In this week’s update we asked about how interested folks would be in an official adapter kit to use 65mm trim routers like the Makita. They can be more commonly available outside of the US especially in 240 volt countries.
To make an injection molded adapter kit is pretty expensive in terms of the tooling so I don’t want to commit to it if folks would be just as happy with a free 3D print file
For those of you who would be interested in a potential official Makita router adapter kit, which option would you prefer, a free download for an adapter, or a $20 molded kit?
If you’ve already got a DeWalt router feel free to answer as if you hadn’t gotten one yet.
I think router-b-gone parts would be better. properly done you can have one that will handle 65mm parts like the makita directly, with inserts (which can be 3d printed on demand if needed) for smaller spindles.
From what we’ve seen of international prices on routers, I really think that the cheap spindles will be better, even with increased tariffs (note that normally tariffs don’t apply to small purchases, the current situation is an odd one, besides the tariffs applying to everything, they are going to be doing extensive examination of all the shipments, significantly slowing down processing)
one advantage of a molded insert (either makita specific or router-b-gone) is that it could be made from delron to decrease wear and friction compared to printed ones.
so a router-b-gone low-friction sleeve that goes from 67mm to 65mm and then 3d printed inserts for smaller diameter spindles???
I like this idea, and it would probably make me more likely to get an insert rather than print it. (I’d like the opportunity to buy, because I’m lazy and don’t doing big structural prints, but I’m on the fence in general.)
Thanks for doing the work on this @bar , It’s not easy to get hold of the Dewalt in the UK for a reasonable price and the Makita is available in my local shop for collection today if I wanted. Glad I held off on buying the router until the Maslow arrived.
Is this the only thing that needs adapting to work with these style routers? Does the “hat” need an adaptor too?
Related, the Dewalt has a reputation for fast brush and bearing wear when used for long CNC run times. It’s not a defect, they’re made for hand held use, but that’s why several CNC router manufacturers have dropped the DeWalts and gone to Makitas and Makita clones
$15k is an insane investment for something that very few people will actually purchase, even if they vote for it here. The overlap of people who already have 3D printers, and those who purchase your Maslow CNC router rigs is probably in the 90-percentile. Napkin math of 15,000/(20-15costs) says you’d have to sell 3k of them just to break even. I could be way off on your costs, but still seems like a steep investment.
The hat would need an adapter too so that is also on my todo list
having a kit to attach it to the sled and have long enough wires to connect to
the motors would be better than going down the road of hats for each spindle
router option.
Seems like an awful lot of money to then be locked into just one option. Why not use a 3D printing company like Slant3D (see youtube videos) and then offer additional options like a spindle, etc
i think having both options available would be great. I’d personally have used a 3d printed file, but many others may not have one available. though i read forums on the subject of adapting the base to 65mm i was unsure if the height of the spindle was crucial . if the adpter was released earlier i likely would not have purchased the dewalt router and instead saved money using an alternative router and experimented with my metabo hpt cordless router or a cheap brushless corded router.
even if you don’t produce the adapter yourself they could be linked in the not shop sold by a 3rd party, as long as it has some reviews or is a tested design
I was kind of thinking it might even be worth printing a couple myself and selling them because I think that for this part the print orientation is pretty important so it might be harder to have a good one printed by a 3D printing farm somewhere.
@bar
I need to get this palm router ordered as I could do with using it before my Maslow arrives.
I’ve just noticed that the Makita RT0702CX4/2 has “Anti-restart function minimises accidental start-up”, would that be an issue with the way the Maslow works?
I’ve just noticed that the Makita RT0702CX4/2 has “Anti-restart function
minimises accidental start-up”, would that be an issue with the way the Maslow
works?
The Maslow does not turn the router on, so it is just going to be something for
you to manually deal with.
I tried to check both boxes so voted for a print my own.
I agree with nlang that adapter kits that keep the Maslow as universal and versatile as possible are the best way to go.
I can’t even find the particular Dewalt model number in Australia. Apparently it’s available in India.
I have discovered that the Dewalt model comes with a kit that allows it to be used as a flat bed or a plunge router while others come just as a body.
As we expect to set ours up in the Maslow 4.1 once and for all the additional hardware would be entirely superfluous.
That being the case, I would strongly recommend considering a small spindle with an er-type chuck with a full set of collets. ER-11 will go you up to around 7mm (which would cover all 1/4" shank bits. And an ER-20 will get you up to around 13mm (so obviously 1/2" shank bits)
