Do I really need a 3-1/4hp router
Quickstep
| Posted in Power Tools and Machinery on
I’m looking to buy a new router for my router table. The Triton 2-1/4hp router has all the features I want except that it’s not 3-1/4hp. Then I wondered, do I really need that much power. I do want to be able to use those big panel raising bits. Can people with experience using the Triton 2-1/4hp model share their opinion?
Replies
Horsepower is simply a measure of the ability to do work.
In most woodworking tools, this is reflected in the amount of wood that can be taken off in a single pass with out bogging down.
Provided you have enough diameter to mount the bit, you can do anything with the 2-1/4-hp router you will be able to with the 3-1/4-hp router. But you may have to do it in more passes, in order to remove the same amount of material.
Sorry I can't speak on the Triton, but to the best of my knowledge I still haven't seen one.
i bought 2 Triton 2 1/4 HP machines have no regrets. The folks at Woodline USA, http://www.woodline.com/ have been coming to our Alberta woodworking shows the past few years.
They advocate making a fence with 1/4" strips of 1/4" HDPE. You put you big bit in and add layers of HDPE (3). You carefully place the strips of HDPE over the bit much like you would a zero clearance plate in a table saw.
The result is you make the first small cut, peel back 1/4" of the fence, make a second cut, peel back 1/4" of fence and make the final cut. The router and you are never exposed to the full power requirement of the full cut.
Even a 3 1/2 HP router will lug down on a full cut. A universal motor can only develop so much HP regardless of its peak rating. That 3 1/2 HP motor will melt or certainly fail prematurely trying to deliver that HP over a sustained period.
If you are doing a lot of raised panel work, you need a shaper which relies on an induction motor.
Hope this is some food for thought
Don
Quick,
Just an opinion from a novice, I bought the 3.25 Triton and have the raised panel making thingies. Reality check !! Do I really think I'm going to do this in one pass...not so much! The tear out might be too much. I'll probably do preliminary cuts on the TS.
The point being, you may never need the power of the 3.25...
Don't waste your time on a more powerful router, drop the cash on a more versatile router. A router with 2hp or more will do a better job if it is run at the correct speed for the type of cut. Spend your money on something with variable speed and never worry about the power. I'm not familiar with the triton but i work with a pc 690 version that is variable speed 1 3/4 hp. It wont take a full pass with the raised panel bit but as another poster mention- who would try to do that? IF you are doing a lot of raised panels, then consider a small shaper, the extra cost will be offset by the ease and consistency of your finished panels imho.
Thanks, I don't do raised panels too often, but when I do, I'd like to know I have the power when I need it. My table currently has a Freud FT2000E which is a 3-1/4hp model. It does fine power wise, but bit changes are a pain. I'd like to have a model that lets me do bit changes and height adjustment above the table.
I'm not familiar with the triton but i work with a pc 690 version that is variable speed 1 3/4 hp. It wont take a full pass with the raised panel bit but as another poster mention- who would try to do that?I DO! OFTEN! (OK so not in one pass!)I have more than a few routers I use often. All are under (2 hp) 1 3/4 with Variable speed. (Note; I rarely change speed except for large bits). I am not saying what I do is correct! Just that I learned to live with what I have and spend the least possible doing it.With my two 690's and my several 'so called junk' Ryobi routers I get along better than OK. NO PRODUCTION work here, just fun work!My basic working with any router is 'TAKE LIGHT CUTS' and as many passes as needed for the cut! Every wood is different!To be fair I hardly ever use Maple but I use Ash, Hickory, Jatoba, and Purpleheart most often. Jatoba and Purpleheart can be 'tricki' to work because it wants to 'shatter' with deep cuts that cross the grain.My 'little' routers can can spin my 2 1/2? (I forget the exact size right now) LockMiter and a large (Vertical) raised panel cutter.I almost always use a router table and only cut 'free hand' when I have no way to do it on the tables. Big router 'free hand' takes SKILL and GUTS!I'd say get a BIG router if WANT one! Otherwise, the little router WILL work for most jobs if you are not doing production and take light cuts.Just me...Edited 3/9/2008 9:51 am by WillGeorge
Edited 3/9/2008 9:53 am by WillGeorge
No experience with the Triton here, but I have run two 15 amp routers and a 13 amp router in my table. The 13 amp is a Freud FT1700, and the current 15 amp is the Milwaukee 5625 which replaced my former Freud FT2000. The FT1700 will spin the big bits with adequate power, but the big routers have an easier time of it. The 2-1/4 should be fine if you plan to do occassional raised panels....if you'll be doing alot of them, I'd look to a bigger router. AFAIK, the new FT3000 has good above table features.
I think you've framed the question incorrectly. It's not, "I want the 2 1/4 Triton, but do I need the 3 1/4?" The correct question is: "how can I possibly do quality WW'ing without both the 2 1/4 and the 3 1/4?" The answer, of course, is you can't, therefore you need both. Follow this logic with every WW decision and your shop will be full of all the tools one truly needs to do WW. I find a good thorough needs analysis helps clarify all of my tool purchases. :-)
(sshhh! don't tell my wife!)
Edited 3/9/2008 2:44 pm ET by pzaxtl
Quickstep, get 3 1/4hp if you're planning on using panel raising bits! I have the Hitachi M12V, and it is "ok" for doing panels, as log as you take several passes (usually 3). I have built a hundred+ doors with mine and can definitely see where a shaper would be useful. The extra torque really comes into play when you drop the RPMs. As it is, the M12V gets pretty hot after doing 25 panels. I wouldn't dream of asking a smaller router to do panels.
By the way, even if you had all the power in the world a 3" cutter couldn't take off 1 1/4" of material without severe tearout. The exit angle of the cutter is almost perpendicular to the fence. You would need a much large cutter (maybe 6"?). I usually set the correct height (with a scrap piece), then take off 3/4", then 1/4", and 1/4" -moving the fence back each time.
Edited 3/12/2008 7:52 am ET by Nathan Barnard
If you're not going to be using really large / long knifed bits, it'll probably be fine.
It is unfortunate that at the time of making a tool purchase that we don't have a crystal ball which shows every need for the life of that tool.
There will be times, and I would venture to say many times where you will wish for more power. I can't think of a time when I have wished for less power with any of my tools.
Actually a router is one tool, where under-power will have a tendency to run off out of control more readily than one where the tool has the power to make the cut which you are asking it to do.
When you need to make a climb-cut pass to keep from tearing out against the grain, an under-power tool will start to slow, which makes the cutter take an even bigger bite with each revolution, to the point that it has gained traction, and takes off with you.
When you have enough power for the tool to make the cut, it will just keep cutting like it should.
Hi
Do not have much to say about other machines BUT the Triton hs GREAT SAFETY features and I feel a lot happier with them , I would rather take off a small amount of wood at a time and get a good finish , and if you make a mistake by starting from the wrong side , there is always (generally) enough wood left which still has to be removed and your/ my mistake ban be corrected - Good luck
I have the 2 1/4hp Triton in a router table which replaced a Craftsman 3 1/2 hp. Both dedicated to the table.
They both draw the same amps ( 14 I think) so about the same "power". I've made about 10 raised panel doors with each router. With both I cut most of the waste away on a table saw then make about 3 cuts with the bit - last cut is very light just to clean up - no sanding necessary. Had a router razer on the craftsman but the Triton is MUCH better - built in raiser for easy above the table bit change with a good calibrated crank and it has a small vacuum port right at the bit that works with my fence port and 4" main.
The Triton performs as well as my 3 1/2 Hp did but is easier to use
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