new cordless for father's day

Need some advice here.

My 10 yr-old Dewalt 9.6v cordless has finally given up the ghost. Actually, the second battery just died. I've been getting by with only one battery for a year now, but now it won't even hold a charge.

Two new batteries will run me @ $100. The wife says - just get a new drill - Happy Father's Day to me!!

So of course I go pick up a 18v LiOn XRP and play with it in the store, my thought being that around x-mas time I'll pick up an impact wrench as well and be able to use all the same batteries. Dang that thing is heavy. I can't imagine doing any kind of overhead work with that thing.

So I'm looking at the 12v or the 14.4v - sticking with Dewalt considering how long the last one lasted. Will be used for rehabbing my deck, remodeling a bathroom, occasional auto repair (when i have to be quiet and not fire up the compressor), hanging pictures, assembling Ikea crap, and other general honey-do tasks. will be used just about every weekend.

Will the extra 2.2v make a difference? I think LiOn is available in the 14.4 - is that a factor? and also there's an impact 14.4 vs the drill/driver - would the impact be better for intended use?

any info or opinions appreciated

Having no experience with that specific tool set, I say go for the 14.4v based solely on the availability of the impact wrench. How much would it suck to have a stuck bolt or nut that you had to wait until the next day to break free because you couldn't use the compressor?

I'd go more power. I'm very happy with the 19.2V line I've been playing with for years.

That's a second point, make reasonably sure it will still be made or available next week, let alone next year.

Different models and gee-gaws matter also. I've gone from just a drill to a drill & circular saw & jig saw & sawzall. Shortly I'll be adding a right angle drill and perhaps a little impacto.

I replaced my Dewalt 14v that had one dead and one dying battery pack with the Rigid 12v Li-Ion Drill/Driver. Awesome tool, though it looks like a Star Trek prop. I chose it over similar drills from Bosch, etc because of the chuck - the others have the quick release type. It's surprisingly torquey and has a pretty good warranty.

Yeah it looks like the tool selection for the 12v is limited to drills/drivers whereas the 14.4 has saws and other tools available. Not sure I'd ever expand to other tools, since I already own a corded sawzall, jigsaw, circular saw etc, but the potential is nice to have.

The 14.4 impact isn't gonna break any nuts free - i think it's rated at 1200 INCH lbs - not foot pounds - the automotive use would be as a drill, or wire brush work to remove rust - but some reviews said that the clutches and such inside the impact version were better for repetitive stuff like driving deck screws or hanging drywall. Just wondering if anyone had any first hand experience with either.

I'm had Dewalt 18v stuff for about 10 years with good results, but lately everything I buy is Rigid.

I use my drills every day, and no longer buy Dewalt drills. They only last about 6 months before the gear boxes tear up and the chucks on the last few I bought started slipping after a few months. I switched to Hatachi three years ago and haven't bought anything else since. The drills last about 18 months under very harduse and abuse. Their 14.4 has enough grunt to snap your wrist or break off any screw under 1/4 inch. It will run a 3" hole saw through aluminum or steel. The chucks don't slip and the gear boxes don't fail. I have lost one due to a trigger losing the low speeds and one from jamming it in a corner in low gear and snapping the handle off of it. The Hatachi also runs screws better than the impact gun I have as long as you can hold onto it. The other thing I like is the batteries charge faster than I can use them.

My .02

I have a dewalt 14.4 half inch impact and love it. Not super powerful, but on these rusty mi cars where the bolts fight you all the way, it's worth it.

Joey

So that's 2 mentions of Rigid and one vote for Hitachi.

Anybody know who manufactures Rigid tools?

I need to head to the local Home Depot and get my hands on some stuff.

Is there anything I should flat out avoid - 10 years ago my boss had all Milwaukee stuff.

What about Bosch, Makita, or the higher end Ryobi stuff - or doesn't it matter - it's all made in the same three factories in China, so pick the color you like best sort of deal.

On the way from Dewalt to Hatachi I tried the Bosch and Makita drills. They were pretty good drills, but not as durable as the Hatachi. Keep in mind that for home use any of them will give good service and probably never break. In your shoes I would look and see who has the cheapest replacement batteries and go that route. For occasional home use, the batteries will die before the drill will. I even have some Ryobi stuff that gets the job done, but it is cheap. I think the set with drill, saw and flashlight with two batteries was $80. The Hatachi drill set was $200. That is like comparing a Chevy to a BMW.

Edit: the Ryobi batteries were $29 the last time I was in Home Depot.

I use Black & Decker 18v. I would say they are a step down from the DeWalt/Makita/Bosch stuff, but since they cost less and come in sets, you can get more stuff. I have a drill/driver, hand vac, flashlight, circular saw, weed trimmer, and so on...all with the same battery. Since each set comes with one or two batteries, I have plenty to get through any job at all. My first B&D Driver lasted me for 10 years without fail through heavy use, and my current one is going strong after many remodeling projects and building things like a monster treehouse. If I was a contractor, I would want to step up to something better, but for the weekend warrior and DIY guy, I can't see any reason to spend more than you have to. B&D work, offer good features, and have plenty of power and run time. What more do you want?

Sorta off topic, but not...

Has anyone had their battery packs rebuilt? I have a no-name (but good quality) 18v impact as well as drill driver (two tools), and two batteries and two chargers, but they no longer hold their charge very well. I also have an older Dewalt 12 volt drill driver that isn't what it used to be.

Oh yeah, and I have a Craftsman rechargeable screwdriver, which is handy for little things. Those batteries are now crap, too.

Replacement batteries are expensive. Who has rebuilt, or had their batteries rebuilt? About how much? Worth it?

Not off topic at all - this was one of the first things I looked into as well. One of my coworkers was a former Electronic Warfare Systems maintenance and repair tech. He said you could probably replace the individual cells if they were a standard size - think R/C cars and stuff - but the problem would be getting the case open without destroying it, and then getting it back together so it would hold up to repeated use. Basically more PITA than it was worth, and I even offered to pay him in GOOD beer...

FYI, with a little creative dremel work, the larger batteries will fit the smaller drills. I was in an identical situation (9.6 DeWalt with 2 dead batteries) and also saw that a new drill cost the same as two 9.6 batteries. I bought a 14.4. When I saw how similar the batteries were I tried to put the 14.4 in the 9.6. There was a tab in the way. With that tab removed trom the 9.6V body, the 14.4V battery fit. The drill runs fine. Been doing that for 2 years now. Now I can have one drill loaded with a bit and the other with a driver, or one for sharpening TIG electrodes while the other is in the truck, or whatever. Having 2 has proved quite useful.

Dave is right.

I thought everyone was nuts at the plant where I work when I realized they were modifying all the Makita tools/ batteries to be interchangeable. They pretty much use any darned battery they feel like in whatever tool comes along.

They seem to work fine (though I haven't modded my own tools yet).

Here's a vote for the smaller battery (occasionally).

I work my 14.4's (Makita) to death. Every time I pick up another brand of 18v, 19.2v, or bigger, I am reminded how nice it is to not be lugging around all that weight.

There is a pretty big difference in the ease of handling with the smaller tools, and the extra power is not needed very often.

I like the smaller tools and pick up a corded tool when I need a little extra oomph.

http://www.tylertool.com/

http://www.toolking.com/

big sales on recons...

Do it.

I've got the Makita lithium ion stuff and I love it. I've got the impact, drill, hammer drill, flashlight (that I rarely use), and reciprocating saw. When I bust out my small battery powered radio, sawzall, and impact gun, I'm the envy of everybody at the U-Pull yard.

I don't even have corded/air tools in my garage, with a few exceptions (4.5" grinder, occassional die grinder or 1/2" impact work, welder). The Makita stuff is awesome. I managed to kill one battery, the oldest of my set is a 1.5 Ah pack that had a cell die. I can physically replace the cell, but unfortunately Makita has some smart chip in there that won't allow the pack to be used in the Makita charger anymore. I can still manually charge it if I replace the cell, but it's a bit of a PITA. The Makita cells are easy to get into, no dremeling or anything like that, just four security torx screws. I've been thinking about hacking my charger to re-use the same smart chip over and over and making my battery packs "dumb" (just contacts, no chip or temp sensor)...that's my only complaint with the Makita stuff.

Oh, it was a bit pricy too, but the small size and light weight make it totally worth it. The impact is just barely strong enough to break lugnuts loose, so I am in the habit of using the long ratchet to break all the nuts/bolts loose when working on big stuff and then using the gun to blast them off after that. The impact is a godsend when working on stuff like lock nuts or rusty fasteners.

Bryce

Oh yeah, and I got my Makita stuff from tylertool.com, their prices are pretty consistently the best around from what I can tell. She got my stuff there as a present, probably the best present I've ever got, I use the hell out of them and they've saved me countless hours.

Bryce

Nashco wrote: Oh yeah, and I got my Makita stuff from tylertool.com, their prices are pretty consistently the best around from what I can tell. She got my stuff there as a present, probably the best present I've ever got, I use the hell out of them and they've saved me countless hours. Bryce

Thanks,

Makita is what I've decided on. Getting the compact 18v white one. Got a chance to get to Lowe's yesterday to check out the Hitachi stuff and then Home Depot today to look at all the rest today.

I even had a sales guy get out a battery so I could feel the balance. Neither battery was charged so not able to make any cool noises, but the Makita just seemed to fit my hand better.

The availability of other tools in the same voltage and the fact that the bigger 3.0 battery will fit the 1.5 tool is what sold it for me. Plus I can then buy Makita tools as just the tool wthout charger, etc.

It's funny though because now I'm spending $250 for the combo pack of drill, plus impact driver, and flashlight. Tried to buy the reconditioned pack on Tyler but it's on backorder - so new it is. It's a wife approved purchase, so why not splurge a little, right?

Thanks to all for the advice - GRM saves the day again...