[Mike]

Bill, The PC 691 is a popular 1-3/4 peak HP model. I have a couple questions that may help you find a solution to your problem. First off: How much wood are you trying to remove in each pass? No more than 1/4" of depth per pass is a safe amount, this will help prevent overheating the motor and improve the accuracy of the cut. You say you start out with a 1/2" wide dado cut in your 4x4. I would suggest you widen the dado to 1" before making your final width cuts and sticking to the 1/4" rule. This means more passes but should improve the cut quality since the bit will only be making the final cut on one side. What type of wood are your 4x4's and how long are they? Are you giving your router and bit the chance to cool down between each 4x4? Once a bit has slipped in a collet there is a chance that either the bit and /or collet has sustained damage of some sort. A careful examination of each is in order. When installing the bit, do you insert it all the way and then back it out 1/8"? This is needed to allow the collet to properly grab and hold the bit. Your router should still be fine, but I would suggest taking it to a service center and having them go through it if you have concerns. And yes, your bit can be sharpened. Depending on what type of bit and which brand will answer if you are better off replacing it. Most often sharpening a bit will reduce the O.D. slightly. I hope this helps you get your project completed.

 

[Mike]

Bill, There are many fine routers that will do the job you are asking. As a rule the 2-1/4 HP routers will perform well for any type of routing. If you are planning on doing production work all day long, every day then the 3-1/4 HP models are called for. Remember that with the extra strength comes a great deal of extra weight. Here is the ideal situation: go to a store that carries different brands and get your hands on them. See how the adjustments are made, both right side up and upside down. This is to see how difficult adjustments are when the router is table mounted. If the router has a plunge base test and see how much pressure it takes to compress the springs and how the router returns to the "up" position. You are the only one who can decide which is best for you. Porter Cable 890 series routers are in the 2-1/4 HP catagory and very popular. DeWalt, Makita, Hitachi and Milwaukee have comparable models. Most of my routing is done with the Bosch 1617. If you elect to go with one of the 3+ HP models Porter Cable and Hitachi always get good reviews. I own a PC 7518 for the heavy duty work. Now this is my personal view and lots of people will disagree with this: Most of the failures we see reported are problems with the "soft start, speed controller models." A built in speed controller adds $20-30 to the purchase price, but when they break get ready to shell out over $100 to replace it. An aftermarket speed controller box will run you maybe $40 or less. These units are larger and nobody has reported one failing yet that I have seen. Because of these facts I prefer the idea of buying a router with a normal on-off switch. A speed controller is mostly needed when using larger, heavier bits. (Over 3" diameter) Go through the posts and see recommendations from other forum members, and good luck!