Makita Battery-Powered Trim Router

I’ve already reviewed a similar router, but that one was corded. Lately, though, I’ve found cordless tools more and more convenient, so I decided to give this version a try.
For the most part, the two tools are very similar, so as I go along I’ll describe the cordless version and share my impressions of using its corded sibling, based on hands-on experience.

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The previous router was definitely useful when I was renovating my apartment. I used it to cut hinge recesses in doors and frames, rout recesses in chipboard for lights, and take care of all sorts of other little jobs. I’d say it was great, but experience showed that not everything was quite so smooth. In fact, most of its shortcomings have carried over to the model reviewed here, and I’ll mention them along the way today.

To get ahead of the question: what’s wrong with a corded router? In some situations, the cable can really get in the way, especially when you’re working over a large area. It’s always either getting where it shouldn’t or catching on something at the worst possible moment.



As always, I’ll start with the packaging. Unlike the previous model, this one comes in very basic packaging, though it also takes up considerably less space to store.


The kit is almost the same as the previous one: the router itself, a pair of wrenches, and a disassembled guide. The previous model also came with an edge guide. It’s odd that they didn’t include one with a trim router.


1. 10 mm and 17 mm wrenches for securing the bit in the collet.
2. The parts for assembling the guide are also unchanged.


In fact, even the router itself looks very similar. The only differences are the upper section and the motor.


The upper part of the housing has:
1. A switch covered by a silicone cap. I’ve seen complaints more than once that it works "backwards"—that is, the "off" position actually turns the tool on. Oddly enough, mine worked the right way.
2. A speed control with 6 settings, though in practice the adjustment is smooth, with no distinct steps above setting 2.
3. No markings or even a brand name.
4. A battery contact group with two contacts. This means that with genuine Makita batteries and most clones, automatic cutoff in case of over-discharge or cell imbalance probably won’t work.


The listing says the router is


I tested it with a BL1860B battery equivalent. Interestingly, though, 14 V batteries are also listed as compatible alongside 18 V batteries. That seems rather optimistic to me, and I doubt it will work properly.


The base is adjustable and has the same drawback as the previous one: it’s fragile. I’ve already partly broken the old one, and although it’s still holding together, I’m thinking of replacing it with a metal one. I’ve seen both straight and angled bases with aluminum housings on AliExpress, but they get plenty of complaints too. Maybe someone can recommend a good option.


I wasn’t impressed with the guide either. It feels kind of flimsy, and the design itself is pretty awkward.


With the base removed, you can see the aluminum housing, which looks like an exact copy of the previous one. I have no complaints about it.


Two more things about the base:
1. It’s slightly convex—not much, but it still isn’t flat.
2. Just like the previous model, it collects chips. At first I cleaned them out of the old one, but eventually I just stopped bothering.
Apparently, it uses some clever labyrinth-like arrangement that makes chips build up instantly, but makes them almost impossible to remove.


There’s something like a ruler on the side to make it easier to set the routing depth. Maybe it works for some people, but I never figured out how to use it to make anything genuinely easier.


The collet chuck is basically identical to the one used in the previous model. It holds the bit fine, but a couple of times I had to tighten it again.
Note: the chuck is designed for a 6.35 mm (1/4-inch) shank. Unlike the more common 6 mm size you’ll find in local stores, a 6 mm bit probably won’t be secured in it, or you’ll have to keep retightening the chuck. Also, if you buy a router for 6.35 mm bits, you’re committing yourself to buying bits from China, since they’re either hard to find locally or expensive.

You can see the motor windings inside, along with the cooling fan. When running, it blows air toward the bit.


I tried several bits and didn’t notice any significant runout, though I could only say for sure with a perfectly straight bit. In practice, though, even a little runout doesn’t seem to affect the results much.


The housing comes apart fairly easily, but I’ll say in advance that putting it back together is noticeably harder.


Inside are the motor control module, a switch, and a potentiometer.


The control module is potted, but it’s clearly a universal design: it has not only LEDs that light up during operation, but also a button. I tried pressing it, but nothing seemed to happen.


The connections are:
1. three wires to the motor
2. three wires to the speed control
3. two wires to the switch
4. two wires to the battery contact group.


While taking it apart, I was already about to make fun of the manufacturer for putting a cover over the switch and using a potentiometer. But it turned out the potentiometer has a sealed design, so it might last for a while.


The plastic base is supposed to be removable too, but even after undoing the screws, I couldn’t get it off—and I didn’t really want to break it.


Since one of the motor’s key specifications is its power, which in this case depends on the stator size, I measured it indirectly.
The motor stator is about 25 mm thick and 50 mm in diameter. There’s no way it’s really 1000 W; I’d put it closer to 500–600 W. As noted, the motor is brushless.


I measured the no-load power consumption at three voltages—15, 18, and 21 V—and at both the minimum and maximum speed settings.
I noticed that the current drops slightly after a short while. The highest no-load power recorded was about 200 W.
There is no speed regulation; otherwise, the current would drop as the voltage increased. Here it’s the opposite: higher voltage means higher current and higher motor speed.


I also found that it has low-voltage protection. It runs at 12.1 V and even has noticeable torque, but when the voltage drops to 12 V, it shuts off after a couple of seconds.
So the controller shuts off at about 2.4 V per battery cell. However, it only monitors the battery’s total voltage and doesn’t check for cell imbalance, which is obviously a bad thing.
Going back to the list of compatible batteries, I can say that although the router will run on 14 V batteries, its speed and power will drop significantly.



The specs claim a maximum spindle speed of 30,000 rpm. Since this is also an important parameter, I checked it too.
I still haven’t got myself a tachometer, so, out of habit, I’ll use an oscilloscope for this. I stuck reflective tape on one face of the collet and checked four settings: first, second, fourth, and maximum speed.
Here’s what I got:
1. First speed — 2,000 rpm
2. Second speed — 2,700 rpm
3. Fourth speed — 16,000 rpm
4. Sixth, maximum speed — 26,000 rpm.

The router was powered by an almost fully charged battery at about 19.5 V. I think that at 21 V it would probably reach the claimed 30,000 rpm.


Next, I got a few different offcuts ready. I’d originally planned to experiment with all of them, but had to abandon that idea. First, there wasn’t much point, and second, the router kicks up so much sawdust that this was enough for me. Anyone who’s used a router will understand.
Besides, working at home without a workbench is extremely inconvenient. Most of the time went into securing the offcuts and rigging up something resembling a guide. As a result, instead of quickly routing the first edge, it took me about five attempts. The offcuts were also too short, which didn’t help.


I decided to start with a 16 mm particleboard offcut that had been cut out of something, so its edges were far from perfect. For comparison, there’s a piece with a relatively straight edge on the right.


I got the hang of it and ended up with edges that weren’t perfect but were quite straight. I routed both long sides, using the offcut shown on the right as a guide.


I also removed almost all the chips from the back. I could have removed them all, but that wasn’t my goal to begin with.


The second test piece was a piece of ordinary pine tongue-and-groove paneling.


I tried turning it into a plain board by removing the tongue-and-groove joints. I also routed one of the short sides.
I clearly missed the mark at one point along the long side, and the bit ended up cutting through rather than just leveling the edge. Even so, it handled the job fine. The short side was harder: I removed about 8 mm and had to do it in two passes, otherwise the wood started to scorch a little.


I did everything with a 10 mm bit, with the depth set so the router could cut through 16 mm particleboard in one pass.


By the way, I was going to buy a different base for my previous router, like the one in the photo on the left, without angle adjustment, but the bad reviews put me off. I still don’t know where to find a good one. I’d also like to be able to connect a vacuum cleaner, because cleaning up after using the router is genuinely exhausting...



Conclusions.
For the most part, everything I said at the end of the review of the corded router applies to this model too, including both its advantages and disadvantages.
In terms of power, the cordless model is no worse than the corded one (and may even be better). At least, I didn’t notice any difference. But I can say that it really drains the battery fast. As mentioned in the review, it obviously doesn't deliver 1000 W, but I didn't notice any significant drop in speed either—only when the bit was cutting through the wood with all 10 mm of its diameter.
Speed control is almost useless. I think a couple of settings, 20,000 and 30,000 rpm, would have been plenty; I worked at the maximum speed.

As with the previous model, one drawback is the uneven base, although this one is less warped and at least the screw heads don't stick out. That said, I don't like the design of the base itself or the way it attaches to the router.

But there are a couple of things that give the cordless router an edge over a corded one:
1. No power cord. When I was routing the doors, it got in my way quite a bit.
2. The spindle stops instantly when you switch it off. Personally, I found it annoying to wait for the corded router to stop, since catching something with a spinning bit is pretty unpleasant.


Unfortunately, the cordless router has a drawback too: its center of gravity is high, which can sometimes get in the way, especially when working on a narrow surface, such as the edge of a door. I haven't tried it in that situation, so this is just a guess.

In short, it's a perfectly usable tool. I didn't notice any lack of speed or power. For best results, use a battery at least as powerful as the one I used; you can forget about those so-called 288Vf Chinese batteries and the like. The drawbacks are a rather awkward base and a flimsy guide.

The store provided a coupon for the review: BG4bab1a, which brings the price down to $42.99 through October 31.