# Bosch Colt router has collet problems.



## pintodeluxe

Not good. I have the pre-cursor to the Colt, which included an offset base for laminate trimming in tight quarters. With that base you don't use the collet, instead the bit is held in place with an allen head set screw. The first time I used it the screw came loose, and ruined the cut.

I would replace the collet to see if it's defective. Many times there is an internal crack that is not immediately visible.

The new Dewalt mini routers are really great. I have the P.C. and Dewalt versions, and am impressed with how well the collets work. Just light pressure with a single wrench and the thumb-button collet lock works great.


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## DalyArcher

I have mine for years, bought one when they first came out and the variable speed model when my first one was stolen. Never had any problems with it. Until 6 months ago it was the only router I owned and I used it for everything including mortises. I'd buy another tomorrow, sorry you seem to have gotten a lemon.


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## OnhillWW

Let me get this right - you have had and used this for 4 YEARS… and you have never contacted Bosch. If my new car had bad bakes I wouldn't keep driving it w/o getting the problem taken care of. I have tools clothed in many colors and all I can say is my Bosch tools have all served me very well (including a pair of Colts) and all have proved themselves to be worth the price paid. I'd say stop using the da(#m thing and contact Bosch before you need a trip to the emergency room.


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## Arcola60

My first router was a bosch colt. It worked so well I bought a second one and the plunge base when it came out. Now I have fixed, plunge, and I made 6" square bases that drop in to a TS extension for box joints, dovetails, etc.
I never had any issues with either of them. I would get a replacement collet and try that one.


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## CooperDBM

Did you make sure not to bottom out your bits when inserting them? Tightening the collet wants to push the bit further in. If it's already bottomed out you may not be able to tighten the collet properly.


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## OggieOglethorpe

If the good advice about not bottoming the shank doesn't fix your issue, are you aware that replacement collets for this router are ~ $8?

http://www.grainger.com/product/3TXD8?gclid=CNj3quTI9MgCFYsTHwodQ64E3w&cm_mmc=PPC:GOOGLEPLAA-_-Power%20Tools-_-Routers-_-3TXD8&ef_id=VUFFgAAAAfHZtu79:20151103152843:s


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## HerbC

+1 on questioning why you did not get problem resolved by contacting Bosch support? No attempt? or bad experience there?

Herb


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## splintergroup

I have a Colt (about the same vintage). I really like this router but it has had several issues. WRT the collet, the first thing to break was the spindle lock. My guess is this soft metal piece sheared off internally. The fix was to grind down a 10mm open end wrench so I could use the two-wrench solution with the collet nut and narrow flat on the shaft.

I bring this up because I am leery of the spindle-lock/wrench combo being good enough to secure a bit (I like things tight). This all started with a 1970's Craftsman router with the famous 'auto depth adjust' feature (the bit would creep out of the collet).

Anyhoo, you might not be getting the collet tight enough with the spindle lock versus two-wrenches (assuming all other mentioned potential faults are checked out).

The other issue is the depth collar lock lever. If it is adjusted to properly clamp the depth adjustment down, when released it is still too tight to allow the motor to slide up/down in the base.


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## Albert

I have had similar problems with my Triton. It is ok with 1/2 inch bits but a lot of problems when using the 1/4 inch adapter, the thing wants to loosen up. I will be interested to see if you find a 'fix' for this problem. Meanwhile make sure to wear your safety glasses.

Paul


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## waho6o9

My Colt is a POS as well.


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## PatrickB

> Let me get this right - you have had and used this for 4 YEARS… and you have never contacted Bosch. If my new car had bad bakes I wouldn t keep driving it w/o getting the problem taken care of. I have tools clothed in many colors and all I can say is my Bosch tools have all served me very well (including a pair of Colts) and all have proved themselves to be worth the price paid. I d say stop using the da(#m thing and contact Bosch before you need a trip to the emergency room.
> 
> - OnhillWW


Gee, do you really think I am that dumb? Did you notice the blurb in their about the DeWalt I purchased? I use the DeWalt exclusively, even have a special collet for it, plunge base, the whole nine yards. I love that little router. In my mind I just labeled it a failure and let it sit on the shelf. Got the DeWalt and haven't looked back. I did some research when I got the collet for my DeWalt and the people who make the collet say there is a lot of problems with the colt's. Issues with run out and lack of concentricity. That's what they said, not me. And I like Bosch tools, I wish I had the money for their new compound miter saw. Plus the fence is a pos, height adjustment is very poor compared to the DeWalt too. As far as I am concerned the DeWalt small router is 10 times what the Colt is and is what the Colt should be!!!
Pat


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## mondak

To set the record straight, I have not used any other small routers. I do own the bosch colt and wouldn't trade. It has worked flawlessly for me for pushing 10 yrs., and it is my go to router…......always.
A friend purchased a colt about the same time and did not have the spindle lock lined up when he was changing bits. He stripped the lock. Bosch replaced his colt with a new one. 
This is not my only bosch tool…......and they are all good.


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## Grumpymike

I had the same problem with a router collet not gripping the bit … After I lost one and it zinged across the shop and lodged in the wall, I started to ask around … A fella at the woodworkers store told me to drop a space ball in to the collet … never had another one come loose.
It works for me.
Now all 5 of my routers have space balls … no comment on gender …


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## OggieOglethorpe

*A fella at the woodworkers store told me to drop a space ball in to the collet *

That's an excellent idea! I almost always have Space Balls around, but never thought of that.

For those who might not have Space Balls on hand, I've used rubber o-rings, a small bit of pink foam, even part of a foam earplug. All these things do is prevent the bit from bottoming out in the opening below the collet, leaving a bit of expansion room for the bit as it heats up.

Some bits are hard to hold as you tighten, so they drop all the way to the bottom, especially as the collet passes through tight / loose / tight cycles as it closes.


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## Grumpymike

*OggieOglethorpe* You are spot on. But I would like to point out that it is really not the bottoming out of the bit that causes problems.
It is that the bit starts to flare out at the top and if the bit is to deep, the shoulder of the collet grips at the flare and only has a very narrow "foot print".
Now if you raise the router bit a wee tad, the collet will grab the entire shank solidly and be stable with a wide "foot print".


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## OggieOglethorpe

Clamping the flare can certainly cause a problem, but I have plenty of bits with long enough shanks that can bottom out in the shaft yet still have plenty of straight shank showing, especially 1/2" shank spiral pattern bits.

They can still fail to tighten correctly if inserted all the way to the bottom.


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## donbee

For your sake, I hope Bosch doesn't employ the "non-disparagement" scam!!!!!
Look it up if you can take the sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach.

Don


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## dhazelton

You're they guy who gave his 20 year old DeWalt saw a bad review. This means zero to me.


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## JerryinCreek

Yup! I had collet problems too. The bit would come loose and the collet would actually split in two. This happened several times. Now I really crank down to lock the bit in place and haven't had that problem since. But, I do have some extra collets on hand just in case. The collet seems to be a consistent problem based on this thread.


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## Bill_Steele

I'm sorry to hear that you're having this problem. I have the same router (~4 years) and have not noticed a problem with the collet loosening up. Like the others have said, I'm very careful about not bottoming the bit when I tighten the collet.

I bought an offset base for the router from Pat Warner ( patwarner.com ). He makes really nice stuff.


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## Alan72

I also had the problem with collet ,first breaking into 2 peaces and then into 3. I called Bosch customer service and they sent me a new one. It was still under the one year warrenty. I really like the small router not so bulky when putting a profile on a edge.


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## Green_Hornut

I've had a Bosch Colt for 4 years in my CNC and I can't ask more of it. The only time the collet came loose was when I forgot to tighten it! It runs for hours on 3d projects.

Lest not forget…. your talking about a $100 router. You get what you pay for. You buy a $100 router and then complain that it doesn't work like a Festool. At that price you use it and when it fails or wears out you get another. A festool trim router is about a $grand. For that price you can by about 8 Bosch.


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## BinghamtonEd

> Let me get this right - you have had and used this for 4 YEARS… and you have never contacted Bosch. If my new car had bad bakes I wouldn t keep driving it w/o getting the problem taken care of. I have tools clothed in many colors and all I can say is my Bosch tools have all served me very well (including a pair of Colts) and all have proved themselves to be worth the price paid. I d say stop using the da(#m thing and contact Bosch before you need a trip to the emergency room.
> 
> - OnhillWW
> 
> Gee, do you really think I am that dumb? Did you notice the blurb in their about the DeWalt I purchased? I use the DeWalt exclusively, even have a special collet for it, plunge base, the whole nine yards. I love that little router. In my mind I just labeled it a failure and let it sit on the shelf. Got the DeWalt and haven t looked back. I did some research when I got the collet for my DeWalt and the people who make the collet say there is a lot of problems with the colt s. Issues with run out and lack of concentricity. That s what they said, not me. And I like Bosch tools, I wish I had the money for their new compound miter saw. Plus the fence is a pos, height adjustment is very poor compared to the DeWalt too. As far as I am concerned the DeWalt small router is 10 times what the Colt is and is what the Colt should be!!!
> Pat
> 
> - PatrickB


You still haven't provided enough information to let us decide if you're that dumb. The comment that you bought a DeWalt did not imply that you left the Bosch on the shelf. In fact, you followed up that DeWalt sentence, in the original post, with "Every time I use this router…". Many people own multiple routers and use them all. So, the logical conclusion we arrive to is that you were (to quote yourself) "dumb enough" to never contact Bosch service about the issue. Given the number of people who own one and have never had this issue (myself included), it's likely that you could have gotten them to take care of it, either with repair or replacement. It sounds like you're sharing in the blame here for purchasing a tool, never contacting customer support, and then allowing it to become a paperweight for 4 years, and then complaining about how it never worked.


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## PatrickB

> Let me get this right - you have had and used this for 4 YEARS… and you have never contacted Bosch. If my new car had bad bakes I wouldn t keep driving it w/o getting the problem taken care of. I have tools clothed in many colors and all I can say is my Bosch tools have all served me very well (including a pair of Colts) and all have proved themselves to be worth the price paid. I d say stop using the da(#m thing and contact Bosch before you need a trip to the emergency room.
> 
> - OnhillWW
> 
> Gee, do you really think I am that dumb? Did you notice the blurb in their about the DeWalt I purchased? I use the DeWalt exclusively, even have a special collet for it, plunge base, the whole nine yards. I love that little router. In my mind I just labeled it a failure and let it sit on the shelf. Got the DeWalt and haven t looked back. I did some research when I got the collet for my DeWalt and the people who make the collet say there is a lot of problems with the colt s. Issues with run out and lack of concentricity. That s what they said, not me. And I like Bosch tools, I wish I had the money for their new compound miter saw. Plus the fence is a pos, height adjustment is very poor compared to the DeWalt too. As far as I am concerned the DeWalt small router is 10 times what the Colt is and is what the Colt should be!!!
> Pat
> 
> - PatrickB
> 
> You still haven t provided enough information to let us decide if you re that dumb. The comment that you bought a DeWalt did not imply that you left the Bosch on the shelf. In fact, you followed up that DeWalt sentence, in the original post, with "Every time I use this router…". Many people own multiple routers and use them all. So, the logical conclusion we arrive to is that you were (to quote yourself) "dumb enough" to never contact Bosch service about the issue. Given the number of people who own one and have never had this issue (myself included), it s likely that you could have gotten them to take care of it, either with repair or replacement. It sounds like you re sharing in the blame here for purchasing a tool, never contacting customer support, and then allowing it to become a paperweight for 4 years, and then complaining about how it never worked.
> 
> - BinghamtonEd


Well Ed,
I am going to do my best to maintain an adult like attitude here since I have such great respect for this forum. I researched alternative methods on the Bosch (such as a custom collet) for finding a proper repair for it. This was a third purchase for me after having 2 DeWalt routers, the 2-1//2hp and the and the DeWalt 611. Here's a link to the collet kit I purchased for my 611 kit. 
http://www.precisebits.com/products/equipment/dewalt_611_kits.asp?tsPT=!!!Dewalt_611!!!Kit!!!PG!!! 
and I will provide an honest review there too. So, you sound as if you are upset because I did not pursue matters with Bosch about the Colt Variable Speed palm router. Why the heck should if I don't feel like it?huh? Who are you to judge me in this situation? I gave an honest review of the tool, not about Bosch customer service. Oh and it's not a paperweight, to big for that.
#1) The collet is not up to my standard. It loosens up as it is run over any period of time at a reasonable feed and speed. I am not a racer when I use this tool as bits whirling at 8,000 rpm hurt when they come out unexpectedly.
#2) The fence is a total piece of garbage. It slips and moves every time I try to use the tool with the fence.
No Ed, you grasp and hold onto the statement that I never said I used the DeWalt as a replacement router, please, read a little further down and it is right there.
I think I'll end this conversation right now before I say something I don't want too, I just had my left rotator cuff repaired and likely am still slightly bemused by the drugs. 
Ed, it's not that I am stupid, it's that I don't waste my time on trying to make something out of junk. If it's junk when I bought it spending days on end with customer service people and getting frustrated just is not worth it to me. Set it aside and find something better. I new I was going to catch some crap in this review, as I generally do in most of my reviews because I just tell about my experience with the tool and sometimes with customer service. But this is not customer service review, it's a tool review. Like it or whatever. Do some Google and research tool issues too. I'm not the only person.
PatrickB.


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## PatrickB

> You re they guy who gave his 20 year old DeWalt saw a bad review. This means zero to me.
> 
> - dhazelton


Hahahahahahaha oh man yer killin' me. I almost fell out of my chair I laughed so hard. Thanks, I needed that.

Never mind, I won't even bother to explain it, it's way over yer head.

And as it was pointed out to me it isn't a twenty year old tool, didn't come out until 2008 I think is what one of the posters said. And if you would have actually read the post I was talking about an issue I had when trying to align the saw a few days before I posted the review because normally it's used for framing, not fine woodworking. But I had a need due to my table saw being in pieces. Pompous.


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## Grumpymike

Now, now boys, I think you are for a time out, Each of you go to your respective shops and talk to the sawdust. (You will get more interest there).


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## PatrickB

> Now, now boys, I think you are for a time out, Each of you go to your respective shops and talk to the sawdust. (You will get more interest there).
> 
> - Grumpymike


Grumpymike,
Thanks for reminding me to remember my manners.
Pat


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## Holt

I'v'e got the single speed version of this router and later bought the variable speed one and both are high on my list of "go to" tools. Ironically, as good as these Bosch routers are, every Bosch router bit I've ever bought has been garbage. With similar sizes and profiles, the house brand from Woodcraft smokes them. In that case the term smokes was figurative as in actual use, it is the Bosch bits that burn and smoke. I occasionally need a bit at an odd time of day and end up at Home Depot and thus go home with a Bosch. To date, I've never been happy with one. Latest was a flush trimming bit I needed to crank out some stair stringers. After struggling to get part way through the first one cut with the template, I recalled that I had the Woodcraft version in my box of bits in storage and thought I knew where to lay hands on my box. Retrieved it, and finished that stringer and three more with zero problems. I wonder if the edges on the Bosch bits are just not ground correctly?


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