Customer Reviews

Bench Dog 40-016 ProLift Max Router Top-Adjustment System

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This router lift is a heavy duty, precision mechanism. It is possible to adjust your bit height to within .001". The 8 threads per inch adjusting screw means it it is much faster to raise the bit than the competition. The lift holds the router motor directly, so you can raise it high enough to change the bit from the top. I estimate that this lift cuts 2/3 from my set-up time.
Some nit-picking: An insert that fits Porter-Cable type guide bushings is extra cost.
I recommend that you get a remote on-off switch for safety's sake, since, like all table routers, the controls on the router are awkward to access.

I installed mine in the promax cast iron table with a Porter Cable 7518 router,with this combo you can't go wrong. first of all, the product description is incorrect about two things, one the top is steel on the newest model not cast iron (but who cares the plating and machineing are beautiful) and two it weighs 22lbs not 12lbs(34lbs with pc7518 installed). it's solid and smooth. We got a woodpecker PRL at work and there is no comparison, the benchdog is a much more heafty and solid a tool. It's just a beautiful piece, the pictures don't do it justice. The best part is that it uses a real acme lead screw for height adjustment with thick solid threads which will probably never wear out, some might argue that a finer 60deg screw is more accurate, just go take a look at what they use in a bridgport milling machine(and every other close tolerence machine tool for that matter). One big point is that the bench dog lift is maybe the only lift that can put the porter cable 7518 body through the hole in the plate so that the back of the collet is above the table(check out my pictures). The woodpecker PRL can't nor can the jessems, both require an offset wrench or you need to pull the lift from the table. If you look closely at the pictures of these other lifts you will notice that in the above the table bit changing shots they put in a pc690 router which looks similar but is much smaller than it's big brother the 7518 and if you down load the PDF manuals they pretty much tell you. Both the Jessem and woodpecker lifts are beautiful machines, I have used them both, but the prolift stands apart. The heft, accuracy, and superb quality of the bench dog prolift make it worth every penny (and the wait). also it is made in the USA, big points in my book.

I actually made the decision to purchase this router insert for a logical reason. I wanted to use the Porter-Cable 7518 router (more about that in another review), and that router is a pain to work with in with a standard insert. The ProLift is designed to work with a 7518 right out of the box, and solves the big problem of using a 3-1/4 horsepower router in a table - secure and accurate settings.

The first thing you notice taking the ProLift out of the box is that is a solid 12 pound piece of cast iron, chrome steel and bronze. Actually setting the router up is quite simple, other than wrestling with all the weight. Three different bit inserts need to be leveled, and then all that remains is setting the ProLift into it's final resting place.

Turning on the router reveals that the ProLift is in complete control of the 7518's power. Vibration levels are minimal and height adjustment is almost fun. This is an ideal combination, even if it is an expensive one, resulting in a table that is capable of an extensive variety of tasks.

[Part IV of 'How to Build a Really Expensive Router Table']

I installed PL1002 in the Bench Dog Router Table and its so nice to have a set up that is as rock solid as you can get. Sure its a little expensive but you get what you pay for. If you want the best, get the PL1002 along with the Bench Dog Router Table, you can not go wrong.

After a great deal of research and review on all of the various router lift products on the market, I decided on the Bench Dog ProLift Max. By far I believe that this is the most solid built and most reliable model available. The quality and construction of this lift are excellent and its engineering and performance are certainly worth every penny. The nickel finish on the top plate and insert rings are a nice touch and provide a frictionless surface for your material. The setup and installation are very straight forward and effortless. I choose to install this product with Bench Dog's cast iron table top in a free standing cabinet of my own design with the Porter Cable 7518 router motor. This combination has provided me with one of the stoutest most heavy-duty router tables imaginable. The weight and heft of the cast iron top and the solid steel plate provide a routing surface free of chatter and vibration.

The lift mecahnism is very smooth and accurate and comes with a crank handle, 14mm socket and a calibrated ring that allows you to keep track of your up/down adjustments of the bit height to with extreme accuracy. It is so nice to be able to change the bit at the top of the table instead of having to remove the plate and motor assembly or doing it from underneath the table !!! Not to mention that the lift provides the maximum bit height to large profile router bits which standard plates can not accomodate. This is a very nice piece of equipment and I highly recomend it to any woodworker who demands the best from his/her tools !!!

I also looked at the Jessem Lifts and although they make very quality products, I feel that the Pro Lift's threaded steel rod will be much more reliable in the long run than the rubber belt on the Jessem lift. I think that the nickel plated steel is a much better and more durable surface than the plastic or aluminum plates found on other brands.

The Bench Dog lift gives you what you pay for. This is a precision made/machined router lift. It is HEAVY, reducing vibration substantially. Fit and finish are impressive.

This is not an accessorie, It is a neccessity!!!

IF you want to skip ALL the frustrations of adjusting your plunge or fixed based router, this product is worth EVERY penny! It is well built, solid, easy to install,a well thought out lift. I am new to the routing world and the frustrations of adjusting my router up-side-down nearly convinced me that this type of hobby was not for me.

The instructions for installing the lift are easy to read and BENCH DOG is a extremely responsive company with friendly, knowlegable staff for support.

This product along with the table I bought from them are top in all catagories!

Sam

I purchased the prolift and pro top as a combo. The pro top I reviewed separately, and rated it down because of the 3 hours it took to alter the casting to allow it to level to my saw top. I grabbed the lift out of the box and thought "oh boy, this will be a snap. Wrong! The pro lift did not fit into the pro top recess. It took a couple more hours of filing to finally get it to sit in the recess. The plate is little more than a flame cut piece of steel that was never finished or smoothed. I expect a bit more for my 300 bucks.

Buyers should also look into purchasing a cover plate for the hole where the router sits. Bench dog provides 3 sizes of rings but nothing to close the hole completely. Seems like an obvious thing when mounting on a table saw.

The final insult after everything was done was the spinner handle on the saw blade raising wheel hits the router. I will need to take off the spinner handle or remove the router and pro lift to use the saw. This is NOT my idea of good engeneering. I am out 600 hundred bucks for bench dog and another 300 bucks for a dedicated PC 7518 router for something that has turned into a nightmare.

I chose this router lift because everything I read about it indicated it to be a heavy duty, well made unit, and that I could, easily, swap bits from the top of the table. I am, absolutely, positively, not disappointed and anticipate years of quality use.

Changing bits is easier and quicker than on any of my [several] other routers. The entire collet and lock nut is easily accessible from the table top.

My apprehension about what it would take to adjust the height of the unit for bit changes and adjustments, was unwarranted. The lift raises and lowers quickly, but also allows me to tune it to minute fractions of an inch.

If you are contemplating a router table, if you are planning on doing a lot of table top routing over the years, and if you can afford the cost, I would give the Bench Dog 40-016 four thumbs up (I just went over an borrowed my neighbor's thumbs to make sure my opinion was well covered).

I tied my Pro Lift to Porter Cable's biggest variable speed router. They play very well together and there were no complications during installation. A small crane for lowering the lift and router into position during shim adjustments and such (e.g., when mating the insert plate to the table surface) might be helpful (pun intended).

The end ticket price of the combinations of toys, uh, I mean tools, is not insignificant. Nonetheless, I, like many, have a lot of router bits, but no shaper or shaper bits (yet), so the end price is still well below what it would cost me to set up for shaping work.

ADDITIONAL NOTES:

The Bench Dog Pro Lift came with all the directions and tools necessary to its set up and operation (minus, of course, the table and router). Included were three heavy duty insert rings that are easily swapped, using standard Allen wrenches. The height adjustment tool can be swapped for a standard ratchet, using the supplied socket, if desired. This will allow you to avoid moving the fence for height adjustments.

I abandoned my factory built table and built my own. It's a large rolling cart with two locking wheels on the out-feed end. It's proven very stable and not prone to wandering during use. Anything smaller would have been sac religious. In building my table, I kept my Freud SH-5 Professional Micro-Adjustable Router Table Fence. Out of all the units I've played with, I like its ease of adjustment the best. These are well made units and the two fences can be independently adjusted with the simple turning of locking screws and adjustment knobs. Too, dust collection via its head has been good. When used with a collection hood covering the sides, "bottom" and back of the router (on the underside of the table), it's very good.

After setting up the Bench Dog, I gave away my old stand, table top, and insert. That is the worth I placed on them. Breaking a plastic insert, which runs from twenty to thirty dollars, is easy to do. Tightening the lock-down screws, that appear set too far in from the edges, easily results in pressure which snaps the plastic (at least stay with aluminum, if you can't or wont buy a Bench Dog).

Like many router tables being sold, the Freud's weak spot is the plastic insert plate for the table top. Breaking a base plate isn't going to happen any time soon with the thick, well machined iron plate the Bench Dog lift relies on.

The system runs vibration free. The weight of the combination of the Bench Dog and the 3-1/4 horsepower Porter Cable probably go a long way to contributing to that fact.

Finally, I'm happy with how well the PC 7518 router plays with the Bench Dog lift. The PC fits the Bench Dog like a glove. Too, I haven't bogged it down, even using my larger bits (this thing is, no doubt, powered by a scaled down turbocharged, fuel injected, 327 V-8, modified to accommodate at least sixteen valves, possibly accounting for the pleasing smooth, consistent whine you hear when you power up).

Bench Dog 40-016 ProLift Max Router Top-Adjustment System

Porter-Cable 7518 Speedmatic 15 Amp 3-1/4 Horsepower Fixed Base 5-Speed Router

Freud SH-5 Professional Micro-Adjustable Router Table Fence

I did it all; BD pro-max cast-iron table, BD pro-lift, PC 7518 router. It all fits seamlessly on my Delta 10" LT contractor table saw. See my review on the pro-max table for more details. And, yes, it makes for a very expensive router table.

We are also talking almost effortless setup for work, and accuracy well beyond the ability of the human eye to detect flaws.