Harbor Freight Router Opinion

I gave away my router. I found it to be extremely noisy, and quite messy. Much worse than a jig saw. I'd use a jigsaw.

For the same money or maybe a little bit more you can buy one in a pawn shop or either craigslist.

I bought my router Dewall for 25 dollars.

Andre.

That's a hard question...I would go to Lowes or Home Depot and get their opinion.

Dewalt, Black n Decker, Skil, Craftsman, are really good products. When building your benchwork, not so necessary, Maybe a Good Dewalt Electric Miter Saw. When cutting Circles, actually a Good a jig Saw is fine. Dream your plan, then Build Your Dream.

Happy Railroading.

 

How big (diameter) are the large circles you need to cut?  What do you expect a router to do better/differently than a jigsaw?

 

 A router and a jigsaw are very different tools from a functional standpoint and what they do does not really overlap a whole lot.

 

Dale

A jigsaw is a great tool for cutting various shapes, and I have two, But if accurate circles are your goal a router, with a home-made circle jig is your tool. You can buy a jig but it is a simple enough tool to make with some scrap plywood or masonite. As for Harbor Freight tools, I'd tread with care. There are a few good buys in the sea of junk they sell, but you can waste much money finding them. And having to buy a good tool after you've wasted money on a poor one if far more expensive than buying something that does a good job and will last from the get-go. I'd ask myself how much I'm going to use it after this project. If you are sure its use will be limited I might go with a Craftsman or other name brand model that on the lower end of their product line. You might also find a good quality used router on the "Bay" or on Craigslist. I'd want to try it first though. 

 

These are going to be 14"-16" diameter circles for use in the construction of a Dobsonian mount reflecting telescope. (Amateur Astronomy is one of my many other hobbies.) They need to be perfectly accurate as they will be used for the altitude bearing surfaces, the mount for a 12 1/2" parabolic mirror and the support cage for the diagonal mirror.

I would buy something other than one from harbor freight. If you have a lot to do and want something that will last I would go with a porter cable. That's all we use in our shop. They just work well.

Ralph

Good advice here.  If use is going to be limited, I would go with a low end brand name and avoid anything at Harbor Freight.

 

Jeff Davis

I have three routers. Two are made by Porter Cable and one is by Bosch. I'm very pleased with the two Porter Cable ones, especially the smaller of the two which is really an oversized laminate trimmer. You might want to look into a good laminate trimmer for your circle cutting job as a trimmer is smaller and easier to handle than a full-size router. Porter Cable and Bosch make good ones. I don't use my Bosch router much as it is very large and semi-permanently mounted in the less-used of my two router tables. Bosch is known for quality products; I just don't have much experience with mine.

 

My rule of thumb on Harbor Freight vs. better tools is that if I need a precise tool, plan to use is more than once, and expect to keep it for a long time, I get good quality - Bosch, Porter Cable, DeWalt, etc. For simple tools like a sledgehammer or rubber mallet, or for a power tool that I don't have a long-term need for, or for odd stuff like a sand blaster, I'll save the money and get it from Harbor Freight. 

I have become a great fan of Ryobi tools.  When my hi end Craftsman router died (bearings froze and no replacement available from Sears) I bought a Ryobi which has been used hard and continues to run well.  Since then I've purchased 12 and 18 volt drills and a 4 volt power screw driver, all excellent tools which have gotten heavy use.  And just bought the Ryobi led lantern which will run on my drill 18v batteries.  The lithium batteries all seem to hold their charge forever!

I get a kick out of people bragging how much they spend on thier toy trains and how little they spend on thier tools.

The low quality tools are not going to encourage anyone to improve thier own craft so they aren't forced to buy finished products made by others.

Having a few good tools and a not a lot of expertise, friends advised on the choice of a "joiner".

Response: How many cuts are you going to make? Are you going to make a new layout?

Answer, about 15 cuts: advice Harbor Freight, if you are going to rebuild, go to Lowes.

Brent

I buy misc things from there but the quality is not up to par with name brand tools.

You get what you pay for,I always buy good brand name tools because I dont want to start a job and have the low price tool fail,I own alot of quality tools,once being in the trades.

Mikey

I burned up the windings in my Craftsman and bought a Ryobi as well. No complaints with the Ryobi. I also bought a Harbor Freight saws-all to cut our 8 person party tub into 4 pieces so I could get it out of the house. I passed on the "extended warranty". If you want a cheap single-use tool, Harbor Freight just may be the ticket.

I wouldnt buy power tools at harbor freight with your money. They are just plain junk

Depending on how many circles you need, it may be easier and cheaper to go to a custom cabinet shop,

(with your wood) and get a price for them to do it. A router is a tool that requires a lot of practice, jigs, and patience. I own 5.  Trimmers to high horsepower plunge. 2 in tables. You would need at least 2 HP. Trimmer would be unsafe (opinion). If you get a good machine and really good bits ($$$), I would talk to a shop. Hope I helped with your decision.

I had a bad experience (you get what you pay for is so true in power tools) so I stay away from any kind of electric power tools from HF, so I can't recommend them.  I have both Bosch and Dewalt jig saws, sawzalls, and drills, and have been very satisfied with all of them. Parts, batteries, blades, bits, etc are available when you need them. There seems to frequent sales on them, often with a couple of items packaged together into an attractively priced deal.  (Like at HD, Lowes, and maybe Menards (although I'm not near any of their stores here in upstate NY).  As others have mentioned, the used route can be a good way to get one - IF you can find something locally and try it out.

Jig saw.  If you really need a router, get a Bosch or DeWalt.  Craftsman is not the brand that it once was.

 

I buy a lot of stuff at HF, but NEVER power tools.  Once purchased a trim router there - it didn't spin true right out of the box, and it wasn't worth the drive to take it back.  Bottom line is that their electric tools are dicey at best.

Lots of good replies here.  I would add, for 3/4" Birch plywood opt for 1/2" capability.

 

When going for clean edges I prefer to take full cuts with a Bosch jig saw  then trim with a jig based P/C or Bosch router.

 

Use ear and eye safety & go slow with sharp bits.  I also use a vac attachment and air cleaners.  Square bearings keep pattern work clean.

 

As far as cookie cutter subroadbed goes,  clean router work is admirable but slightly wavy hand held jig saw lends its self to a more natural terrain edge.

This will mirror some other replies here...

 

For HF tools, you get what you pay for most of the time.  If you need a power tool for one job, and don't expect it to be used much, the HF tools will usually get you through.  I've had good luck with their hammer drill and a sliding compound miter saw used for stage show set building.  On the other hand, their routers are junk and should be avoided unless they are giving them away.  

 

I can't comment on modern craftsman, but I have two from the early 90's that still run strong, though the height clamp has broken on one.  I chose a ryobi for my hand built router table a few years back, and it has taken everything I've thrown at it since, including quite a bit of large bits for cabinet door making.  I've also had very good luck with every One+ ryobi tool I've used.  

 

I'll concur as well that your best bet will be to look for a name brand router at a pawn shop for a good deal.  

 

Lastly, the comment on a 1/2" collar is correct.  Get the 1/2" router now, and you won't need to upgrade in the future.  

Take you drawings to a cabinet shop. They have the tools, knowledge and expertise to do it right.

 

To do this right yourself you will need good deal of practice. Which takes time, a lot of it. FWIW, HF power tools are junk and you will become very frustrated after each successive one fails. Yes they will give you another one but at some point you will give up. 

 

Just my $0.02.

 

,r,

Does it have to be that exact wood you mentioned? My brother is into astronomy too and he built a few scopes and I believe he used commercially available pre-cut wood circles. Can this be an option for you?

Avoid Harbor Fright (sic) motor tools.

I spent a hour cutting a 2 inch iron pipe with a $19 HF saw and $5 diamond blade.

A handsaw would be faster.

 

There are all kinds pre-cut telescope parts and kits that can be bought online that I've looked at, and I have also considered bringing my drawings to a local cabinet maker and gotten a quote but doing it all myself appeals to me, so I think I'll buy a router...a good one...not Harbor Freight.

 

Thanks to all who have replied...you've convinced me! I took a trip to HF to touch and feel and while at first glance their stuff looks OK, while playing around with it I noticed that the various clamps and lock-downs for adjusting the depth of the cuts didn't seem to work smoothly at all.

 

I've built some fairly impressive MRR benchwork without needing a router and may never need to use one again after this but I have a feeling if I have one I'll find other uses for it.