Screwfix is it worth a punt

It’s the old how often will you use it and how much does it cost you if it goes wrong question..

My knees didn’t thank me.

kneepads are invaluable, and quite cheap.

Worktop cutouts, down cutter in a jigsaw = utter shite. Plunge saw a revelation even if you have to cut the wrong side of the line, set the plunge 2nd cut to the exact worktop thickness, finish corners to the radiused holes you’ve already done with a multitool, jigsaw or handsaw.Square, straight cuts…perfect.

Perfect? That isn’t the issue for s pro, it’s hidden. It’s plenty good enough and much faster, that’s the advantage surely. Although as DIY er, I’d get a kick from knowing my never seen cut out was perfect too.

I’ve found myself going off the plastic trestles. a cheap b&d workmate is £30, I have a 25+ year old one, sacrificial board between the two seems a good it option. I’m too old for working on the floor…. My back complains as well as my knees these days.

Bowed rails back with seller and replacements in the post it seems. In the meantime I’m watching more Peter Millard, which is bad for my bank balance I think.

The peanut fixings look fabulous, and I can see many uses! Bit spendy though. :/

Peter has a vid on a mini peanut jig- £160

Nice guy, lovely well set out workshop for such a small space. He’s a member of another forum im on.

Yes that’s been watched, and the one on the bigger jig. I’m considering upgrading my router a bit and the mini peanut jig starter kit.

PM’s YouTube content is very watchable. Good length, nicely presented, really clear and informative.

In the meantime I’m watching more Peter Millard, which is bad for my bank balance I think.

Don’t, whatever you do, get into ‘fine woodworking’, You think it’s bad now? It could well be a whole new world of pain. What did you spend on your plunge saw? I could buy a chisel for that…

That’s one chisel. Not a set. One.

Ahh the great thing about furniture design and construction is @Bridges, is you get to have a foot in both worlds.
I’ve got the ‘rough’ joinery kit, and a bunch of Lie Nielsen planes and chisels too.

No I know. I favour Veritas stuff, because I find their designs just a little more ‘thoughtful’ than other premium brands, yet just the same excellent quality. Got a whole bunch of powertools; Festool, Bosch (Green and Blue), DeWalt, etc. Some proper dirt cheap LiDL/ALDI stuff too. It is true that ‘you get what you pay for’, largely; if you want consistency of results, then you learn that that generally comes more easily the more you spend. But one of my favourite tools is a little Japanese ‘Dozuki’ saw, which is so versatile and useful, and I think only about £25. It gets used a lot more often than the £1200+ router and table set up. But then; when you need that quality result, having the good stuff is such a bonus. My Festool TS55 gives perfect results, every single time. That bit better in the bearings, that bit better fit all round. Just makes for a better tool.

Bye heck, that must be some sort of Japanese samurai chisel!
I do sort of feel power tools and modern fixings instead of hand tools and well made dovetails/tenons/whatever is cheating. I can only ever hope to cheat though 😀 I consider my Stanley number 5 a quality hand tool,… It’s limited by me, rather then me by it.

Depends on what you’re trying to achieve; putting together some kitchen cabinets, then powertools, pocket hole jigs, dominos etc all the way. If you’re making ‘bespoke hand-made furniture’, then powertools only for things like thicknessing, band-sawing, ripping timber, drilling etc, cos doing those things by hand sucks any joy out of it, and hand tools for the joinery and fiddly bits. I’ll often sand by hand, because power sanders can be a bit too coarse/violent, and a more delicate touch is required. I’m much more of a ‘means to an end’ type of maker, so powertools where appropriate, get the job finished rather than take seven years to make a small table. Do love doing a dovetail by hand though. So satisfying. But very often, just grabbing a hand tool like a plane, chisel, saw etc, is much quicker than setting up powertools.

I bought an Aldi (rebadged Scheppach) about 3 years ago and found I was using it more and more. Recently I had some overtime at work and used the dosh to buy a Mafell MT55 which was very spendy and a bit of an extravagance that I didn’t really need. It cuts so nice though, I keep looking for jobs to do so I can use it!

This is getting annoying. Replacement rails arrived, also bowed. One is very very nearly straight but no, it still lifts at the end and the other needs to go back anyway so both will. One more try. If the next one’s aren’t straight I’ll get my money back and buy Makita I think.

That Mimi peanut jig…. And a 1/2″ hikoki router are tempting me.

I bought an Aldi (rebadged Scheppach) about 3 years ago and found I was using it more and more. Recently I had some overtime at work and used the dosh to buy a Mafell MT55 which was very spendy and a bit of an extravagance that I didn’t really need. It cuts so nice though, I keep looking for jobs to do so I can use it!

From one extreme to the other!

Spent this morning knocking up a mobile MFT table – hadn’t occurred to me until I saw the pictures of other people’s set up , but it’s the perfect way to create the work area I need for a couple of DIY projects. I need to trim some ply offcuts to make strips to level up the work surface at each end, but other than that, it’s good to go.

From one extreme to the other!

🤣

@footflaps yeah it was a bit! There was nothing wrong with the Aldi saw and I’ve done loads of work with it, including making my kitchen cupboard doors. I couldn’t find any longer rails to fit it as I only had the two 700mm that came with it and they were getting on my tits as the join was a bit naff. Once you got them aligned properly though the saw was great, especially with a 48t Freud blade in it. The build quality of the Mafell is something else though, its like driving a top end car after you’ve been driving a bangernomic special.

…as for the MFT I bought a plywood jig (can’t remember who off?) and cut loads of holes in my garage workbench.

Very nice, ditch jockey. I would pop a couple of dowels in each end of the MFT to stop it falling into the void as you slide it left and right. And the level’s a bit superfluous. Just adjust the legs till it stops wobbling. I also use the strips at each end to act as supports, but I also pop a couple of screws through into the CLS because it’s annoying when you slide things left and right and they fall off. Just take the screws out when you pack away. I use short lengths like yours for most work but have a couple of 2400 lengths of CLS when making wardrobes from the 2800 lengths that I buy.
Make sure you’ve got a support on the waste side so the offcut doesn’t fall at the end of the cut.

Is the festool mft1080 worth a punt ?

May have the option of a Second hand one.

This is getting annoying. Replacement rails arrived, also bowed. One is very very nearly straight but no, it still lifts at the end and the other needs to go back anyway so both will. One more try. If the next one’s aren’t straight I’ll get my money back and buy Makita I think.

Buy cheap, buy twice…

It’s for this reason, I invest in good tools. A good quality tool is something you’ll want to use again and again. A poor quality one, something you don’t want to use so ends up being quite redundant. And therefore, poor value for money. I’d rather buy a quality tool and sell it after I’ve done with it, if I’m only going to use it once/a limited number of times, than something cheap and nasty, with no residual value.

The build quality of the Mafell is something else though, its like driving a top end car after you’ve been driving a bangernomic special.

This. Using quality tools, in this case power tools, makes so much difference. The higher build quality/manufacturing tolerances mean there will be less vibration, for example, leading to easier and more comfortable use. Higher quality steel in blades means they last longer, and cut cleaner. I had to use a lower end DeWalt chop saw recently, and it was awful; I’m so used to the good stuff, that it just felt horrid. Poor quality results, mainly from excessive lay in the bearings, so not the level of accuracy I normally require. Did the job, but not very well. And it hasn’t been sued all that much; it’s just a ‘consumer’ level tool for occasional DIYers, so adequate for just that.

The Excel rails are supposed to be good I thought. I think the seller, or courier has mistreated them.

That’s entirely possible, but thats the risk buying cheap stuff off the internet. Which is why I don’t, personally. With anything over a few quid, I much prefer to buy from a trusted, ‘bricks and mortar’ source, as getting something sorted is just that much easier I’ve found. As for brands; I look at what gets used by various professionals, day in, day out, and ask their opinions. I’ve been on a very small budget, and had to shop wisely for tools, and been pleasantly surprised with how good some cheap stuff really is (Bosch Green; far better than you’d expect it to be, overall). Your rails could have been bent in transit, but again, they could just be crap to start with. Get some decent ones and save yourself the headache.

I don’t want to start a new topic for this and this thread seems to be all about diy woodworking – and this question is appropriate my Aldi (yes) router has packed up – only used for simple stuff, as I’m not that proficient with it yet.

Looking at replacing it with a cordless one (without spending loads) – any recommendations?
I’ve got makita and ryobi batteries

I’ve the makita RT0700 , and that comes in cordless version, so if your batteries are the same interface thats a possible.
The cordless version is model number DRT50Z basic cost is about £150, but i would strongly recommend getting the plunge base with it, as the simple trimmer base gives it a pretty high center of gravity and with only half the already small baseplate on the workpiece I found it has a tendency to want to tip over. Its about 200 with trimmer and added plunge base.

However. The corded version with all 3 bases is only a bit over £200, and that at least has the power of mains behind it, and a router will draw a fair amount of power in use. Besides, its really only going to get used near a power socket anyway.

As you state you are on a budget I would suggest researching the Katsu 18v router from Aim tools on the auction site and reviews online.

@finishthat

As you state you are on a budget I would suggest researching the Katsu 18v router from Aim tools on the auction site and reviews online.

Thanks, that takes makita batteries ! The router and plunge base for £112 ! Looks like an exact copy of the makita drt50z.

There’s a few YouTube videos comparing it to the real deal if you want to check but it seems to come out pretty favourably. It’s actually quite expensive for Chinese made Makita copies so hopefully that means something

I’ve got the Makita cordless router which I love.

I’ve also got the Katsu one but corded.
Really impressed with it actually.

I tend to just leave one cutter in it set up as it’s cheap enough.

I’ve got a genuine Makita plunge base which fits either and is excellent quality and a couple of cheap Makitalike bases that are good but not as high in quality.

I’d probably favour corded if you’re doing more heavy work.

@kayak23

I’ve got the Makita cordless router which I love.
I’ve also got the Katsu one but corded.
Really impressed with it actually.
I tend to just leave one cutter in it set up as it’s cheap enough.
I’ve got a genuine Makita plunge base which fits either and is excellent quality and a couple of cheap Makitalike bases that are good but not as high in quality.
I’d probably favour corded if you’re doing more heavy work.

I am a total newbie to the world of routers, what kind of stuff would be “heavy work” & would a cordless unit not be up to the task for certain jobs ?

Firstly , routers need a bit of respect from a safety point of view, please
take care , especially the direction of cut and dust extraction.
Effectively most battery powered routers have been used hand held for smaller cutters , it takes experience and practice – practice is essential before attacking the masterpiece!
Larger more powerful machines 1/2″ collet are heavy , more stable but can accept large cutters that are intended for use with the machine mounted under a router table.
Pay attention to collet/cutter sizes – they need to match exactly , your Aldi machine likely came with 6mm and 8mm , neither are 1/4″ compatible , actually 8mm is a significant improvement in strength over 1/4″
There are lots of resources online to research, these machines demand a calm steady approach for decent results, no quick anything until you have some experience hands on.

Firstly , routers need a bit of respect from a safety point of view, please
take care , especially the direction of cut and dust extraction.

Yeah, sleeves up when using one. Last thing you want is a cuff of your jumper to become entangled in the 18,000 rpm razor sharp cutter.
The dust extractor is not only for the lungs(wood dust is toxic, and many hardwood timbers are carcinogenic) it keeps what you’re cutting free from shavings and makes it all easier to see, which is a plus point concerning safety.

Buy a book. This is good because info is readily to hand, no waiting for someone to answer a query and just going ahead anyway because it seems obvious.
eg –
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/384213232070?epid=88929414&hash=item5974e4a9c6:g:hnwAAOSw4HRgxduX

@dyna-ti thanks will take a look at that.

@finishthat – Just checked the Aldi router and it had 6mm & 8mm collets. I just used the bits it came with !

Some good advice there that I haven’t really considered, I may have to buy a corded model or the Katsu cordless model, so I can budget for a dust extractor vacuum.

I really haven’t got a scooby what to look for in a corded router. My default position is makita on power tools, I e found them to just be really reliable. 1/2” router, as opposed to the 6mm, or 8mm models.

I’ve had a ‘performance power’ b and q keen brand 1/4″ router for going on 20 years and it has been great. Admittedly it’s not heavily used but for it’s cost is been far better than expected. I have recently been looking at a 1/2″, and think it’ll be the hikoki/Hitachi m12ve. Not the fanciest and proper sturdy and half the price of the big Makita or DeWalt. That is unless I see some super bargain on one of those.

@Neilnevil
One of the problems with the cheap routers is accuracy. The base isnt centered to the cutter.
How this effects it in the real world is when you rotate the machine the bit can cut at a further or lesser distance from the edge. For accurate routing the bit must be exactly centered.
Also you can find the bit isnt exactly in the vertical plane, which again is down to the cheaply made base.
Bases can be warped and so rock side to side causing more inaccuracies in the cut, the plunge action instead of being smooth is jerky, plunge depth and all other aspects are standardized with other cheaply made machines, all are the minimums.
The motor isnt rated for any sort of heavy continuous work, so has the risk of overheating and burning out. Sure ok maybe for some jobs, and if occasionally used, but if you need to rely on it, it just hasn’t the quality and attention to detail a ‘pro’ model has.

It’s the same with everything from household appliances to bicycle parts. Cheap is cheap and for a reason.
You get what you pay for.

Katsu has a fair reputation and ive not seen many complaints about it. General consensus in workshop forums is its effectively the same as the makita RTO700 etc, it’s so nearly identical most believe its from the same factory.
Rutlands is doing its own branded version. Chances are it is the katsu rebranded.
https://www.rutlands.com/pp+routing-routers-1-4-routers+c24101

The hikoki is a trade/pro tool, well made and made for heavy use. It’s drawbacks are more lacking finesse…no fine adjustment on depth stop or fence, and a slightly shorter plunge. Ideal for simple but hard work like kitchen worktops, a bit less so for fine work. Although a big heavy 2+kW machine and fine work need a table often anyway.

What a good mid range router then ? Not pro, not necessarily cordless.

This erbauer looks ok for 90 quid and 1/2” ? https://www.screwfix.com/p/erbauer-er2100-2100w-electric-router-220-240v/535fx

Looked at the Makita and Hikoki but big money for the casual DIYer. And the Festool – Jesus Christ how much ?

Festool is cheap compared to a Shaper Origin, which is about £3K. Origin is a handheld CNC router, a really fancy bit of kit
https://store-eu.shapertools.com/

What a good mid range router then ? Not pro, not necessarily cordless.

This erbauer looks ok for 90 quid and 1/2” ?

the erbauer will do everything you need. As screwfix’s own brand Erbouer has always been pretty good value for money.

with 1/2” routers in particular the mid-price range (the big names – makita, dewalt, trend) have some pretty poor machines- well made, but decades old designs. Important modern features like effective dust extraction come as fiddly fragile bolt-ons that obstruct you view and get in the way of cutter changes and end up lost or broken- it should really be integrated into the design rather than be some stupid clip-on afterthought. They’ll be a bit tougher than the erbauer but that’s all.

the festool routers are expensive but only really a little bit pricier than the major brands – they are light years better though.. Safer, cleaner, quicker, easier and more comfortable to use. If you are paid for you time then the time they save you makes them more than worthwhile. I really would have thought they’d have encouraged the other brands to up their game too but that’s not really happened.