Craftsman  12-amp, 2-hp Fixed/Plunge Base Router with Soft Start Technology

This is really 2 routers in one. I used the fixed base to mount underneath my workbench and create a router table. If you lock the plunge base down it is essentially a fixed base router. Great price! plenty of power!

Bought it for occasional use, so far I love the soft start. It has plenty of power for the hard wood and rather simple to use and am looking forward to doing more projects.

This has plenty of power, its comfortable to use, and is a sturdy machine. It does have two slight issues. 1) the screws on the sub base plate are put in so tight if you don't have an impact driver you might strip the screws trying to remove it. 2) the hole in the sub base is too small to fit larger bits! (even ones in the craftsman 5 and 6 packs). Like I said, use an impact if you can to remove the screws without stripping them. As far as the sub base, you can order a 6 pack of various sized openings for $25 on craftsman website. All-in-all I really like using this product (for decorative edges and small detail engraving, lettering, and inlay work) and highly recommend it for the price. Can't beat it.

barely out of the box and i go to install it on my Craftsman 21829 table saw but one of the screws on the base is on so tight, the plastic is cracked and sure enough, it's now a round hole instead of a Philips. the other two screws came out with a huge struggle. not sure if there's a reason to have it THAT tight but now the base is stuck and i'm out to get a replacement base plate so i can cut the stuck one off and extract the screw. for a guy that has little time to work on projects, i was thrilled when this happened. if no replacement, it's going back. UPDATE: i was able to resolve the issue w/ the base, by myself, by spinning the plate off around the damaged screw. i will replace that screw, by myself, and, by myself, will correctly install it when i need the base again. last Craftsman product i purchase. thank you and goodbye.

I was kind of iffy about even buying a router and whether I would even use it that often, well the good news is I use it all the time! What really sold me is that with the sale and the fact that I'm a Craftsman Club member I only paid 83$ for it. I love the variable speed option on it and how smoothly the router cut through even the hardest woods. It had sturdy construction and was made of REAL metal not cheap plastic materials which I loved. I highly reccomend buying this kit.

On the whole, I'm pleased with this router. Right now, I would like to buy one or two more fixed base assemblies to attach to jigs I plan to build - one to make the router serve as a rotary jointer - planer and the second for the router to serve as an edge-jointer. If I just buy the individual parts to put together into the fixed bases I want, I'm sure that I will go over my budget - not helpful at all. I am a serious hobbyist woodworker, so let me offer some solutions to concerns other users may have.

Base plate hole too small for roundover / cove *********** and *************** clear acrylic plastic sheets which you can use to make replacement base plates with holes large enough to fit your bits. Be well aware that if you are using roundover bits larger than 5/8" radius, you should be using your router under a router table rather than free hand.

Cloth bag: If you have enough scrap in your bins, make your own router case and then repurpose the cloth bag to airline carryon ditty bags for your toothbrush and change of underwar. If you're a lady, you may use the cloth bag for your overnight "train case". In any case, you can even use the bag for a beach bag for your tanning oil and Kindles. Too many folks carry luggage with "Samsonite"; that would make your "Craftsman" luggage uniquely easy to find.

Limited selection of router bits: I'm a real fan of Infinity Tools, not the least because they are about two hours down the road from me (I live in southwest Florida). But they sell a wide variety of bits, 1/2 and 1/4 shanks. And reasonably priced vs. Woodcraft, Lee Valley, Rockler, or Highland Woodworking. And shear cut which makes for really smooth routing. Give 'em a go - you'll like these bits. The reality is, Craftsman sells reasonably high quality tools for the price you pay. Where you really want to make the investment is in the bits - and reading material to show you how to make good use of the tools you have. Ex. Wood mag's little cardboard cheat sheet on using router bit combinations to get custom edges. 

I am a woodworking teacher and I bought this router to compare it to others. I like to use different brand name tools so that my students can compare them for future purchase. This is the first Craftsman power tool that I have purchased for my shop. I am very impressed with this router. It has all of the features of routers that cost up to twice what it does and more. I like the LED light, the locking lever on the plunge base, the interchangable bases with an indexing pin, and much more. The only thing that could be different is that there is no removeable center on the base plate to accomidate larger bits. I made an extra base for my router, with some plexiglass that I had, and cut a larger hole. I do wish that tool companies would sponsor highschool woodshops with free tools so that students could experience them and become future customers. Funds for schools are very tight, I get about 1/4th the budget that I had in 1986 when I first started teaching.

More than what I expected. Originally bought Pro model but after having shoulder replaced was too heavy overall but very hard to push down handles in Plunge mode. This model was the next down and was just right. Only complaint is location of off/on toggle switch.And a hard case would be nice. Never will use bag.Switch and bag made it 4 star otherwise it would be a 5 star.

<span>I like the router for the price, but usless. I also bought a 6 pc. router bit set, and only 4 of the 6 bits work in either the fixed or plunge base as the hole is too small to except the bits. I seen in the manual that you can buy optional base plates. The set for the fixed plate is no longer available, the set for the plunge is almost $24.00. Rediculous, misleading and to boot, the guy at sears had no ideal what I was asking about. He thought I was looking for a bushing set, he said he would have somebody call the next day who knew more about routers. I will take this back in a heatbeat. I may pay more, but will stick to Bosch. </span>

Just purchased this router and have not used it yet but a couple of issues came up out of the box. Thanks to all for the warnings about the baseplate screws. I was very cautious and found that the problem is that the angle of the slots in the Phillips head screws they used do not conform to any Phillips standard I could find.  Any bit that fits in the head will rock and not engage correctly, stripping the screw head if you apply any force.  I went through many bits from various kits and finally found one that through manufacturing variations was a decent fit and the screws came out.  This is a silly easlily handled defficiency that should have been fixed last year whe the problem was first noted.  

Take your time, find the right bit, remove the screws from both bases and throw them away. 

The bag is useless, keep your lunch in it.

I am mounting the fixed base in my table and the plunge base on my Milescraft router base eliminating the small hole problem in the stock base.