Thread: Any Comments On H&F Router Table

I too am interested in anyone with reviews or comments on the machine.

Daniel

Looks interesting, want to know how it compares to the kerg bench top table from carbatec. Looks like 20kg is not very "portable" though.

So did anyone end up getting the hf-50? I saw H&F have them for $319. I'm after a semi-decent but cheapish router table...

I bought one a couple months ago.
I like it a lot.
It comes with both 1/2" and 1/4" collets. Only 1 spanner needed to loosen the collet.
Changing bits is a bit of a problem (no pun intended)
It is a tight squeeze to get your fingers in to push the collet holding doodah (don't really know what it is called) and it gets very hot.
Using a raised panel bit one has to be careful the large bit doesn't cut into the back part of the fence.
Adjusting the left fence to allow for the difference between the original edge and the cut one is very easy.
The grill in the back of the dust extraction stops the larger splinters to get through and causes a build up of waste material, so we cut the grill off. Works well now.
For larger (longer) pieces we have made an extension table at the front to support them.
The mitre gauge was about 2 degrees out but easily adjusted.
I had a small problem controlling the stiles for the end grain cutting (arthritic hands) so we attached a 3mm thick piece of perspex to the fence to cover the hole between the fences, then moved the fence forward with the bit running and cut a hole the shape of the cutter. That's where we discovered we had to be careful not to cut into the fence at the back
Worked a charm.
Regarding the portability, we screwed it down to the bench it is sitting on and put wheels underneath it.
All in all, we are very happy with the machine. Nice to be able to use our routers without having to remove them from the table first.
I would buy it again.

Cheers
Wolffie

Thanks for the review!!!

Originally Posted by SAISAY

I bought one a couple months ago.
I like it a lot.

I would buy it again.

Cheers
Wolffie

Hi Wolffie

Are you still happy with the Scheppach?

Cheers
Mike

Hi Mike
I haven't had much chance to use it lately, I am busy re-designing my CNC machine.
I am still happy that I bought it, though.
I didn't like that I burned my fingers when I was changing a bit, so I installed a largish heatsink.
That helped a lot.
The collet and shank do not get hot any more.

I bought one few months ago. Ithink October

The first two that I unpacked were damaged in transit , the third seemed OK H & F replaced the damaged ones without question.

The one I have has a warped fence . H & F sevice dept. said that itwas OK and they were all like that. they refuse to do anything. The fence is unusable with out shimming and muchadjustment to compensate every time i use it. Now I just use a piece of hardwood clamped to the table. The miter slots in the pressed metal extension tables do not line up with cast table rendering the mitre guage almost useless. The lift mechanism is dodgy and cannot be relied upon to lock or to riase the bit square to the table. H & F have said that all of this is normal.

I was at H & F a few days ago looking at the second hand / demo machinery. They had two of these units going cheap, both were labelled as having the cast table top warped beyond spec.

Mine came out of a batch delivered after H $ F had been out of stock for some time. I get the impression that the earlier batch were better quality.

I sold my Triton table and Ryobi router to get this unit. I wish i hadn't.

They are perhaps OK for the price but they are really not very good.

It must have been a bad batch, was the box damaged?

I cannot comment on the service department nor the Sydney store, I dealt directly with the store manager in Brisbane and never had any problems at all with them.
My bandsaw was damaged in transit and they sent a local sparky here to do the repairs. Actually they told me to contact my choice of sparky and send the bill to them. What else could I ask for?
That manager has since left but his replacement, David, is just as helpful as Richard was.

It must be something with Queensland stores
When someone complains about CarbaTec, I again has never had any problems with them neither.
For some strange reason it seems like I always end up dealing with the manager.
Maybe because I do not accept BS from the junior sales people? Once they start waffling, I just ask for the manager right away.

I have one on order so all been well I will be able to report back in a couple of weeks

Originally Posted by waynetj

I have one on order so all been well I will be able to report back in a couple of weeks

I have one on back-order too. Due in (at the Sydney store) on April 15th. If they're all arriving in Oz at about the same time, you might have a month or more to wait. Meantime, it's the Dremel for me.

I'll write a bit of a review too, after I've had a bit of a play with mine.

I too purchased this router table from H&F. What a disappointment. I am on my 2nd table now as H&F replaced the first as the spindle lock completely stripped after very first use and my router bit was unable to be removed.
So I'm on my 2nd one and its been ok for about 3 months and now the same thing has happened again. I pulled it apart and found the problem, worst spindle lock system ever made, I'm surprised I got 3 months use out of this one to be honest.

The fence on both tables were also warped and unusable, but I could live with that and just made a decent fence myself. The height adjustment wasn't right on the 2nd table either as it would change the position of the bit when you tightened it and that position never matched the pass before so that made any accurate work impossible.

So now it's sitting in my shop with no spindle lock, unusable and no chance of another replacement, money back etc.

I'm seriously trying to work out a way around it so I can use it again, $300 down the drain if I can't come up with a safe way of locking the spindle so I can get the collet nut on and off above the table. All I've thought of was a hose clamp around the spindle and then pliers to hold it still so I can get the collet nut on/off but I doubt a hose clamp spinning thousands per min under the table would be very safe in operation

Any thoughts guys?

Originally Posted by Mins

I too purchased this router table from H&F. What a disappointment. I am on my 2nd table now as H&F replaced the first as the spindle lock completely stripped after very first use and my router bit was unable to be removed.
So I'm on my 2nd one and its been ok for about 3 months and now the same thing has happened again. I pulled it apart and found the problem, worst spindle lock system ever made, I'm surprised I got 3 months use out of this one to be honest.

The fence on both tables were also warped and unusable, but I could live with that and just made a decent fence myself. The height adjustment wasn't right on the 2nd table either as it would change the position of the bit when you tightened it and that position never matched the pass before so that made any accurate work impossible.

So now it's sitting in my shop with no spindle lock, unusable and no chance of another replacement, money back etc.

I'm seriously trying to work out a way around it so I can use it again, $300 down the drain if I can't come up with a safe way of locking the spindle so I can get the collet nut on and off above the table. All I've thought of was a hose clamp around the spindle and then pliers to hold it still so I can get the collet nut on/off but I doubt a hose clamp spinning thousands per min under the table would be very safe in operation

Any thoughts guys?

Don't use a hose clamp.

I bought one too, had my share of problems, but not the spindle lock (yet). Having heard of this problem before, I treat mine very gently.
There's a more recent thread on the HF-50, here https://www.woodworkforums.com/f20/sc...rt-2-a-168983/

If it's just the spindle lock that's failed, if you remove the rear cover there might be a way to lock it at the motor. I'd be tempted to grind small flats on either side of the shaft, then leave the back cover off for access. Not sure how safe that would be, though, the shaft might be weakened too much.
You could always jam a piece of wood through the motor to catch on the rotor. (Not a good idea.)

Maybe if you remove the motor, the spindle lock might be repairable with a weld or two. A photo of the damage would be useful.

Lots of if's, maybe's and might's, but it could be repairable. I wonder if H&F would sell just a motor or even a shaft/rotor as a spare part, and if it is worth the effort/cost. It's a real shame to have it sitting there unused.

Thanks for your reply Steve!

I got stuck in and pulled the whole thing apart further. Did a lot of investigating, tried a few things, swore many times and then let defeat kick in for the time being and ordered a Kreg table I can attach my plunge router too as I needed the table working urgently for a job I was working on.

I'm still planning on returning to the Scheppach and doing like you suggested, buying another router that will fit the built in lift perfectly and make it useable again but that can wait now. My disappointment with the whole product got the better of me for the time being and the Scheppach and I are taking a long break from each while I blow off steam at the new Kreg table... Which I wish I had of purchased instead of the Scheppach from the start. Lesson learnt for me
Thanks again for the help!