Router recommendations

[Smigz0r]

Hey folks

Long time lurker here making my first post

I'm building a split top style workbench for hand tool woodworking and after cutting two mortices by hand I've realised my hands aren't quite skilled enough.

I know I should persevere and practice - but I only have a limited amount of nice white ash to build the bench with, so I'd rather get the bench right and practice on something else afterwards.

Which leads me to my question, can you guys recommend the cheapest possible plunge router that will be suitable for cutting the mortices for my workbench?

I plan to make a template and work off that, have already bought a trend bit with a top bearing for following the template - I just need a cheap and cheerful router that will do at least 2 inch deep mortices.

Also if anyone has a router they want to sell let me know, I would consider buying from one of you gents rather than take a risk on an eBay purchase.

Thanks very much

 

[fleyh]

Are you sure you need a router?
Can’t you just use a drill (with a Forstner bit perhaps) to drill out the mortises?

 

[johnnyb]

Get a morticer they are basically perfect for the job of morticing and allow hand work after(working at any depth and from a single datum) there also cheap quiet and safe. Which one though? Sedgwick good but heavy. One with a spring return is lighter

 

[Smigz0r]

Get a morticer they are basically perfect for the job of morticing and allow hand work after(working at any depth and from a single datum) there also cheap quiet and safe. Which one though? Sedgwick good but heavy. One with a spring return is lighter

I do all of my work out of an 8x8 little shed, so with my lathe, bandsaw, scroll saw, table saw and thicknesser it leaves me little to no room for any other machinery!

I would love a little bench top morticer but I don't have the 350 odd quid to drop on a new one and all the second hand ones on eBay, nobody will post to me in Northern Ireland!

I would love one but right now the router seems more suitable in terms of what I can afford and what space I have.

Thank you for your reply

 

[Smigz0r]

Are you sure you need a router?
Can’t you just use a drill (with a Forstner bit perhaps) to drill out the mortises?

The mortices are 15mm wide and my smallest forstner bit is 15mm, leaves me so little room for error that I thought a router would be the safer option haha.

Thanks for your reply

 

[niall Y]

A few years ago I would have recommended something like the Triton !/2". However the pricing of these is now in the region of £300. The cheaper ones, that might turn out to be okay, are perhaps the Trend ones.
I have had a Hitachi for over 30 years that has proved indestructible, so, perhaps the rebranded Hikoki may well be just as good.

EDIT. Thinking outside the box. One of those lock morticing jigs for use with a drill might be more suitable.

 

[Smigz0r]

A few years ago I would have recommended something like the Triton !/2". However the pricing of these is now in the region of £300. The cheaper ones, that might turn out to be okay, are perhaps the Trend ones.
I have had a Hitachi for over 30 years that has proved indestructible, so, perhaps the rebranded Hikoki may well be just as good.

Thanks for the recommendations!

There's a few Trend T4s on eBay around my budget, but they only have a 35mm plunge depth - maybe I'm being stupid and there's a workaround for that, but that wouldn't be deep enough for the mortices I have in mind.

Thanks for your reply, much appreciated

 

[Phil Pascoe]

If you've decent sized legs on your bench you'll need to go deeper than 2". A cheap router is not going to do that. Do it by hand with a decent auger and sharp chisels.
e.g. https://www.axminstertools.com/armeg-wood-beaver-drill-bit-13mm-952843

 

[Orraloon]

Big motrices like on a workbench are more than most routers can do depth wise. Usual way is drill out most of the waste then clean out with chisels. You could cut motrices with a router to the depth it will go then deepen them with a drill and chisels but thats a bit like doing the job twice. In a small shed like you have hand tools will have to be a big part of your woodworking as machines take up lots of space but one machine I would have even in a small shop is a benchtop pillar drill. With a fence clamped to the drill table its easy to drill out most of a mortice then clean up with a chisel. A pillar drill will go on to be a very useful tool in a small shop.

mortise on a drill press - Google Search
Regards
John

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Incidentally, don't attempt to use an auger in bench drill unless you can offset the wood and allow the auger to go all the way through, it's dangerous.
A forstner or an HSS drill bit of course is fine, there's no draw.

 

[Smigz0r]

If you've decent sized legs on your bench you'll need to go deeper than 2". A cheap router is not going to do that. Do it by hand with a decent auger and sharp chisels.
e.g. https://www.axminstertools.com/armeg-wood-beaver-drill-bit-13mm-952843

My legs are only 3inches thick

 

[Phil Pascoe]

and your bench legs?

 

[sammy.se]

If you are buying used, then I recommend a 1/2" router, and any of these brands will do you well: Hitachi (now known as Hikoki); DeWalt; Makita; Freud; Triton.

And if you want to buy new, then just buy the cheapest 'own brand' Screwfix/B&Q brand, such as this:

 

[Jester129]

To be honest you have little to no chance of a router bit smaller than 15mm and around 2" long to be stiff enough going through any hard wood at that depth.
Far better to drill out (ideally with a pillar drill) and chisel for the mortice clean up.

 

[sams93]

A few years ago I would have recommended something like the Triton !/2". However the pricing of these is now in the region of £300. The cheaper ones, that might turn out to be okay, are perhaps the Trend ones.
I have had a Hitachi for over 30 years that has proved indestructible, so, perhaps the rebranded Hikoki may well be just as good.

EDIT. Thinking outside the box. One of those lock morticing jigs for use with a drill might be more suitable.

I have a 8x6 shed workshop so I know the feeling of having space constraints.

I do have two routers, a 1/2" Triton TRA002 and a 1/4" Dewalt D26204. Both of them are absolutely brilliant but I use the Dewalt 1/4" one 9 times out of 10 when I need a router. I would reccomend both of them if you are in the market for a router.

For your job however, it sounds like you would be best with a 1/2" router which is going to set you back (if you buy new - although you could probably pick one up for £20-£30 used on facebook). If you aren't likely to have much regular use for a big 1/2" router going forwards that seems a waste. The router also has it's own associated learning curve, and as @Jester129 has said you arent going to find a 15mm router bit stiff enough to comfortably plunge as deeply as you are intending to.

I agree with the previous posters comments about using a drill bit and chisel for this job. You could mark out your mortise clearly, use a 13mm drill bit to remove the majority of the material, and then use a chisel to clean up the edges to get your precise size. That seems a lot simpler to me than purchasing a router, learning to use said router, and doing it that way.