More Information On The Bench Standard Router Lift
I sent an email to Bench Standard over the weekend and got an answer today .......
1) What is the thickness of the Router Plate ?
The top mounting plate itself is 6mm aluminium.
2) What method is included with the router for levelling the Router Plate in the table ? (I will be using my own shop made table.)
There are grub screws that can level the lift with your table on the rebated edge that the plate rests on. From memory there are six leveling holes for the grub screws with two holes that are used to fix the plate down to the top. You would need to install some insert nuts in your table to screw the locking (sic hold-down) screws in place.
3) What sort of sealing is used on the bearings and gearboxes to prevent ingress of wood dust ?
All bearings are fully-sealed. The winding nut mechanism itself is not sealed so that they are self-cleaning as long as you keep the threaded posts clean and lubricated and this provides an easy method of cleaning out the threads for long life.
4) What is the warranty on the Router Lift ?
There is a five-year warranty on the lift and all router table components.
5) A few woodworkers that I've talked to who have more experience with router lifts than myself, say that with this style of Router Lift (i.e. one designed to accept plunge routers) that "you loose some plunge depth". Does this statement have any truth ?
Yes it does – the nature of how they’re designed means you always lose depth. You generally lose around 1/2in of cutting height.
6) Will I get above table bit changes with all the brands of routers that you list on your web site as being compatible with this Router Lift ?
You won’t get any above table bit changes. Because of the issue as listed above in #5 this is a problem generally with router lifts and plunge routers. Apart from round-body router motors that fit in a different type of cradle, you won’t get above-table changes from another router lift that I’m aware of apart from Triton’s router/router table integrated system. To overcome this you can look at using a router collet extension. I am not sure if this would help?
So that's the answers that I got back from Bench Standard. All good information. Unfortunately, I forgot to ask them where the Router Lift was manufactured, but that question is not one that is of high concern to me at the moment.
I was advised today by the Electricity Company rep who is handling the compensation payout for the damage caused by the power surge, that they will be replacing the Triton TRA-001 with a new item. They only pay out a replacement value cheque for those damaged items that are no longer current models.
So, I will have a new TRA-001 to use if I decide to go with the Bench Standard Router Lift. So, as I already own a TRA-001, the Bench Standard Router Lift is still rating pretty highly for me.
That's the latest info.....
RoyG