Not Impressed with 1400 Router :-(

[joraft]

Well, I  did it. Went down to Eagle Tools to look at routers, and came home with an OF 1400. Lucky for me the Festool Rep (Al Kensley) happened to be at the store, so I got a lot of good input from him as well as my sales guy, Raul. The Festool knowledge level of these two guys is pretty impressive, and I spent a couple of hours there picking their brains. They are both so patient.

I was surprised at how much difference there is to the feel of the 1010 and the 1400, four pounds is a lot more than I had thought. I really liked the lighter weight and balance of the 1010 much more, and may still wind up with one of those some day. But the 1/2" collet, higher torque, and the better rail guide fixture made the 1400 the over all better choice for me at this time.

John

 

 

[joraft]

Another factor was the that the OF1010 included the edge guide, guide rail adapter, PC bushing adaptor and some other accessories that would have cost another $200 or so.

John, I found out yesterday that the guide rail adapter no longer comes with the OF 1010. It is a $26.50 add on. Not sure about the other accessories.

John

 

[Ned]

Another factor was the that the OF1010 included the edge guide, guide rail adapter, PC bushing adaptor and some other accessories that would have cost another $200 or so.

John, I found out yesterday that the guide rail adapter no longer comes with the OF 1010. It is a $26.50 add on. Not sure about the other accessories.
John

I just checked the US website.  Still shows the guide stop (guide rail attachment, 488752) as included with the 1010.  Is the website wrong or was John misinformed?

Ned

 

[JayStPeter]

I've had mine and used it for a couple years now.  I agree with the original poster.  It surprises me how cheesy the depth stop mechanism on the 1400 is.  It depends on what I'm doing wether I choose the 1400 or the Bosch 1617.  One thing certain, if the operation involves using the depth turret to do multiple passes, the Bosch gets the call.  No ghost detents that allow you to overshoot.  There has been a couple instances where I've ruined something because the turret has moved to a ghost detent and allowed me to over-plunge.  I've almost sold the 1400 for this reason.  There is enough good about it that I've kept it, but the turret is not up to the quality and innovation I expect from Festool.

 

[mr_hockey]

I've had mine and used it for a couple years now.  I agree with the original poster.  It surprises me how cheesy the depth stop mechanism on the 1400 is.  It depends on what I'm doing wether I choose the 1400 or the Bosch 1617.  One thing certain, if the operation involves using the depth turret to do multiple passes, the Bosch gets the call.  No ghost detents that allow you to overshoot.  There has been a couple instances where I've ruined something because the turret has moved to a ghost detent and allowed me to over-plunge.  I've almost sold the 1400 for this reason.  There is enough good about it that I've kept it, but the turret is not up to the quality and innovation I expect from Festool.

Thank you!!!!  I couldn't have said it better!!!

 

[Brice Burrell]

 There are things I'd like to see Festool improve on both the 1010 and 1400. First is the turret, some other detent system that fixes the springiness and a more positive detents so you don't accidentally move the turret. The second would be a bigger base with a bigger hole to greater stability and better vision. Other than those two I have no problems with the Festool router. The one thing Festool has over the other companies is the most complete line accessories available. The router by themselves are worth the money, when you take into account the accessories Festool offers the "value" of their routers go way up.

 

[Jesse Cloud]

I think the indictment of Festool for "Cheesy depth stops" pretty well applies to every router I have ever used.  It seems like this area is ripe for innovation.  I'll bet one of you engineers out there could come up with a patentable improved depth setting mechanism for routers in no time at all. 8)

 

[joraft]

 ... some other detent system that fixes the springiness and a more positive detents so you don't accidentally move the turret.

I read the beginning of this thread yesterday, just before heading down to check out the Festool routers. So, of course the first thing I looked at was the depth setting system. And I agree it could have been done better.

This morning I removed the turret and added two flat washers under the detent spring to give it a little more tension. I also found that the turret screw was bottoming out well before the turret became snug against the router base, causing it to wobble. A thin "wave" spring washer at the top of the screw took out this play. The screw had been Loctited from the factory, so I applied more Loctite to keep the screw from backing out during use.

It ain't perfect, but the wobble's gone and the detents are much more positive. I'm happy with it.

John