Porter-Cable Plunge Router 7529 Product Review

Porter-Cable 7529 2 HP Heavy-Duty, Electronic Variable Speed Plunge Router Pros Relatively quiet, powerful, slow start, stops quickly and smoothly Cons Fidgety trigger, micro adjustment takes a lot of getting used-to The Bottom Line If I had it to do over, I would look at the more powerful 3 HP plunge routers and more closely examine their plunge mechanisms before buying one.

Full Review

This is the third of three Porter Cable routers in my shop. I bought it for the micro adjustment feature, the extra power that it offers over my 690 and the smooth start and stop. Over-all, it's a decent machine. It runs smoothly and is more powerful than the other routers in my shop. The base has an attachment that allows me to use the template guides from my 690 and the locking collet makes bit-changes fast and easy. On the downside, though, I find it clumsy to maneuver on my dovetail jig. I know it's bigger than the 690, but to me, it isn't as well balanced. Also, the trigger lock is a little tricky to engage. You hold down the switch with your thumb and engage the lock with the finger of that same hand. I find that sometimes the lock just doesn't want to hold. It disengages with just the slightest pressure, which may be a safety feature, but it is annoying. And because the plunger is released with one thumb and the trigger with the other thumb, I sometimes inadvertently release the plunger when I mean to turn off the router. This is only a problem if I haven't set the depth stop. Granted, it's my own fault, but I wish it weren't so easy to make this mistake Also, the micro adjustment mechanism is, to me, really a pain, to the point where I avoid using it. You have to turn the knob over forty rotations in order to move the base. The manual warns you about that, but it is still a big deterrent for me. Unfortunately, one of the reasons I bought this router was for the alleged fine adjustment control. I also find that the main plunge control is hard to use. The springs tend to stick and then push up quickly and jerkily when they finally release. It's difficult to get the right depth for this reason. Finally, the machine is just not big enough to use large router bits. If you need a router to make raised panels, a 3HP machine will do the job where this router isn't designed to. This isn't a criticism, just a point-of-fact.

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