to that. Oh well, I just threw some plastic shims in the gap (which was 2 mm), and it's rock solid now.
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  8. #8
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    Well, this all went South in a hurry.

    The system worked twice briefly, then stopped working. After MULTIPLE e-mails, phone calls, and messages on their website to Next Wave Automation (most of which went unanswered) I went to my local Woodcraft for help. Their phone calls were also largely blown off, and I was stuck with a unit with a controller that initially went totally blank, then after a few days of not working powered on, but even though the digits moved up and down for the fence and lift measurements, nothing moved. The fence stayed motionless, and the lift stayed motionless. Basically, a $1K doorstop.

    Fast forward to weeks more of phone calls and e-mails being ignored, and I went back to my local Woodcraft. They got Woodcraft corporate involved, whose phone calls were reportedly answered/returned, and I was finally contacted by Next Wave Automation. They told me to send back the controller and power supply, and they were look at them and send me repaired or replaced parts. They also promised to send me a UPS sticker so that I didn't have to AGAIN pay for return shipping to Next Wave Automation for repairs.

    After a week of not receiving the UPS label, and not having any of my phone calls and e-mails returned, I gave up, paid for shipping, and sent the parts back to them myself. A couple of weeks later, a controller and power supply arrived, I plugged them in, and nothing had changed. The digits changed, but nothing moved.

    I again got my local Woodcraft involved. Again it worked its way high up the Woodcraft corporate ladder, and weeks later it was arranged for a new unit to be sent directly to my local Woodcraft, who would install and test the unit before it would be given to me. Several more weeks went by until the unit arrived last Friday.

    I picked up the unit tonight, and, at least for now, it appears to be working.

    So, in summary, I purchased a very expensive Ready2Rout unit on Feb 2nd, and finally received a (hopefully) working model on May 16th - 3-1/2 months later. Plus had to pay for shipping the lift and router back once (really quite expensive), and the controller and power supply back once.

    As far as reviewing the functioning of the unit, my heart is no longer in it. And there ARE some issues.

    As far as the customer service / tech support of the manufacturer - the facts clearly speak for themselves.

    Woodcraft, was a class act throughout. My local manager was great, corporate came to the rescue, and I was promised that I could get a refund at any point. Virtually everyone else would have, I showed ridiculous patience through this. Hopefully that wasn't a huge mistake. I sure hope it stays working.
    Last edited by Alan Lightstone; 05-16-2017 at 9:53 PM.
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  9. #9
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    Leland, NC
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    I bought one of their "cnc" machines years ago. I personally drove it back to them. Anyhoo. . . .

    Setting depth on a router has never seemed like a huge deal to me. I use a brass straight edge, raise the bit until the brass bar ticks it then back it off until it clears. The adjuster on the JessEm I use is calibrated, so I note the position and crank away, each turn is exactly 1/16 of an inch. So an electronic way to move it does not get me all excited.

    Setting the fence? Like you I have used the Incra fence for quite a few years now. Mine seems to need a good cleaning inside, getting sticky. A stepper controlled fence would be handy. Since I built my own CNC machine, I could build one of those pretty easily. Just one stepper motor, but I might use two to guarantee things do not rack. But heck, I do not do all that much on the router table anymore, mostly edge molding, and that does not require super dooper precision.

    BTW, for what it is worth, you would might be better off spending those bucks on a CNC machine. I do lots of mortise and tenons, hinge pockets, make tooling for my shop. Probably the most versatile tool in the shop.

  10. #10
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    Setting an exact depth was pretty easy on my old Jessem MasterLift II as I had installed a Wixey DRO on it, as I had on my previous Woodpecker's lift.

    Being able to do plunge cuts seemed like a nice feature of this. I've also put on my Comatic power feeder, so it's certainly not a cheap setup by any means.

    I really have nothing at all bad to say about the Incra LS Positioner, except they need to make a shorter version for tablesaw extension tables. Otherwise, it was built solidly, was very accurate, and reliable.
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  11. #11
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    Upland CA
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    5,548
    Alan,

    I sure hope you are able to get this new one dialed in. I also had no luck e-mailing or calling the company, after numerous tries. I did, however have no problem ordering and getting the adaptor to mount a 690 in the Ready/route. I have not even tried it since bringing it home, life intervened again. Meanwhile, I hang on to your every post, keeping a compendium of info on the machine.

    The company seems to have the attitude that "we are on to bigger and better things, and our old products are now obsolete". I am sure that if I ever decide on a CNC machine, I will remember which one doesn't care that people bought the Ready to Route system with years of use in mind, not replacing it regularly like a cell phone.

    Fortunately, I know mine worked the day I took it home because the manager at the Rockler Store demo'd the whole thing for me (slightly used demo machine).
    Rick Potter

    DIY journeyman,
    FWW wannabe.
    AKA Village Idiot.

  12. #12

    new Ready2Rout owner

    I bought a ready2rout fence and lift two weeks ago because Rockler was liquidating their floor model. I bought the entire package for $500 including the router table top, stand, and casters.

    I called New Wave's tech support today as the firmware is not available for download on their site. I held for about 10 minutes and was able to speak to a guy who sent me an email with the files so I'm grateful for the support I received.

    I am troubled by the lift. It seems to slip when running down and back up and loose it's ZERO calibration, not by much but enough to mess up a project.

    I'm not sure if the fence is returning to zero or not. when I press the zero button it seems to return to the center of the bit....not the edge of the cutter that it touched during calibration.

    I think my unit may be paying Next Wave a visit for repair. Hopefully my problems are attributable to the fact that this unit has been a floor model for a number of years.

    Quote Originally Posted by Alan Lightstone View Post
    Well, this all went South in a hurry.

    The system worked twice briefly, then stopped working. After MULTIPLE e-mails, phone calls, and messages on their website to Next Wave Automation (most of which went unanswered) I went to my local Woodcraft for help. Their phone calls were also largely blown off, and I was stuck with a unit with a controller that initially went totally blank, then after a few days of not working powered on, but even though the digits moved up and down for the fence and lift measurements, nothing moved. The fence stayed motionless, and the lift stayed motionless. Basically, a $1K doorstop.

    Fast forward to weeks more of phone calls and e-mails being ignored, and I went back to my local Woodcraft. They got Woodcraft corporate involved, whose phone calls were reportedly answered/returned, and I was finally contacted by Next Wave Automation. They told me to send back the controller and power supply, and they were look at them and send me repaired or replaced parts. They also promised to send me a UPS sticker so that I didn't have to AGAIN pay for return shipping to Next Wave Automation for repairs.

    After a week of not receiving the UPS label, and not having any of my phone calls and e-mails returned, I gave up, paid for shipping, and sent the parts back to them myself. A couple of weeks later, a controller and power supply arrived, I plugged them in, and nothing had changed. The digits changed, but nothing moved.

    I again got my local Woodcraft involved. Again it worked its way high up the Woodcraft corporate ladder, and weeks later it was arranged for a new unit to be sent directly to my local Woodcraft, who would install and test the unit before it would be given to me. Several more weeks went by until the unit arrived last Friday.

    I picked up the unit tonight, and, at least for now, it appears to be working.

    So, in summary, I purchased a very expensive Ready2Rout unit on Feb 2nd, and finally received a (hopefully) working model on May 16th - 3-1/2 months later. Plus had to pay for shipping the lift and router back once (really quite expensive), and the controller and power supply back once.

    As far as reviewing the functioning of the unit, my heart is no longer in it. And there ARE some issues.

    As far as the customer service / tech support of the manufacturer - the facts clearly speak for themselves.

    Woodcraft, was a class act throughout. My local manager was great, corporate came to the rescue, and I was promised that I could get a refund at any point. Virtually everyone else would have, I showed ridiculous patience through this. Hopefully that wasn't a huge mistake. I sure hope it stays working.

  13. #13
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    Good luck with tech support. I was ignored until threats from the corporate officers of the vendor I bought it from got me a replacement unit. Left a very bad taste in my mouth. They also refused to sell several of their CNC machines to customers after the episode, as they didn't want furious customers.

    It's a nice concept, unnecessary, but nice. Implementation, on the other hand, and reliability...
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  14. I have a complete system and think the concept is awesome. However, NextWave Automation's customer support is pathetic. I also dislike how the touch plate shorts on the router table and requires a piece of paper or something else underneath it. It is frustrating to use but I think that is my learning curve with the machine. I'm sure a tech guy would do much better with it than me.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Dec 2017
    Location
    Marietta, GA
    Posts
    275
    I have the complete package and haven't had any major issues. I do have problems with the touch plate shorting on the router plate before the bit touches it. One thing I didn't like was the bit wasn't exactly centered in the opening of the plate. This is due to the way the router motor clamps in the lift. Using the fence this isn't an issue, but if I want to use a bushing then I'd have to go to my other table. I put mine in an older Woodpecker's table I had in place of a plunge base mounted on a Woodpecker's plate. I ended up drilling the Woodpecker's plate for the Ready2Lift so the bit would be centered in the opening and I could use the rings and other accessories I already had. Using Woodpecker's plastic rings cuts down on the plate shorting issues. I also ended up making adapters to attach a Woodpecker's fence to the Ready2Rout so I'd have a split fence, etc.

    After all the messing around fitting it out it has roughly the same capabilities as a quality router table package. However, I seldom use it. It just doesn't seem as robust as my Woodpecker's lift and fence system. I tend to do some pretty heavy work like passage doors and never quite trusted it to hold position with the forces involved. It's also "fiddly" to set up for most simple work. If I were making box joints all day long then it would be my go to system. It's just one of those tools that I "had to have" and really haven't found a use for it in my work. BTW, I do have a CNC and use it a lot and appreciate it's capabilities. The precision set up was what appealed to me about the R2L/R system. With a handful of ~$30 digital gauges I can do the same thing on my other router table and probably faster.

    In summary, I wouldn't consider the R2R/L for a primary router table lift/fence. If you do a lot of boxes or work that requires any kind of repeatable set ups, then it would probably be worth while.

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