Hello All,

I have some questions on a couple of Spindle options I have acquired.
Both of these were found in a “LOT” quantity of surplus I was given
in exchange for helping do some “surplus removal” before a business
(a friend owns) moves to a new location. Both routers appear to be in
excellent condition. The B&D is freehand and the PC came mounted in
a Shaper Table of the same make.

(Up until now I have been concentrating on a SMALLER PCB mill
using a Dremel or Proxon for a spindle.)

First is a Porter Cable Motor ”Model 6912 Heavy Duty Motor”
And the second is a Black & Decker 1.5 HP Max 25,000 RPM
Catalog # 7612

Both have ¼” collets, the B&D has a single slit, and the PC has what
looks to be a 4 jaw type.

As I plan on using one of these on a small / medium DIY Router Table
to be used for PCB fabrication in addition to general work in light aluminum,
brass, plastics, wood. Which of the two would be a better choice?

Is it possible to find collets for these that will directly accept 1/8” bits?
If the answer to that question is YES, where? Otherwise what kind of
options do I have for adapters?

Collet adaptors are available from woodworking stores that will fit any router.
Any of the two routers should be fine for the light work you speak of.

Jason

The Porter Cable is most likely a much better router. You can get 3/8" and 1/2" collets for it, but like Jason says, you'll need an adapter for 1/8" bits.

http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/smarthtml/pages/adapbush.html

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Tools/Special_tools_for:_Routing/Adapter_Collet.html

The Porter Cable 691 is a better router. It's an old design and is a light duty router mainly used for rounding over edges. Doesn't have enough power to do serious cuts. (I'm a woodworker)

Some of the old 691 routers had a bushing on the top instead of a bearing. It can be replaced with a bearing on most though.

For woodworking I prefer the Milwaukee routers. The 5615 and 5616 are the same except the 16 is 2.5HP. Their variable speed is much better than porter cable as well(smoother). The speed controller is potted on the milwaukee. The PC is not and the PC ones fail often IME. *If* you have to replace the one on the Milwaukee it's ~$15 last I checked. Milwaukee also has a great collet.

I won't use a B&D skil or Ryobi(some Craftsman) router. They all have the auto depth feature. IE the router bit slips while you cut.

One router to look at for larger machines is the new Milwaukee router made just for router tables. It has a remote speed control that could be extended for cnc puropses.