"DonkeyHody" wrote in message
I got a Porter Cable 7518 3 HP router a few months ago and mounted it
in my table. Awesome power and easy adjustment; I've been very
pleased. Today, after running it for about 30 minutes with a 3/8
round over bit on some cypress, the collet nut was too hot to hold.
The bit was a brand new Whiteside, and it never loaded the motor, so I
suspect the heat came up from the router bearing instead of down from
the bit. I've never had a collet nut burn me before. Anybody else
experience this? Should I be talking to Porter Cable about a
replacement?

From experience, the 7518 has a tendency to get plenty hot with prolonged
use, more so than any other router I've used and/or owned. However,the beast
is basically all motor and you would expect a proportionate increase in heat
during use. Thus far, the phenomenon has never been a problem in the three
years or so I've used a 7518.

IMO, this tendency to run hot, and the resulting different rates of
expansion of the metal parts, collet, bit, etc., may be one of the reasons
folks seem to report more incidences of slipping bits with the 7518.

It is also my experience that proper installation of the bit is critical
with this beast, particularly with prolonged use of a 1/4" collet and bit
.... you'll want to check the tightness and depth of the bit frequently, or
risk the consequences of a bit "climbing" in the collet.

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Last update: 4/13/04