# Porter Cable 7529 Plunge Router just died



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

A year ago I bought a reconditioned Porter Cable 7529 (type 2) and have been happy with it, but it just died on me. I opened it up and found that one of the capacitors (one that's in a small can and looks almost like a transistor) popped off the speed controller board. It doesn't actually look damaged, but is surface mount so I'm not sure I'd be able to solder it back on.

It looks like the speed controller part is discontinued on the Porter Cable site, but appeared to cost $100 even if they still had it - not sure that would be a good purchase.

Anyone have any good suggestions for a possible repair? I've got the edge guide and extra dust collector accessories for this router so I'm in the hole for about $100 of accessories on top of buying a new router if they don't fit. What's the best Porter Cable router to buy for general purpose these days?

I'm really bummed because I just started a staycation and was looking forward to some woodworking projects, one being getting practice with the PC 2212 Dovetail jig I bought this last weekend and this is my only 1/2" router!


----------



## Julian the woodnut (Nov 5, 2008)

I assume it had to be soldered in place so it should be able to be resoldered . I'd take it apart and make sure, then if the capacitor is shot, just take it to radio shack and find a replacement one and solder it in.


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

I'll try soldering it tomorrow (probably nothing to lose by trying) - it's going to be VERY tricky because the leads are actually under the can in a surface mount fashion. I measured it as 20 uf with my multimeter, but don't know what it's value is supposed to be. I suspect it isn't faulty because before it popped off the board the router worked fine. Looks like it wasn't properly soldered on in the first place - no residual solder on the contact surface, just copper.


----------



## mickit (Oct 5, 2009)

sprior said:


> I'll try soldering it tomorrow (probably nothing to lose by trying) - it's going to be VERY tricky because the leads are actually under the can in a surface mount fashion. I measured it as 20 uf with my multimeter, but don't know what it's value is supposed to be. I suspect it isn't faulty because before it popped off the board the router worked fine. Looks like it wasn't properly soldered on in the first place - no residual solder on the contact surface, just copper.


I've never tried fixing one of the boards, in the recon shop we just replaced the whole board. If it currently shows as unavailable on service net it's a sure bet there are no more being made, though there may be one or more still in the system. If there is a Dewalt SC near you, get them to run an inter-station inquiry, . You may get a good deal on a discontinued part for a discontinued model. And as you say, nothing lost by trying to re-solder it, though my eyes, nor hands would be up to it. If no go...try to find an 8529(recon, new or used) almost all of your accessories will fit, as it is basically a up graded 7529.


----------



## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

Can you do a picture. I have repaired some of these
boards. You need a real small iron. radio shack has
them and you need a feel for the soldier.

A picture would be a big plus and I may be able to
talk you through it.

I sure wish you were close by.


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

Here are 3 pics, one with a circle where I believe the cap fell off, the second shows the leads on the cap, and the third shows the cap placed where I think it should be in the hopefully correct orientation.


----------



## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

This is the worst case that you can have.

I think this is what you need. I have used it several
times fixing the circuit board on hammer drills.
It works good, but ain't cheap. 

http://cableorganizer.com/mg-chemicals/silver-conductive-epoxy.html?src=froogle&CAWELAID=261923804

http://www.pemro.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=LOC-1119


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

BHOFM - that might be a good idea. Any idea what kinds of local stores might carry that conductive epoxy? Is this something to find at Home Depot, a local electrical supply place, Granger, or something else? I'd rather get this over with and not to mail order.


----------



## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

sprior said:


> BHOFM - that might be a good idea. Any idea what kinds of local stores might carry that conductive epoxy? Is this something to find at Home Depot, a local electrical supply place, Granger, or something else? I'd rather get this over with and not to mail order.


I would check with tool repair shops and anyone the
repairs TV satellite dishes. 

You might call these people? They are in RI.

http://www.alfaadhesives.com/alfa-contact.html


----------



## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*more ideas/suggestions*

Can you "tin" the connections on the cap , then heat the connections from the back side of the board or tin both then heat?

Finally can you take the unit to an electronics repair facility as was suggeted maybe, satellite repair, RC airplane hobby shop, etc and have them make the repair?

:thumbsup: bill


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

Today I decided that my plans for my staycation (today was the first day) was supposed to be about practicing woodworking, not screwing around trying to repair surface mount, so I went out and bought a Porter Cable 893PK and made some sawdust. I'll still see what I can do with the 7529 when I get around to it. A friend suggested the possibility of bypassing the speed control in the worst case and ending up with a single speed router with no soft start - I might very well go that route if my attempt at soldering fails.

I was also thinking about using some thicker copper wire cut into two short pieces with 90 degree ends. Then I'd solder those wires to the capacitor and then as long as I can solder the other end to the PC board before the other end melts it could provide the clearance I need to do the soldering. I think there's extra space in the case so the extra height wouldn't be a problem.

Steve


----------



## lucas.j.dunton (Feb 27, 2008)

you should be able to get the loctite @ a local electric supply house


----------



## rrich (Jun 24, 2009)

Steve,
It sure looks like a cold solder joint to me. Perhaps even a flux joint.

I don't know how much room is available but a capacitor of the appropriate value and voltage rating could be soldered in place.

A final thought, just bypass the speed control and allow the router to run at full speed. ????


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

rrich, interesting thought. Does anyone recognize the markings on that component to determine the appropriate value? Bypassing the speed control has been raised as an option, but for now I'm still keeping that as a last resort.

Steve


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

I managed to get it working this morning! I cut two pieces of copper wire with a right angle bend at both ends. First I soldered them to the capacitor and then shaped them to be parallel and the exact same length, then managed to solder them to the circuit board, and now the router works again! Oh gosh darn, I already bought a new router so I'm stuck with two...

I already had the case back on before I thought to take a picture, looks hokey, but for now it works.


----------



## rrich (Jun 24, 2009)

sprior said:


> Oh gosh darn, I already bought a new router so I'm stuck with two...


Normally I would offer to take the new router off your hands except that I already have too many routers. What is really sick, I was sitting here trying to remember how many and I can't remember if it is 6 or 7. I only purchased 3 of them INTENTIONALLY.


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

That's OK rrich, I'm already thinking about ordering an extra base for the 893 to keep mounted in my router table - the above the table adjusting seems like it'll be nice. Actually this is my 4th router, but I don't count the other two. One's a single speed old Stanley 1/4" bit router which I do kinda like, but the other is a Sears 1/4" collet piece of junk which I'll probably Freecycle along with it's router table and dovetail jig when I'm more comfortable using my new PC 4212 dovetail jig.

It's amazing how useless my shop felt when I didn't have a working 1/2" collet router.

Steve


----------



## knotscott (Nov 8, 2007)

If you do end up bypassing the speed controller, you might want to consider just adding an outboard speed controller so you can still put it to use in your table with the big bits. HF has a cheap one that works, and there are others in the $30 range.


----------



## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

You might need to use some silicone to stabilize the
part. It may vibrate with out it and work loose again.


----------



## Tom M (Jul 24, 2011)

Over a year and a half later I came across this thread. I have a PC 8529 that suddenly quit working, and I've spent a lot of time trying to figure out the problem. I initially thought it was the phase control chip because it appeared to have some bubbling on it, as if it overheated. I replaced the chip and the triac, but no luck. The diode checked out and all the passive components seemed to be good, as far as I could tell with a meter. I touched up some of the solder joints, including the ones on the electrolytic caps, which looked especially bad...still no start. 

Anyway, I was about ready to give up and bypass the speed control, when I found "Sprior's" thread, and it got me curious about the two caps. I removed one of the cans from the circuit and measured it...it only read about 2 micro farads. I removed the other and it read about 5 microfarads. I then ran to Radio Shack and bought a pair of 22 micro farad 35v caps, soldered them in, and she started right up! :thumbsup: The new caps are a good bit taller, so I had to lean them over a little and hold them in place with a dab of RTV, but they should work out fine. Now I just have to figure out how to get the switch cover back on...it's really giving me a hard time. Anyway, thanks again to Sprior and all who contributed to this thread.

Tom


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

Hey that's great! The one I managed to fix is still running fine, though not used very often since I got addicted to the lathe and bowl turning. We got 2 fixed tools out of one thread - an obvious bargain


----------



## toddrf (Mar 4, 2012)

*Make it three!*

I have a Porter Cable 8529 router that sadly had not been used in a few years. I went to fire it up and nothing. I was about to drop it off at the service center when I thought to do a search and found this thread. Based on the experiences here, I pulled off the cap shown in the image in this thread and purchased a replacement for $1.50 at Radio Shack. I soldered it in place and voila! Thanks for the point in the right direction.


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

I'm glad my experimentation helped. Which cap did you buy at Radio Shack? I recently dropped that 7529 off a table and it died again, this time it looks like both of those caps fell off, but I don't know if that's everything that's broken. It's probably a goner this time.


----------



## toddrf (Mar 4, 2012)

*The cap I bought was the 272-1026*



sprior said:


> I'm glad my experimentation helped. Which cap did you buy at Radio Shack? I recently dropped that 7529 off a table and it died again, this time it looks like both of those caps fell off, but I don't know if that's everything that's broken. It's probably a goner this time.


I trimmed the leads to length and bent the two ends at a right angle so the cap would fit correctly when soldered. I was pretty suspicious of my soldering job, but it fired right up when I plugged it in.


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

The capacitor you bought is only rated for 35V, isn't that circuit running line voltage?


----------



## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*I have a 7529 PC plunge router*

Should I expect it to die or should I just drop it off the bench.:blink:
I feel left out here.... :yes: bill


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

If the component ifs run above its voltage rating you could run into a magic smoke containment issue.


----------



## Tom M (Jul 24, 2011)

sprior said:


> The capacitor you bought is only rated for 35V, isn't that circuit running line voltage?


I think the caps have to something to do with the timing of the phase control chip, which controls the gate of the triac. The caps are not subjected to the full line voltage. I don't remember if the original caps had the voltage rating on the side, or if I looked them up, but I think the rating was only 15 or 20 volts, so the 35v Radio Shack caps are higher rated than the originals. Do make shure to get the positive lead soldered to the correct (+) pad on the board...they do blow sometimes if they are reversed.
Note: most caps only have the negative (-) lead marked.


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

I'll check my spare parts, might even already have a couple of those caps and if so will try it as a hail mary...


----------



## toddrf (Mar 4, 2012)

*not line voltage*



sprior said:


> The capacitor you bought is only rated for 35V, isn't that circuit running line voltage?


If I remember correctly, the old cap was only rated to 25V. It doesn't see line voltage. The voltage rating is the max voltage it should see, so it's OK that it's bigger.


----------



## toddrf (Mar 4, 2012)

*also*



Tom M said:


> I think the caps have to something to do with the timing of the phase control chip, which controls the gate of the triac. The caps are not subjected to the full line voltage. I don't remember if the original caps had the voltage rating on the side, or if I looked them up, but I think the rating was only 15 or 20 volts, so the 35v Radio Shack caps are higher rated than the originals. Do make shure to get the positive lead soldered to the correct (+) pad on the board...they do blow sometimes if they are reversed.
> Note: most caps only have the negative (-) lead marked.


For caps of the type I bought, the positive lead is longer (the neg lead was also marked on the cap).


----------



## Hrolf (Dec 2, 2012)

*Replacement options*

I have had a dead PC7529 sitting on my bench for years. Finally decided to try to fix it. I came across this thread. It was the key to a quick 1 hour fix.

I checked the switches, potentiometer, and brushes. All okay. So then suspected one or both of the electrolytic capacitors were bad, as per this thread. I desoldered the one in the upper corner of the control board, as seen in an earlier post. I had no direct replacement and am impatient (once I start on something ). I had some electrolytics sitting around on my electronic bench. I used a small 47 mF, 50V cap with radial leads. I draped the cap over the IC and surface soldered the leads. Thought about doing the other one in the middle of the board, but remembered the keep-it-simple rule. Quickly buttoned it up and tried the power. Worked! Speed control functions normally also.

Comments: These caps are in a DC control circuit. They are not connected to 120VAC line current. The original unit was rated for 35V. Since many seem to go bad (early), it may help to overrate the replacement as I did (with 50V unit). It can't hurt. Second, I did not have a 22 mF cap and used a 47 mF. Electrolytics are used to smooth out DC voltages by draining superposed "ripple" (AC) voltages from the rectifier to ground. A large capacitance makes for less ripple. Hence I expected it was okay to overrate here also. And that seems to be the case.

However, as with anything electronic and DIY, you are on your own and best send it for professional repair if unsure of what you are doing.


----------



## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

In my case it wasn't even a matter of the capacitor dieing, it was a matter of it popping off the circuit board due to a crummy solder job at the factory.


----------



## Walker Run (Oct 14, 2017)

My Porter Cable 7529 will not stay on ? Is it not supposed to stay on when I push those buttons on that handle . Maybe because I am age 85 ? It has been a while since I used it , but, I can not keep it on without holding both buttons .


----------



## -MIKE- (Jan 27, 2019)

For anyone dealing with variable speed, revving up and down, issues with this router. 
I made a video of the fix I did, several years back.


----------

