I have been using a PC 690 router for a couple of years. I use it
with the fixed base on a small Rockler table. I've never figured out
how to make the fine adjustment ring work. See picture
http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/3536/routeradjustmentring8pj.jpg
I always have to adjust by rotating the router body in the base. This
is a very course adjustment making it difficult to get the cut depth
set right.
When I try to use the fine adjustment ring it doesn't seem to do
anything at all -- it just turns and turns but the blade does not rise
or lower. What I am doing wrong?
jim
jim evans wrote:
> I have been using a PC 690 router for a couple of years. I use it
> with the fixed base on a small Rockler table. I've never figured out
> how to make the fine adjustment ring work. See picture
> http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/3536/routeradjustmentring8pj.jpg
>
> I always have to adjust by rotating the router body in the base. This
> is a very course adjustment making it difficult to get the cut depth
> set right.
>
> When I try to use the fine adjustment ring it doesn't seem to do
> anything at all -- it just turns and turns but the blade does not rise
> or lower. What I am doing wrong?
>
Jim,
The only thing you are doing wrong is confusing the purpose of the
ring. That is not a fine adjustment ring, it is simply a place-marker.
You turn it so that the zero mark lines up with one of the reference
marks on the body of the motor. Then you twist the motor so the
reference mark moves to the desired mark on the ring. The ring is just
a friction fit and is not threaded at all. There is no fine adjustment
other than a very slight twist of the motor in the base.
DonkeyHody
"Every man is my superior in that I can learn from him." - Thomas
Carlyle
Thanks for the replies. I understand now. My previous router had a
micro adjust feature and I somehow assumed this more expensive and
more widely used router would too.
From my perspective this isn't a very practical way to do fine
adjustments under the router table. Even hand held it seems like it
would be awfully easy to bump it out of position. Oh, well. Thanks
again for the clarification.
jim
"jim evans" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Thanks for the replies. I understand now. My previous router had a
> micro adjust feature and I somehow assumed this more expensive and
> more widely used router would too.
>
> From my perspective this isn't a very practical way to do fine
> adjustments under the router table. Even hand held it seems like it
> would be awfully easy to bump it out of position. Oh, well. Thanks
> again for the clarification.
>
> jim
First, this router isn't really designed for fine adjustments while in a
router table. I have the PC 690, but I also have a PC 8529 that goes in the
router table. This router is designed for above the table micro adjustment.
If you want to do micro adjustment on your router, you're going to need a
router lift, but honestly, by the time you do that, you could get a plunge
router with a micro-adjust feature for about the same price.
Second, I've always used the ring as a relative rather than an absolute
guide. Say I'm at a particular setting and I do a test cut and need to go
another 1/8" deeper. I set the ring at zero and then rotate the router
until it gets to 1/8. Again, it isn't designed to tell you exactly how deep
your cut is.
todd
That ring is just an indicator. Rotate the body to adjust.
"jim evans" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> I have been using a PC 690 router for a couple of years. I use it
> with the fixed base on a small Rockler table. I've never figured out
> how to make the fine adjustment ring work. See picture
> http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/3536/routeradjustmentring8pj.jpg
>
> I always have to adjust by rotating the router body in the base. This
> is a very course adjustment making it difficult to get the cut depth
> set right.
>
> When I try to use the fine adjustment ring it doesn't seem to do
> anything at all -- it just turns and turns but the blade does not rise
> or lower. What I am doing wrong?
>
> jim
"todd" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> If you want to do micro adjustment on your router, you're going to need a
> router lift,
Unless you don't want a router lift in which cae, learn to adjust the 690. I
use one in a table and have no problem at all.
jim evans (in [email protected]) said:
| I always have to adjust by rotating the router body in the base.
| This is a very course adjustment making it difficult to get the cut
| depth set right.
|
| When I try to use the fine adjustment ring it doesn't seem to do
| anything at all -- it just turns and turns but the blade does not
| rise or lower. What I am doing wrong?
As DonkeyHody noted, the ring is only a scale. You _can_ do reasonably
accurate adjustments with it if you zero it to the bit. For straight
bits, it's fairly easy - upend the router and turn the body until the
bit is fully retracted, lay something flat across the base, turn the
body to raise the bit until it just barely touches the "something
flat", and tighten the adjustment clamp knob. With that done, rotate
the ring until its zero lines up with the line scribed on the body.
Now you're ready to loosen the clamp knob and rotate the router body
until the depth you want lines up with the scribed line. Now if you
cut a dado, it'll be within a gnat's whisker of the depth you wanted.
For extreme accuracy (I did this the last time I used my 690) I set
the router base-up on my bench, loosened the adjustment clamp knob
minimally, and retracted the router bit as above. Then I set a 1-2-3
block on the router base, positioned the face of my depth gauge on the
1-2-3 block, extended the gauge until it contacted the router
baseplate, and zeroed the depth gauge. Then I shifted the business end
of the depth gauge to ride the router bit as I rotated the router body
to raise the bit until the depth gauge indicated that I had the depth
setting I wanted to cut. At that point I tightened the router
adjustment clamp knob and re-checked. Sometimes the setting is
slightly spoiled (slop in the system) when I tighten the knob and when
that happens, I loosen the knob just enough to repeat the process. My
depth gauge is the digital type that'll read 1/1000ths with a +0.0005"
indicator and I normally work to those kinds of tolerances.
The factory-installed scale ring should let you repeatably set within
a 1/100" of any of the marked divisions; and if you have/develop a
good "eye", you should be able to do fairly well between divisions.
HTH
--
Morris Dovey
DeSoto Solar
DeSoto, Iowa USA
http://www.iedu.com/DeSoto/solar.html
On 7 Dec 2005 13:26:03 -0800, "marcj" <[email protected]> wrote:
>Hi Jim,
>The router table you're using looks pretty cool. Are those magnets
>holding the wrenches in place? Go any other pics? Does the base just
>clamp onto your workbench?
The benchtop table was made for the 690 router. I use it because I
don't have room for a full router table. I can store this one with
router attached in my workbench below where I deploy it for use.
I don't have other pictures, but here is a different view from Rockler
http://images.rockler.com/rockler/images/38121-lg.jpg
And here are more details http://tinyurl.com/7zanr
The wrenches have are held on with strips of sticky-back velcro --
hook on the table and pile on the wrenches.
jim
I have a PC 690 base permanently mounted on my router table, and find it to be
very convenient and plenty accurate. The gradations on that measuring ring are
1/64", I can fine tune the cut depth or repeat a depth setting to better than
.005" (measured depth of cut in workpiece). It did help to make two more guide
lines (with a 'Sharpie' marker) on the body of the motor halfway between the two
that come from the factory - makes it easier to make sure one guide mark is
visible from the front when the router is mounted under the table.
--
JeffB
remove no.spam. to email
http://home.san.rr.com/jeffnann
On Wed, 7 Dec 2005 23:10:19 -0600, "todd" <[email protected]> wrote:
>I've always used the ring as a relative rather than an absolute
>guide. Say I'm at a particular setting and I do a test cut and need to go
>another 1/8" deeper. I set the ring at zero and then rotate the router
>until it gets to 1/8.
I agree. I started to say that in my original post. I only want to
use it for relative adjustments not absolute.
I set up the cut coarsely, and make a test cut. That's when I need
finer control that lets me adjust from the test cut to the correct
depth in one easy well controlled step.
jim