Router Speed Control

[Mike Cutler]

Dave

I have one of those $40.00, externally mounted, Router Speed control units. Don't buy one. They are a total waste of money.
They do not keep the speed of the router constant. The router speed lopes at setting. The device cannot be mounted to the router table either. The vibration of the router cutting material is enough to vibrate the knob on the unit and change the speed of the router during use.
It also comes with a belt clip Any bit large enough to need to be operated at slow speeds would be in a table, not in your hand.
They will work with a soft start unit, but not very well. Mine barely worked with a non-soft start router. I only used mine for about one day, and bought a new router with speed control. PC 8529.

You can have mine for the postage if you would still like to try one. No way I could in all good consciense sell it. It's junk.

[Dave Novak]

As always thanks for all your thoughts. It appears I'll have to attack a different problem this weekend as this one is either unfixable or out of my league.

[Randy Redding]

Sorry for the apparent bad advice on the $40 control. It isn't the one I use, just one I saw.

The one I use may have a current-feedback based speed control built in. I'm not sure because I got it from a surplus-electronics web site and only had info. of where the inputs and outputs connected. I know it works though. If I can find the details again, I'll post them. You do have to bypass the internal control though.

[Lee Schierer]

I don't have a 7518, but I do have a soft start router with VS built in Freud FT-2000. Since you don't need to change speeds that often, I leave my router switch in the on position at all times and have the plug, plugged into a switched outlet on the front of my router table. When I need to change bits, I can pull the plug and not worry about accidental start ups. I can also turn it on and off and get the benefit of the soft start and the last speed setting using the switched outlet. If I do need to adjust speed, then it takes a bit of time bent over, but then the speed is set for that operation.

[Mike Cutler]

Sorry for the apparent bad advice on the $40 control. It isn't the one I use, just one I saw.

The one I use may have a current-feedback based speed control built in. I'm not sure because I got it from a surplus-electronics web site and only had info. of where the inputs and outputs connected. I know it works though. If I can find the details again, I'll post them. You do have to bypass the internal control though.

I'd like to know which model you use Randy. They still would be a very convenient item to have connected to a router table.
Unfortunately the one I have just didn't work well at all. I was pretty disappointed.

[Randy Redding]

Mike - I searched my usual surplus dot-coms and didn't come up with anything. I bought mine more than a year ago and these things come and go. I took mine apart to look for markings but it is basically a black box. It has "0984" printed on it but that is it. I think that means 9th week of 1984, no help. I recall it was rated 20Amps, 120VAC. I'm going to keep looking. I want a spare and want one for another application too. I'll post if I find something.

[Ken Garlock]

Hi Dave. While your desire to move the speed control to a more convenient spot is a nice idea, I don't see the need. I have the same setup as you, with a dust collection box surrounding it. That box has a "front" door that allows me to access the entire 7518. The only time I change my router speed is when I install large diameter panel raising bits. I just squat down, open the door, and fumble for the speed control. For me it is a simple case of either high speed or low speed, so I just push the control from one end of the slot to the other.

[John Michael]

I second what both Ken and Lee said.

My router table I built had the same setup with a router compartment that contained an electrical socket controlled by a switch on the front, along with a door to access the router while mounted in the table. I too ran any profile 1" and under at top speed and would only slow for the larger winged cutters.

However if you want an infinitely variable speed control you can pick up a properly sized variac, as I mentioned earlier, off eBay for under $100. Some models have a power switch built in as well. Search under "Staco" and "Variac"

[Bob Feeser]

I use a glorified on off switch with a 1 foot cord/plug coming out of it, and has 2 grounded outlets coming out of it. It has a larger safety flap that sits on the smaller rocker on off switch, so to turn it on, you lift the safety flap, turn on the rocker switch, then gravity makes the safety flap sit on the switch. The safety flap is larger, and if you hit it intentionally, it will shut off the juice.
The advantage of using this switch is that I hook up a shop vac, and the router to the same switch, since there are 2 grounded switched outlets. It is nice going over the router, clicking on one switch, and both vac and router go on. With a 5hp whisper quiet Sears vac, that has something like a .5 micron filter. Since a router creates very little debris, no use hooking a massive system up to it, to have a 4 or 6 inch system, having to drink through a 2 inch straw for a router. Let alone having to go over and turn it on and off for the big system.
The switch I use is the one that came with a elcheapo Sears router table. They sell it separately for about 20 bucks. It is a plastic housing, and has a double hole side plate that makes it nice for mounting on the side of a router table.
Pertaining to the speed change, get used to going under the table to make a change. Overwhelmingly, the big change is turning it on or off. Changing speeds is far more infrequent.
One last note is that don't even think about buying the TimWhongFo switch from harbor freight for router speeds. I bought one of them, and my router would not go over about 400 rpms. To be fair they gave me a no hassle return/credit on it.
For the infrequent speed changes for the router, your local home and garden department have knee pads, which are hard foam that makes it easy on the knees, and thin enough to ignore, plus they are easy to clean the dust off of. To be honest with you, I never gave an above table speed change a second thought, but you may have a new idea, that there would be a large demand for. Any electronics experts that want to market a new device? What no tip?

[Bob Feeser]

I use a glorified on off switch with a 1 foot cord/plug coming out of it, and has 2 grounded outlets coming out of it. It has a larger safety flap that sits on the smaller rocker on off switch, so to turn it on, you lift the safety flap, turn on the rocker switch, then gravity makes the safety flap sit on the switch. The safety flap is larger, and if you hit it intentionally, it will shut off the juice.
The advantage of using this switch is that I hook up a shop vac, and the router to the same switch, since there are 2 grounded switched outlets. It is nice going over the router, clicking on one switch, and both vac and router go on. With a 5hp whisper quiet Sears vac, that has something like a .5 micron filter. Since a router creates very little debris, no use hooking a massive system up to it, to have a 4 or 6 inch system, having to drink through a 2 inch straw for a router. Let alone having to go over and turn it on and off for the big system.
The switch I use is the one that came with a elcheapo Sears router table. They sell it separately for about 20 bucks. It is a plastic housing, and has a double hole side plate that makes it nice for mounting on the side of a router table.
Pertaining to the speed change, get used to going under the table to make a change. Overwhelmingly, the big change is turning it on or off. Changing speeds is far more infrequent.
One last note is that don't even think about buying the TimWhongFo switch from harbor freight for router speeds. I bought one of them, and my router would not go over about 400 rpms. To be fair they gave me a no hassle return/credit on it.
For the infrequent speed changes for the router, your local home and garden department have knee pads, which are hard foam that makes it easy on the knees, and thin enough to ignore, plus they are easy to clean the dust off of. To be honest with you, I never gave an above table speed change a second thought, but you may have a new idea, that there would be a large demand for. Any electronics experts that want to market a new device? What no tip?

I wanted to correct my comments about the electronic experts market a new device for a speed switch. I see that several people carry them. They note that they do not work with some types of routers, I think they mentioned routers that are already variable speed.