Laminate trimmer suggestions

[havighurst]

I am looking to buy an inexpensive laminate trimmer. I saw the Ryobi on Amazon for $40. Does anyone have any experience with it? I know that the PC and Bosch are the ones to get, but I do not anticipate using it enough to justify the addtional cost. If there are any other suggestions, I would like to get some feedback.

Thanks.

[kwgeorge]

I personally have the Craftsmen and then replaced it with the Freud which has worked very well for me. With that being said however I often find myself with the desire to buy the Bosch Colt. I have not because it is hard to justify as there is nothing wrong with the Freud that would make me replace. I just love that little Colt with is feel in the hand, the micro adjuster and 1HP rating. I really think this is the Cadillac of palm routers.

I think once you own one you will find all kinds of things to do with it. I find myself often reaching for mine as the size makes it easy to control and it is just perfect for so many tasks. Do yourself a favor and buy the Colt and I don’t think you will ever regret it.

Ken

[DJehlik]

Pat Warner has some suggestions.

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

[RHunter]

What exactly are you going to use this laminate trimmer on? Some folks around here have laminate trimmers that are used on anything but laminate...

If you are just looking to just edge trim laminate, and cost is a factor, the Harbor Freight 44914-2VGA is on sale now (and typically is) for $20.

It's not fancy, it's made of cheap plastic, and isn't all that powerful, but it will edge trim laminate.

I have one and that's all I use it for.

I also have a Colt Single Speed, and a PC 7301. I use them both for using my PC 4215 Mini DT Jig. Both are much nicer than the HF, but I prefer the Colt over the PC. The height adjustment on the Colt is light years better than the 7301. I may sell the 7301 on eBay (why not, that's were I bought it from) and get another Colt.

CPO Bosch has rebuilt Colts for sale, that's where I bought mine from.

Hope this helps...

[havighurst]

[QUOTE=RHunter]What exactly are you going to use this laminate trimmer on? Some folks around here have laminate trimmers that are used on anything but laminate...

QUOTE]

I would just be looking to trim some wood veneer. Does anyone have the link to get refurbushed Bosch or PC? If the price is right, it might make my decision easier.

[gimpy]

havig, that website is www.cpotools.com. I just looked. They have 3 different colt models for under $100.

About two weeks ago, I bought a reconditioned jig saw from them for $94.00 (normally $138 at HD). I used it quite a bit today, actually. When I bought my jig saw, they were having a promotion on free shipping for orders over $99, I think it was. I ordered a set of blades to get the order over $100 (about $7.00 for the blades whereas shipping was going to be $27.).

Actually when I went to check out, they did add shipping so I voided the sale, then called them the next morning. Spoke to a real nice lady who agreed that the shipping should have shown up for free, so she did the order over the phone for me (free shipping).

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Frank

















100 on there now.

[messmaker]

Gimpy beat me to the punch. This is at the site. It is the one I would want. http://bosch.cpotools.com/reconditio.../pr10e-rt.html

[havighurst]

Thanks. Is there any advantage to getting the variable speed? It seems that it would not be necessary, but I would spend the extra $20 if I had to.

[cabinetman]

I used to only buy the PC 309. I now use the Ryobi TR 30U. It's a great little router, and at times use it for light profile routing. HF at times has a trim router for under $20.00. I have no idea how good or bad it is, but for $20.00 how can you go wrong. If it explodes, take it with the receipt back and get another one. If it were to be used for hours per day every day, I'd go with the Ryobi. The PC is great, but I'm not sure it's worth the difference in money.



"I'M NEVER WRONG - BUT I'M NOT ALWAYS RIGHT"

[messmaker]

Thanks. Is there any advantage to getting the variable speed? It seems that it would not be necessary, but I would spend the extra $20 if I had to.

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Hard to imagine how it could be very helpful considering the size bits you would use.

[Bulkley]

Ok, I'm out of date, behind the generation gap. I use a router to trim laminate. On small jobs, or in a corner, I use a file.