Replies

1. 
   garth | Nov 17, 2005 06:54am | #1

   I like the idea post some pictures and write a review.

1. 
   John_D | Nov 17, 2005 09:53am | #2

   Well I'll do my best if someone else doesn't post first, I guess.

2. 
   John_D | Dec 06, 2005 02:56am | #3

   Just about the time I was ready to decide on a router table strategy, I got an email from Woodpecker announcing their new QuickLift. I already had a Bosch 1617EVSPK router, and planned to keep it for handheld use and buy a PC 3HP and a Woodpecker PRL. That was going to set me back around $600, all said and done, so I decided to take my chances on the aluminum version of the QuickLift.I'm not an expert, so all I'll do is describe how the installation and first-use stuff went for me last night. I'll tell you what's in the box, then leave most of the opining to those with the seasoned perspective that experience brings.First off, the QuickLift's insert plate is the same size and shape as their other models. I decided to buy the 3/4" MDF template that helps you cut the hole. For me, it was worth the $10 -- and though the "instemp" is listed as an accessory for the PRL but not for the QuickLift, it's definitely the right size for both. I also bought the Whiteside 5/8" template bit for $24. That's money I could probably have saved, but if you don't have a template bit with only a 1/2" cutting length, it helps.There's no instruction for using the template and bit to cut the hole, but if I can figure it out, I'm sure everyone else can get by as well, including figuring out how much of the center of the hole must be cut away. I wouldn't have minded a paper or plastic template I could have traced around for the minimum cut-away in the middle of the hole.Fit and finish is genuinely first-class. Everything feels and looks solid and clean. There is no vibration, either in the lift itself, in the connection to the router, or between the insert plate and the table. Leveling screws and shim screws make it pretty easy to get a close, smooth fit to the table.The attachment to the router is very large and very secure. If you remove the insert from the table to attach your router, there's no reason to think it will ever tumble out accidentally. I'm only moderately klutzy, but I felt that trying to put it in with the insert already in the table was a bad bet for me.The speed crank is included with the lift, so you don't need to buy one. And the quick-lifting feature is nearly as easy as they say it is. Nearly? Well, their ad describes the new product as "the first to offer virtually instant elevation change to bring the router chuck and bit completely above the table without a single rotation of the crank handle." While that's mostly true, it's not always entirely true, depending on the size of the ring you have installed around the bit. I could fully expose the chuck in that single move if I had the 2 5/8" ring or the "stepped" ring installed, but the 1" ring required removal for full access to the chuck. That's still only a few seconds of extra time, but it's not always just a quick twist and lift.That said, adjustment is very very fast. Here's how you set the height and change bits.Setting the height is exactly as easy as they describe it. If you have a big change, you insert the lift wrench and turn it 90 degrees. At that point you're bearing the weight of the router, and you can raise and lower it instantly. When you're in the neighborhood of the height you want, you just turn it back the 90 degrees and pull out the lift wrench. I wasn't able to detect any "settling" on removing the wrench, but I'd have to pull out a dial indicator to give more than that casual observation. I have no way of guessing whether that smoothness reduces over time, or if that's just the way it will always perform.Once you've pulled out the lift wrench, finer adjustment is done with the speed crank. Every full revolution of the crank moves the router up or down 1/32". They've also marked lines in a circle around the speed crank hole, so if you wish to move in increments as small as .001, you can do it with ease and precision.Changing bits is a quick job, faster for me than holding the bare router in my lap, because the lift holds it steady. If you're using a small ring that requires removal to access the chuck, first you grab a two-pronged spanner (supplied) to twist off the ring. That takes a couple of seconds. Then you insert the lift wrench, hoist the router all the way up, and remove the lift wrench. Another couple of seconds. At that point, you have the entire chuck (at least the Bosch does) fully accessible to the standard wrenches. No need whatsoever for bent-neck wrenches, the stock ones will work just fine. Change out the bit, reverse the process, you're done.Their claim that you can drop a chucked 4" bit fully below the table is no exaggeration. There's a plenty long throw there, and it's darn near instant as they said.The instructions for the lift are only a single two-sided page, but it's fully sufficient -- the lift operation is easy to understand and more would be overkill. I wouldn't have minded a one-pager on using the template and cutting the hole, but it was OK. In the box you get the lift, three rings (1", Stepped and 2 5/8"; the same rings that fit other Woodpecker lifts fit the QuickLift as well). There's the speed crank, the ring removal spanner, one brass starter pin, and the lift wrench.I took some pictures, but the ones on the Woodpeck.com site are plenty clear, so no need to post 'em.For me, it sure seems to be exactly what I thought I'd be getting for my money. Hope this helps someone.--- John

1. 
   garth | Dec 06, 2005 06:48am | #4

   JohnThank you for the review sounds like a good investment, please let me know how it is working in a few months. If you are still sold on it I will most likely get one.Garth