Taking a powerful plunge
Written: Oct 09 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Smooth, powerful, accurate
Cons: Small bit opening in baseplate, chips flying everywhere!
The Bottom Line: If you need a plunge style router, then this one will certainly fill that bill. If you need a table mount then consider a fixed-base model.
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| charlesj68's Full Review: Bosch 2 hp Electronic Variable Speed Plunge Router... |
I purchased the 1613EVS back in 1997 after trying a co-worker’s model and liking what I felt. It has been my sole router ever since. I have used it freehand in plunge mode and in a table. As gcavener mentions in his review, a plunge router is not the best match for table use, but when it is the only router you have you make do.
The device itself has significant heft, indicative of the strength of the electric motor contained within. However, despite all that power it starts smoothly. Incorporating what Bosch called Soft Start technology, the router comes up to speed over about a second’s time; eliminating the jerk to the hands that you used to feel with older routers. The exterior case is a molded high-durability resin. The base plate is (I think) magnesium with a plastic plate on the very bottom where the base rides on the work surface. The plunge mechanism operates smoothly, although it seems to stick a little at first. The cord is about 6 feet (2 meters) long and has proven to be of sufficient length for most of my projects. The router came with 1/2-inch and 1/4-inch collets.
With a plunge router one always encounters an array of depth setting devices. For the Bosch you have a depth rod on the left of the device along with a scale marked in English and Metric. This rod contacts a rotating dial that is stepped in 1/8-inch increments. This is very handy for situations where repeated passes are required. Make your first pass, then turn the dial down by 1/8-inch and make your next pass. Repeat until cut is complete. In addition, the Bosch also sports a micrometer dial atop a stem to the left of the body. This micrometer dial is marked in 1/64-inch increments and is very handy for setting your depth precisely. My personal mode of operation is to set the depth of cut roughly via “eyestemation,” then fine-tune to the exact measurement with the micrometer dial. I find that it takes me about 20 seconds to get my depth set
I have yet to encounter a situation where the router lacked enough power for what I wanted to do. The worst performance was while I was experimenting with a lock-miter bit, and it was after my experiment that I learned that the recommended process was to make two passes, not one.
I do have some quibbles about the router. First off, dust collection is non-existent. Newer models of routers are beginning to address this issue, although I have not yet tried any of them. In addition, a dust collection add-on is available for this router, but the pictures I have seen seem to indicate that this might interfere with its use in a table. Since my router spends 2/3rds of its time in the table, that is a significant drawback for me. The second complaint would address the opening in the base plate for the bit to pass through. This opening is too narrow to use a number of horizontal panel-raising bits. I have used vertical panel-raising bits instead, but these limit you to square edges on your panels. Since this is only an issue when using the router in a table, I really should address it by getting a dedicated fixed-base router for my table.
Durability is quite good. Although this tool has been in continuous use since 1997, today it shows its age only in the dust that has worked its way into the moulding grooves of the case. No cracks, chips or other damage is apparent, despite the rough-and-tumble nature of the woodshop environment.
I can recommend this tool quite strongly to anyone searching for a reliable plunge-type router.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
charlesj68
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Member: Charles Jones
Location: Loveland, Colorado, USA
Reviews written: 15
Trusted by: 0 members
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