Router RaiZer - an independent review by John Bullar

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Independent Review of the Router Raizer

© John Bullar 2003

previously published in American Router magazine

What is the Router-RaiZer RZ100 and do you need one?Adjusting the cutter height on a router can be awkward when it is fitted under a routing table. It is worth taking a serious look at any device, which claims to achieve this with ease and precision. The RZ100 is designed to stay attached to the router both on and off the table so it can also help with adjustment for hand-held routing. Effectively, it replaces the router's own top-stop with one that can be operated by a crank handle from above or below.

The box looked promising - a sturdy package with a list of compatible routers on the label. Although you do not end up with many usable parts for your money, (several versions of some components are included for different routers) they do look nice quality, mostly in nickel-plated steel. With eleven illustrations for one router, the instructions take you step by step through fitting the RZ100 with templates for different router bases. I realised it was necessary to drill parts of the router itself, as well as the table. Although I could accept living with a modified router, I wondered what the suppliers would say if I needed to return it under guarantee? Modifying the router base involves tapping out the long rolled steel pin that holds one of the column posts.

A hollow nylon bush must be fitted inside the post with two short pins. Re-assembly is relatively straightforward. With the motor housing and springs back on the column, the adjusting collar and knob are fitted and the router starts to look more like a router again. The table needs to be drilled out for the crank handle to pass through, and then an aluminium liner is pressed in place. The assembled RouterRaizer RZ 100 has a hexagonal socket on each end. The little crank handle can be engaged in the socket on top of the column for hand held work, or in the router base with the machine inverted. On the table, the RZ100 comes into its own. Unlike my previous struggles, it was now easy to adjust the cutter height with precision over the full 50mm stroke of the router. The action on the drive is smooth.

The gearing is sensible at just over 1.5mm (1/16 th) inch per turn, fine enough for precision work but not too slow with the crank handle. I could find absolutely no backlash in it so the positioning should be repeatable with accuracy. Note that the drive needs to be smeared in grease, so it will collect dust and need cleaning. The table hole is plugged by a neat little steel dust cover. A magnet on the side of the crank lifts and retains the dust cover during adjustment, which is a neat practical trick. It should be stated up-front that fitting involves minor but permanent modification to the router - although the RZ100 could be removed and the original router parts refitted, the machine would not be quite the same as new.

After assembly the RZ100 does what it says and certainly does it well - it allows you to adjust cutter height easily and accurately, with control from the top or bottom end of the machine. Fitted to a Makita, much of the device is hidden in the column, whereas on some routers it is more external. Parts of the RZ100 that you can see look good, consistent with the fittings on a quality router. In terms of value for money, the Router-RaiZer RZ100 does an excellent job with smart simplicity. And the beauty is that having fitted it, the existing functions are completely unhindered. It can transform the functionality of your machine for the price of a couple of large cutters.

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Independent Review of the Router Raizer © John Bullar 2003 previously published in American Router magazine
What is the Router-RaiZer RZ100 and do you need one?Adjusting the cutter height on a router can be awkward when it is fitted under a routing table. It is worth taking a serious look at any device, which claims to achieve this with ease and precision. The RZ100 is designed to stay attached to the router both on and off the table so it can also help with adjustment for hand-held routing. Effectively, it replaces the router's own top-stop with one that can be operated by a crank handle from above or below.
	The box looked promising - a sturdy package with a list of compatible routers on the label. Although you do not end up with many usable parts for your money, (several versions of some components are included for different routers) they do look nice quality, mostly in nickel-plated steel. With eleven illustrations for one router, the instructions take you step by step through fitting the RZ100 with templates for different router bases. I realised it was necessary to drill parts of the router itself, as well as the table. Although I could accept living with a modified router, I wondered what the suppliers would say if I needed to return it under guarantee? Modifying the router base involves tapping out the long rolled steel pin that holds one of the column posts.
A hollow nylon bush must be fitted inside the post with two short pins. Re-assembly is relatively straightforward. With the motor housing and springs back on the column, the adjusting collar and knob are fitted and the router starts to look more like a router again. The table needs to be drilled out for the crank handle to pass through, and then an aluminium liner is pressed in place. The assembled RouterRaizer RZ 100 has a hexagonal socket on each end. The little crank handle can be engaged in the socket on top of the column for hand held work, or in the router base with the machine inverted. On the table, the RZ100 comes into its own. Unlike my previous struggles, it was now easy to adjust the cutter height with precision over the full 50mm stroke of the router. The action on the drive is smooth.
	The gearing is sensible at just over 1.5mm (1/16 th) inch per turn, fine enough for precision work but not too slow with the crank handle. I could find absolutely no backlash in it so the positioning should be repeatable with accuracy. Note that the drive needs to be smeared in grease, so it will collect dust and need cleaning. The table hole is plugged by a neat little steel dust cover. A magnet on the side of the crank lifts and retains the dust cover during adjustment, which is a neat practical trick. It should be stated up-front that fitting involves minor but permanent modification to the router - although the RZ100 could be removed and the original router parts refitted, the machine would not be quite the same as new.
After assembly the RZ100 does what it says and certainly does it well - it allows you to adjust cutter height easily and accurately, with control from the top or bottom end of the machine. Fitted to a Makita, much of the device is hidden in the column, whereas on some routers it is more external. Parts of the RZ100 that you can see look good, consistent with the fittings on a quality router. In terms of value for money, the Router-RaiZer RZ100 does an excellent job with smart simplicity. And the beauty is that having fitted it, the existing functions are completely unhindered. It can transform the functionality of your machine for the price of a couple of large cutters.