All you router users.......

[smitty62]

I really would like to hear your opinions on router bit brands-good and not so good. 20 years ago I threw my old hand held Craftsman in the back of the tool cabinet and swore I'd never use it again after I had ruined another piece of expensive lumber. Well, time marches on and I have now made a router table for it and I need some new bits and I've lost touch as to current bit quality, price, etc. So, Freud, Amana, MLCS, whoever--who gives you the most bang for the buck? Keep in mind, I'm a casual user, not production. Thanks!:icon_thum
Dick

 

[Matt Furjanic]

Hi Dick,
I have been using MLCS Woodworking for my router bits. I do a lot of inlay, so I have several of their down-spiral, solid carbide bits, which are the best for leaving a clean cut. Also, they have hard-to-find items like 1/16 and 1/8" roundover bits! Nice for small box makers. They do not charge for shipping, so you can order just one bit and not pay an excessive shipping fee. Hope this helps. Matt...

 

[Dragon]

Plus 1 to Matt's comments. MLCS has great pricing, no shipping charges, and I've found their bits to be of outstanding quality. I'm particularly fond of their Katana line after having used one of them this past weekend. You can bet they have me for a customer for life. Others will swear by this and that brand or company and that's fine. Everyone has a preference for something dependent on their own circumstances.

Everyone has an opinion based on some degree of personal experiences and yours may very well be 180 degrees from mine and that's fine. Bottom line is go with something, use it for a time, and see if it fits your particular needs and preferences.

 

[tjgreen]

Whiteside bits are my personal favorite, never been disappointed, especially on larger heavier bits. I've got a Freud edge beading bit and a dovetail bit that I really like too, with the advantage that you can easily get them from the BORG. The dovetail bit especially was a HUGE upgrade over the cheap kit one I had, instantly went from sloppy machined dovetails to tight precise ones. Only been using a router heavily for the last year or so though, so take it FWIW.

 

[christopheralan]

I have a Frued set which is awosome. It has a good selection and price isn't too bad. My others are almost all Bosch. Never had any issues with Frued or Bosch bits, as long as I use them correctly, i.e. RPMs and feed-rate. Both found at Lowes.

 

[Douglas Robinson]

All the mentioned brands are good. I would also and CMT to that list.

 

[red]

I have mostly Whiteside bits and have had excellent results. They also are a NC company (Claremont).

Red

 

[Bill Clemmons]

Like Tim and Red, I also prefer Whiteside bits, but that doesn't necessarily mean they are the best; just what I've gotten used to. I've never tried MLCS, but after reading these post, I'll probably try one next time I need something special. You can get Freud and Bosch at the BORG, which makes them convenient, and their quality is good enough.

You can get Whiteside from Woodcraft, but they're kinda pricy, so I usually go online to www.routerbits.com.

HTH, Bill Clemmons

 

[JackLeg]

Whiteside and Freud. Can't go wrong.

 

[Travis Porter]

I favor Whiteside, CMT, and Freud. I only have a couple of MLCS bits, and have no complaints, just not a lot of experience. To MLCS credit, the do have a LOT of variety. I have been wanting to get one or two of Freud's quadra-cut bits as I tend to believe they may give cleaner cuts.

I have a few BORG bits, and can say even though they are carbide, they do not stay sharp long.

 

[smitty62]

Wow Guys, --thanks for the response! Looks like the voting is running right now towards Whiteside with MLCS or Freud a close second. Anyone know where the brands are made other than Whiteside being made in NC? Are MLCS Chinese, Italian, US? I like to buy US products if the price isn't grossly different.
Dick

 

[KenOfCary]

Some advice I read made sense to me. For a beginning or casual user, buy a cheap or mid-priced set of bits. (I would go mid-priced.) Then, the ones you actually use a lot will get dull and those can be replaced with better quality, more expensive bits. The ones that are only used once or twice will be fine for that amount of use.

I have a decent set of Ryobi branded bits that I started out with. They are holding up pretty well actually. As I buy specialty or bits for a specific project, I tend to get Whiteside or the Eagle America premium brand. I will probably try MLCS after reading this thread as I particularly like free shipping.

 

[McRabbet]

I am also a proponent of MLCS bits and have found them to be very reliable even though they are of SE Asian origin. They have held up very well for me and remain sharp after multiple projects. My second source for highest quality bits is CMT and Freud. I have had very good results with both of these Italian-made products. For straight cutting bits, I would recommend solid carbide spiral bits for making slots, or deep mortises.

 

[smitty62]

KenofCary's advice makes a lot of sense to me. I think I'll buy the 15 piece set from MLCS for now to see what I'll use the most. Who knows-I might like table routing so much, I'll buy a new router! Recommendations along that line are welcome too--PC, Makita, Hitachi, Freud.......?
Thanks, fellas..:thumbs_up

Dick from Mocksville

 

[KenOfCary]

... I'll buy a new router! Recommendations along that line are welcome too--PC, Makita, Hitachi, Freud.......?
Thanks, fellas..:thumbs_up

Dick from Mocksville

As far as routers go, I've been drooling over a new Festool plunge router. I hate to pay their prices but I have never been sorry after purchasing one of their tools. The best thing about all of them is the superior dust collection, not to mention the overall engineering that goes into their tools.

For the one mounted in the router table I stuck with the Porter-Cable 7518 workhorse, since the dust collection then is a function of the table, not the router.

Cheers - Ken

 

[Canuck]

KenofCary's advice makes a lot of sense to me. I think I'll buy the 15 piece set from MLCS for now to see what I'll use the most. Who knows-I might like table routing so much, I'll buy a new router! Recommendations along that line are welcome too--PC, Makita, Hitachi, Freud.......?
Thanks, fellas..:thumbs_up

Dick from Mocksville

Dick

When looking at table mounted routers, have a look at the Milwaukee 5625 3 1/2HP fixed base router while your at it. It has be a workhorse in my shop and a dream to use.:icon_thum:icon_thum

HTH,

Wayne

 

[Tarhead]

I started out with a big ole honkin 3 HP Ryobi (back when they made expensive, non-disposable, good quality power tools). It is still in regular use mounted in a table. A few years ago I found a DW621 which I love. It's got a funky power switch that takes a little getting used to but it is a smooth running router and I use it handheld when I need extra power. Last year I grabbed a Bosch PR20EVSK palm router when they were on sale. It's my go to router for 95% of what I need a hand held router to do. For the price you can beat it. Just make a wide base out of some 1/4" Lexan and get an extra collet wrench (the collet lock has issues sometimes) and you're golden.

Check Amazon for deals on Milwaukee router bits. I've picked up some very nice solid carbide 1/2" spiral bits there for ~$15 lately.

 

[Jim M.]

+1 for MLCS great selection and variety of cuts, they've held up well for me. I also like Freud and I can get them local so that's always a plus. my 2 cents, Jim

 

[merrill77]

KenofCary's advice makes a lot of sense to me. I think I'll buy the 15 piece set from MLCS for now to see what I'll use the most. Who knows-I might like table routing so much, I'll buy a new router! Recommendations along that line are welcome too--PC, Makita, Hitachi, Freud.......?
Thanks, fellas..:thumbs_up

Dick from Mocksville

That's what I did several years back...wife got me the 66-bit MLCS set for xmas, which came to <$3/bit at the time. I figured I'd replace the bits I used a lot with better ones as they wore out...but so far that hasn't happened. I actually track how much I use them (yes, I'm about as anal as a person can be). Some of the bits I've used more often (e.g. 1/8 and 1/4 roundovers) have had hundreds of feet of hardwoods run past them and they still cut like new. The 66-bit set may have been a little overkill - as I have yet to use them all. But it is nice to know, when I'm starting a project, that I probably already have every bit I need. I think I've only bought 3 other bits in the past 6 years.

As for routers, I'm quite partial to my Triton. It is truly excellent in a table. I think it was the first router specifically designed to be used in a table (though most of the other brands have at least one model that has copied it's features). I really like the one-wrench above-the-table spindle-automatically-locked bit changes. There are two separate bit height adjustment knobs, fast and slow, so there is no cranking and cranking and cranking to get the bit height set.

Good luck!

 

[danmart77]

I have lots of different bits over the years but I think I can recommend one brand over the others if I had only one pick: Whiteside.

Their stuff is really well made and priced accordingly. Sure there are lots of other makers that are great, I found the Whiteside bits to be very reliable and long lasting.

Oh as someone mentioned earlier, they are made here in the Old North State. I like that.

dan