Shopmade Router Lift in ShopNotes 121

[chopnhack]

Was it shopnotes or another trade rag that did this some years ago as well? I was just wondering if this was an update after all these years to address some type of issue. I had been thinking about building one for my m12v.

[Carpenter96]

Router Lift

Hi there you should check out www.woodgears.ca Matthias Wandel has a shop built lift. Regards Bob

[os1kne]

I don't recall where I saw it, but there was a homemade router lift made from an automotive scissor jack that was fairly innovative.

[chopnhack]

Carpenter96 - I love that guys website, didn't realize he had his own version. His plans are so cool!! I'll have to route around, I am sure I have seen it before somewhere in a mag.

[thrytis]

American Woodworker has one

[Cochese]

It's possible I'm missing something with that AW lift, but how much depth of cut are you losing?

[os1kne]

That guy that does the woodgears site has some skills!

[chopnhack]

Thrytis that's the one I remembered! Thanks.
CocheseUGA - very good question, I will have to find the article and check it out.

[JimD]

I built the American Woodworker lift and have used it for several years now. It works great. It is very nice to tilt up the top to change bits. It is also great to be able to crank the router up and down, of course. The range of up and down is unusually large.

Jim

[chopnhack]

Awesome JimD, real world experience! What do you mean by tilting up the top? I am not recalling all the details... I was thinking of incorporating this into a darksider saw - to the right of the blade.

[vaking]

Was it shopnotes or another trade rag that did this some years ago as well? I was just wondering if this was an update after all these years to address some type of issue. I had been thinking about building one for my m12v.

I also have M12V in the table and also was thinking along the same lines but I believe we can give up on this idea. In fact, I believe the idea of router lift altogether is going into history.

Any shop-made lift I saw was made for a router type where you can remove motor from the base (like in multi-base kits). In those designs motor is mounted to a shop-made carriage and carriage is attached to some rods, etc. In fact - 90% of commercial lifts are also made for same type of routers. Those types of routers never go into 3hp range, they are usually 2-1/4hp or less. In all fairness I must say that 2-1/4 hp is enough for almost anything, I can't think easily of a sitiation where such router would be underpowered.
Any shop-made router lift will cost you something close to $100 in various parts and hardware because you need bushings, rods, etc. In the end you will have to make new mechanism that provides directional guides, height adjustment. All those things are part of any plunge base and what you make in your shop will not be any more precise than original base.
Now compare this to what modern routers offer out of the box.
If you want a cheap router with the lift - I don't think you can beat something like this:
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...7&blockType=G7
For $80 you get variable speed 12 Amps router with built-in lift.
For $90 you get similar router with an additional plunge base to be used in hands:
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...2&blockType=G2
Please note - in shop-made lift you have to strap the router in the carriage and berry it there. With new kit router can be easily removed and used in hands.
If you want a better quality set - here is one:
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...5&blockType=G5
Please note - this is a 14 Amps router. It is a 2-1/2 hp while M12V is supposedly 3-1/4 hp. However the outlet is limited to 15 Amps or 2.3 hp, so the 2 routers are most likely very close in power. Hitachi's claim to have 3-1/4 hp router on a 15 Amp circuit is bogus - this topic was discussed here at the forum.
If you absolutely insist on using 3-1/4 hp router in the table - buy this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Triton-TRA001-.../dp/B00006LUM7
For $200 you get new router with built-in lift and above table bit change.
If you are dead set on adding a lift to M12V here is your best commercial bet:
http://www.amazon.com/Router-Raizer-.../dp/B00005JRJR
This is a router Raizer, which uses most of M12V standard base replacing only the height adjustment rod. For less than $90 - anything you make will cost at least as much.

I shall continue using M12V with height adjustment under the table (I must confess that I have a bent wrench for M12V so I make bit changes above the table). If I decide that I must have above the table height adjustment - I will buy a new router (2-1/4hp, not 3).

[Turaj]

chopnhack,

You may want to search BT3 for router lift by "Niki". There are some great ideas that may be helpful to you!

[chopnhack]

Well thought out Vaking, it seems you have approached this before and perhaps multiple times, well reasoned out. Turaj, thanks for the reminder, Niki was ever so resourceful and often times his were the simplest solutions.

[JimD]

The American Woodworker lift attaches to the back of the cabinet, not the top. So the article design (which I did not use exactly incorporating the storage features of Norm's design) hinged the top. I liked that idea. You have to use 3/4 plywood for the back, to take the weight with minimal deflection. I also incorporated the motor from an old Ryobi 500, a plunge router that developed a tendency to stick. That required a unique mounting block but it wasn't bad to figure out.

With no weight on the top, there is less reason for it to sag.

Jim

[Cochese]

The only problem I've found with those Craftsman routers is that they get gummed up extremely easy. Also, the height mechanism can be difficult, and more often than not you're under the table doing the adjustment anyway.

If I figure out a way to fix this, I'd be really happy.