Router switch upgrade

Darren Wright

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Staff member
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Location
Springfield, Missouri
I finally got tired of fumbling around under the table for the switch. Ordered this guy from amazon, came today and got it installed. It was an accident waiting to happen since there wasn't a quick way to kill the router and I had to lean over at blade height to see the switch.

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Well done darren. I'm right there with you. There have been a few times when I have felt a lot better being able to turn the router table, tablesaw or whatever off with a bump of the knee or hip.

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Great addition, Darren!

I upgraded the switches on my router table and both bandsaws to this type of switch several months ago. These are latching relay, not magnetic, but they accomplish similar tasks at a lower cost.

Oh nice, looks like those mount over a normal electrical box, would have done that instead. May have to order one of those for my Radial Arm, The switch has been acting up on it, may be time to replace it with one of these. The one you linked to was rated for smaller motors, but looks like there is a 110v/220v higher amperage one here for about $5 more... http://www.amazon.com/Woodstock-D4151-220-Volt-Paddle-Switch/dp/B005W17FRS/ref=pd_cp_hi_0
 
Yup, there are two kinds, rated differently. When I was writing the book and planning to build a work site saw, I got one of each from that Amazon source. I still will build on the saw (for building the house) and use the higher rated switch for the saw. The table will also house a router and the other switch will be used there. They do screw right into an electrical box. Makes for a tidy installation.
 
The specs on Amazon are misleading. It gives a rating of 16A, then states "1/2 HP". The amperage is the important number. For my 220V bandsaw, used this version of the switch.

Well, Ratings are for continuous draw. The induction motor size rating will matter as it will create a huge draw of amps upon start-up for a split second. For instance my DC that is rated at 2HP at 20 amps, but that motor draws about 96 amps (that I could measure with my clamp meter's peak) for the first second or so. Essentially the switch works and will work for a good long time, but if used frequently it will shorten the life of the switch.
 
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