# General router accessory questions, some DeWalt specific, some not



## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

I'd like to get a centering cone for my sub bases. I guess it's only really important for when I'd use guide bushings. I think as long as my bit clears then it doesn't matter as much otherwise, but I want one anyway. My router did not come with one. I know DeWalt makes one, and I just went on the servicenet.dewalt.com site to look for them, and it appears it is sold in two pieces, the cone and a separate shaft. Anyone know if this is correct? I didn't see a picture to know, just a parts list and I want to be sure to understand it.

Also, this might be the dumbest question of all, but I see other brands of these and they only suggest their own brand models as units that they work with. In my head, a 1/4 or 1/2 inch collet is all the same as far as diameter, so why wouldn't a Bosch brand centering cone work with a DeWalt router? Any reason for me to think it might not? DeWalt even sells one just for its trim router, but I don't even see why that one wouldn't work on the larger routers also, with the 1/4 collet that is.

Also, I'd like an edge guide. Not a complicated one with moving parts. Just a simple one like what the Craftsman routers come with. Folded sheet metal with two rods, and thumb screws to hold it on. Any ideas where to get this? I wonder, will the ones that come with the Craftsman fit the DeWalt also?


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## N'awlins77 (Feb 25, 2011)

Duane, all I can answer is about the cone and shaft. My Ridgid did come with a cone and a separate shaft. So it is very possible that's how Dewalt's come too. Except you have to buy there's separate.


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

*An Opinion...*

Duane; sorry, but your assumptions re the edge guide are wrong. The purpose of the edgeguide is to allow you to accurately control the front-to-back depth of cut. That thumbscrew allows the user to make micro adjustments, and in most cases to actually read off the amount of movement, and return to the previous setting.

The locking screws on the shafts are there to allow for a coarse setup adjustment.
Also some of the edgeguides also permit you to cut circles using a centre pivot.
Please reconsider what you might want to do with your handheld operations.
I use my Bosch edge guide...the one pictured... a _lot_!
I can't imagine trying to use it without the micro adjuster.


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## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

Does anyone have a part number for the screws that hold the edge guide bars to the base of the DW618 router? I think I found it but I'm not sure. I've got part # 326573-01. My owner's manual doesn't show a list of part numbers, and since my router didn't come with these parts I have to figure everything out from scratch to set it up like I want it.

Is this something that cannot just be bought at Lowe's in the special parts and hardware drawers?

DaninVan, now you made me think just a little harder. Maybe I do want one more like that Bosch. I originally wanted just a simple edge guide because I always set up my mortises with the bit touching a mark on the wood, then slide in the guide and lock it down, with no complexity beyond that This is simple, but almost always has to be readjusted, sometimes several times, before it's right on. If the more complex guides could be locked on and then adjusted to the line with a knob to fine tune the cut position, and this operation be simple to perform, then I'd be interested in one. I am having to learn everything about these tools on my own with no one to teach me other than people I meet online, so please forgive my ignorance. I just thought the adjustable edge guides would be heavy compared to the solid ones, and also complicating the adjustments needlessly in an attempt to offer gimmicky features and sell a product, but of course, I say this without ever having tried one.

Also, does that edge guide only work with the Bosch, or will it fit others? In the store, the Bosch 1617 and DeWalt DW618 seem to have the same span for the bars of an edge guide.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Duane I'm sure that you are not the only person who has asked these questions nor are you necessarily the only person who is waiting to see what answers are given. 1/4" and 1/2" are standard measures. Any centering devices will fit. My Hitachis came with a centering rod that is 1/4" on one end and 1/2" on the other. The advantage with the cone shaped one is that it will center any bushing where the one I have has to be used with a 1/4" or 1/2" ID bushing which just centers the base or bushing adapter.

As far as edge guides go some of them will interchange I know but I'm not sure which ones and getting the rod diameter and hole spacing is somewhere between difficult and impossible from the makers. You would probably have better luck finding what interchanges if you can find an aftermarket maker.


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Duane; we're here to help! 
In fact the Bosch one I previously attached a pic of isn't particularly heavy. Some type of alloy I guess.
Charles just brought up a good point re the centering cones. Here's an explanation of it's use. I say interesting, because there was a recent discussion here re the sequence of events to properly centre the baseplate and the bushings. I think there had been a misunderstanding re the sequence.

Amazon.com: Customer Reviews: Bosch RA1150 Centering Cone

Your explanation of the mortise or dado application of the edge guide is spot on...precisely why the micro adjuster is so valuable .


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## Phil P (Jul 25, 2010)

Hi Duane

According to deWalt the DW618 uses the DW6913 fence, which has a fine adjuster built-in, just like the Bosch guide that Dan showed. I'm familiar with the fence because it's the same one supplied with the DW615, DW621/DW622 and some DW625 plunge routers in the EU. That particular fence is compatible with most of the current DW routers, e.g. DW615, DW618, DW621, DW622, DW624, DW625 and DW626 and has centres for both the larger 10mm rod machines (DW624/625/626) and the smaller 8mm rod machines (the others). The DW site in the USA confirms this. That in turn makes it compatible with the Bosch (Europe models, known US equivalents in parantheses) GOF900, GOF1250, GOF1300, GOF/GMF1600 (MR23VCS), GOF1700 (1615VS) and GOF2000 (1619EVS) routers. 

Your DW should use metric M6 x 17 thumbscrews to hold the rods in the base, DW referemce 326573-01. There's nothing stopping you from using metric M6 machine screws, though, or any equivalent product from a third party. The rods are 8mm diameter but longer/shorter/special rods can always be made-up from lengths of 8mm (5/16in is near enough) silver steel rod from a supply house.

Like Dan I find the micro adjustable side fence very useful and I wouldn'y be without it. Over here, though, the plunge router is king and every manufacturer supplies their routers with the side fence in the box when new

Regards

Phil


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## vindaloo (May 30, 2009)

Duane Bledsoe said:


> Does anyone have a part number for the screws that hold the edge guide bars to the base of the DW618 router? I think I found it but I'm not sure. I've got part # 326573-01.


Sure looks like it (See this link)


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## waynecochran (Aug 2, 2011)

Duane, You might want to look at the Mpower combination router base(CRB7) at eagleamerica.com. It say it will fit any router and seems to do alot of different operations. It may be available other placeses also. Wayne


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## routergieck (Feb 11, 2013)

Duane you can get the centering cone and 1/4 inch shaft from Lee Valley. They will work in any model of router.
Dennis


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## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

Wow, thank you all for all the replies, and thanks to Phil for posting some specific size information that will really come in handy to know.

I ran across an interesting looking edge guide. What do you all think of the Milescraft 1223 kit for $40? Craftsman has the same thing also but with a few less parts for $29 roughly. I already have some Milescraft bases here at home due to having a sign kit, so they would fit it too. It looks like it would provide precision adjustments also, but I'm a bit worried about having that long aluminum arm sticking way out during routing and causing the router to be tipsy when used near the edge.


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Hey, Duane;
The cost is always my last consideration in tools. By that I mean that it doesn't matter how good a deal it is, if it doesn't meet my needs it's overpriced. Does that make sense?
The Milescraft 1223 edge guide doesn't appear to have any micro adjustment, on top of which the slide action seems sticky; for me that'd be a 'no'.
It's also very unwieldy, I have a fairly narrow walkway where I normally work, and frankly, I couldn't get around the other side of that arm without lifting my router off the work-piece. So again, speaking only for myself, I'd be rejecting it.

It's the same price as the DeWalt edge guide. (That price is up here in Canada...so maybe cheaper South of 49?)
DEWALT Router Edge Guide - G1160022 at Zoro Canada


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Apparently pretty close in price _*very surprised expression*_
Amazon.com: Buying Choices: DEWALT DW6913 Router Edge Guide with Fine Adjustment and Vacuum Adaptor


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## richjh (Jan 14, 2013)

Duane,

I bought the Bosch RA1151 Router Subbase Centering Pin and Cone for $6 off Amazon and it works for all my routers.

Rich


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## greenacres2 (Dec 23, 2011)

DaninVan said:


> Apparently pretty close in price _*very surprised expression*_
> Amazon.com: Buying Choices: DEWALT DW6913 Router Edge Guide with Fine Adjustment and Vacuum Adaptor


It's actually 10% less than that with the current Dewalt accessory promo. Find another $9 in Dewalt accessories there (who can't use another set of drill bits?) and it's 20% off instead of 10%. Prices out at under $37 with the 10% off in the cart. 

I also like the look of the M-Power CB7, but it's a retrofit for my Bosch routers and it doesn't add that much to the Bosch edge guide i already owned when it came out. If i'd been starting out fresh, i might have chosen it over the Bosch. (but...i think i paid between $20 and $25 for the Bosch on the auction site--as new condition, with shipping. Don't remember how i stumbled on it, but i do recall that it was not described as what it was!!)

earl


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## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

Phil P said:


> Hi Duane
> 
> According to deWalt the DW618 uses the DW6913 fence, which has a fine adjuster built-in, just like the Bosch guide that Dan showed. I'm familiar with the fence because it's the same one supplied with the DW615, DW621/DW622 and some DW625 plunge routers in the EU. That particular fence is compatible with most of the current DW routers, e.g. DW615, DW618, DW621, DW622, DW624, DW625 and DW626 and has centres for both the larger 10mm rod machines (DW624/625/626) and the smaller 8mm rod machines (the others). The DW site in the USA confirms this. That in turn makes it compatible with the Bosch (Europe models, known US equivalents in parantheses) GOF900, GOF1250, GOF1300, GOF/GMF1600 (MR23VCS), GOF1700 (1615VS) and GOF2000 (1619EVS) routers.
> 
> ...


Hey, thank you for the detailed reply. I just got home and took a look at my router bases and I used a metal ruler to measure the guide holes. Mine measures 11mm, or 7/16". Is there any chance mine is different because of being in the States instead of the UK?


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Some time back we were asked to post the diameter and thread pitches for the collets on our routers to try and see if there might be some interchangeability possibilities between brands. My Hitachis were metric which was no surprise. But the Dewalt 610 I have, which is a fairly old model of router was also metric which surprised me a bit. I would strongly believe that your newer one is also metric if that's what you seem to be measuring.


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## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

Yeah, the guide holes are very close to 11mm, as best my eyes can see anyway, and the wing screw threads are metric too, all except the baseplate screws which are 8-32.

If I get an edge guide and the rods don't fill up the holes completely, isn't there a chance for it to flex or move during use, despite having the wing screws tightened down?


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## Phil P (Jul 25, 2010)

Duane Bledsoe said:


> Hey, thank you for the detailed reply. I just got home and took a look at my router bases and I used a metal ruler to measure the guide holes. Mine measures 11mm, or 7/16". Is there any chance mine is different because of being in the States instead of the UK?


Maybe, Duane, but one of the DW625s I had a few years back came from Mexico (bought in the USA, not over here) and that used the same 10mm rods that the European-made ones have. The fence will accommodate slightly larger rods than 8mm or 10mm ones respectively, but the thumbscrews will in any case hold everything in place



Duane Bledsoe said:


> If I get an edge guide and the rods don't fill up the holes completely, isn't there a chance for it to flex or move during use, despite having the wing screws tightened down?


I don't think so, because the rods should come through the base plate side to side and you have to lock them in place with at least two thumb screws (some DWs accommodate three thumbscrews - varies model to model). They aren't a piston fit, but they aren't all that loose either. Did you use a tape or callipers to measure the hole? I'd try the shank of a 10mm metric drill as a positive test. DW USA web site entry here confirms that the fence is compatible ("For use with all DEWALT® routers")

Regards

Phil


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## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

I did a little less technical testing at Lowe's yesterday. I borrowed their DeWalt dw618 display's fixed base and ran over to the steel and aluminum rods section in the hardware department. I tested the fit on a few aluminum and steel rods they have. It confirmed that a 3/8 smooth shaft rod, and also a threaded rod, fits pretty loosely through the guide holes, but a 7/16 threaded rod is too tight. They didn't have a smooth shaft 7/16 rod to try. The threaded 7/16 would insert easily, and very close in fit, but it would not exit the first hole as it came to the center of the base. It's like the hole is tapered inside. I wouldn't use threaded rods anyway due to the abrasion possibilities to the aluminum router base. Is it possible that the threaded rods are a different diameter than the same rated smooth rods? Are the threaded rods measured for shank diameter only or to the outside of the threads? 

Pics below for anyone wanting to know for sure what will and won't work. Pics show a 3/8 aluminum smooth shaft rod in the fixed base of a DeWalt dw618. The specific model number of the base is dw6184.

For now, I am going to buy a couple of the longest 3/8 hex bolts I can buy, and make a shop made edge guide using a scrap piece of red oak I have here at home. Cheap, simple, and effective, although limited in usage, but I can at least continue to do the mortises I have need for at the moment. The bolts are only threaded about 1 1/2" and the rest is smooth shank. I'll use some lock nuts and washers with the oak board on the threaded ends, and cut the hex heads off and round those ends with a grinder for inserting into the router base, and tighten down with the wing screws in the base. It will make a fairly nice edge guide when done.


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## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

This is my second reply, back to back. The first was in page two incase anyone misses one. 

Here is a pic of the same base with the 7/16 threaded rod in it. The fit is tight as it would exit the first hole into the center area of the base. You can see the painted green end of the rod still inside the hole. In this pic I am holding the rod only with one hand and the router base is being totally supported by the tightness of the rod in the hole, so you can see it's a snug fit.

I don't know if this means anything or not, but from below the base, the way the aluminum is cut, the path through the hole certainly appears a little wonky. Like it's crooked. That could explain it if the aluminum walls of the hole are a uniform thickness, but if not, then I don't know. I would have thought the hole would be bored straight through during the manufacturing process.


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## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

Duane, does that mean you need a metric rod or bolt like a 12mm or something like that to get a good fit?


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## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

Tried a 12 mm bolt that wouldn't fit, and a 10 mm that was also a little loose. 11 mm was what I measured but that's probably a dog size that either doesn't exist or is too hard to find. 10 mm is ever so slightly larger than 3/8 (3.1496063/8 to be exact). I can't find 10 mm bolts that long though. I can get 3/8 up to 12 inches long. I might be able to order some if I look around online for a more exact fit. Doing cross multiplication to calculate comparisons, 11 mm compares to 3.46456693/8 which is really close to 7/16, and I've already seen that 7/16 doesn't fit. So I don't have much hope that any 11 mm rod or bolt I may find would fit either.

I could just buy an edge guide, but my feeling is that they will be clunky feeling, seeming more like a contraption than a precision device. Also, possibly heavy, making the router tipsy (to me). There are none here locally so I'd have to order one to find out. It seems more fun to make one anyway.

I did see one online that looked very precision, but heavy to go with it. Micro Fence! That thing looked awesome, but it was $200. Not for an edge guide! Not from my wallet, anyway.


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## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

For the one that is a slightly snug fit, could you chuck it in a drill or drill press and dress it with some emory cloth? Would that help?


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## Nickp (Dec 4, 2012)

Here ya go, Duane...this is my contrapulation...steel rods from HD and some scrap wood...maybe it'll give you some ideas...

To clamp the edge itself I drilled two holes the same size as the rods and then cut the wood through the holes. The saw kerf took out enough so that it could act like a clamp.

I made the edge itself big because I wanted a stable guide and the size of it also gives it a little better balance with the router (for my taste, anyway)

The 3/4x3/4 straight edge can come off allowing for additional versatility with small pieces...

BTW...not a problem with rods being smaller than the holes in the base...screws hold it very secure...and no flex.

Didn't take long at all...Nick


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## Phil P (Jul 25, 2010)

Duane Bledsoe said:


> I tested the fit on a few aluminum and steel rods they have. It confirmed that a 3/8 smooth shaft rod, and also a threaded rod, fits pretty loosely through the guide holes, but a 7/16 threaded rod is too tight.


Hi Duane

That does sound as though it's a 10mm bore for 10mm rod (3/8in is 9.53mm, 7/16in is 11.1mm). DW seem to have standardised on 8mm (5/16in is 7.93mm) and 10mm (3/8in is 9.53mm) for their routers, although this would have happened back in the 1980s when Elu (now DW Germany) took over design of all new DW routers 

Regards

Phil


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## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

Well, I did begin building my own edge guide. Of course it will come out cheaper, but that's really not why I decided to do it. I just felt that I would enjoy it more, I'd know it would be very precisely squared, and be made exactly like I wanted.

First, a few measurements. I have discovered that my router base guide holes are not exactly on a 4" center separation. Mine came out 3 and 15/16" center to center. I found this by simply running the rods through the holes and letting them bottom out just laying loosely in the holes. Then using a square gently against one rod, I used a metal ruler and measured edge to edge across the two 3/8 rods, and had 4 and 5/16". I triple checked it, even skewed the rods to a 4" center and they didn't lay right. So I settled on 1/16 less than a 4" center, and it came out flawless once I got it started. 

Next, I want my edge guide to be able to flip upside down and function as a circle guide also. So this means the distance from the rods to the top edge of the guide has to be exactly the same as from the bottom of the guide hole to the bottom of the sub base. It measures and even 5/16. That was a pretty easy measurement to go with. 

I used a piece of red oak wood I had left over from another project, and also simply used two 10" long 3/8 hex bolts as rods. They are threaded on one end, and I'll simply bolt the wood guide onto these ends. I will saw off the hex head and round the shafts on a grinder. 

This will be a very simply guide, limited in use but still useful. Also it is serving to hone my skills, as I have never attempted anything like this before. It is not done, but so far, so good. 

I do have a couple of questions. Should I angle cut the corners of the guide to lessen weight? Would this make it more risky for the red oak to warp? My shop stays nice and dry, it is also somewhat heated since it is in my finished basement at home. Also, if I leave the guide wide like it is now, I can cut all the way to the edge of a board, but if I narrow it down some, then I can cut grooves farther inward from the edge. Which way do I go? Right now it is about 3 1/2" wide, and I can cut a half circle out in the middle so it can surround the bit at the edge. But it must be fully extended just to cut a groove about 5 1/2" inward of the edge. I'd feel better if the rods were in the base further for that but that means narrowing the guide and give up grooves closer to the edge. 

Pics of the progress so far are down below. It is not yet assembled fully. But so far I am pleased with the results.


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## Duane Bledsoe (Jan 6, 2013)

Alright, I know I asked what to do in the last post but I got antsy. I finished the edge guide up. I only had a 1 3/8 forstner bit as my largest, so the center opening looks just a bit small, but it is only my first attempt. I'll put a few miles on this one and figure out what I wish it would do vs. what it does now, and then maybe make another one. One thing I made it to do is something I've also never tried. I can flip it over and use a pin with it to cut circles. Not sure the largest and smallest sizes yet, but at least I have the option.

By the way, total cost was less than $5 for the hardware, and I used a piece of scrap red oak I had left over. The learning experience was well worth that, if nothing else.


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