Milwaukee 18V Cordless Router

This review was created as part of a paid affiliate program with the Home Depot.

My first order of business with this and every product review is a disclaimer: I am not a professional contractor. I am a farmer and a fine furniture maker. When it comes to construction and renovation projects, I’m a DIYer and weekend warrior. That said, I doubt many professional contractors will be reading my tool reviews. My goal in reviewing tools and products is to provide honest feedback based on my own use and experience with these tools to other regular folks like me- wanting to get their hands dirty, try new things, and get the best value for their hard earned dollars.

So let’s talk about the M18FUEL LI Cordless Compact Router

I’ve been waiting for Milwaukee’s cordless router for quite some time. Even though I don’t do much routing out and about on a jobsite, having a little portable, powerful router that doesn’t have a cord to trip over or to get caught and interfere with the cut is a beautiful thing. With a 5.0 AH battery, it delivers the power of a corded 1.25 HP router and can cut up to 250 linear feet of 3/8” roundovers in red-oak in a single charge. This is the best balanced battery powered router I’ve yet to try. The variable speed dial ranges between 10,000 and 31,000 rpm providing precise control for clean edges and details. It accepts 1/4” shank router bits and the fine adjustment screw allows for precise adjustments beyond 1/64” increments.

This trim router features a 4” sub-base plate for stability, LED light for visibility, and a well engineered dust shroud that fits my festool vacuum hose and the two paired mitigate a significant portion of the wood chips and dust the tool generates.

From a safety standpoint, my absolute favorite thing about this router is it’s quick start and stop with the brushless motor. Once you turn off the tool, the bit stops very quickly and you don’t have a tool with a blade spinning freely in open air as the tool slowly winds down. That, paired with the micro-adjust and dust shroud make this tool a massive winner in my book, and well worth it’s $179 price tag.