A
Anonymous
Guest
Hi all
Well, for the new woodrat I had to buy a new router as I don't want to remove it every time I need to hand route something.
After a bit of searching and thinking, I realised the key things I needed are a latching on/off switch and a plunge lock that does not have a spring to engage it.
My Porter Cable is simply superb, but falls down on both counts.
Eventually, it became apparent that the Dewalt 625 was a good choice. Ordered from DW and delivered next day
First impressions are that it is tough and good quality, if a Little 'agricultural'. Came with a nice spanner, good fence and extra collet but no cutters (same as the PC).
Well the on/off does indeed latch and is located next to the left handle which is really quite easy to operate. I do find it hard to switch on at present, but the left hand is the one I injured and i'm sure it will be fine when all is healed fully. Switching off is no problem.
The plunge lock feels very strong and resilient and has no spring which again is a prerequisite for the Rat. In fact, the plunge lock feels more sturdy than on the PC although the PC lock itself feels nice and strong.
The plunge action is nice and smooth but the springs are a little stronger than I'd like. the PC has a smoother plunge and lighter spring.
Speed adjustment is the standard thumb wheel that may be adjusted without letting go of the handles which is rather nice. In fact, all controls may be operated without letting go of the handles; nice and safe.
The fence is a very nice cast aluminium affair and has a nice fine adjuster. There is a scale on either side of the fence, metric and imperial, but as they are cast into the ali, they are not too easy to read accurately and I felt that this could have been done a lot better. Although the DW fence is nice, the fence on the PC is better made and better designed.
The bit locking mechanism is the same principle for both with a sort of bolt arrangement that is pressed into a hole in the shaft above the collet. The Dewalt scores well here with a nice and large plastic button to press whereas the PC has the end of the 5mm steel dowl to press.
I do find the collet nut very tight on the shaft on the DW and one cannot run it off by hand - a pain to use the spanner for every turn of the collet nut.
One area where the PC scores over the DW though is the brake switch. The PC has a switch to allow one to select braked stopping or free running to stop. The DW doesn't support this feature.
The DW ran at 102.6dB which is a lot louder than the PC and this might be enough to push the decision on which to buy towards the PC, however, in use, the majority of the noise will emanate from the cutter on wood and will be the same for both.
The thing I don't much like on the DW is the fine adjuster for plunging. The DW simply has a long bolt with a nut on it - looks like a home-made add-on. The PC has a nicely integrated fine adjuster with good scales. Better design and better manufacture here.
The plunge depth stop on the DW is absolutely superb. I am quite surprised to find such a great stop when the fine plunge adjuster is a bit of a lash-up. the DW depth stop is far superior to the PC which has a fragile feel to it's depth stop - the worst thing on the PC
Which would I buy? Well, I would not be unhappy to find either in my xmas stocking :wink:
In the end, I use the PC for handheld use, the DW in the Rat and a Triton in the Table and i think each of these are the best for each of these applications.
Well, for the new woodrat I had to buy a new router as I don't want to remove it every time I need to hand route something.
After a bit of searching and thinking, I realised the key things I needed are a latching on/off switch and a plunge lock that does not have a spring to engage it.
My Porter Cable is simply superb, but falls down on both counts.
Eventually, it became apparent that the Dewalt 625 was a good choice. Ordered from DW and delivered next day
First impressions are that it is tough and good quality, if a Little 'agricultural'. Came with a nice spanner, good fence and extra collet but no cutters (same as the PC).
Well the on/off does indeed latch and is located next to the left handle which is really quite easy to operate. I do find it hard to switch on at present, but the left hand is the one I injured and i'm sure it will be fine when all is healed fully. Switching off is no problem.
The plunge lock feels very strong and resilient and has no spring which again is a prerequisite for the Rat. In fact, the plunge lock feels more sturdy than on the PC although the PC lock itself feels nice and strong.
The plunge action is nice and smooth but the springs are a little stronger than I'd like. the PC has a smoother plunge and lighter spring.
Speed adjustment is the standard thumb wheel that may be adjusted without letting go of the handles which is rather nice. In fact, all controls may be operated without letting go of the handles; nice and safe.
The fence is a very nice cast aluminium affair and has a nice fine adjuster. There is a scale on either side of the fence, metric and imperial, but as they are cast into the ali, they are not too easy to read accurately and I felt that this could have been done a lot better. Although the DW fence is nice, the fence on the PC is better made and better designed.
The bit locking mechanism is the same principle for both with a sort of bolt arrangement that is pressed into a hole in the shaft above the collet. The Dewalt scores well here with a nice and large plastic button to press whereas the PC has the end of the 5mm steel dowl to press.
I do find the collet nut very tight on the shaft on the DW and one cannot run it off by hand - a pain to use the spanner for every turn of the collet nut.
One area where the PC scores over the DW though is the brake switch. The PC has a switch to allow one to select braked stopping or free running to stop. The DW doesn't support this feature.
The DW ran at 102.6dB which is a lot louder than the PC and this might be enough to push the decision on which to buy towards the PC, however, in use, the majority of the noise will emanate from the cutter on wood and will be the same for both.
The thing I don't much like on the DW is the fine adjuster for plunging. The DW simply has a long bolt with a nut on it - looks like a home-made add-on. The PC has a nicely integrated fine adjuster with good scales. Better design and better manufacture here.
The plunge depth stop on the DW is absolutely superb. I am quite surprised to find such a great stop when the fine plunge adjuster is a bit of a lash-up. the DW depth stop is far superior to the PC which has a fragile feel to it's depth stop - the worst thing on the PC
Which would I buy? Well, I would not be unhappy to find either in my xmas stocking :wink:
In the end, I use the PC for handheld use, the DW in the Rat and a Triton in the Table and i think each of these are the best for each of these applications.
