BOSCH Router Table RA1181, Benchtop Router Table, Woodworking Tools

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?

I just finished a set of raised panel cabinet doors which is about the most challenging thing I use a router table for. The doors ended up nice with good fit, the minor flaws are most likely do to the operator not the tools. I am by no means a pro but here are few points I noticed while using the table: 1. Assembly was not particularly difficult but expect to take some time to do it right. The instructions were adequate. 2. Leveling the mounting plate got a little frustrating, but I tend to get hung up making things perfect when they don't need to be. In the end I got it level with the table (more on this later). 3. Setting up the table for use was easy, the feather boards were solid, worked well, and stayed in place as did the fence itself. I have to admit, the guard that attaches to the fence didn't last long with me, but removing it is easier than installing it. I will most likely regret this decision the first time I get my fingers tangled up in a spinning bit. 4. The table surface left some mar on the wood I was using, but nothing that wasn't easy to sand out. I imagine that this will go away as the table surface gets used. If you really wanted to I'm sure you could polish the table surface before first use. 5. I have a Bosch router so the table top depth adjustment feature worked with my router. However, the combination of having to clean out the dust from the hole every time and keeping track of the allen wrench made it a rarely used gimmick. I ended up just making all of my adjustments from under the table. This is how I adjusted on my old table so it was not a big deal for me. 6. Chip collection was decent using a 1HP shop-vac, but I would continually blow the breaker in the table switch with both the vac and the router plugged in to it. Based on the current rating of the switch (15A) I shouldn't have had both things plugged in to it; so chalk that up to operator error. Now for my main complaint. As was mentioned in a few other reviews my table top had some significant crown (a little over 1/32" or 0.03125"). 95% of the time this probably won't be an issue but I emailed Bosch anyway. Per the response I received, the manufacturing tolerances are a max crown of 0.5mm (0.02"), so it would seem my table is out of spec. It's the weekend so I will have to wait for Bosch's response as to what I should do, but even with the out of spec crown the table performed well. Overall, I would recommend this table to a friend who was in the market for a sub-$200 router table. *EDIT* After a brief and friendly email exchange with Bosch tech support they shipped out a new table top which showed up just a few days later. This one was perfect and they did not ask for the old one back making it a rather easy process. I upgraded my review to 5 stars due to the excellent support I received.

I'm writing this from the perspective of a beginning-moderate woodworker in a 2-car garage who bought this table when I was still quite green. I wouldn't say I regret the purchase as I got a screaming goldbox deal on it, but I wouldn't say it's a good value either. I'm now mounting this table on the extension wing of a new table saw and this is DEFINITELY the way to go, especially if you'd like to dual-use a good table saw fence. Pros: - Aluminum top is excellent, mine is perfectly flat in every measurable way - Included plate fits many routers (including Craftsman Professional 27680 (FANTASTIC router) WITH ABOVE TABLE HEIGHT ADJUSTMENT, no accessories required!) - Included accessories are numerous, but don't see much use. Nice to have - 2 x 1/16" shims and a separable fence to use as a make-shift jointer with a gigantic straight bit (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00004T7CW/ref=cm_cr_ryp_prd_ttl_sol_1). It's no 8" jointer, but nice to have in a pinch. - Power switch is well-built and handy, and removable - Standard 27" width accommodates mounting between the rails on a standard-sized table saw top (had to shim mine 1/2" on each side). This was perfect for me as a growing woodworker, as I acquired a full sized tablesaw later Cons: - Super chintzy plastic legs hold table steady but don't inspire confidence. Could be improved with rubber feet. Just pitched them after Table saw attachment. - Featherboards have very limited range of movement - this is better left to jigs anyway - Fence is limited to ~3" of inward cut. Also corrected by mounting to TS - Mounting plate is very hard to get leveled perfect with 8 contact points Other Thoughts: As a standalone, stowable router table, you'd be hard pressed to find a more versatile machine. The Bench Dog is nicer but at 250 it's pretty far into DIY territory. However, if you have or ever want to buy a full sized table saw, this is a pretty bad buy. When I bought, I was too green and didn't have the confidence that I could build a good router table, but looking back it's a no brainer. Another $20 buys everything you need (kit or self-designed), there are hundreds of tutorials, and you can customize it to your application. Now that I'm mounting mine in an extension wing, I see the amount I paid as a kind of sunk cost, even though it's nice to have a good-looking aluminum top. Special note with Craftsman router: I didn't know this in advance, but if you use non-Craftsman holes for the 27680 (don't remember which), you can actually line up a hole for above-table adjustment. Bosch charges for an attachment to do this on their OWN routers that looks inferior, and I got a 2.5+ HP (14 amp), soft start, variable speed, LED-lit plunge-and-fixed base combo kit with tons of accessories for less than half what Bosch markets their big router for. The combo of table+router gets five stars, and I couldn't beat it unless I employed a router lift.

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.

I grew tired of trying to use my router successfully by laying the wood on the workbench so I decided to get a router table. I wanted one that is durable with a metal table instead of the ones that use MDF and melamine as a table. This one was little more expensive but is a great table and worth the price. My older Ryobi router fits this table. The only thing that I found was that during assembly, all of the various size screws and nuts come in one bag. Assembly would have been easier if the screws were in separate bags according to size and where they were used. Follow the assembly instructions to the letter!

I purchased this router table recently for my Bosch MR23 router. I have a small shop so a huge router table is out of the question. I have always liked Bosch products so I gave this a try. After reading a bunch of material on the different Bosch router tables I was directed to go for the aluminum top model instead of the other models for durability and accuracy. TAKE HOUR TIME putting this together and make sure you use the exact recommended screws in the exact positions they go in. The direction photos can be hard to make out at times but the directions are thorough enough to allow you to get the job done. It took a few hours to put together properly and square/level everything up. You will have to use a zip tie around the trigger button of the router because you will now turn it on from the included switch which is a nice included avcessory. My first job was rooting a bevel edge on a door threshold piece of corian I was needing and it handled it flawlessly! The table exceeded my expectations. It comes with 3 different inserts to fit different size it’s, a corner guide pin starter, feather boards, etc. For this price I simply can’t imagine anything being better than this. I checked the squareness with my gauges and the table/fence is dead square out of the box. If you are looking for a small benchtop router,I think this is the best in its class by far!

So far, so good. This was one of the most highly reputed and best price deals out there. I bought it so I could do a limited number of rail/stile cabinet doors. I went into a wood working retail shop and a Kreg guy implied it wouldn't work well for with the big routers needed to turn the 1/2" shank bits for rail/style work. But I got tip from someone giving a class there, how to build my own simple cheaper table, until I was able to step up to the larger table. He thought the emphasis should be to invest in a good Triton router because of it's extraordinary features. (For example a generic router lift costs hundreds of $, but the Triton has one built in that works *great*). So, on his advice, I bought the 3 1/4 HP Triton, which is beautiful because it has its own lift. I decided to keep the Bosch table and try it because it had already shipped, rather than build my own cheap DIY table. Unfortunately, the Bosch RA1181 router plate is not drilled for the Triton, which was disappointing. I'd read in other reviews people worked around it. So I did too (see pics I posted). It was a minor challenge trouble getting the holes dead on with a drill. I had to file one to elongate and ream a couple, but succeeded in making a very tight solid fit, and It works *perfectly* with the Triton 3 1/4 HP router! I am cutting rails and styles without any problem whatsoever, and I don't even bother with having to insert the over the table crank to raise or lower the router, since this is a table top router the router is closer to eye level, I just reach under the table and very quickly adjust and micro adjust the height. It is perfect for the scale of work I'm currently doing. One of these days I may upgrade to a bigger table for bigger projects and enjoy more advanced, specialized and costly convenience features. But this should suit me well (and much less expensively) for most of the projects I foresee myself doing for awhile. I find this a powerful combination and square, solid, convenient and easy enough to use to produce some superb cabinet doors and myriad other things that go beyond the capabilities of the trim router I have. Very pleased. And the Triton router I have mounted in it is pretty quiet.

Okay, I know my needs are quite specific, but I've not seen my solution anywhere and it's working great, so I wanted to share it: I bought this Bosch router table because of the size of its top and the fact that the top is METAL (I'm distrusting of the durability of those MDF tops). The table is terrific and an incredible bang for your buck! My specific needs, though, were for a capable and PORTABLE router table. I use it at home but also will need it for building film sets at my company's first video studio (we're currently building the studio itself). "Benchtop" implies that you could set this on a bench and use it... bad idea. You'd be routing at face level. The stand makes the tabletop too tall for a bench or a miter saw stand and too low for the ground. "Tabletop" would be more accurate, but even a kitchen table height makes it uncomfortably tall. Regardless, I had portability to consider and a budget I wanted to stay within. My entire routing solution was as follows: I purchased the Dewalt 618 router package with the fixed and plunge bases. I mounted the fixed base to this Bosch table, leaving the plunge base available for buying a second DW618 motor only for handheld routing. Then, after a lot of research, I bought the DW7440RS Rolling Table Saw Stand. It's very low and puts the Bosch router table at the PERFECT operating height for me (I'm 5'9"), with the added bonus that it folds up and rolls away. I may have the world's most portable routing setup. Haha! Anyway, it took me a lot of research to figure all of that out, but I feel those three items were a great compromise for my budget requirements. On the DW7440RS stand the Bosch RA1181 is sturdy but portable, and I've really been enjoying it!

Alles gut - schneller Versand für aus USA!

Todo ok

Excellent quality and value. Good strength and easy to assemble. Only be very sure you buy a router that fits the mounting plate holes. They list the brands and models.

Great router table and easy to assemble. My only disappointment is I wish there were 60mm mount holes for mini portable routers. I know many use corded routers for this table as it was designed for that but considering I have the Dewalt DCW600 compact router already I wasn't ready to buy another router, but needed a table option. Either way, I was able to create a solution where I can still use my Dewalt DCW600 compact router. I already had the Oneida Universal router hood that I use for dust collection. When installed on the router there are hole mounts that actually fit under the Bosch RA1181. Bought some M4 bolts and nuts in 25mm length and 4 of these snug up the Oneida very securely under the Bosch table. Bonus is I can easily reach under the table to adjust the variable speed and the fine height adjustment of the Dewalt router UPDATE: Been wanting to update my review for quite some time, got lazy, but here it is. After my extensive use with this Bosch Router Table RA1181 I'm confident in stating this table is fantastic and well worth the investment. As I stated earlier, it's unfortunate that the aluminum router table plate does not have pre-drilled holes for 60mm compact routers such as my Dewalt but I had found a solution for that issue and here it is with photos. I currently use the Oneida router hood due to its very wide foot print and ability to funnel dust to my vac. The good thing is this acrylic plate has multiple holes for fitting any kind of router you may have. So obviously it has pre-drilled holes for 60mm compact routers. It also has pre-drilled holes for every full sized router on the market right now. The best part about this is these pre-drilled holes all fit and line up within the pre-drilled holes of the Bosch router table plate. There are a number of mounting solutions that can be used to mount the Oneida plate under the Bosch router plate. You can use 3 bolts, or 4 or even 5 bolts. In my above picture I am showing a 3 bolt solution. Using metric #4 bolts in 70mm length with thumb knobs for easy and quick removal. What I am doing now is in the process of trying to buy another Dewalt compact router sleeve then have it permanently mounted under the router table, that way, I can then just release the core router. Hope all this helps some buyers out.

I have not used it yet, but I’m sure it’ll work great as intended Bosch stuff. It’s really good. I’ve had tools before.