I only have the occaisional need for a router but at 30 quid. the Aldi one looks like it could be a good buy. Does anybody have experience with this o ne? In particular, what size cutters does it take - there's no indication o n thr box if it's 1/2 or 1/4 inch
I only have the occaisional need for a router but at 30 quid. the Aldi one looks like it could be a good buy. Does anybody have experience with this one? In particular, what size cutters does it take - there's no indication on thr box if it's 1/2 or 1/4 inch
Previous offerings have been 1/4" The are also selling a router table which in the past didn't match the router they sold at the same time. The body of the router was longer than the height of the table!
Can't see it on the web at the mo, so can't really comment.
Past offers suggest you might get 1/4" + 6mm and 8mm collets with it.
6mm is not much use (poor choice of cutters and nothing to recommend it over 1/4"), but the 8mm gives access to some larger cutters that are not available on the smaller shank sizes.Probably not a bad choice for a first medium sized router, although its likely to lack finesse in the fine adjustment department.
Thanks, I wasn't sure from the instore details if the collets were for reducing a 1/2 inch capacity for 1/4 cutters or if they represented the only sizes of cutters that could be used.
It would have been good if it was 1/2 inch because I already have some 1/2 inch cutters left from an old, now dead, router but despite that it's looking like a good buy for my limited use.
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On the contrary 8mm is much superior to 1/4" IMHO and I have no trouble sou rcing cutters. It can provide an alternative to 1/2" for use in a smaller m achine. I have snapped 1/4" its in the past but never an 8mm. In the hand t he difference is more obvious. Its a common size in Europe
Erm, I think that is kind of what I just said!
I suggested that *6mm* is of limited benefit - less availability of cutters, and weaker than 1/4". 8mm is stronger than 1/4" and hence can handle larger cutters / more aggressive cuts.
Yup 8mm has its uses if you don't have access to a 1/2" machine.
Having said that, I have never snapped off a 1/4" router bit... damaged a couple on screws etc though.
If you are looking for a good range of cutters, then what is available in the US is perhaps more important, but non imperial is far less common there.
Whoops I misread your post. Apologies
What inshore details would those be Mike ?
According to your original post the only indication you had of cutter sizes was from the box.
michael adams
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They explicitly call them collets rather than reduction collets or bushes, so it seems likely that its not a 1/2" machine.
Much depends on what you want to use it for. A medium sized 1/4" machine is usually a good choice for an "all rounder". Small and light enough for edge detailing work, big enough for light joint making etc.
Thanks. I'd been unaware of the distinction between the terminology for normal collets and reduction collets.
Good point, It certainly looks like it should be fine for my needs. I doubt if it's worth bothering trying to find something which would make use of a few existing old cutters.
I noticed the router when I was in Aldi while away from home for a few days and with very limited internet access - an old mobile device with early android system that can't cope with many HTTPS websites, including the Aldi site.
So the only info I had available was what was printed on the box "in-store". This was very vague and from what I remember it said it had "3 collets and 2 cutters". I remember there was some discussion here about the capacity of these routers in the past but couldn't remember if it had been established as 1/4" or 1/2".
Now that I'm back home with decent internet access I see from their website that it comes with 1/4", 6mm and 8mm collets and two 6mm cutters.
Despite not being 1/2" it certainly looks good value and should be sufficient for my needs so I've gone ahead and ordered one online.
Indeed. Although there usually comes a point where the investment in cutters out values the router... although by then you probably have a selection of routers anyway. (I think I am up to 4 now!)
Sorry this is my fault entirely. That and Eternal September and maybe one or two other servers. I keep a bookmark of the Aldi offers page
which I check on a regular basis, As I'm on the lookout for a repeat offer for their 10.8 v drill driver. This is a neat liitle tool- a small sized replica of their larger drill drivers, but with a battery which slots into the bottom of the handle like the magazine on a luger pistol. Rather than a big lump stuck on the bottom. I'm looking to buy another one just for the extra battery.
Anyway as a result of having the page bookmarked I was able to post a link to the router page within hours of your post . However as a I realised afterwards neither yourself nor John can have seen it, as it never showed up on Eternal September and maybe other servers at all. As I normally post through Plusnet who use a Giganews feed didn't realise this at first.
Checking the current offers there's a set of 12 bits for ?9.99 in a miniarure flight case.
the flight case alone would be worth a few quid IMO...
No size is given but they come with two collets.
Now compared with prices during the Trend monopoly days nowadays they're almost giving the things away. However 6 of those are profile bits with a bottom bearing. Experience has cautioned me against using cheap bits with a bottom bearing without double checking them before every pass - which to me means removing the plug from the socket as its not unknown for them to come off at the most innoportune moment.
michael adams
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Well I went ahead and ordered the Aldi router. It's taken somewhat longer than expected because the one they initially sent was missing the cover for the bottom of the base plate. The replacement has now arrived and certainly looks and feels like good value after a few test cuts.
Compared to more expensive routers the pressed steel guide fence seems a bit lightweight but seems to do the job OK.
The guide bush has a rather unconventional shaped fixing plate instead of the usual circle, this could be a minus point for a more serious user because you're limited to just the one size bush but that's not likely to be a problem for my fairly basic needs.
The guide fence can be turned upside down and fitted with a centre pin to enable circles to be cut up to about 10 inch radius.
A rather odd accessory is the roller guide which can be bolted onto the guide fence, apparently for following curved surfaces or . I would expect this will only work if the imaginary line through the centres of the roller and cutter is kept perpendicular to the surface of the curve being followed. In the absence of any way of forcibly constraining this the router could easily wander away from the desired path towards the edge of the work.
I also bought a set of Aldi's router bits. It turns out that these are not accurately described on the website which gives the maximum speed as
30,000 rpm but they all have a maximum speed of 24,000 rpm engraved on the shank and it's down to guesswork what number on the speed dial corresponds to 24,000 rpm. But at only 10 quid they're a good starter set.replying to Mike Clarke, Chicken wrote: Good evening I know it?s been a while since anyone spoke on here concerning routers
but could anyone tell me if you can connect a Aldi workzone WWR-1200/18 to a router table ? cheers
I've never seen a router that couldn't be attached to a table, unless you'd count a dremel with a 1/8" steel routing bit. That must last all of 5 minutes on a good day.
NT
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