# Leigh D4R-PRO Dovetail Jig



## ride0353 (Mar 21, 2017)

Looking for input on a good router to use with our Leigh D4R-PRO Dovetailing jig in a school shop. We are looking for a few things:
1. Durable Router
2. Fairly reasonable price- obviously with School Budgets.
3. Easy to setup and change bigs
4. Saw dust collection
5. Variable Speed, but durable to get through Oak, Maple and Chestnut​


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

that would be the Bosch 1617EVS...

WHY I LIKE BOSCH...
2nd to none CS and support that's absolutely painless...
They respect us, the consumer...
they make tools that are real work horses...
they make tools that last a very long time... decades of hard heavy use..
they make tools that protect my bottom line...
I think/believe Bosch to be an outstanding company that offers outstanding products... 

Factory Reconditioned Bosch 1617EVS-46 2.25 HP Fixed-Base Electronic Router
Saving some money now just may cost you more down the road. 

We constantly get new members who come here looking for parts for their Sears routers because Sears, Ereplacementparts and others don't have them. Collets in particular seem to a problem down the road and there seems to be no crossover. Yur stuck in a rut...
The fact that Sears has 2nd party handling of their tools makes it even more uncertain. 
You can add PC to that issue because PC was bought out by the group that owns B & D (Black & Decker) and their quality has slipped – I feel, quite a bit..
Many of us were PC fans at one time, including me, but we stay away from them these days. 
DeWalt is still good, for the Hobbyist, but CS can suck.. All my and my employees' DeWalt has long gone to the scrap yard.. 
So hasn't Ryobie.. Hitachi and Triton service/purchasing are very a long way off and service can be non-existent... In fact Triton isn't sold anywhere around here by popular demand..
Bosch is the only one that scores high on all categories and is as close as a phone and your mail box... 
Have a look at CPO outlets for reconditioned. I have never heard a true negative word about them. Their service or Bosch


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## CharleyL (Feb 28, 2009)

I use 2 DeWalt DW618 routers with my D4R Pro. You will find that once you get the bit height set correctly, you will not want to remove it to change to the other bit, so two routers become desirable. The DW618 routers are lighter than many routers of this size and they can take 1/2" shank bits. Smaller routers can be used for dovetailing, but my next smaller router will only take 1/4" bits and I don't like the flexing of the bit shank that is possible when dovetailing with these 1/4" shank bits. Leigh does not recommend using the 1/4" bits and suggests using either the 1/2" or the metric bits that they offer.

Router weight is important when routing dovetails all day long, because of the need to lift the router on and off of the jig so many times. I made a double router platform the same height as my D4R to place the routers on when not in use. It has holes for the bit and collar, plus a recess to center the router base as I drop it onto the platform, so it's easy to move the router from this base to the D4R and then back again with a minimum of lifting effort, which becomes very desirable when cutting dovetails all day. This platform is always placed just to the right of my D4R. I also find the D handle router bases to be more user friendly when doing dovetails, but this is just a personal choice.

If you use the same model router for both the straight and dovetail bits, mark them so the correct one is easy to identify. I color coded mine with pieces of color coding electrical tape, one red and one blue, but then I also applied white tape to the top of the router motor with an outline drawing of the bit that is installed in it, drawn with a black marker, because it's easy to pick up the wrong router DAMHIKT. The Vacuum attachment available from Leigh for their D4R works very well, although not 100%. I doubt there is a better alternative for dust collection. It also makes for safer routing by keeping the router from tipping toward you. I apply Johnson' paste wax to the router bases, the top of the D4R, and the vacuum attachment rail before starting to dovetail so the router slides over the D4R with a minimum of effort.

Charley


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## wglong (Mar 7, 2010)

Charley, I'd be interested in a photo of your setup.

Wm


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## ride0353 (Mar 21, 2017)

Thanks for all your input on this topic. Looks like I need to feel the dewault and Bosch Routers


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