Despite being heavy-duty, this unit is small and portable.
Height adjustment for the rack and pinio.
Convenient and simple to us.
Collet size: 1/4.
Included are a flush trimming attachment as well as an edge guide.
Motor with Outstanding Performance. Featuring a durable 2 1/2″ diameter machined aluminum housing, this heavy duty, variable speed compact laminate trimmer/palm router is built to last. The speed of the 1-HP motor can be adjusted from 10,000 rpm to 30,000 rpm using a speed control dial located on the top of the motor enclosure. There is a 1″ long rule etched into the aluminum housing with 1/16″ and 1mm increments marked on it. The double-insulated motor is equipped with a spindle-locking button, which makes it easier to change bits with a single wrench. The metal base has a rack and pinion system that allows the motor’s height to be adjusted, and a flip lever that allows the motor to be locked at the desired height. An additional feature is a rubber pad that partially wraps around the base of the router, providing a positive gripping surface when holding the router in your hand. This set includes the following extras. Dust extraction port with a snap-in design (1-1/2″ outlet. Edge guide, flush trimming attachment, and edge guid. A spare set of motor brushes is available. A 1/4″ router bit collet as well as a collet wrench are required.
This is NOT the same as a Makita in the slightest. As they both have the same housing, their bases and other accessories will interchange and fit perfectly with one another’s. But..
The Makita is equipped with an electronic speed control that is active. When the RPMs drop, it immediately dumps more power into the motor to make up for the lost speed. At top speed, the Makita is still holding back a little power in reserve; the MLCS Rocky 30 has a slightly higher no-load maximum revolutions per minute.
The MLCS speed dial appears to do nothing more than limit the power. As a result, it is possible that it will have less torque at lower speed settings. In practice, you can hear the RPM fluctuate, which is especially noticeable at lower speeds. When you hit the wood at speed setting 1-2, for example, it sounds like a P-52 nose-diving into a strafe, which is a realistic simulation. When you are cutting or letting off, the Makita appears to run at a lower RPM than when you are not cutting or letting off. Consequently, in the low end, the MLCS will cut almost exactly like the Mak; it will simply spin back up to a faster idle speed between cuts to make up for the difference.
The magic beans of the Makita, on the other hand, have a drawback. Both of these routers can get hot, but the Mak appears to get hotter when operating at lower speeds than the other two. The Makita’s instruction manual specifically warns that prolonged use at low speeds will result in permanent damage. No, I haven’t read the instruction manual for the MLCS.
Fit and finish: The other immediately noticeable difference is the fit and finish of the two vehicles. Obviously, if this had been created by Makita, someone would have lost their job. It appears as though the stamping on the outside of the housing was created using old tooling. Although not round, the screwheads in the baseplate were a challenge to work with, and one had to be filed down because it was protruding from the surface of the plate. All of the plastics, including the bottom plate of the base, have more voids and less precision than the metal. However, all of the critical components are in place. The aluminum alloy castings and machining in both the tool and the fixed base are of excellent quality…
In general, this device functions perfectly. If you have larger routers, this will be able to perform any task that a trim router would be capable of. It also comes with a few extra bits and pieces that aren’t included with the Makita, such as a 3/8″ “collet” (which is almost like a split ring; I’m not sure I’d trust it) and a couple of other oddities that I have no idea what to do with other than keep them in the box. According to my understanding, this will also accept PC template inserts, which will not fit in the Makita fixed base. Another advantage is the vacuum hose adapter that is included with the fixed base. This is not included in the Makita’s package.
In the event that you are a toolhead who takes pleasure in owning and using high-quality tools, investing a few extra dollars in the Makita is a wise decision. However, it will not be able to do much more than that.
At the end of the day, I believe you have won either way. The Makita is distinguished by a couple of distinctive bases. MLCS offers a couple of unique bases and attachments that are not available anywhere else. If you have one of these routers, you can use any of the accessories listed below to customize your network.
Let’s get the comparison out of the way first.
This router has the potential to become extremely hot (as will the Makita). If you plan on doing any extended work, you may want to consider purchasing the plunge base. It is available for purchase from MLCS. Of course, it is also compatible with the Makita plunge base.
What I particularly like about this router with a fixed base is that it’s small enough for me to hold and control it with one hand while still being able to reach the power switch with my thumb. YMMV.
