Freud FT2200E router on sale.

It’s a decent machine, but the Triton seems to be a bit more feature heavy for the extra $100. Never can have too many routers, though. At the price a person could have the Freud set for a production need. Just my two cents.

-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.

I agree with Douglas…If you can find a great deal on a tool which you use for various tasks, having two or more is great. For example, when I do cabinet installations I have multiple cordless drills and one corded drill on my work tray. One for drilling holes, one for my counter sink bit, one with each size of square bits I use and one 90 degree for getting into small spaces. It took a while to build up to all of them but it was well worth the price. Changing the bits out really wasn’t where I saved time…it was not having to look for where I set the last one down, or maybe I put it in my pocket…up inside the last cabinet? no, maybe it’s on top of the last upper I installed…oh there it is…on the floor!

-- Steffen

I own the FT2000E (not 2200) and I’ve been pleased for years.

-- Dekker - http://www.WoodworkDetails.com/Blog/MNagy/

Got a Freud also and it has been a fine router for years. Don’t let the price fool you!

I see that Price Cutter has a Porter Cable 690LR on sale for 139.99 and includes a free 343K PC random orbital sander. Single speed, but sounds like a good buy.

-- Bill, Turlock California, http://www.brookswoodworks.com

I’ve had a D-handle 690 series for about 20 years, & wouldn’t trade it for anything. It’s one of the best fixed-base routers out there. I don’t know about the 343 sander, but I’ve had a 330 about as long as I’ve had the router. PC builds ‘em to last.

Don’t have a plunge router yet, though. It seemed like this might be a good way to jump in for less money.

-- Robert from Raymond, MS. "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence is therefore not a practice, but a habit." - Aristotle

Follow up:

I received the FT2200E the other day (free shipping and it STILL arrived in two days—amazing!), and initial impressions are good. It’s a monster compared to my 690 D, and I think it’s going to spend most of the time in the router table. However, it has a smooth action, and the balance is better than I expected. I’m going to love the variable speed, & my next purchase will be an edge guide so I can try some of the neat mortising tricks I’ve seen.

My only gripe is that depth adjustment is a pain in non-plunge mode (i.e. router table), but I realize that this is common to most plunge routers.

Does anyone know if it’s okay to leave the spring compressed for extended periods? For example, you’ve got the depth set on a bit in the router table, and don’t want to change it for a few days. I know some springs are better than others in this regard, and I sure hate to have to crank the depth adjustment all the way back out every time.

-- Robert from Raymond, MS. "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence is therefore not a practice, but a habit." - Aristotle

I realize this is a very late reply…

Personally, I keep this router in the router table (almost) all the time. The depth is set so the bit is under the table, but the spring is still compressed 99% of the time.

I have not had any problems with this, and even when the router is used outside of the table, the spring applies a good deal of force, even with the height at its top (minimal spring compression).

Hope that helps.

-- Dekker - http://www.WoodworkDetails.com/Blog/MNagy/