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Hey Brandon, I have one of those too! I bought it new back in the Jurassic and it still gets occasional use.
Currently, it is one of four routers:
Bosch 1617 (variable-speed plunge router), about 15 years old
Porter-Cable 890 kit with fixed and plunge bases, about three years old
Rigid palm router, about a month old
The Bosch remains my go-to router for hand-held operation. The PC mostly lives in the router table. I occasionally use it with the plunge base.
The Craftsman router was, until recently, permanently set up with a Sears circle-cutting jig and was used solely for making woofer and tweeter cutouts and rabbets in the speakers I build. That jig broke and I have yet to make a new one.
I really like the Bosch with one exception. It feels good in the hands, the plunge release comes right to hand, the depth stop works well. However, mine has never plunged smoothly. I have tried others in stores which work better. I have disassembled it to try to find out why without success. It's still quite functional, so I've lived with it.
The PC works pretty well in the router table. I like the ability to adjust bit height from above the table, but it's not as smooth or as easy to finely adjust as a dedicated router lift. The power switch is in an awkward location, something that has been fixed in later versions of this same router.
Currently, it is one of four routers:
Bosch 1617 (variable-speed plunge router), about 15 years old
Porter-Cable 890 kit with fixed and plunge bases, about three years old
Rigid palm router, about a month old
The Bosch remains my go-to router for hand-held operation. The PC mostly lives in the router table. I occasionally use it with the plunge base.
The Craftsman router was, until recently, permanently set up with a Sears circle-cutting jig and was used solely for making woofer and tweeter cutouts and rabbets in the speakers I build. That jig broke and I have yet to make a new one.
I really like the Bosch with one exception. It feels good in the hands, the plunge release comes right to hand, the depth stop works well. However, mine has never plunged smoothly. I have tried others in stores which work better. I have disassembled it to try to find out why without success. It's still quite functional, so I've lived with it.
The PC works pretty well in the router table. I like the ability to adjust bit height from above the table, but it's not as smooth or as easy to finely adjust as a dedicated router lift. The power switch is in an awkward location, something that has been fixed in later versions of this same router.
