Routers

[Michael Cole]

I have gotten a lot of good replies from my router table topic (keep those coming!) so I thought I would ask a question about routers themselves. For use in a router table, what is the most useful power size for the router to be used only in the table? I hear some people saying they never use a router and others saying they use it all the time. I seem to use it quite often, not nearly as often as my Domino, but quite often. I use it for edge treatments, rabbets, dadoes, etc. I like to make cabinets, drawers etc.

[Ben Rivel]

IMO, best bang for the buck for both power and quality is the Porter Cable 7518 in a router table.

[Denis Kenzior]

I have three router tables. Two with 7518 router motors and a convertible table in which I use either a PC 890 motor or the PC 121 oscillating spindle sander. I've been happy with the 7518s, but really the decision is mostly driven by the type of router lift you will use and how much power you need (3 HP vs 2 HP).

[Ole Anderson]

I have a 15 amp older Hitachi in my table, wouldn't want anything less as I do a fair amount of panel raising spinning a big bit. The bigger the bit, the more hp you need.

[Chris Hachet]

IMO, best bang for the buck for both power and quality is the Porter Cable 7518 in a router table.

I would second this absolutely.

[Dave Zellers]

IMO, best bang for the buck for both power and quality is the Porter Cable 7518 in a router table.

Amazon has it right now for $259.

Lowest price I've seen.

[George Bokros]

Either the PC 7518 or the Milwaukee 5625. I have the 7518 in mine. The 5625 had just come out when I was buying a router for the table and it did not have a track record so I went with the 7518. If the 5625 will work in my lift if the 7518 dies I will switch to the 5625.

[Ben Rivel]

Amazon has it right now for $259.

Lowest price I've seen.
Oh yea, thats a good deal. That is almost the lowest price it has ever been on Amazon (LINK (http://camelcamelcamel.com/PORTER-CABLE-75182-Variable-Speed-Router/product/B0007SXHXM))

[Jim Dwight]

For a router table, I agree that bigger is better. For hand held use, the added weight and power can both make a router more challenging to control. But in a table, neither is an issue. The Hitachi 12V is usually cheaper than the big PC but maybe not now.

[Peter Aeschliman]

Thanks for the tip guys! That router has been on my amazon wish list for some time. That was enough to get me to pull the trigger!

[Dave Zellers]

Oh yea, thats a good deal. That is almost the lowest price it has ever been on Amazon (LINK (http://camelcamelcamel.com/PORTER-CABLE-75182-Variable-Speed-Router/product/B0007SXHXM))
Wow- cool link! I've heard of camelcamelcamel but never knew what it was.

That's a keeper.

[glenn bradley]

Both the PC 7518 and the Milwaukee 5625 have loyal followings. Most of my routers are Milwaukee and my tables run 5625's. The 5615's and 5616's can be swapped amongst bases which means I can have a number of special setup bases and swap the motor based on requirements of power, variable speed, weight, etc. Another benefit for me is that most of my collets fit most of my routers (including the tables), I only need one set of wrenches (including the tables) and so forth.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Milwaukee 5625 here...
Love that big locomotive!

The 5625 is the 426 Hemi of the router world :D - nothing but raw obnoxious power!

[Curt Harms]

If I'm reading this right, the Milwaukee 5625 has built-in above the table height adjustment. The P-C requires a $200+ lift. A lift may be more precise but also more $$.

[Charles Taylor]

I can add to the chorus for the PC 7518, because that's what I have. I wouldn't hesitate to take the Milwaukee fans' word for that router's capability.

[Yonak Hawkins]

Amazon has it right now for $259.

Lowest price I've seen.

It looks like that's for the motor only. If you only need the motor it's a fine deal. I recently got a 7519, with a fixed base, for $279 from Acme Tools. That may or may not have been a Holiday Special price.

[Michael Cole]

I am also considering a cast iron extension for my Delta 36-725. I can find a couple of different ones. One is the MLCS and U turn lift which is a little cheaper. The other seems to be a Bench Dog with an Incra Master R Lift II which would be a little more expensive. The U Turn says it has 3" of lift. I can't find the amount for the Incra, but it says it can do above table bit changes. The Incra can work with the Porter Cable 7518 or the Milwaukee 5625. The U Turn specifically mentions the PC, but does not mention the Milwaukee. Any info on either of these?

[Keith Hankins]

IMO, best bang for the buck for both power and quality is the Porter Cable 7518 in a router table.

+1 what he said!

[Jim Becker]

I use the ubiquitous PC7518 under my table. It's powerful and can handle larger cutters when needed for a particular profile and simple with just a switch selection for a few speeds. What you don't want under your table is "fancy with lots of bells and whistles" because in most cases, you'll not benefit from them with this use. (I'd never put my Festool OF1400 under a table...it certainly could do a great job, but it would be a waste of a tool for that purpose, IMHO)

[Dick Mahany]

I got the Milwaukee 5625 only because I found a great deal at the time as I liked the through the base height adjustment concept. Then, I installed it in a Precision router lift, but had to make my own adapter shims as the PRLV2 was new at the time and only accommodated the PC. That was at least 6 or 7 years ago. I used it to build cathedral arched raised panel doors and made over a dozen doors with the CMT cabinet door set. It never missed a beat in hard oak and has been an absolutely excellent tool.

Its great to have choices between equally excellent manufacturers. FWIW, my other routers have been Makita and Bosch and have all served well, but for the big HP, Milwaukee has delivered wonderfully.

[Bob Carreiro]

Remember, if you go with the PC 7518, you'll have to buy a lift. I'm happy with my Triton at 3-1/4 hp with above the table height adjustment and single wrench bit changing. These go for $259 and there's no lift to buy. I own 2. One lives in a table. In my second table, I have a 2-1/2 hp Craftsman workhorse. With one table stay with the big routers.

[Rich Engelhardt]

If I'm reading this right, the Milwaukee 5625 has built-in above the table height adjustment. The P-C requires a $200+ lift. A lift may be more precise but also more $$.Yes - - more or less.
A lift is way more precise than the above table adjustments offered by the Milwaukee (or Triton for that matter), but, without the lift, the big Porter Cable ranges from "Impossible to use to - very difficult- to - no big deal" ,,,depending on who you talk to/ask and on what particular day. Go ahead and search here and you find the answers are all over the board. I asked a year ago about the PC and people pretty much told me a lift was a 100% necessity. I searched back and found others said it
s no big deal to not use one.

The good/news. bad news of the lift....
One for the big Porter Cable - the 3.25 HP - runs about $350 or so.
The ~ $200 ones are for the smaller 2.X HP routers.

The neither good nor bad news is - the 7518 motor is about $50 to $75 less than the whole router (PC7518).

I went with a Milwaukee 5625 for about $300 and a Woodpeckers 3/8" thick aluminum plate for $99 (on sale).

The Triton 3.25, mentioned right above, has the same above table adjustments & the single wrench feature (which my now dead Freud 1700 had) is a nice touch.