I bought my shapeoko a year ago, and got the VGD spindle. I think that alone has helped avoid a lot of frustration!
But, the poor compact router has never been plugged in! lol.
What accessories are out there to convert the router? I see bases, grips, and under-table attachments, as well as plunge attachments. But I get the feeling that there’s more to it than I’m seeing.
What accessories are needed to convert the compact router into a palm, plunge, or table router? Not looking for specific product recommendations (would welcome those though!) as much as I’m looking for knowledge on the different parts and systems.
The Carbide Compact Router is one of a number of derivatives of the venerable Makita RT0700/0701/0702.
Same collets, nut, brushes, bearings, motor, and motor housing.
Probably the first was the MLCS Rocky 30 which has since been bought by HValleyTools — they do sell a plunge base separately:
or, you could check here and see if someone who bought a Makita RT0701 would be willing to sell you their base.
Making it into a table router is pretty straight-forward — if memory serves, one of the differences between the 0700 and 0701 is that the hole pattern changed to something more common. Perhaps something like:
lol.