homefixated.com: If you’ve been following Home Fixated for any time now, you’ve seen us cover various offerings from Makita’s 18V LXT Lithium-Ion line-up, which has grown to epic proportions (over 125 tools!); there’s little they’ve yet to adorn with their trademarked teal. Home Depot sent us the new Makita XTR01Z 18V, brushless, compact router to evaluate. I’m ready to pick this thing apart and let you know what I think.
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I’ve never had a talent for handling routers, so they are my least favorite tools to use. I always seem to mess up every single cut I attempt. Which, statistically, should be impossible. But this is the world we live in. However, this Makita wireless router is a brief glimmer of hope in my future router usage. Maybe if I don’t have to wrestle with a cord I’ll be a little more nimble with my cuts and facings off. The article gives a strong recommendation for the Makita XTR01Z 18V LXT: “I am genuinely impressed with its performance. Its ability to maintain torque where many similarly-sized routers would choke and wheeze really did surprise me. It felt like I was using a mid-sized router, but without the bulk or power cord. It’s exactly what I want from a tool like this.” I’m not sure if this is something we need for our shop, but all of current routers are so cumbersome, and if we’re going to buy a smaller one, we might as well give this one a chance.
I was just thinking the other day how I’ve never seen a cordless trim router. They make tiny little cordless routers for cutting drywall to light recesses etc. but nothing to actually cut wood. I go back and forth with my opinions on making everything cordless. On the one hand, it is convenient, but on the other hand, no matter how good the tool or battery is, it won’t be as good as a corded tool. Therefore, people rely on cordless tools and it could hinder productivity if a battery tool is not as efficient or powerful as a 120v one. For something like a router, it is not really a job site tool, at least not before electricians come in. But you don’t really see people thirsting for a cordless router on a job site and when you are in a shop with power all around, I would certainly opt for a corded router. I am curious though what it is about routers that made it take this long for them to get a battery.
I love the Makita Lithium Ion tool line. My high school was lucky to get a large gift of a variety of tools from its 125+ tool line, including circular saw, jig saw, reciprocating saw, and cordless impact drivers and drills, all of which I would give a big thumbs up. I did not know that the line of tools was so long, or that they could all share the same battery. Similar to Kelly, I've never been very good with a router. The most common scenario I've used a router in is cutting facing for the sides of staircases, and my biggest fear is that I will cut the router power cord as I move down the edge of the stairs. If the router had no cord that would totally eliminate that problem!! I have always liked rocker switches on tools like this, but the safety locking feature is defiantly a good one. I also like that it has a light on it. I too have made snide remarks about "manufacturers gratuitously hitch the white LED bandwagon to virtually every tool they make these days," but they defiantly seem useful on this router. Lights on drills and impact drivers make it easier to work load-ins in dimly lit spaces, and this feature could serve just as well, especially if the router base gets in the way. Overall, based on my past experience with Makita and this review's insight, I would give this router a shot.
Having a cordless router would be beyond nice. With the spinning exposed bit, it’s really easy to get the cord too close for comfort and then you have to be thinking about the cord and not about routing correctly. Somehow I also always get the cord stuck on things without realizing it and then I’m struggling against the material thinking there’s just some imperfection when in reality the cord is just stuck. It’s just so easy to get the cord stuck because, like other handheld power tools, you are moving around whatever you are cutting and not standing in one spot. It always seems like a worse problem with routers and jigsaws. So not having a cord would make so routing so much better. This cordless router looks really good. From the slow start up so it doesn't jerk out of you hand (a worry even with corded routers) to the testing that he put it through, this router looks really nice.
Another week, another tool article. I really have to ask if having a cordless router would really be all that beneficial. This is like the cordless air compressor. It is honestly useless. We are not at a point where battery technology is a sustainable answer for the tool industry. The expense of having to buy additional batteries and continuously remember to charge them is not worth the benefit of having no cord. How many times have you wanted to use your household drill and not been able to because it's not charging? I’m assuming more than once. So the take away from this article is to just wait it out and wait until we see batteries that can last much longer than what we currently have. That's when we can talk about the world of cordless. Until then I will be tied to the wall. But that is ok because it nice to be tied down.
I may have to change my feelings about cordless routers after reading this article. Of course, I reserve the right to judge after having used one. Makita clearly put a lot of thought into this product, and it seems to have paid off. It is surprising to me that Makita (or anyone) can make a cordless tool of this quality among the other 124 cordless tools in the same line. Although, I wouldn’t be saying the same thing if it were a corded tool. The part of this tool that impresses me the most isn’t the power in the tool, though that is impressive, it is that Makita had the forethought and foresight to make their new tool compatible with accessories for their other, corded, routers. I do take this review with a grain of salt, however, because it is sponsored by Home Depot. In part, I trust this review because I’ve used Makita tools before. I’d be interested to see what an independent party has to say about this router.
I find it interesting that the author of the article did not talk about the first thing that comes to mind when dealing with new cordless tools: battery life. Sure, they go into great depth about how well the brushless motor reacts in real-time to difficult routing patterns and tough wood grain situations, but not once do they mention how long the battery will last for when doing a standard groove or edge profile. I’m sure it’s not that big of a deal for the Makita batteries, especially the larger ones, as I have used Makita battery-powered tools for hours on end without issue. The other thing the author does bring up that I find interesting is the “bare tool model”. It definitely implies that these companies expect some kind of brand loyalty when establishing a tool inventory, but for me, I have preferences spanning multiple brands with multiple tools and don’t know that I would just want one kind of tooling brand for everything. Saving some money on them would be nice, though.
After looking at this tool for some time I finally came to the conclusion that it would be a great addition to a standard tool room but not a replacement for a corded larger HP router. The way it can handle doing some of the slightly larger jobs that are usually too much for a trim router to handle is a huge positive and something I was worried about when I first heard of this. The biggest positive for me would be its portability. The ability to quickly grab this for the last min task and not need to find power on stage and extension cords needed makes it feel as though I would use it sometimes, but not as a main tool in the shop. In the shop, we tend to be doing much more strenuous tasks that would either kill all the batteries in the world or just take longer due to the needed number of passes. Just like the batteries staple guns, this should be an addition, not a replacement that has a specific time and place, not in the main shop.
The Makita XTR01Z actually seems like a decent router for a decent price. I am not entirely on board for changing all our tools battery powered. I have observed, with the battery-powered circular saw, the charger wandering around the tool room. I believe we managed to lose it for a month or so last year. I fear a more permanent problem for future battery-powered tools. We also tend to abuse our tools to a greater extent than a typical shop or home owner. It is entirely possible that this tool would be used for four hours continuously by someone who learned how to use a router that same day. I can already hear the motor changing RPM and crying in my mind. One of our routers literally does not turn off anymore because of the abuse it has seen. I love the sawdust guard on this tool, the LED lights should be a necessity on every router, we could stand to purchase some guides. I would love to buy this tool for myself when I’m a 40 year-old with a garage and money, however, as students, we don’t deserve nice things.
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