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  1. #1
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    Default Problems with Triton Router TRA001

    Hi all,

    Well my reliable Triton Router TRA001 is now giving me big problems. I noticed this a few weeks ago that the height seemed to be slipping down. I have it mounted in a router table and it has never been out of that table.

    When I try to use the fine adjustment height handle winder and wind it up, the router just slips back down again. Doing some research I was told it was likely to be the worm drive being worn. I happened to find a video on this exact model and found how to pull all this apart. I also found out there are a half dozen or so different sorts of worm drives in these models.

    I pulled it apart, it was full of sawdust and gunk, cleaned it all, compressor blew all the dust and gunk out. All the cogs seems to be in good condition. Put it all back together again and still the same. The ratchet handle which usually grabs and holds it in place, just isnt grabbing it. Allowing it to slide all the way down.

    I will now pull it all apart again tomorrow and see if I can work out the problem....................Any suggestions,.?

    Paul
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  3. #2
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    Feb 2016
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    Default

    Heaps of people will help you with this one. Its a common problem. There are quite a few posts about it findiable with a good search.

    The pop-in orange handle on the side also clags with gunk. It really needs to be blasted out with compressed air. It takes quite a bit of work to clean it all properly.

  4. #3
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    Yes agree with WP regarding the orange button. As this is pressed in to allow free plunge it may not be springing back out fully to engage the gears inside with the handle.
    From your photos all the other gears and bushes appear to be in good condition as you stated.
    Dallas

  5. #4
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    Default

    Hi there Woodpixel and Dallas, and others.

    Well after pulling that router apart countless times today, that many times I could now do it blindfolded. I totally pulled apart the ratchet handle and every bit inside it. It was rather quite clean actually. Put some more tension on the springs inside all that. The orange button was working great, in out etc, perfect. Every other cog looked in excellent condition. The worm drive is chromed steel as opposed to others I seen that are a white plastic looking material. Ray had them on his page I found also.

    But after all that and a full day, the handle just will not engage to lock it in. In free fall you might say under my router table. Sure I can lock it in, but then I can't use the fine adjustment rod.

    I am thinking maybe a new one. I would still go with this Triton TRA001, it gets a lot of work from me, had it about 4 or 5 years now. And I built the table to suit it.

    On another note I did also buy the small Triton Router, not sure the model number off hand, but the smaller one in the series. Not really happy with that, I wanted to use it as a hand held router and use the plunge on it. But in my opinion its just too large and bulky for a hand held router.

    For a few years I borrowed a cheap Makita or maybe it was a Ryobi from my son, a small one, but I ended up returning it to him, thought I should. I much preferred that one.

    So I guess I am now looking at the best price for another TRA001, I did find one at $479.

    Paul

  6. #5
    Join Date
    May 2011
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    Albury
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    Default

    Paul, recent post's indicate that the TRA's haven't gotten any better in recent times, worse if anything. Unless you're a masochist why would you want to do it to yourself?

  7. #6
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    Hi Dallas and Dave,
    When the router is in free fall, the black handle is spinning, plus the yellow part also of course. Whereas it should be locked in somewhere. In those photos the pic on the top right, on mine those gears are both metal. Brass I think. They are in excellent condition.And yes when you push the orange button in, the smaller gear leaves the gear it is inside of, and you can spin that larger outer gear on its own. Then when the orange button is released back out flush with the handle, those two gears lock again.

    On that pic on the bottom right that longish skinny white rod thing at the bottom, that gets pushed in when the button is pushed. It has to be pushed in, in order to slip that little cir clip over it, or off it. Mine does not have the washer, just the cir clip.

    Dave has a point maybe about these TRA001's. I've had mine now for 4 to 5 years, its done a lot of work, make a heap of boxes from it, and numerous other things. And I did make my table to accommodate this so I will stick with this model. Having said that I still have my old 2HP Makita router that I bought in about 1980, now 37 years old and still working. It was my only router up until I bought this one. It's still under my old Triton Router Table which I only use for biscuit joints every blue moon. Back then you used to have to stand on your head under the table, get two spanners onto the chuck/collet and lucky to come out without skin off your knuckles.

    But getting back to this TRA001, there must be an answer, everything inside looks perfect, but what has gone wrong. All day today and I still cant figure it out.

    Paul

  8. #7
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    If the black handle is spinning, the orange ring that you pull in at the back mustn't be engaging with whatever it is supposed to otherwise it would lock the black handle and not allow it to spin.
    Sounds like you got yours from a good era if your gears are metal.

  9. #8
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    Spot on Dallas,

    But it doesn't lock in or engage. I'd notice over the last few weeks it was starting to slip but didn't pay much attention, but yesterday that was it, wouldn't lock in/engage at all.

    Those little springs inside that orange part, I thought there was just 3 on mine,maybe there was 4. I even stretched them out a bit for more tension. But to no avail.

    Paul

  10. #9
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    Was just thinking as I typed that post. On that orange part with the 4 springs poking out, there is a thread, but more like a cog. That fits inside that other black cog near it. That's the only plastic part with any sort of cog on it. I did check that today, wonder if that's a bit worn,...hmmm

    Paul

  11. #10
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    Oct 2008
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    If you do decide to dismantle it again you should be able to place the orange locking ring in the metal housing and see if it locks in. Could the ends of the teeth on the end of the locking ring or the teeth inside the metal housing be worn away and there isn't enough travel when pushed by the springs to allow them to engage with each other.
    Maybe you could do this while you're asleep tonight

    Dallas

  12. #11
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    Good point there Dallas, that's what I was thinking as I typed my last post. All the teeth on all the metal cogs seem to be in perfect condition. I did look at the teeth or whatever they are called on that orange plastic part, but maybe didn't examine them closely enough. I don't think I have to completely pull the handle apart again to do that. There are a few more parts inside that handle that are not shown on your photos.

    I'll do that tomorrow for sure

    Thanks Dallas

    Paul

  13. #12
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    If all else fails and you cant find a problem, PM rayintheuk. He's a wiz on Triton and may have seen this problem before.
    Cheers

  14. #13
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    Well Gentlemen, I think between mine and Dallas' brain I may have identified the problem. I have now pulled this TRA001 apart again,...don't ask how many times. And a close examination of the teeth on the yellow part of the handle they are very worn. The ends of the teeth seem not to bad but if the springs don't push the yellow part all the way into the metal gear, the yellow part just spins around and does not lock. Maybe the internal teeth on the metal gear are slightly worn also.

    A few pics so you can see the difference between my metal gears and the ones in the earlier photos from Dallas, which I think they come from Ray's webpage.

    Where I have the red pencil pointing towards is the culprit. The blue pencil gear is the one that is pushed in to, and the internal teeth might be a bit worn also.

    I have now contacted Triton to ascertain if I can buy these parts and maybe 3 new springs (yes 3 springs only, I was right, 4 on that other model).

    I am not holding my breath here, so I have also ordered a brand new TRA001 for $479 with free delivery from Just Tools. I use this pretty much daily.

    Thanks Gentlemen, for all your input and I will let you know how I go with the spare parts. End of the day I might have two of these,...!! And I do think I will sell my smaller Triton router for the reasons I mentioned earlier on. And see what small ones are available, much less bulkier with a plunger.

    Paul
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  15. #14
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    Hopefully that is your problem and you can get the parts to fix it. As this is the part that most frequently disengages and engages it stands to reason that it may be the first part to wear. I always release the locking ring while still holding the black handle and rotate it back and forth a little to make sure the orange locking piece has engaged properly. If it doesn't engage fully and you let go of the black handle the teeth could slip on each other which will damage the end making it more difficult for them to engage in the future.
    Have you looked at this site as they have virtually every part for those routers. They seem to have a pretty good reputation from Australian buyers so would be a good option if your other contact doesn't come through.
    That's not a bad price on a new TRA as I have seen them over the $500 mark in recent times. Maybe Triton realised they weren't selling after the price jumped from just over $300 to over $500 and were in the same price range as the tried and true brands such as Makita, Dewalt, Hitachi etc.

    And yes, the photos are from Ray's site. I saved them some time ago in case they might be needed in the future as I had trouble trying to find his instructions at one stage.
    Dallas

  16. #15
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    Hi Dallas, That link/site you sent, that actually comes up on the Triton Order site if you want to order parts for your Triton. I used the Contact part on the Triton Site as that had the facility to attach photos, whereas the Order part did not. So they must be all tied in together. I wanted to make sure they knew what part I was talking about, as it does appear TRA001's had a range of different insides in them.

    I think when I first bought this it was $349, then jumped up quickly to $399, now I have found them anywhere up to $630.

    I didn't want to contemplate changing brands as I made my router table to the specifications in the original Gifkin brochure/book that Roger put out, to suit that particular router. I know Col has now changed the book around as he told me he was getting to many enquiries from blokes who were trying to build the table from that original book and getting into difficulties. So he just canned that part of the book in his new prints.

    I made my table slightly smaller than the original, mainly for space, and probably less than half the cost of buying one.

    Paul

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