Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits tight? I
was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled mirror for a
large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit and all was going
well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and without any warning, (but
expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit went flying off damaging the
area I was routing and spinning to the other side and taking a large nick
out of that side. This was an expensive piece of maple trim from Craft
Maid and to say the least I was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I
thought back and reflected I was really lucky not to get nailed in the
face by this flying projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable
using the fixed base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I
thought necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else has
had this problem or was it operator error?

Thanks
--
You can lead them to LINUX
but you can't make them THINK !
Mandriva 2010 using KDE 4.3
Website: www.rentmyhusband.biz

On 3/14/2010 1:49 PM, Evodawg wrote:
Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits tight? I
was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled mirror for a
large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit and all was going
well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and without any warning, (but
expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit went flying off damaging the
area I was routing and spinning to the other side and taking a large nick
out of that side. This was an expensive piece of maple trim from Craft
Maid and to say the least I was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I
thought back and reflected I was really lucky not to get nailed in the
face by this flying projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable
using the fixed base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I
thought necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else has
had this problem or was it operator error?

While not all that common, it happens enough for the average woodworker
to be aware of the possibility. Three things which factor in as a cause
most of the time:

1. Seating the bit's shank too deep in the collet - (always pull it out
about an 1/8" from the bottom before tightening).

2. Dirt, dust, debris, rust, etc. in the collet - (clean collet out with
an old toothbrush and be meticulous ... a new, spanking clean collet
will rarely exhibit this behavior.)

3. Not tightening enough after the proper bit depth is set in the collet
- (crank the crap out of it ... PC's with two wrenches need some rice
and gravy in the wielding).

The 7518 can be worse than the 690 about this.

It happens to everyone, hopefully only once ...

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 10/22/08
KarlC@ (the obvious)

On 3/14/10 1:49 PM, Evodawg wrote:
Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits tight? I
was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled mirror for a
large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit and all was going
well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and without any warning, (but
expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit went flying off damaging the
area I was routing and spinning to the other side and taking a large nick
out of that side. This was an expensive piece of maple trim from Craft
Maid and to say the least I was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I
thought back and reflected I was really lucky not to get nailed in the
face by this flying projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable
using the fixed base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I
thought necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else has
had this problem or was it operator error?

Thanks

What Karl said, including.....
It's not a bad idea to have a bit of oil on the threads to make sure it
turns easy, meaning you make sure to get it tight enough.
Once you've had a bit come out of a collet like that, there's a good
chance one of the flanges got bent. They don't bend back, they break,
so repairing it is not recommended. Those collets are cheap enough to
just replace and have the peace-of-mind that it'll function properly.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

Evodawg wrote in
:

Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits
tight? I was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled
mirror for a large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit
and all was going well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and
without any warning, (but expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit
went flying off damaging the area I was routing and spinning to the
other side and taking a large nick out of that side. This was an
expensive piece of maple trim from Craft Maid and to say the least I
was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I thought back and reflected
I was really lucky not to get nailed in the face by this flying
projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable using the fixed
base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I thought
necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else has had
this problem or was it operator error?

Been there, done that... I had a 1/4" straight bit let go just last
week. There are a couple of contributing factors in my case. My 1/4"
collet is very loose to begin with. You have to snug up the nuts a good
bit just to hang onto the bit enough so it won't drop all the way into
the collet. I suspect my threads could use a cleaning & lubricating as
well. The other problem is that I live in New England, and the collets
seem to be made out of steel that rusts if you look at it cross-eyed. A
little bit of surface rust probably didn't help matters. I'm planning on
getting a new collet, and cleaning & lubing the surfaces. The collet
will get a tiny bit of light oil, and the threads will get some wax. I
try to keep the use of oil to a minimum on my wood working tools to
reduce A) staining any wood that comes in contact with it, and B) the
attraction of oiled surfaces to dust.

Doug White

"Swingman" wrote in message
...
On 3/14/2010 1:49 PM, Evodawg wrote:
Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits tight?
I
was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled mirror for a
large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit and all was going
well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and without any warning, (but
expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit went flying off damaging the
area I was routing and spinning to the other side and taking a large nick
out of that side. This was an expensive piece of maple trim from Craft
Maid and to say the least I was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I
thought back and reflected I was really lucky not to get nailed in the
face by this flying projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable
using the fixed base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I
thought necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else
has
had this problem or was it operator error?

While not all that common, it happens enough for the average woodworker to
be aware of the possibility. Three things which factor in as a cause most
of the time:

1. Seating the bit's shank too deep in the collet - (always pull it out
about an 1/8" from the bottom before tightening).

2. Dirt, dust, debris, rust, etc. in the collet - (clean collet out with
an old toothbrush and be meticulous ... a new, spanking clean collet will
rarely exhibit this behavior.)

3. Not tightening enough after the proper bit depth is set in the collet -
(crank the crap out of it ... PC's with two wrenches need some rice and
gravy in the wielding).

The 7518 can be worse than the 690 about this.

It happens to everyone, hopefully only once ...

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 10/22/08
KarlC@ (the obvious)

On Mar 14, 1:02*pm, Swingman wrote:
On 3/14/2010 1:49 PM, Evodawg wrote:

Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits tight? I
was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled mirror for a
large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit and all was going
well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and without any warning, (but
expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit went flying off damaging the
area I was routing and spinning to the other side and taking a large nick
out of that side. This was an expensive piece of maple trim from Craft
Maid and to say the least I was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I
thought back and reflected I was really lucky not to get nailed in the
face by this flying projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable
using the fixed base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I
thought necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else has
had this problem or was it operator error?

While not all that common, it happens enough for the average woodworker
to be aware of the possibility. Three things which factor in as a cause
most of the time:

1. Seating the bit's shank too deep in the collet - (always pull it out
about an 1/8" from the bottom before tightening).

2. Dirt, dust, debris, rust, etc. in the collet - (clean collet out with
an old toothbrush and be meticulous ... a new, spanking clean collet
will rarely exhibit this behavior.)

3. Not tightening enough after the proper bit depth is set in the collet
- (crank the crap out of it ... PC's with two wrenches need some rice
and gravy in the wielding).

The 7518 can be worse than the 690 about this.

It happens to everyone, hopefully only once ...

Like Carl said. Just go buy a new collet & crank the **** out of it.
I've had to replace mine, but I was lucky as it had only started to
creep when I discovered it; it didn't go flying off.

Just be grateful it's not a Sears where the collet is past of the
motor shaft & your router ends up as a boat anchor.

Luigi

On 3/14/2010 1:49 PM, Evodawg wrote:
Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits tight?
I
was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled mirror for a
large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit and all was going
well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and without any warning, (but
expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit went flying off damaging the
area I was routing and spinning to the other side and taking a large nick
out of that side. This was an expensive piece of maple trim from Craft
Maid and to say the least I was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I
thought back and reflected I was really lucky not to get nailed in the
face by this flying projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable
using the fixed base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I
thought necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else
has
had this problem or was it operator error?

You probably already know this but Lonnie Bird's book, "Illustrated Guide To
The Router",
says that the router bit shank should be no more than 2 thousandths off of
the collet bit size, ideally
1 thousandth off. So at least .498" in your case. Perhaps, the problem is
just with the one bit?

Bill

On Mar 14, 12:02*pm, Swingman wrote:

1. Seating the bit's shank too deep in the collet

2. Dirt, dust, debris, rust, etc. in the collet

3. Not tightening enough

The collet socket might, conceivably, have galled with slippage;
in addition to cleaning the collet and socket, feel your way
around the cone socket with a small hone; if it has a rough
spot, some finger pressure will suffice to hone it out.

The hone treatment will even make a Harbor Freight cheapie
router start to grip bits. DAMHIKT.

"Doug White" wrote in message
. ..
Evodawg wrote in
:

Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits
tight? I was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled
mirror for a large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit
and all was going well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and
without any warning, (but expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit
went flying off damaging the area I was routing and spinning to the
other side and taking a large nick out of that side. This was an
expensive piece of maple trim from Craft Maid and to say the least I
was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I thought back and reflected
I was really lucky not to get nailed in the face by this flying
projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable using the fixed
base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I thought
necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else has had
this problem or was it operator error?

Been there, done that... I had a 1/4" straight bit let go just last
week. There are a couple of contributing factors in my case. My 1/4"
collet is very loose to begin with. You have to snug up the nuts a good
bit just to hang onto the bit enough so it won't drop all the way into
the collet. I suspect my threads could use a cleaning & lubricating as
well. The other problem is that I live in New England, and the collets
seem to be made out of steel that rusts if you look at it cross-eyed. A
little bit of surface rust probably didn't help matters. I'm planning on
getting a new collet, and cleaning & lubing the surfaces. The collet
will get a tiny bit of light oil, and the threads will get some wax. I
try to keep the use of oil to a minimum on my wood working tools to
reduce A) staining any wood that comes in contact with it, and B) the
attraction of oiled surfaces to dust.

Doug White

I had a similar problem with a brand new PC router with a collet that had
never been used. It started moving out of the collet, I re-inserted it and
tightened it again and it moved again. Removed everything, cleaned the bit
shaft and collet insides with some isopropanol alcohol on a Q-tip, it has
been solid ever since with a number of bits.

Everyone reading this should just get on the internet, right now, and
order a new collet for their router... while it's convenient and you
don't *need* it.

That way, when there's a question or doubt, you can just reach for the
new collet instead of taking a chance. A bigger bit can fly out of the
router at a very high velocity and go through a bit guard like a paper
bag.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

-MIKE- wrote in -
september.org:

Everyone reading this should just get on the internet, right now, and
order a new collet for their router... while it's convenient and you
don't *need* it.

That way, when there's a question or doubt, you can just reach for the
new collet instead of taking a chance. A bigger bit can fly out of the
router at a very high velocity and go through a bit guard like a paper
bag.



Sounds like a good idea. What's your credit card number?

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

On Sun, 14 Mar 2010 16:37:05 -0500, -MIKE-
wrote:

Everyone reading this should just get on the internet, right now, and
order a new collet for their router... while it's convenient and you
don't *need* it.

That way, when there's a question or doubt, you can just reach for the
new collet instead of taking a chance. A bigger bit can fly out of the
router at a very high velocity and go through a bit guard like a paper
bag.

Not a bad idea, other then this is a new router. Swing pointed out
the obvious pushing the bit in to far, and I've had collets that seem
to be tight but need a second torque to actually be tight. If that
happened to me I'd probably be throwing my drawers away. If it
happens again I'd be returning it.

Mike M

On 3/14/2010 2:49 PM, Evodawg wrote:
Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits tight? I
was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled mirror for a
large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit and all was going
well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and without any warning, (but
expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit went flying off damaging the
area I was routing and spinning to the other side and taking a large nick
out of that side. This was an expensive piece of maple trim from Craft
Maid and to say the least I was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I
thought back and reflected I was really lucky not to get nailed in the
face by this flying projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable
using the fixed base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I
thought necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else has
had this problem or was it operator error?

First thing to do is clean the collet thoroughly--I went after mine with
a .50 caliber bore brush and jag. Hasn't slipped since.

Evodawg wrote:

Anyone having trouble with Porter Cable Router Colet holding bits tight?
I
was routing a wood frame built to hide the edge of a beveled mirror for
a
large bathroom mirror. I do remember tightening the bit and all was
going
well with a 1/2" rabbiting bit/with bearing and without any warning,
(but
expect I wouldn't get any anyway) the bit went flying off damaging the
area I was routing and spinning to the other side and taking a large
nick
out of that side. This was an expensive piece of maple trim from Craft
Maid and to say the least I was ****ed! After a time out to calm down I
thought back and reflected I was really lucky not to get nailed in the
face by this flying projectile. This is a newer Router, 693 Porter Cable
using the fixed base. Needless to say, I torque the bit more than what I
thought necessary when I decided to continue. Wondering if anyone else
has
had this problem or was it operator error?

Thanks
Looks like I will be inspecting it more closely. And a good cleaning is in
order. This router collet was probably used three or four times before the
incident. I'm thankful I was not hit or injured but the customer wasn't
happy that his piece wasn't perfect.
--
You can lead them to LINUX
but you can't make them THINK !
Mandriva 2010 using KDE 4.3
Website: www.rentmyhusband.biz

"Swingman" wrote in message
...
While not all that common, it happens enough for the average woodworker to
be aware of the possibility. Three things which factor in as a cause most
of the time:

1. Seating the bit's shank too deep in the collet - (always pull it out
about an 1/8" from the bottom before tightening).

2. Dirt, dust, debris, rust, etc. in the collet - (clean collet out with
an old toothbrush and be meticulous ... a new, spanking clean collet will
rarely exhibit this behavior.)

3. Not tightening enough after the proper bit depth is set in the collet -
(crank the crap out of it ... PC's with two wrenches need some rice and
gravy in the wielding).

4. Possibly, PC is now contracting Craftsman to build this router. ;~)