Router purchase

[maxparot]

I have the Hitachi Variable speed multibase kit and am very pleased with it! The Porter and Bosch are frequently quoted as top performers. I've been interested in 1 newcomer to the multibase router group and that is the Ridgid. It has been getting good reviews. I've read it compares well to the Hitachi for low noise (Hitachi considered the quietest in its class) and has a LED light built in for better view as you work.

[LCHIEN]

The good and the bad of the 1617 "above the table adjustment"

I have the 1617 dual base kit. The above-table adjustment is of dubious value because you still have to reach below the table to release the motor before adjusting. I like the router a lot, but don't buy it for that feature.

Yes, you still need to remove the router to change bits.

JR

The good and the bad of the "above the table adjustment"
The good:
You can adjust from the top of the table while looking at or comparing heights of the bit rather than reaching below the table to make the adjustment
The bad:
You still have to reach below the table to lock it (the true router lifts you adjust it and it stays there, no locking required)
The locking action can shift the height by .005" or so if you are being fussy- I usually lock it, observe the shift, unlock and adjust it compensating for the shift, then relock it.
The extended shaft for the adjustment partially blocks one of the two openings for bit changes (hard to swing the wrench), on ocassion it has been a bother.

Still, all in all, its better to have it than to not have it.

[RodKirby]

...The locking action can shift the height by .005" or so if you are being fussy- I usually lock it, observe the shift, unlock and adjust it compensating for the shift, then relock it...

Ditto the Tritons

[p8ntblr]

Anyone have any experience the Dewalt DW621? What the difference between that and the DW618? Is one better than the other?

[LCHIEN]

the 621 is a highly regaqrded 2+ HP router, the small brother of the 625 (623?) 3+ HP router. Its a plunge-only router. Non-interchangeable base.

The 618 is a 2+ HP motor and interchangeable base router, like the Bosch 1617, PC 89x, 69x.

There's one other kind of router, that most of the inexpensive ones are - the fixed base, non-plunge, non-interchangeable base. Most of the Ryobi or Craftsman entry-level routers are this type.

Whether you like the 618 or the 621 depends on your preferences. Many have both types.
Pat Warner, the router guru, swears by the 621.

[ragswl4]

Review of Dewalt 621, attention to note 10 if you are considering mounting in a table. I have no first hand knowledge, just passing on information.

http://www.patwarner.com/dw621.html

[eezlock]

router purchases?

The previous posters give some good advice on choices that are available... I have the DeWalt 616 with fixed base (that one stays in router table) and the plunge base also. I really like that plunge base, and how easy it is to change from one operation to the other, no tools involved to change from one to the other. Try one at your local borg or ww store, for yourself and then decide which is best. A good 2 1/2 hp unit is better for spinning the big
raised panel bits, but the smaller units 1 1/2 hp and up do the other jobs
with ease. I have several routers ( 6) in fact, but it seems for most jobs
that I do, I usually reach for the DeWalt or Porter-Cable most of the time,
I guess that it is mostly habit on my part. eezlock

[LarryG]

I have a DeWalt 621, bought largely on Pat Warner's recommendation (I have his oversized round base on it, too). It has become my "go-to" router for most handheld work. For reference I also own a Bosch 1617 and a Makita RF1101. Neither are slouches in the crowded twin-base "PK" field, but I prefer the plunge-only 621 over both of them.

However, as much as I like my 621, I would generally not recommend it as one's first or only router. Nothing wrong with the router, but it's usually best to start with a two-base kit so you can leave the fixed base in the router table and hold out the more versatile plunge base for handheld work. The only exception to this would be if you have definite plans to buy a second (or third, or fourth, or ...) router exclusively for table use. In that case, you'll lose nothing by having a plunger like the 621 as your handheld machine.

I agree with Jeffrey's comments on the 618. I've examined this kit several times in stores, and it'd be a fine choice. Plunge action is probably slightly smoother than the Bosch -- which is saying a lot. The only negative thing I've ever noticed is that the motor cylinder can be a little fussy to get into the plunge base. This could be something that loosens up with time and use.