Product Description
Porter Cable 8529 Powerful 12 amps, AC motor. 1/4" and 1/2" collets. Variable-speed dial (10,000 - 23,000 RPM). Table top micro height adjustments with router table accessory kit #75301 (not included). Single wrench bit changes from beneath sub-base o

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51 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

Bummed out that I bought this router, December 8, 2002

Reviewer:   Bryan Fitzwater (Sunnyvale, CA) - See all my reviews

I was working on a job where I was constantly switching between two different router bits the other day and I only had one heavy duty router with me (Dewalt 625) so I decided to buy another router to speed up the job. I wanted to get the Dewalt 621 but they were not in stock so I picked up the Porter Cable 8529 instead. The micro adjuster seems to be precise, but there is no way to quick release it as in my Dewalt, so you end up turning the knob forever, the adjustment mechanism is inside one of the tubes so you never know what end of the scale of adjustment you are at. The Adjustment knob is too close to the motor cover so you can't get a good grip on it to turn it as quickly as you want. There is some side to side slop in the tubes that the router slides up and down on, I checked my Dewalt and there is no play at all. I can live with all this but there is just one feature that is inexcusable for a router in this price range. I comes with a cheap "pot metal" triangular template guide bushing adapter that fits the standard guide bushings. The problem is that when you are using a guide bushing, for say hinge mortises on a door to match an existing jamb, then the router bit has to be dead center in the bushing to get accurate results. Well, this triangular adapter has no provision for centering itself at all. It's secured with three round head screws and there is at least a 1/8" play in template holder so it almost impossible to locate the template with any accuracy. In comparison, my Dewalt 625 has a template holder that is circular made out of tool steel and it is absolutely dead center. I do like the on-of switch though and the feel of the handles but I definitely feel I made a mistake buying this unit!

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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

Everything is a trade off, this router bats a 1000, September 27, 2003

Reviewer:   R. Feeser (Springfield, PA USA) - See all my reviews

How do you make a router that is just as good under the table as above? You do what Porter Cable did in this router. The problem with under the table use is that trying to plunge a spring upside down results in lifting the table. Bosch did a good job with their 1619EVS, which has a spring defeat button, and a fine adjust knob. What Porter Cable did was create an adjust knob with the right amount of movement, that works independently of the plunge mechanism. It will only travel within the range of the adjusting knob while plunging. So when you want to do a 2 1/2" plunge, the adjuster should be all the way out. If it is adjusted down one inch, it will only plunge the last 1 1/2" of the plunge range.
Secondly, the challenge is to be able to do an under the table setting, run a sample, then be able to loosen the collet, tweak the adjust knob, and reclamp. The thing to avoid on lesser routers is that when loosening the clamp, it jumps completely away from a setting, so you are continually "gross" setting the adjustment. With the Porter Cable , the adjust knob takes it to your spot, then after the sample cut, you can release the clamp, and it holds your position, so you are able to fine adjust to the desired spot. The advantage the plunge routers have over the fixed base routers is that they have a smooth movement along rails. A fixed base router; for under the table use has a major sleeve the motor rides in, and when loosened tend to shift off axis slightly. Plunge routers ride perfectly smooth in the full plunge range, without any slight off angle at all. I have 7 routers, several Bosch's, Fein, Makita, and two Porter Cables, and this router is one industrial grade piece of equipment. Their 1 3/4HP models are not bad, but not on the level of the 2HP models. It has an industrial quality feel to it. It is super quiet, and runs smoothly. It will cut through 1-inch oak, with a 3/4" rounding over bit without slowing down. Combining the 2hp motor, and smart electronics, lays on just the right amount of power.
It's quiet, smooth, strong, and practical. Has the large base opening so it will accept the popular full size 3 1/2" raised panel bits. Don't let anybody talk you out of this one. It's an award winner. I plan on using mine under the table. No one router has everything over all the other routers out there, but this one comes close. Highly recommended.

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Average Customer Review:

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Great router, but folks should read the manual..., February 26, 2005

Reviewer:   Wesley Stewart (Clearwater, FL USA) - See all my reviews

This is a great router, with good power, excellent precision, and is relatively quiet.

That said, I feel I ought to address the issue with the guide collar mentioned in several other reviews. To quite: "it is impossible to accurately center template guides within the base plate." This and other statements to this effect can only be from users who didn't bother to read the manual. The collet is shaped like a centering cone, and when you fully plunge the router with a guide collet in it, it centers itself. Then you just tighten the screws. Actually, this is pretty much how you center every other router to it's guide collet, so I don't know if these other guys have ever used routers before...

Much improved over the 7529, by the way.

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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

A good machine, but..., January 21, 2005

Reviewer:   Luke T. Evans (Fairfax, VA United States) - See all my reviews

I have to agree with many of the other reviewers who like this router for its smoothness, power,and low noise level. The grips are great, it plunges nicely, and the quality of materials seems top rate. However, my experience with this router has revealed two flaws that greatly detract from what would otherwise be a truly fine machine. While these flaws are not necessarily deal-breakers, those of you who are considering buying this tool may want to be aware of them.

First, as another reviewer has pointed out, it is impossible to accurately center template guides within the base plate. The user must screw the template guide holder into the baseplate, and since the holder does not precisely register into the baseplate, it is thus extremely difficult to accurately center the guides. If you use template guides and require even a moderate degree of accuracy, this flaw is a deal-breaker. Do not buy this router. On the other hand, if you never use template guides or plan on parking this baby in a router table, you'll have no problems. This would be a fine router for those purposes.

The other problem is another quality/design issue that can be remedied but is a moderate annoyance. On my machine, the release/locking lever for the plunge mechanism came loose on several occassions, making it impossible to plunge and lock the router at a desired depth. There is a small set screw in the lever mechanism that works loose and has to be constantly tightened and adjusted. This problem is not an isolated incident as it also has occured with two other cabinetmakers and their identical routers in my shop. In the end, having tired of constantly fiddling with our machines, the three of us adjusted the mechanisms as best we could, applied Lock-Tite to the set screws, and hoped we did it right because there would be no way to disassemble the levers once the Lock-Tite cured. Fortunately, the fix worked fine, and all three of us are happily using our machines without any problems. Again, not a deal-breaker and the problem was fixed, but this seems unnecessary for a $200 router.

The other router to consider in this price range is the DeWalt DW625 3 HP plunge router. Though it has more power than the PC 8529, it is the same size and weight. It's also variable speed and would be great in a router table. I've never been a huge DeWalt fan (many of their products seem overrated and overpriced), this seems to be an excellent machine. Several of the guys in my shop own them and use them for the dual purposes of plunge operations as well as major hogging through lots of material (the extra hp makes a big difference). Add it to your list of possibilities.

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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

A Top Notch Router - Especially Good in a Router Table, May 8, 2004

Reviewer:   Robert Potter (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews

When I decided that my old Craftsman 1/2 horsepower router wasn't meeting my needs any longer, I started shopping for a router principally to be used in a router table. Ideally, I wanted a setup to provide the functionality of the "router lift" systems, but preferably without the high cost. Not discounting the fact that I'd sometimes be using it outside of the router table, I also wanted the ability to precisely set the depth of cut. After doing a lot of research and selecting the 8529, I'm pleased to say that this router has turned out to be that ideal solution.

The 8529 has a very precise depth control adjustment. This is nice when working with the router freehand, because you can very accurately set your depth of cut, but where it really shines is when you have the router suspended under a router table. Using Porter-Cable's special long-shafted wrench, you can reach through the top of the router table and adjust the bit depth from above. This is accomplished by drilling a hole in the router mounting plate that aligns with one of the support columns. The support column is open on the bottom (the top with the router suspended upside down under the table) and has an internal adjustment screw that the special wrench mates with. A template is supplied in the owner's manual to help you position this hole in the mounting plate.

While the wrench itself has a friction-fit, sliding scale that you can use to accurately make precise adjustments to the bit height, I purchased digital readout from Rockler (www.rockler.com) that mounts to the 8529. The readout sits above the router table and provides readings in 1/64 inch increments as you adjust the bit height. It connects to the router by temporarily removing the normal height adjustment knob and mounting its sensor in its place (very easy to do). While probably not absolutely necessary since the Porter-Cable wrench provides its own adjustment scale, the digital readout provides some very nice functionality. For example, I can put a chunk of picture frame molding I've made in the past on the table, bring the bit up to meet the sample at what will be the finished height, zero the digital meter, and then lower the bit back into the table, letting the meter readings go negative in 1/64 inch increments. Then I start making passes with my lumber, bringing the bit up a little at a time until it hits the zero reading again. This gives me absolutely perfect replication every time.

This router is powerful, and the variable speed control is useful when I chuck up those larger bits to cut the picture frame profiles. The On/Off toggle switch is located so that you can easily flip it with the index finger of your right hand (assuming you are using the router freehand). The chuck is wonderful; unlike with my old Craftsman router, I haven't had a bit get stuck in it yet.

There was one little problem initially. When I got the router home and took it out of the box, the plunge mechanism was sticky. It just refused to smoothly slide up and down. But I put some graphite on the support columns, and after working it up and down some number of times, it started functioning nicely.

I cannot say enough nice things about the 8529. It's a wonderful piece of equipment, and if you're looking for something to use with a router table, this is the one.

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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

I've owned a 7529 for a couple of years now and..., January 5, 2004

Reviewer:   Bill D. Nunez "billnunez" (norman, ok United States) - See all my reviews

it sounds like PC has addressed one of my complaints with this updated version. The old one had a ridiculous switch that was hard to use and has broken on mine. Other than the switch and above-the-table adjustments (now they think of it!), it looks to be the same machine, so I think my review is worthwhile. I disagree with the other reviewer about the plunge mechanism being stiff to operate, I think it works great and it locks securely. The depth fine tuning does take many turns, but I think that's the idea and it works. The one-tool bit changing is great, as is having 1/2 and 1/4" collets. The edge guide is well designed. My absolute favorite feature is the dust collection. It really works and makes non-through plunge cuts much easier because it keeps sawdust out of the groove if making multiple passes. I do have some complaints. As mentioned above, the switch on the old version was a poor design--doesn't matter now. The motor is a little wimpier than my Bosch 1619EVS, but adequate. The template guide holder requires a screwdriver and you have to eyeball it to center it--as another reviewer mentioned, this is not good if accuracy is a must. On the other hand, the PC style template guides are much nicer than the stamped sheet metal ones that Bosch uses, though Bosch has a better (tool free) system for installing the template guide. Lastly, the depth stop on this router is more elegant than the one on the Bosch, although the Bosch has a nice feature for stepping the depth down in fixed increments.

My recommendation for those in the market for a router is to limit your search to those with dust collection--it's worth it. I think the new PC 895PK looks more promising than this unit. I've never used the Dewalt, but it has some nice features as well. Although I have had multiple problems with the durability of Bosch tools, they make a great router, but they need to design a new unit with real dust collection, so I wouldn't consider Bosch for now.

In response to Wesley Stewart's comments:

You're right! I didn't read the part of the manual that explained how to center the template guide and your explanation makes sense. I still think it's inconvenient that the template guide holder must be mounted with screws, especially when Bosch templates mount with no tools and don't requiring centering.

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