Thread: All right - fess up all that have bought the makita trimmer knock offs

Not me. I have too much self-respect.

I don't use mine enough to have reached that stage. I do know however it has lasted much longer than a cheap GMC one I had years ago.

My problem was the collet. The one that came in mine was off centre and I had to upgrade with an after market collet before I could trim in a straight line.

I bought one on a whim and did a fairly comprehensive review HERE Derek Cohen also has one; he wrote about using it for clearing waste in half blind dovetails ON HIS WEBSITE

Mine is till working although it only gets used very intermittently and for light stuff only, predominantly putting 1/16" or 1/8" roundovers on corners. When mounted in the plunge base it's a handy teaching tool for people who have never used a hand-held router before before they move onto something with more power.

The supplied 1/4" collets on mine were crap but genuine Makita ones fix concentricity issues.

Thanks for the link CT. It was good to be reminded of that article (I had forgotten where I put it).

I have both the corded Makita and its clone. Both have been used a fair amount over a span of several years, and both are going strong. There are a few factors to consider before jumping in (on either).

I first became aware of the clone on the UK woodworking forum, where it received rave reviews. At the time I had an older, aluminium bodied Makita - great machine but a little underpowered compared with the latest models - and purchased the clone out of curiosity. To say the least, I was impressed. There was nothing about the clone that was negative (the one I have looks near identical to the Makita.The only difference is the positioning of the on-off switch). My only reserve was that it was a clone, and I prefer to support the original makers, and so I purchased the Makita as well.

Putting the two machines alongside one another, one performance factor became apparent: the Makita was smoother, both in finished cut and in sound. Without a real Makita, this would not have been evident ... the clone was that good. I traced the issue to the collet. The real Makita was beautifully made, while the clone left a smidgeon of run out. As a result, I purchased a quality collet from one of the CNC distrubuters, and fitted this. The run out reduced to the excellent Makita level. Now there was nothing to choose between the two machines (except I prefer the position of the on-off switch on the Makita).

If considering a clone, I would note that mine was purchased several years ago and there have been grumblings on the UK forum about more recent models. Secondly, I do not know the longevity of the clone - I assume (?) that the internals, such as bearings, are of a lesser quality. No problems on my side to date.

If considering a corded Makita, I would short-list the cordless version. This is more expensive but has a feature of value: an internal light to the work piece. Visibility is so important and, while the corded version is decent (with the dust shriud in place), a light makes a world of difference. That dust shroud is important to dust control, which can be superb.

Regards from Perth

Derek

With this being the age of the opportunistic gouge, my suspicion is the newer ones being hawked recently are far more crude than what was on offer a few years ago.

Originally Posted by Fuzzie

I do know however it has lasted much longer than a cheap GMC one I had years ago.

GMC = Genuine Makita Copy.