Have I told you how much I hate 1/4" shank router bits?

[drw]

Henry, I really don't have anything helpful to add, but I think your suggestion that you may have been a little too aggressive could be a key observation, especially with the 1/4" shank. Over the years I have come to rely on 1/2" shanks in everything except my small palm router. That said, I feel your frustration, we have all been there.

 

[JimD]

Half the contact area definitely increases the risk of slippage - it is approximately twice as high with 1/4 inch shafts. I have had 1/4 inch shank bits slip in the collet of my Bosch Colt. They were clean and installed correctly. I like the design of my PC collets better but the Colt is not a poorly made router. If a 1/4 inch shank bit can slip in a little colt, how can you possibly take a decent cut with a PC 7518? Only way to use a 1/4 inch shank bit and get it to cut without slipping is to only take light cuts, much below the capability of even a mid sized router.

I am nowhere close to new at this. In addition to the colt and 7518 in my router table I have two PC 690s. I've owned others but this is my current collection. I've been making sawdust for about 50 years now. Most of my kids furniture and most of mine were made in my shop by me. I am not saying others cannot have similar levels of experience and get consistently good results with 1/4 inch shank bits but I will say they don't need even a mid-sized router.

I'd rather have twice the contact area - especially when the bits cost the same most of the time.