[Shop-talk] Battery-operated tools

[Paul Parkanzky]

You may have given up too soon.  Have you tried modern Li-Ion tools?  My
experiences were like yours until the latest generation.  But now I
couldn't be happier after quite a long service life.

-Paul

On Sun, Apr 10, 2016 at 11:52 AM, steve hochschild <steve-hochschild at att.net
> wrote:

> I am raising my hand to mention that I have given up on battery powered
> tools.  I have a huge collection of dead batteries, useless chargers, and
> drill carcasses that make me mad every time I look at them.  I finally
> realized that all I really wanted was one of those very small battery
> screwdrivers, under $20, and regular, line-powered drills, etc.
>
> So feel free to save hundreds of dollars and for me, huge frustration, by
> buying an extension cord and a set of plug-in tools.
>
> How many dead batteries and useless chargers have we all accumulated in
> our shops, anyway??  Just an alternative opinion, feel free to ignore...
>
> Mr Grumpy
>
>
>
> On 4/10/2016 8:40 AM, David Scheidt wrote:
>
>> On Sat, Apr 9, 2016 at 11:02 AM, Bob Spidell <bspidell at comcast.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Folks,
>>>
>>> I realize this is like bringing up 'best oil' or 'best tires' on a car
>>> list,
>>> but I'm in the market for a battery drill/driver/sander/etc. combo to
>>> replace my ancient--but still working--Makita 9V driver-drill.  I want
>>> something with all the 'goodies;' I'll need the usual driver/drill, but
>>> also
>>> need a portable sander (belt and/or disc), and at least the option for
>>> more
>>> attachments.
>>>
>>> I know I probably can't lose with DeWalt, Milwaukee, Makita or even
>>> Craftsman--hell, they might all come out of the same factory in China for
>>> all I know--but would like to see if there's a consensus on best overall.
>>> Is more voltage always better, or is 14.4V better for some reason than
>>> 19.2V, etc.?
>>>
>> Pick the one that comes in the color you like.  I like red, so I have
>> Milwaukee[1].  Consider brushless for your most used tools, they're
>> lighter and more powerful, and the price differential is getting
>> smaller.  Careful buying kits, and make sure you get the version of
>> the kit you want.[2] Some kits are good deals, some aren't.
>> Drill/driver + something kits tend to be good values, as they're sold
>> on the drug dealer 'first one is free' model.  Others are more
>> expensive than buying the tool and batteries separately.  And once
>> you've got a collection of batteries, you don't need one for every
>> tool.
>>
>>
>> Modern Li-ion batteries and tools are far superior to Ni-Cad or NiMH
>> batteries and tools.  Li-ion batteries have lower self discharge, so
>> they stay charged better, and they have higher power densities, so the
>> batteries last longer.   They also have much lower internal
>> resistance, so tools can take power out of them much faster.  That
>> means the current crop of high-end 12V stuff is better than any 19.2
>> nicad tool, in nearly every respect: lighter, smaller, more powerful,
>> and usually cheaper.  The 18V stuff is amazing; my m18 fuel drill
>> drills holes faster than my corded drill, which is a nice drill that
>> I've never thought underpowered or slow.
>>
>> A note on voltages:  the lithium cells used in the battery packs of
>> these tools have a nominal voltage of 4v, which is closer to 3.6 under
>> load.  The 12V tools use 3 cells in series, the 18v tools use 5.
>> (Dewalt's 20V stuff is 18V, the 20 is just marketing to make it sound
>> better.)  High capacity packs have two sets of cells in parallel.
>> Name brand batteries have a pretty good life, and seem to last two to
>> three years in professional use.
>>
>>
>> [1]The actual reason i have Milwaukee tools is that I used to work
>> with people who had them, and it meant I could borrow a tool I didn't
>> own, and use my batteries on it.
>>
>> [2] I recently bought a drill/impact set.  The version with the
>> previous generation tools was still widely available, as was the early
>> version of the kit I got, which came with lower capacity batteries.
>> Both were more expensive...
>>
>>
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