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I would say stay with your router and give it a fair go.
Make one pattern side then use the template bit to make the the second matching piece. I found that it was better to do one aluminum rib at a time or 2 max. The thicker the aluminum layers the rougher the edges seemed to be. I compromised and usually did one rib at a time. The edges had less chatter marks and cleaned up faster. The time saved doing 2 or3 ribs together is lost sanding out the rougher aluminum edges. Aluminum is a very sticky metal to cut. I think that your 1.5 will cut the aluminum okay. I used wing nuts on the screws holding the templates together so it is quick changing blanks.
I cut the aluminum at full rpm and never played a lot with slowing it down. I could feed the work into the router at a good feed rate and the big router never complained.
I would suggest give your router a go & if you do not like it a bigger one is never far away. If you manage to do all your work with the Porter Cable then you avoid more spending. There is always another place to eat your money. The Lee Valley router circle base will fit a lot of routers so it does not tie you to one make.
Porter Cable makes quality tools. I have one of their reciprocating saws and it is an animal. I have taken demolition blades & stabbed them in the ground to cut ground and tree roots to get stumps out. It has worked hard for years & it just keeps going.
If you do decide to look at larger router the Hitachi comes as a plunge router, you can set different plunge depths on a rotary piece with different stops, comes with the edge guide, adjusts nice and it will lock in any position. I like the variability when cutting into wood as it cuts clean. The variability was not a feature I was looking for but the Hitachi was a better price amongst its peers and came variable. I was looking for more power and the plunge router feature.
My Craftsman router should have its gold watch as I have had it about 35 years. It still runs strong but it is not a plunge router. The new router is quicker & easier to adjust, the adjustment features are a easier to work with, accurate, it plunges & locks firmly with thumb lever. The plunge feature is necessary to be able to make the circle cuts with the base. I was able to make the press dies with bits I had and a $25 router base as accurately & better than any equipment short of a CNC router. The press dies OD was a tight slide fit with the female parts where I had to sand them slightly to make them slide easier. The router base cuts with precision. If it is used to cut a hole then a plug can be cut that is a snug slide fit in the hole. You can plunge in stages with a smaller router to go through the 1-1/2 MDF. The key is to use you wing template with its jig pin holes and pilot holes in the center of the lightening holes. Using the master template will make every thing spun off it extremely accurate. Transfer hole to new pc.s using a drill press through the master template holes.
All the best
GP
Make one pattern side then use the template bit to make the the second matching piece. I found that it was better to do one aluminum rib at a time or 2 max. The thicker the aluminum layers the rougher the edges seemed to be. I compromised and usually did one rib at a time. The edges had less chatter marks and cleaned up faster. The time saved doing 2 or3 ribs together is lost sanding out the rougher aluminum edges. Aluminum is a very sticky metal to cut. I think that your 1.5 will cut the aluminum okay. I used wing nuts on the screws holding the templates together so it is quick changing blanks.
I cut the aluminum at full rpm and never played a lot with slowing it down. I could feed the work into the router at a good feed rate and the big router never complained.
I would suggest give your router a go & if you do not like it a bigger one is never far away. If you manage to do all your work with the Porter Cable then you avoid more spending. There is always another place to eat your money. The Lee Valley router circle base will fit a lot of routers so it does not tie you to one make.
Porter Cable makes quality tools. I have one of their reciprocating saws and it is an animal. I have taken demolition blades & stabbed them in the ground to cut ground and tree roots to get stumps out. It has worked hard for years & it just keeps going.
If you do decide to look at larger router the Hitachi comes as a plunge router, you can set different plunge depths on a rotary piece with different stops, comes with the edge guide, adjusts nice and it will lock in any position. I like the variability when cutting into wood as it cuts clean. The variability was not a feature I was looking for but the Hitachi was a better price amongst its peers and came variable. I was looking for more power and the plunge router feature.
My Craftsman router should have its gold watch as I have had it about 35 years. It still runs strong but it is not a plunge router. The new router is quicker & easier to adjust, the adjustment features are a easier to work with, accurate, it plunges & locks firmly with thumb lever. The plunge feature is necessary to be able to make the circle cuts with the base. I was able to make the press dies with bits I had and a $25 router base as accurately & better than any equipment short of a CNC router. The press dies OD was a tight slide fit with the female parts where I had to sand them slightly to make them slide easier. The router base cuts with precision. If it is used to cut a hole then a plug can be cut that is a snug slide fit in the hole. You can plunge in stages with a smaller router to go through the 1-1/2 MDF. The key is to use you wing template with its jig pin holes and pilot holes in the center of the lightening holes. Using the master template will make every thing spun off it extremely accurate. Transfer hole to new pc.s using a drill press through the master template holes.
All the best
GP
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