POWERTEC 71833

I thought I'd try the centering cone here from Powertec instead of buying another Bosch after mine went missing. This one is a little different in that the cone is solid ABS plastic rather than a hollow/ribbed injection molded softer plastic. It's a good 1-3/4" diameter as well. I liked the idea of the solid cone but realized that it would depend on accuracy in manufacturing a little more than the other old standard design. Pleased to say that the pin and the cone are well made and accurate. The 1/4" end of the pin is just a smidge undersized but all of my 1/4" collets grab it just fine. The 1/2" end is a surprising (intentional) taper...undersized at the transition and oversized at the end. This means the cone slides onto the 1/2" transition area, snugs up nicely, and won't ever slide off unless you mean to move it. The pin only engages a little over half of the cone depth and the hole in the cone is straight, not tapered...might suspect that it would wiggle and be inaccurate because of that, but it isn't the case, works well. The down side of this is that it's a little fiddly to snug the collet with the cone under/outside the sub base - prefer to do it in that orientation but of course it's possible to have the cone engage from the inside of the base and just lower it carefully against the sub base. Anymore I am mostly using the little pony trim routers so it's all 1/4" and I'll live with the fiddle factor. I do like this more than the Bosch, etc. I've always thought that a bearing detent or spring clip would be a good way to make one of these but maybe that's too much trouble to manufacture for such a (currently) inexpensive utility jig. These are vital if you make your own bases or use guide bushings (and very helpful if you switch bases and happen to own one with a flat edge that has an easy accurate distance from center).

This was great stuff. Works super. This is my brand for the job.

Easy to use on both 1/4" and 1/2" collets. Solid cone us strong and won't deform.

Well built and works as expected

Seems like a solid centering cone, but it does not work with the standard base plates that come with Bosch 1617 routers. They have a 2.125in opening and this cone is only 1.75in in diameter.

If you’re constantly changing your router base like me this is a must have. Works great every time

What I like about this gauge is the cone section was machined from a solid piece, the face surface finish is nice and flat, others are hollow.

Arrived fast, works as it should.

Used it right away. Dose exactly what its supposed to do.

Delivery was quick enough. Two basic parts fit together snugly with no play and should stay that way for a long time.

Should come with every router sold.