Porter-Cable Reviews

The first shipment did not fit the Porter-Cable base for which it supposedly designed and was missing parts. Amazon was very efficient about sending a replacement shipment, but it was missing more parts, nuts and bolts than the original order. I gave up and asked for a refund.

The stand (ordered Feb 3, shipped April 4!) arrived missing parts, instructions, and fasteners (bolts I assume). Porter-Cable was not very helpful, stating that they never ship tables like this and giving me the wrong phone number to contact Amazon.

Amazon on the other hand was very helpful and immediately shipped a replacement. We'll see if it arrives with all pieces.

What you get in the very compact box, is a set of steel beams, nuts, bolts, and rubber feet. In my case, all the parts were in the box- nothing amiss. Assembly instructions are not perfect, but it's not hard for a tool enthusiast to understand. With 15 to 30 minutes of your time, the parts all fit together perfectly and it makes for a VERY SOLID base to support your router table (or whatever machine you want to place on it). The rubber feet really keep it from moving around.
The size and shape of the stand are well-suited to the Porter Cable Router Table-- it really is tip-proof; very heavy and solid.
It really should have a few extra holes in the top plates, for mounting accessories. For example, I made a little wooden bracket to hold the Collet Wrench and Miter Guide. But it was very hard to drill two holes through the steel to mount my bracket! Otherwise, no complaints.

I've had the very same problem as others. Obviously the Charger is crap.

As others have stated, this charger is a piece of garbage. I have a 10 year old cordless Skil that keeps working, and a 7 year old DeWalt that just don't stop. This is very expensive junk that is better to look at than use.

Drill is nice and works well. But, I have blown through 2 chargers now. Batteries keep working. P/C should realize that this is no better than generic and 10x the price! Do yourself a favor and don't buy another charger. Just buy a new drill but a DIFFERENT brand than Porter Cable! Obviously the company is going after profit RATHER than quality.

I am very disappointed with the charger for my PC 12 volt. I should have know that something was wrong when the initial charger quit working 2 weeks after purchase. Since it was still under warranty I got a new one. It has lasted approximately 3 years and now this charger has gone bad. Bad transformer. I love the drill and flashlight so I guess that I will be forced to buy another charger. I wish PC would stand up and notice this, do something about the design and offer a improved product.

I am completely dissatisfied with this product. Before purchasing, I phoned PorterCable and specifically asked if this generator would run both my compressor( rated by the manufacturer at 3,200 surge watts(2,475)and my circular saw.I did this on more than one occassion, knowing how frequently unknowledgeable staff give false answers. I was assured it would. No such luck once I owned it. It won't run the compressor, even with the valve open, under no pressure. No help from PorterCable. I have since tried friends' and co-workers generators rated at less than this model's 5000 watts and/or 6875 surge and they will run the compressor all day. PorterCable now tells me only half, yes only half of the wattage is available to 120 volts, the full load to 240 volts. And I'm stuck with it.

Reading the reviews, I see I'm not the only to have warranty problems with Tecumseh Engines. I bought this and it worked great. But it is way to loud. We had a power outage and it would not start. It was still under warranty so I thought no problem. WRONG!... I had a carb problem. Repair center said this would be a disputed repair. Because there was a possiblity I might have put gas in it that had some debris in it. Isn't that what the gas filter is for? Anything big enough to clog the carb would have gotten caught in the gas filter and stopped the flow of gas right there. Anyway I called Tecumseh and talked to someone named JEFF in there customer service dept. Jeff was suppose to be the first customer service reps supervisor who I got nowhere with. Jeff said he'd call me back He never did. I called agian a week later and left him a message and he never called back. I called again and left messages with the girl that answers the phone for anyone from their customer service dept. to call me back and explain why this isn't under warranty or why they won't fix it. And I'm still waiting 6 months later. Then I find out that Tecusmseh had consistant carb problems with several of their engines, this being one of them. The carb was defective according to the repair center, but Tecumseh would not pay to fix it.

Live and learn I guess. Don't get me wrong, this unit is powerful and the electric ran smooth. But there is no reason this thing should be so loud. I have to put plywood in front of it to deflect the sound. Tecumseh could have put a better and bigger muffler on this engine. They tested this motor when they made it, so they didn't realize it was so loud. Or did they decide to save a few bucks by installing an undersized ineffective muffler? As a builder, I start early and have many complaints from neighbors calling village halls about the noise. I even tried calling Tecumseh to see if this thing could be modified to make it quieter. Plus there is no excuse for the cheap plastic oil stick that come with this. The plummer I use has a Coleman Powermate with the same 10 hp Tecumseh motor with the cheap plastic oil stick. Same noise problem. So I can't blame Porter Cable other than their poor choice of using the Tecusmeh engine in this generator.

I have this kit and have, like the other reviewers, been through multiple batteries. I also had my drill replaced while under warranty...it is probably on sale here! I would NOT buy Porter Cable cordless again, everytime I buy a new battery I feel like a junkie back for another fix. While it is good stuff when it works, that is just not a regular occasion.

I have had a PC combination 19.2 V set for five years. It has given me excellent service, doing everything from screwing in wallboard and studs to driving a garden auger through hardened clay in my garden. It is not a set for the average homeowner. It is heavy, overly powerful and too expensive. The only negative with the set is the expensive battery. I have replaced 2 at $90 each. The portable circular saw is excellent for use in areas where electricity is not available. I used it to refurbish a barn that had no electric service. The drill stands upright on the battery - a very convenient feature. The flashlight is powerful and long lasting. The set is well designed with comfortable hand grips and space for two spare bits on the drill body.

Another user recommended an Hitachi. I have the model that he recommended. It is a good medium service drill. However, the PC is much more powerful. For the average homeowner a much less expensive 12V cordless would be sufficient. Use it. When it dies, throw it out and get a new one. I don't buy factory-reconditioned tools. Although they are less expensive, I find that I get better value with a new lesser model.

Excellant power and reliability, it is a heavy drill. Most consumers do not need this much power, they will be better off purchasing a 12 or 14 volt. I have had my combo kit for a year and no problems at all. Great product!

I should have read the other reviewer's comments about this base plate before buying it....didn't get it on Amazon...impulse buy at a woodworking store. It doesn't fit the Freud FT 2000 very well and won't fit on the Triton at all. Returned it to the store and exchanged it for a larger, 3/8 thick, blank piece of phenolic, and a brass pin. Will make my own. Can't recommend this one.

I ordered this plate because I was planning on building a router table for my Freud FT2000, and it had the Freud listed as one of the routers it supported. I did not want to have to manually drill a plate so this one seemed to fit. Well needless to say this plate does not work to well with the FT2000. The FT2000 comes with 2 types of mounting holes. One is a set of 3 6mm screws that should be used when mounting from a table. The second is a set of 4 4mm screws that are used for the standard base plate. The problem is that the Oak Park base plate is drilled to use 5mm screws so the use of the 6mm Freud holes was out of the question. I then tried using the 4mm screws, but after mounting the plate and looking at the setup I felt that it would not be safe. There would have been only around 1/8" of phenolic holding the a 16 lb, 3 1/4 hp router. There were a couple of other things that I did not like about this plate. First it is only 1/4" thick, and with its dimension being 11"x11" I thought that it might bow a little especially with a heavy router. Also because it tries to be compatible with most routers it has large groves running radially around the plate. This could cause pieces to stick or shift when running through the table.

I just rebuilt my router table to use the Oak Park plate. Fits much more flat than my old rousseau plate, I also have been using it hand held to profile edges. No complants! holds the router close to center of hole and doesn't seem to flex.

I just received my Porter-Cable Robotoolz RT-3620-2K Rotating Laser System. The rotating laser visibly wobbles. I am in the process of investigating the return policy right now.

I PURCHASED THIS ITEM FROM AMAZON IN JUNE OF 2004 THE FIRST ONE WAS DEFECTIVE IT VIBRATED QUITE A BIT I RETURNED FOR A REPLACEMENT THE SECOND ONE WAS BETTER BUT IT STILL HAD A VIBRATION I REVIEWED THIS ITEM FROM AMAZON AND THE REVIEW IS BASED ON A STABILA PRODUCT THAT I DIDN'T KNOW AT THE TIME PORTER CABLE USED TO BUY THIS ITEM FROM STABILA WITH THEIR NAME ON IT NOW IT IS MANUFACTURED IN CHINA I WOULD LOOK AT OTHER PRODUCTS I WAS DISAPOINTED WITH A PRODUCT WITH A PORTER CABLE NAME ON IT

This rotary laser hails from Germany, a rarity in the under $500 rotary laser market. Similar products typically originate in China; finding a German made rotary at this price point is a serious find. Using the Robotoolz RT-3620 could NOT be easier; it only has 2 buttons; one is the ON/OFF and one is a 3 position mode button. It also has a shield over the rotary laser itself that allows you to further fine tune the laser for more accurate work. Ergonomics are superb; a chimp could work this laser. As with all rotary lasers, exercise caution to not look directly at the laser; it may be 'eye-safe', but I would make it a point to train yourself to keep your eyes away from it. If you're used to simple laser pointing devices, don't trick yourself into thinking this one isn't MUCH brighter; it is.

The RoboTools rotary laser can be used for plumb or level; it actually has two laser exits, one horizontal and one vertical, although you'd be hard pressed to use them both, concurrently. My only complaint, but one I knew before I purchased, is that this laser is NOT self-leveling. Self leveling is a great convenience, but RoboTools thoughtfully provided 3 bubble levels to allow you to get the laser in level across 2 planes. Fine tuning is accomplished with dial wheels that really fine tune the accuracy.

Overall, a great bargain on a well made, well engineered rotary laser. If you haven't used a rotary laser level, I can only state that once you do, you'll wonder how you EVER got along without them previously. They make hanging shelves and cabinets fun again!

These nails are not of the quality necessary for the Porter-Cable Finish Nailer that they are typically advertised with (FN250A and others). They sometimes came out 2 at a time, not at all, or caused the nailer to jam. I called Porter-Cable, and acquired their nails, and the problems went away. I would not recommend these nails, especially for this nailer.

I haven't tried these yet, hence the neutral score, but I suspect Derek's problems might have been due to trying to use 18 gauge nails in a 16 gauge finish nailer (FN250A). No wonder they would misfire.

You would think they would at least put a new battery in a reconditioned tool. The saw seems to work fine but the battery lasts about 2 minutes. Any savings I received from buying a used tool will be gone with the purchase of a new battery. beware.

This is is nice quality saw that works well, but has one drawback. It eats batteries very quickly. And when the battery even starts to get low it completely looses all torque power. The only way to work with this saw is to have at least 3 batteries available and charged before starting work. But it will cut like a workhorse as long as you feed it batteries.

I ordered 5 cases of nails.
When I unpacked them, all coils were smashed flat.
The packaging for these nails are the poorest I've seen.

I've always used Bostitch nails in past , with never a problem.

As a busy contractor, the last thing I want to do is have to rewind every coil before use.

They really need to go to a stronger box, or ship inside a cardboard tube.

jerry Costa
Cayman Islands
and USA

One big problem with these Porter Cable sanding discs -- they don't stick enough to the pad. Only after pressing very inch of the discs onto the pad firmly that I managed to get the discs to stay on the sander, a PC 333V. The Mirka discs that I bought stick to the pad much better.