I'm looking to buy an under-the-table router to do a variety of cabinetry,
including raised panel passage & entry door making.

While price is -always- a concern, I'm more concerned with getting a
router that will take anything that I, a hobbyist, am likely to ever put
in its path and still outlive me by a wide margin. I am willing to go as
high as $500.

If I don't make a fatal mistake along the way, I figure I have perhaps
another 20-25 years yet to live. So I am looking for something that was
deliberately over-engineered. Heavy casting. Premium bearings. Heavy duty
electronics. Little or no plastic & chrome.

What, in your opinion, is the current "Cadillac of Routers" for this
application and why do you feel this way?

Bill