Ray Dockrey

I saw some threads on here about this router and since I needed a 3.5" housing to put in my new Jessem FX Router lift I thought I would give it a try. It was on sale for $70 so I thought what the heck.

First off it is very smooth and strong. I was surprised. I have been using it for making rail and stile panel doors and it goes right through the Red Oak I have been using. The soft start takes some getting used to as it comes up to speed slower then my DeWalt does. In fact the first time you use it you will probably think there is something wrong with it. It is not like most Sears routers as it comes with separate 1/4" and 1/2" collets. Past Sears routers had the collet machined in the end of the motor shaft. It takes standard PC bushings which was a surprise and it comes with a vac shroud. Not sure how this is going to work.

I liked it so much that I went back and bought another one to use for freehand. I didn't get the dual base as my DeWalt came with the plunge base so I can use it if I need to. But I loved the ease of adjusting the fixed base and I also like the LED lights mounted in it. That is a nice touch. I have not used it free hand yet so I will report on that when I do.

The router is my favorite tool and I look forward to testing the Craftsman router. I remember how it was when I didn't have much money and something like this would have been really nice when I had first started out. I hope to pass along my findings to people who are in the same boat looking for a good value.

Thanks for reading.

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Birch

Thanks for the report on the new router. Sounds like a nice machine. I have noticed that some of the "entry level" machines come with some nice features that the "big boys" don't seem to have. For instance, I LIKE the little lights on some of the tools and I LIKE the soft start features. In recent years Craftsman has "earned" a reputation for some (unfortunately) pretty shoddy stuff; a real smear on a revered and honored tool name, but I keep hearing that maybe they have turned that around. I have three Crafstman routers-none really outstanding, but I leave them in little portable tables, with roundover and profiling bits for quick work on little projects and they work well and are handy.
Keep us posted.

Mike

Craftsman's first step out of the dark ages was the 26620 router, a clone of the Bosch 1617, and then they had to ruin it by using their old plastic guide bushing system. The 17540 series routers are another step in the right direction.

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Mike