RA1181 Benchtop Router Table

BOSCH RA1181 Benchtop Router Table 27 in. x 18 in. Aluminum Top I put it together. Haven't yet put it to use. I'll only speak to what I can tell from the assembly. Great instructions! Bosch has gone to great lengths to take all guess work out of the assembly process, something other manufacturers should take a lesson from. The paper booklet is much better than online manuals, although I used both at different times. For those of use who think manuals are an unnecessary imposition on our God-like intelligence; I suggest you read the manual at least a little in advance of the parts you're assembling. It might save you some assembly-disassembly-reassembly. Don't ask me how I know. You know how I know. Ever wondered which bolt is the #10-16 x 1/2" and which is the #10-24 x 1/2"? The paper booklet has a true-to-size print of each and every bolt, washer, nut, etc. that solves the mysteries of identifying an incredibly large number of parts that come with the router table. How many parts is a large number? There are 161 parts, a few of which are for other models of Bosch router tables. A key identifies each part with a number that matches the true-to-size part's representation in the booklet. BTW: I didn't notice any Chinesium fasteners whose Philips head screws round out with the slightest bit of aggressive twisting of the old driver bit. All the fasteners are of a quality you might find in something like automotive manufacturing. All the main component parts are solid and well-made. Plastic is not all made the same. Time will tell how the plastic components hold up, but I expect they'll do just fine. I was very surprised at how sturdy the aluminum fence was. The same for the aluminum router plate and table top. I did not expect them to be so heavy. When I was removing the table top from the carton I wondered, due to its weight, if it was steel rather than aluminum. Leveling the router plate: I've seen reviews that made comments about the difficulty of leveling the router plate and aligning it to the same plane as the table top. I found no problem with this at all and verified the results with a TSO MTR-X triangle. I didn't go so far as to get out a set of feeler gauges to look for thousandths of an inch differences, but I don't expect to be routing components for use on Space-X. It's woodworking, not rocket science! Price: I got a terrific Black Friday price of $172.81, or so I thought. It's still (12/20/24) listed at about the same price on Amazon. I am not a connoisseur of router tables. I did the usual due diligence one might expect a penny pincher to do when making a purchase that offers the best of everything at the lowest price available and I think it went a lot better than expected. I wasn't looking for a table that cost $400 or more. I wasn't looking for the largest table or one that attaches to a Festool MFT. I wanted a table I could use in the basement or out on the driveway and pick up and carry to a job site without too much muscle strain that was suited for making moldings, dados and so forth. I was first looking for a table with a two part fence so it could be used for jointing. I admit to being disappointed that the best table I found did not have that feature. It took a while to find a Youtube video that spoke to this problem. But Bosch solved it by including two 1/16" "Jointing Shims" that slide behind the out feed fence to allow edge jointing in increments of 1/16" to 1/8". It's not an infinity of adjustments but then no fiddling is required to set up the table for jointing. Just slide a shim behind the fence and you're ready to go. So, that may actually be an advantage over two separately moveable fences that require careful alignment to get the right cut on an edge joint. I rarely give five stars but I think they are well deserved in the case of the Bosch RA1181 and the great Amazon price. For $175, how can you go wrong?

A result of downsizing was that I sold my wood shop of 50+ years that held some pretty serious equipment for a serious but hobbyist woodworker. As I lost my great router table to the downsizing, I still needed some sort of router table for my projects. I've always had good luck with Bosch tools, and this router table has not changed my views. It is compact enough to allow me to store it in a small space, but stout enough to handle small to medium sized routing needs. The fence and adjustments are fairly precise and fast to set up, the bulk is enough so that I can simply clamp the table to my workbench and create a solid base. Excellent product. If I had room, I would build it onto a cabinet which would hold bits and accessories. Very happy with this purchase.

The Bosch RA1171 Benchtop Router Table is a good table for the money. The router mounting plate is aluminum, very sturdy, and fully adjustable to ensure it sits flush with the tabletop as explained in the included assembly instructions. The router mounting plate is compatible with a variety of routers - see photos for a list of routers (accurate as of today, 12/21/22). Once the table is fully assembled, it is very sturdy and easy to secure to a work surface, bench, stand, etc. There is one modification that, while not critical, I do recommend. I found that when I tightened an accessory down to the outer edges (far left and far right) of the Aluminum Miter Channel, the channel would flex and pull away from the tabletop. This happens because there are only three mounting screws used to hold the miter channel in place, and they are located more towards the center of the channel, leaving the outer several inches on both sides unsecured - see photos. The fix is easy. I drilled a 3/16" hole through the aluminum miter channel and completely through the tabletop, one inch in from the left and right ends of the miter channel after installing it to the tabletop. Then, I countersunk both holes to accept new #10-32x1" flathead machine screws making sure the tops of the screws would sit below the surface of the miter channel, just as the three screws provided by Bosch do - see photos - the two silver-colored screws on the outer ends are the new/added screws. The three black screws in the center are the ones provided by Bosch. The new #10-32x1" Screws are held in place by a Flat Washer and a Keps Nut on each screw from the underside of the tabletop. Tighten them securely. See photos for a closeup of the screws, washers, keps nuts, and one of the new screws installed in place. After completing this modification, the outer ends of the miter channel are now firmly attached to the tabletop and they will not flex when tightening accessories located in these areas.

Very nice router table with lots of nice useful features. I slapped a skill router in it and it paired up nicely without issue. This router table is very durable with lots of adjustability.

Excellent produit. Grande simplicité pour installer le routeur.

Arrived quicker than date provided at time of order. Amazon refunded when import costs were less than quoted which was a nice surprise. Bought for partner who is a joiner - no complaints so far

Con la garantía de la marca Bosch es una buena mesa de trabajo. Si bien es cierto que te puedes construir una de mayores dimensiones, la verdad esta mesa tiene todo lo necesario, las guías, los enchufes, una base sólida y sobre todo la compatibilidad total con el router de la marca, para hacer tus trabajos de una manera más precisa, he trabajado con brocas de 1/2" y es estable. Para un aficionado a la madera como yo es un buen producto.

Mann muss zwar nen Eurostecker dran machen. Aber das funktioniert ohne Probleme. Sehr massiver Tisch.

High quality product works as represented. Used in my workplace for over a year. Shipped in good condition and easily assembled as per instructions.