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I was wondering if anyone could recommend a router which is quiet. I now own four of them, each under a hundred dollars and they all scream like crazy when I am roughing my strips, and I have to use hearing protection so I can tolerate them. Do the higher end routers make less noise?

The bigger motors like those found in washers, belt driven saws seem to be nice and quiet. Do I have to move to one of those in order to get what I want?  (Dick Steinbach)

I have two Porter Cable routers, one large, one smaller.  They are both very noisy in use.  I always suspected much of the noise is from the bit doing the cutting.  (Ed Berg)

A lot of router noise is the type of fan. the other part is the Bit being used.

Take the bit out of your Porter and see how much noise it makes, just as a comparison.

2 1/4 Freud's are the quietest next is Bosch.  Also if you back off the speed a little on these they can be very quite.  (Jerry Foster)

Years ago, in a former life, I worked in a factory that built routers for Sears.  A fascinating tool.  Noise levels were always a concern, and there were several sources of noise.  The fan has already been mentioned.  The biggest problem, though, was the rpm's (speed) at which it turned.  At 25000+ rpm's they are going to sing to you, and all this speed accentuates the other noise points.  Other noise sources were the bearings (sleeve bearings were cheap but noisy, and even ball bearings tend to roar) and the brushes (big motors run by induction). 

An expensive router, that has better bearings will be quieter, but it's still going to be a noisy tool.  Just get yourself a good set of ear muffs.  You should have a set anyway for the leaf blower, chainsaw, etc., even the table saw.    (Paul Gruver)

Get some of these;

AO Safety WorkTunes i.3 AM/FM Hearing Protector

I use my Ipod with these in the shop all the time. I have to be sure to lock the door to the shop though. If my wife comes out to the shop and I don't see her come in the door, it scares the bejeezus out of me when she taps my arm! I need to install a doorbell button outside my shop door and a light that flashes in the shop.   (Ray Wallace)

UPDATE:  Since this was posted I added a wireless doorbell setup to my shop. My shop is detached from the house and sits out in the trees about 40 feet away from the house. I put a wireless doorbell extender in the house so we can hear the doorbell in the back yard and added the doorbell in my shop. Each button has different tones. So now when I am in my shop I can tell if someone is at the front door, my shop door, or if my wife is calling me in for dinner from another button in the laundry room. Next I need to add a strobe light with a capacitor so that it will flash in my shop for a minute or two for when I am making noise.

I have a Bosch and a DeWalt 621. Both are very quiet, especially at about 1/2 maximum speed.  (Carey Mitchell)

Being utterly stupid I bought a big router with a 12 mm chuck to mount on a router table in order to bevel up the nodeless sections.

I bought it in France for so little money its irrelevant, but I cannot source the right bits for it, which need to be parallel with an end bearing.

Any ideas?  (Robin Haywood)

Why don't you try to buy in France? Have a look at HM Diffusion.  I don't see why they would not ship to the States. Unless you speak French, let me know if I can help.  (Jean Claude Lebraud)

Possibly the chuck is 12.7 mm which would make it 1/2".  These bits are readily available.  Here's a link to a UK source.

The other thing you could do is use a 1/4" shank router bit with a split bushing: 12 mm OD & 1/4" ID.  (Ron Larsen)

The bushings it came with are all metric, and nobody in the UK admits to metric router anythings!  (Robin Haywood)

Dumb question, I'm sure,  but have you tried a 1/2" router bit to see if, just maybe, the collet has that much give?  A 1/2" is 12.7 mm, but the shank of a bit might measure a hair less.  Other than that, there has to be some Continental sources for them.  Sounds like a good excuse to visit France again.  (Paul Gruver)

I'll probably go for broke with a rattail file in the end!  (Robin Haywood)

Ah, planning to give Nunley a run for his money... somehow, the thought of a file and a 30,000 rpm tool isn't a comforting thought...

Do you have access to a lathe? Go buy a 1/2" adapter and machine it to fit your router.  (Larry Blan)

I just thought I might sort of ease the hole out with the file.  (Robin Haywood)

My family was kind enough to get me a combo router table and router for Christmas, but unfortunately, the manufacturing on the set up leaves a lot to be desired.  Suffice to say, it's going back.  I am now looking at one of the smaller hand held routers that have a variable speed.  They have a small square base instead of the regular router base.  Does anyone know if these types of routers can be affixed to a regular router table?  (Louis DeVos)

All you have to do is find the bolt locations so the the router bit is centered in the mounting plate. Drill and tap the locations and secure the router to the plate.  (Don Schneider)

My router that I have been using in my beveler has just gone South and I was wondering what type of router that list members are using in their beveler.  (Tom Key)

I don't use a router on bamboo, but 24 years as a carpenter has me convinced that Porter Cable and Milwaukee make the best routers out there.  (John Channer)

I use a DeWalt with a dust collection port, #621.  (Neil Savage)

I use a Craftsman I've had for about 25 years.  (Don Schneider)

I have a Porter Cable router and was wondering how much trouble is it to set up a basic beveler to get the 60 degree angles? Also if I decide not to go that route where can I buy a beveler that doesn't cost an arm and a leg? I saw the one at Bellinger's web site but too expensive!!!  (Mike Shelton)

Try Jerry Wall.  (Frank Drummond)

I have one of JW's bevelers. It's real nice, but not cheap.  (Kurt Wolko)

Take a look at the beveler information on Todd's tips site if you haven't already.  Here's a link to Adam Vigil's plans on Todd's site.  (David Bolin)