tight collet

[Arthur Alchin]

I have a Skil router (1400w) that is made in the USA. It is about 3 years old (at the most: black in colour).

I have a problem with bits getting stuck in the collet: very tight fit, actually had to destroy a dovetail bit to get it out.

being a USA unit i believe it is ?1/4 inch ?6mm bit.

Can anybody throw any light on the problem and how I may remedy it. The bit that was broken was a "Vermont American"

All the bits seem to easy to get into the collet, but difficult to remove:confused:

[soundman]

Ahhh
Tight collet syndrome.
Firstly when was the last time you cleaned your collet.
All bearing surfaces of your collet should be clean & shiny and free of all damage & imperfections.
A little fine emery paper con be helpfull.
Foillowed by an ever so slight smear of fine oil

Secondly your collet may be damaged they do wear out from use, inspect for damage.

Inspect all router bit shafts before installation, should also be clean & shiny.

Are you over tighteniing??? Not tight enough is bad but too tight isn't real good either.

Some of my collets are just tight & I have to remove collet, nut & all and push the bit out from behind with a rod.

Bits left in the router for a long time can also be difficult to remove.

Router bits do get jammed in collets the important thing is to figure out how to get them out of your paticular machine without damage or too much trouble.

Most machines should allow you to remove collet , nut and all & the go from there.

cheers.