# Makita RF1101 router base adjustments?



## Ben Dado (Aug 29, 2019)

Hi,
As I have searched in vain for a store bought guide bushing ready base plate for my trusty Bosch 1617EVS I have read in passing that the latest Makita RF1101 router bases, both fixed and plunge style, have a center hole that matches the "Porter Cable" standard and flat bottom countersunk mounting holes that have enough adjustment capability to make centering guide bushings easy.

I am under the impression that Porter Cable has opted to use tapered countersink holes which make adjustment problematic, and Bosch just provides a guide bushing system that is quick to setup and unlikely to ever be centered. 

A fresh new Makita Router seems like a possibility. I can leave my Bosch in my table where it excels at its task.

The nearest store that stocks Makita and might have Makita routers in stock is 120 miles from my house/workshop, and they don't have a RF1101 in stock, so I am writing here to ask if anyone with such a router has an opinion regarding the base plates and the adjustment capabilities of the mounting holes.

Thank you.


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## sreilly (May 22, 2018)

Ben Dado said:


> Hi,
> As I have searched in vain for a store bought guide bushing ready base plate for my trusty Bosch 1617EVS I have read in passing that the latest Makita RF1101 router bases, both fixed and plunge style, have a center hole that matches the "Porter Cable" standard and flat bottom countersunk mounting holes that have enough adjustment capability to make centering guide bushings easy.
> 
> I am under the impression that Porter Cable has opted to use tapered countersink holes which make adjustment problematic, and Bosch just provides a guide bushing system that is quick to setup and unlikely to ever be centered.
> ...


This comes up from time to time and I think was covered maybe in the last week or two. Keep in mind that Bosch has a centering jig to center your base to the collet, for either 1/4" or 1/2". They also make a quick change guide bushing kit and there are other base plates that will fit and accept PC guide bushings. But again you'll want and need the centering jig to align properly. Or you can spend the money on a new router as you're thinking but unless you really need to there are other solutions. Of course having multiple routers isn't necessarily a bad thing especially if you use them often....


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## Ben Dado (Aug 29, 2019)

IMO the Bosch quick change is a badly imagined gadget. The implementation of the bad idea has been so poorly executed that it should be cursorily dismissed as an option. The quick release gadget does not hold the bushing adapter gadget in a secure fashion, so even if you think you have centered the bushing, the bushing and the bushing adapter gadget move around in the quick release gadget.

I own the gadget, I have tried the gadget, and now am looking for a practical store bought solution. As mentioned above, I have yet to find an aftermarket base plate that is a good fit on the Bosch routers. A week ago I asked specifically in this forum for suggestion about a suitable store bought product, the only applicable suggestion I received was for a plate that I had already identified as a possibility, so I bought it and found that it did not fit well. It fit but not well enough to make it useful. 



It appears the Makita RF1101 may actually be designed and manufactured with the factory equipped parts that permit the bushing may be precisely centered.

I am hoping a router enthusiast with some first hand knowledge of the actual tool I am inquiring about, may be able to confirm or correct my impression that the factory OEM base may be centered properly. 

Thank you.


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## Ben Dado (Aug 29, 2019)

Hi,
After further research, I have learned that the Makita Sub-Base has a wide range of adjustment for the mounting holes, but the center guide bushing hole is 1" diameter rather than the 1-3/16" diameter mount guide bushings such as the Porter Cable. You can use Makita 1" guide bushings if you want to.

I was glad to learn this before I purchased a Makita router just to use a Porter Cable style guide bushing.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

The drawback of all this is that if you have a base on that accepts the guide bushings then when you aren't using the bushing you are limited to using 1" diameter bits or smaller. That's why the larger routers have the guide bushing adapter attachment. It's pointless to have a 2hp plus router that only uses small bits. So if that is your router and you don't like the bushing adapter then you are looking at constantly switching bases which would be way too much a PITA for me. So you probably need another router dedicated to that use, like a Colt or DW611.


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## Ben Dado (Aug 29, 2019)

I finally learned that Eagle America sells base plates that have the 1-3/8" inset and 1-3/16" hole for the guide bushings prefabricated while the rest of the acrylic material is a clean slate for placing mounting holes. 

I just ordered one and anticipate it will serve the purpose.


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