Cordless tools

[magna111]

What cordless combos are you guys using? I have been using a Ridgid 24v but it has kicked the bucket, well the batteries have. It is about 4 years old and has served me well. I have been using corded and my impact but need to replace soon to very soon.

I have been looking at the Rigid 18v 5pc at about $500, it includes the typical drill, circ, recip, light, 2 batts and charger. It also includes a impact, which I have, but prob only has about a year of life left in it. Any one using this set? How do the batts perform vs the 24v?

Is a 36v worth the weight/money? It looks like the dewalt 4pc is about 150-175 more but does not include the impact...

[BThomas]

Why not just get new batteries?

[magna111]

Batteries are about $110 each, so I would be into it for $220 and have 4 year old well used tools. The tools themselves are showing their age, but the biggest issue is the batteries, one bit the dust, the other sometimes only lasts maybe 24-32 lf in 3/4 ply.

[Tom Bainbridge]

same as that

bateries give up the ghost (kick the bucket) long before the tools are dead

my personal experience says that you need a set of "corded" tools for renovation and a set of battery tools for minor alterations

reason..........ive been watching a collegue's 36 volt tools for 8 months

result. im sticking with a set of 18volt battery makita's for "one off" work and another set of corded

[BThomas]

I have found that the Panasonic batteries last the longest. I always write the date on batteries when I get them. I have Panasonic batteries from 2005 that are still working and are used almost every day. I did have one Panasonic battery from 2008 go bad. They all get rotated and get the same use. I don't know why a newer one went bad.
Makita batteries hold up well but nowhere as well as the Panasonic. The Dewalt batteries don't even last two years. I gave up on them years ago.

[trailertrimm]

I've have a saw, drill,impact, sawzall.. set of bosch 18v for 5 years and I have a set of makita drills that are a year and a half old and the batteries keep dying on me... I'm probably gonna give the makita drills to a kid on the job and let him by the next round of batteries and just keep rollin the bosch. nothing is built to last anymore.....

[GregBradley]

I thought one of the reason that people bought Ridgid cordless was that there was a lifetime warranty on the tools including batteries. I know several hobbyists like my father have bought Rigid cordless for that reason. He has had them long enough to get some "free" batteries.

I am very happy with my Makita LXT cordless stuff, many of which are in heavy daily use. I would think Milwaukee and Bosch are equivalent in 18v. I have Bosch 12v and 36v stuff. The 36v is pretty impressive but it is big/heavy enough that it is not for general use, at least for me. I have had people drilling hundreds of holes in a day with the 36v Rotary Hammer and was very impressed.

[m beezo]

Check with Rigid about new batteries.

I got a new 18v last summer. Went to their local warranty shop, handed the battery to them, filled out some paper work and was handed a new one in like 10 minutes or less. A friend just did the same 2 weeks ago.

I like the 18v for most things. Not too heavy, not too light. Funny that my sawzall can take either the 24 or 18v battery but I have never seen the 24 here in the stores. Would love to try it out to see if it makes a difference.

I second Tom on using the cordless for too many things. Cutting multiple sheets of plywood, ripping down studs. Any of that type of work is going to wear out your batteries quickly. Truthfully, when I get out the corded circular saw and have power to spare I am sometimes wondering why I don't get that saw out more often rather that fight thru with a battery.

[JulianTracy]

I've been using the Makita LXT system for close to 3 years now and haven't had any issues with batteries, 3.0 or 1.5.

Before that, used and still do a Bosch 18volt system - have some of those batteries for close to 6-7 years that still work strong. The only Bosch ones I still use are the oddball items - cordless 10" miter saw, cordless planer, jigsaw and recip saw.

Those tools still run as strong as day one. When the Bosch batts dies, I'll make an adapter to run them from my LXT batts.

Why in the world would anyone buy a Ridgid cordless kit? Aside from the fact that it's a Ridgid, which is the first negative, I can count on both hands how many cordless platforms they've introduced and then abandoned over the years. They're built to be sold at a price, not built to perform. I've got some Ridgid tools, there are hits and misses, but their cordless stuff is heavy, bulky and not too impressive imo.

Panasonic's highly rated - I've had mixed experiences - had the early 9.6 drill kit and the 15.6 drill saw kit, and they were as heavy duty as they come. Then I bought the 12volt impact driver and it literally fell apart within a week. Battery tabs broke off, rubber molding peeled off, etc.

Bosch is always good quality, but they dropped the ball with the late entry into LiIon and did the switchover and now they have about 4-5 tools total in the new platform.

Seems to me aside from Dewalt batts, which do seem to have a 2yr. lifespan, most folks having cordless battery issues probably don't treat them correctly. Easiest way to kill your batteries early: charge them when they are hot or in direct sun on a hot day, charge them when they are very cold, use them until they drain out of power completely, leave them in the charger for days on end, etc. This is what kills batteries.

But when choosing a kit, look at the tools they have; the current Makita LXT stuff is well designed and seems pretty durable and they have a huge range of tools. Aside from the standard 4-5 tools, the blower, right angle impact, right angle drill, metal cutting circ saw, stick vac and other oddball tools they offer - these save a lot of time on the job and I rarely need to plug much in on a job site aside from having a charger ready when needed.

Corded tools only for remodeling - Bullpucky! Only corded tool you'd need is a recip saw and a circ saw. (and rotary hammer and mitersaw, ....)

Unless you're an electrician or plumber, cordless drills are where it's at for all drilling tasks.

I use my cordless angle drill to drill 1" holes in joists, use my cordless impact to screw 6" lag bolts, use my cordless 5 3/8" metall cutting circular saw to cut 1/4" steel angle, use my cordless miter saw to cut 2x's and any base, shoe and case moldings. Buy good tools and they'll do good work.

Rarely need a corded jigsaw except when doing tight curves where the corded model has better lower blade support, but power is not the issue there.

Julian

[dgbldr]

Get new batteries under the Lifetime Warranty. Get tools fixed also, if they need it.

[JulianTracy]

It's not a warranty - it's a service contract you have to apply for within the first three months of buying it.

I sent one in for a tablesaw and it took a full 9 months for me to receive back the confirmation of the lifetime service contract.

No email confirm either - 9 months to wait for a letter from them to even know they received it.

How's that for service?

JT

[magna111]

I think when I bought the set it was prior to or prior to my knowledge of the lifetime warrenty program. I checked on the batteries and was told if they are less then 3 years old they they will be replaced with new, older then that, which they are, and too bad.

[Neill MacInnis]

makita li-ion. awesome. absolutely 0 problems with over two years of use nearly everyday. i love them and see no reason to buy anything else.

[gburnet]

We're very heavily invested in the Makita 18v Li-Ion platform. We bought in about 5 years ago & currently own about 15 tools & 10 batteries, both 1.5 & 3.0 amp hour. To date, we've had one battery fail. I think it was one of the originals & my guess is it had been through at least few hundred charge cycles. I'd buy the tools again.

[LittleItaly]

I agree with gburnet on the Makita platform. I am approaching my 5th year with my kit. Batteries are just now starting to falter.

My curiosity on the other brands is temepered by the longevity of this kit. Three other guys I work with waited Two years after I bought mine and then they did the same. I think Makita has worked out the kinks with the drill.