GMC router help required

[drewey10]

I have one of the $39.00 GMC Routers from Bunnings, have had a couple of problems.
The first is that the spanners that come with it are hopeless, infact i had to take the whole thing back, as the spanners bent, couldn't get the bit out.
They had no routers left, so i had to buy a shifter to do the job. I didn't want a refund as it would be hard to find another router for $39.00.
Does anyone know what the replacement policy is with Bunnings is on these products?, is there a clause where they have to give you an equivalent GMC replacement if they don't have any of that model left?.

I am making some drawers for the garage from MDf 18mm, have been trying to cut an 18mm recess to butt the joints, but the router really struggles. A little gutless for this size cut on MDF. Does this sound about right?, i was having to cut 5mm at a time to get the 18 mm cut.

The other thing i wanted advice on is sharpening router bits, whats the easiest way to do this at home?.

[GregLee]

GMC Warranty states..

GMC products are warranted for a 2-year period for home domestic use from the date of the original purchase. After the initial 30 days, if found to be defective in materials or workmanship, the tool or the offending faulty component will be replaced free of charge with another of the same item. A small freight charge may apply. The warranty replacement unit is only made available by returning the tool to the place of purchase with a confirmed register receipt. Proof of purchase is essential. Claims without an electronic cash register receipt will be rejected. This warranty does not include damage or defects to the tool caused by or resulting from abuse, accidents, alterations or commercial or business use.

You could also try ringing their helpline. They would probably send you out a few more spanners.

[Bob Willson]

A little gutless for this size cut on MDF. Does this sound about right?, i was having to cut 5mm at a time to get the 18 mm cut.
Hi drewey
I would not attempt to cut any more than 5 mm at a time anyway as this is just about the limit of a small router. I would suggest that if possible to do so, then the table saw would be a much better tool to cut a straight rebate.

[drewey10]

Thanks mate, thats what my dad suggested too. Spoke to GMC they are sending me some new spanners, they will probably be as bad as the originals.

[Danster]

I got meself a $60-odd Ozito router, also from Bunnings.
Did some nice work & was in the habit of keeping the bit in there for next time. Bad move...went to use it a few weeks later with different bit, so tried to remove it & couldn't for the life of me loosen the lock nut. Ended up stripping the shaft locking thingo, so took it back.

They replaced the router AND gave me a new bit to replace the bit stuck in it. It would've been 9 to 10 mths since buying the router.

I was pretty happy with their replacement policy, only one small prob, the stuck bit was a 1/2 inch rounding bit from a set.
The only similar bit they had was a 10mm rounding bit, which of course doesn't give the same arc size. Anyway, still got a new router and new bit!

cheers

[Woodchuck]

Hi Drewey,

I would contact GMC if you have any problems at any point as they have been great with after sales service when ever I have delt with them. I would follow Bob's advice as it's always better to take small cuts that don't tax a routers motor, the table saw option would be much faster & easier.

I've had one of these routers for a few months & never had a problem removing the bit with the supplied spanners as yet. Maybe something was wrong with yours or are you making the collet too tight ? Also heavy routing with a blunt bit can cause a bit of heat build up to the router bit & maybe heat expansion caused your problem ?

Also it'a always a good idea to often check you collet for damage & make sure it runs true. I'm not sure on sharpening routers bits at home, if your careful & make sure you do it correctly I would think it's ok to hone bits with a diamond plate. But you need to make sure you remove exaclty the same amount of material from both sides of a bit. Even pressure & the same amount of passes of the diamond stone on each side.

Get a good book on routing as most tell you how & have a great deal of other helpful information on all aspects of routing. Other people here might know a better/correct way of sharpening but for myself I prefer to take them to a saw doctor & let them do it. It's normally quite cheap.

As for an identical replacement of these fixed base routers under warranty I'm not so certain. You would have to talk to GMC/place of purchase as I was told that all of GMC's stock of these had been sold/cleared. Might depend on what stock Bunnings have. But I'm sure that GMC would have to stand by their warranty & as I said before I have found their service excelent. So I would be sure they would still sort something out if your router was faulty.

Cheers

Woodchuck

[lbarnes]

I too have had a problem with this router but have had excellent service so far from GMC.

My problem was that as the shaft ran true, a bit in the collet would wobble. When measured the runout was about 0.25 mm on one router and about 0.1 mm in the other (yes I purchased two as well). When I pulled the collets to bits I noticed that the tapered part was ground unevenly which I suspect was the reason for the runout.

A phone call to GMC and a pleasant talk with a fellow woodie resulted in four new collets being sent free of charge. Hopefully when they arrive the problem will be solved.

It would seem that you can never have too many routers.


Luke