Porter-Cable 895PK 12 Amp 2-1/4-Horsepower Fixed- and Plunge-Base Base

1. Surprisingly quiet <<80 DB @10K rpm, a little louder at 23K. Soft start is nice.
2. Very little vibration.
3. Love the rack&pinion above/below table fine adjust system.
4. Motor swap is flawless and fit and finish 1st class.
5. Plenty of safety features, lockouts and 1 on/off switch that works from 2 locations. Makes accidents very rare.
6. Single handed bit release is great, the way it should have always been.
7. Love the fact that the grip-vac handle is available separately for less than $30, instead of getting a separate D-handle base for around $70 for other routers in this class.
8. Love the two case system. Works as a work center to set router with bit extended, carry case, either one at a time or both bases at once, meets airline carry-on sizes, just in case.
9. Electronic speed control worked flawlessly on hard maple with plunge cut.
10. All the 690 series attachements (like the precision edge guide) and bases etc can be used with the 890.

CD sent with kit was cracked, P/C customer service too busy to return calls/e-mail.


great router - terrible manual   February 24, 2004
Terry R. Nye (Kingsport, TN)
53 out of 59 found this review helpful

This is the first router I've ever owned. I wanted to buy a good quality tool, and this is clearly a high-quality tool package. The ability to switch from a fixed base to a plunge router is really nice. You can tell this tool is solidly built. Mine came with the above-the-table height adjuster. Haven't needed to use it because it is so easy to adjust height through the cabinet door on my Bench Dog Pro 150 table. The router has plenty of power and is definitely quiet to operate. My shop vac makes a lot more noise than this router. The plastic cases for storage of the router and bases are pretty interesting. They can be joined together (for easy carrying of both bases) or separated easily. There is even storage for some router bits in the cases.

My only complaint is the manual is almost useless. The instructions are very difficult to read and interpret, and the photos are so poor that you can barely see what the manual is trying to illustrate. Good technical drawings would have been much better. There was no explanation about how to use the optional above-table height adjuster in the manual. The enclosed CD looks nice at first glance, but it really doesn't give you much information except a video about how to build your own router table (which isn't very useful if you don't know how to use your router yet). Most of the stuff on the CD looks like promotional videos to display the product, but it doesn't tell you how to use it. Even worse, the CD links to the Porter-Cable web site to download the product manual -- they should have put this on the CD. I guess Porter-Cable figures only experienced woodworkers would buy their product, which is unfortunate. Novices like to own good tools, too, and tool manufacturers should provide manuals that show them how to use the tools properly. I have bought some books on routers that will (hopefully) fill in the gaps that Porter-Cable left wide open.

In summary, this is a great product, even for a newbie, but I gave it only 4 stars since the manual is so terrible. If you already know about routers, this is a wonderful tool to buy. If you are a novice, make sure you buy a separate book about routers if you plan to buy this product.


great router, but look at all the variations before you buy   October 30, 2004
T. Marks (CT United States)
48 out of 51 found this review helpful

Amazon as usual came through with the router arriving within two days of ordering... despite their site saying it was going to be backordered for a week. Of course it arrived missing one of the router handles (which PC immediately shipped to me).

Smooth router, powerful, quiet operation.

Look at all the variations before you buy: The 891 (fixed base with vacuum attachment), 892 (fixed base only), 893PK (fixed base and plunge base), 894PK (fixed with vacuum attachment and plunge base), and 895PK (fixed base, plunge base, above table height adjust knob) all use the same 890 router motor.

If you intend to mostly use the motor attached to a router table, and don't really need a plunge base (the 8931 base has mixed reviews), then you can save a bit of money by buying the fixed base 892, and buying the not-included above table height adjustment knob (which comes standard only with the 895PK) or just using a hex screwdriver.



Poor construction and PC support   February 14, 2006
markb (CA)
29 out of 30 found this review helpful

I returned this due to many additive problems. Fortunately, Amazon refunded me because PC customer service just sent canned "Thank you - won't help you" messages. PC quality is sinking.
1) cheap plastic parts on bases - plunge base pointer broke on first use. You can't read the scale anyway because of how they positioned the knob.
2) cheap metal and screws. Two screws about 1/8" long w/maybe 3 threads hold the height adjustment rack to the machine body. These fall out and quickly strip both themselves and the body when you try to re-attach the rack - something I had to do with each use in a router table. What are they thinking? These tiny screws have to support the entire weight of the router when mounted on a table and the clamp is loosened to perform height adjustments.
3) Poorly machined base plate holes. Base barely fits standard jigs for PC routers (no problem with PC 690) because they are machined enough out of alignment to require a forced fit. You could tell this would lead to more thread stripping in no time.
4) Plunge mechanism was very stiff and almost useless. Did not improve with use.
5) For me - 4 hour one-way drive to service recall - no other way offered to accommodate.

The motor seemed decent and I tried to overlook the above until the metal began stripping in less than two months of use. I think PC is economizing on bases and cheaper manufacturing processes. By the way, this is the first tool I've returned in 20 years and own many other PC tools without complaint. Maybe I got a bad apple, but others here have similar experience with this model.


Great router, one minor issue   January 1, 2004
28 out of 34 found this review helpful

I use the 895PK in a router table and am generally pleased with the product. The fit and finish is very good. The soft start is very nice and the unit is reasonably quiet. Lots of power for all of my uses. Being able to do everything from the top of the table is great - you definitely do not need a separate router lift.

My only issue has to do with its use in a router table. My table is completely enclosed (for dust control) with an external power switch. This means that I leave the power switch on the router "ON" all the time, using the external power switch to control the router. The problem is that when the power switch on the router is "ON", you can't used the spindle lock (there's an interlock between the power switch and the spindle lock). This means that I have to use two wrenches to change router bits. This isn't a really terrible issue, but I wish there was a way to use the spindle lock in this situation.

Other than this one issue, the router is great. It has a lot of "nice" features that make you smile when you discover them. My complements to the design team. Now get busy and fix my issue :-)