Craftsman Pro Router 3 Base Kit

[Adam Leone]

Does anyone have any opinions on the Craftsman Pro routers? Sears has a kit in the store with a 2 1/4 HP router, fixed base, plunge base, and D handle, all on sale for $199. The kit isn't on their website so I can't link to it. I am considering either this kit or the Bosch or Milwaukee 2 base kits. For comparable price, I am leery of getting "more than I pay for".

Are their any opinions on quality, accessories, or any other aspects that would influence your decision?

Thanks in advance from a first time poster.

[Joe Vincent]

Craftsman power tools vary greatly in their quality. I believe you can tell by the model # which manufacturer made the tool for Sears. If you can reply with the model # perhaps someone who knows the code can tell you. That info would probably tell you a lot. The D handle base is a good thing to have in my opinion, but unless you know that router is a good one, I don't think that price is such a good deal in comparison with routers that have great reputations like the Bosch and Milwaukee ones you cited. And if price is a factor, consider getting a "rebate" via Microsoft Cashback program described in the Deals forum above.

[Tom Esh]

I looked at that model. Show stopper for me was the depth adjuster on the fixed base. It has a limited range, which means only so many turns before you have to push the quick release and rewind / reset it. PITA! ...and no doubt it would happen exactly when I needed to shave off that last 1/128".:eek:

[Michael Donahue]

You can get a GREAT Milwaukee kit for $188. 'Nuff said :D

http://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-5616-24-Multi-Base-Router-BodyGrip/dp/B000QV1CXW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1226889622&sr=1-1

[glenn bradley]

Of all my routers, the Milwaukees are the best built. Everybody does something really well (or they just accidentally get it all right at once); Toyota's 1980 Carolla, Grizzly's G0490, Porter Cable's biscuit joiner, Chevy's 1971 Malibu, DeWalt lunchbox planers, Hammond B-3 organ, i-pods, etc., etc.

Oh yeah, and 1970's Ford F-150's and Ciscos IOS and Blum hinges and Accuride glides and Sony Trinitrons and Lucchese Boots and Ray Ban's and Lee Valley brad point bits and Hot Springs spas and Norton 3X sandpaper and . . . . .

[chris dub]

I got one of those when they were $99 a few months back. I didn't need another router, but it was $99 bucks and I wanted to try the D handle feature. It is a pretty solid router. I do like it. If I did a lot of free hand routing that wasn't plunge routing I would consider it a value in having the D- Handle base. If I were only doing occasional fixed based hand routing or mostly plunge routing I would get one of the more reputable 2 bases for the same price or I would use the live.com rebate on ebay and get the Dewalt 3 base set for $200-$225 and get the best of both worlds.

[Herbert Wallace]

My craftsman router is JUNK. The depth adjustment ring has to be turned with a pair of 16" channel lock pliers. I am very wary of Craftsman power tools, Thats a shame too . They used to be top of the line tools. What happened to this Quality tool?
I have a Hitachi plunge router that is great. I like the porter cable combo.

[Maik Tobin]

My craftsman router is JUNK. The depth adjustment ring has to be turned with a pair of 16" channel lock pliers. I am very wary of Craftsman power tools, Thats a shame too . They used to be top of the line tools. What happened to this Quality tool?
I have a Hitachi plunge router that is great. I like the porter cable combo.

So thats the secret...I need to get a couple of 16" pliers. I was ready to toss out my Crapsman Pro router.

[Pat Germain]

Did Craftsman finally give up on the collet being machined into the motor shaft on their routers? That was the big, "No!" for me.

I've been burned enough by Craftsman power tools to be extremely leery of any future purchases. No doubt there are a few gems, but I'm still very leery. I have a higher-end Craftsman cordless drill which was a gift from my mom. Getting the drill free was nice. That's about what the tool is worth. But I'm sorry for my mother that she wasted her money.

[scott spencer]

Since there's no real advantage in price, the quality is uncertain, and there are several excellent alternatives, I'd definitely go with something else. The MW set would be on my short list, but the DW, Bosch, Hitachi, Freud, and Makita all get high marks in that price range.

[Doug Arndt]

Go to the store and take a close look at it.
Last year I too was looking for a similar package and the Craftsman sounded good, had some nice features. but I wasn't comfortable with the "look and feel" of it, seemed like the quality wasn't really there. I ended up going with the Bosch 1617EVS. Only two bases, but I'm happy with the quality.

[Pat Germain]

No doubt about it. The folks at Sears are marketing masters. They are very good at putting together products and packages that look great and seem like such a good deal. Some times they are. Often, they are not.

For example, when I bought my Craftsman contractor saw, Sears was marketing accessories which would allow their saw to be a disc sander and a moulder. That seemed pretty cool to a no-nothing woodworker like me. After talking with experienced woodworkers, I found those accessories were mediocre at best.

One of my coworkers was very excited to buy a Craftsman CNC machine which Sears was heavily promoting last year. I strongly encouraged him to do some online research before buying. He did and found many buyers reported it worked three times, then broke.

You have to do research when purchasing power tools, but even more when purchasing Craftsman power tools.

[Bill White]

We all can remember when the CM logo really meant some good stuff.
My first circ. saw. $39.00. Worked like a champ 'till I dropped it and bent the shoe.
My air compressor. Still runnin' since 1978.
You would think that Sears would be more able to respond to negative publicity and present a very competitive image. BUT NOOOOOOOO!
Bill

[glenn bradley]

Scott and Doug touched on this and I should have stressed it as well. The router you prefer (if all other things are pretty equal) will be based on how it feels in your hands. If at all possible, get a grip on the ones that make your short list before you pay up.

[Chuck Tringo]

I have played with these in the store and they do appear to be of far higher quality that the last generation (or 10) or craftsman pro routers, but I am still a bit leary as well. I went with the Hitachi myself as Amazon often has the 2 base kit on sale for around $130, and I have no complaints whatsoever, it even comes with a free PC style template set.

[chris dub]

Is this the one you are refereeing to?

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00928084000P?vName=Tools&cName=Portable+Power+Tools (http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00928084000P?vName=Tools&cName=Portable+Power+Tools)

It has gotten good reviews on their Sears’ site for the combo and the fixed base version. Again at $199 I’d get the DeWalt combo with the MS subsidy but at least there are some other first hand opinions of this particular router.

[Thomas Williams]

I think this is a Bosch design with some subtle differences beside the name and color. I agree with the others who suggest seeing how it feels in the hands before you buy. For my money the Milwaukee kits are the way to go.
If you search some of the ww magazine web sites you might find a test or two to give you some more information.

[Neal Clayton]

Of all my routers, the Milwaukees are the best built. Everybody does something really well (or they just accidentally get it all right at once); Toyota's 1980 Carolla, Grizzly's G0490, Porter Cable's biscuit joiner, Chevy's 1971 Malibu, DeWalt lunchbox planers, Hammond B-3 organ, i-pods, etc., etc.

Oh yeah, and 1970's Ford F-150's and Ciscos IOS and Blum hinges and Accuride glides and Sony Trinitrons and Lucchese Boots and Ray Ban's and Lee Valley brad point bits and Hot Springs spas and Norton 3X sandpaper and . . . . .

and pioneer plasma TVs, and seagate hard drives, and mercedes diesels off the top of my head.

i was about to ask about the collet thing that pat mentioned too, i don't know if those routers are still like that or not. if so, stay away.

[travis howe]

Just make sure it has the base that you need. I fairly new but I gather that the industry standard is to fit the porter cable screw in router guides.

So after getting my hands on a cheaply priced pc dovetail jig, I thought it would be cool to get the new digital craftsman router w/ the speed control. It seems to run nice and work well, would you believe the base is not like ANY of their other routers and I'm still trying to find something that will fit (universal base, etc) I was actually wondering if the other craftsman router bases would fit on this one but I've not seen them for sale individually.

I broke down and bought the dewalt set w/ the d handle, pluge and standard base... it's a beast for sure! The range of speeds is a bit more than the craftsman and it seems to handle harder wood better and the slower speeds that are available. I can really stirr up some dust with this thing doing dovetails on the jig and using the d handle to do dovetails is awesome...guess what, the plunge base is the only one that has the dust collector setup....

So...lessons learned for me, I still like them both and will like the craftsman better once I can do dovetails with it. Yeah so... it all depends on what you're going to be using it for.

Good luck!

[Norman Pyles]

I would not by a Craftsman router for $199, when there are so many really good routers in that price range.