Hello. I have a Makita 3612C (3 1/4 horsepower, variable speed) that I need some guidance with. Earlier today I was doing some easy routing when all of a sudden the router speed changed, I saw some orange sparks inside the router, and the circuit breaker for the outlet I was using popped. The tool was smoking and emitting the typical burnt electrical smell. After I reset the circuit breaker, I did not run the tool again, fearing I might damage it more. My question is: is the router salvageable? I took it all apart and everything looks ok; the brushes are hardly used and nothing looks burnt or melted. I've read a few posts that say the speed controls on these routers are sometimes the cause of this type of problem. I can replace the speed control for $85. Is there any way to check that the field assembly or the armature assembly is good before I buy a new speed control? In case it isn't obvious, electrical troubleshooting is not my strong suit. I don't want to sink money into this thing if there are multiple parts that are going to need replacing. Thanks in advance for your help.
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James- The router is probably 6 years old or so. I bought it new and it doesn't have a whole lot of use on it. No time whatsoever in a table.
I was messing around with the router today. Bad news, I think. Before I removed the speed control, I turned the router on briefly and ran it at low speed. The router turned on and ran, but definitely not the way it's supposed to - too much sparking, and it felt like it was under load even though it wasn't. I only ran it for a few seconds, as I didn't want to heat it up. I then removed the speed control and wired it to run as a single speed router. It went up to full speed for a few seconds and then the circuit breaker for the outlet I was plugged into popped. There was a good deal of sparking in the motor (more than there should be) while it was running. The circuit breaker popped after only a few seconds, so the router didn't get hot and there was no smoking. I'm guessing this means that the problems go beyond a possible faulty speed control. Anybody care to weigh in?
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