Cordless Tools

tanked_darren · January 23, 2013

I am waiting for Milwaukee to release there 450 ft lb half inch impact in the fuel.They only have the 210 ft lb in the fuel so far.Milwaukee rep said release date got pushed back so maybe by spring.

3/4 drive I assume. That would be a nice tool for working on the heavy equipment!

Oh you said 1/2 inch... That's nuts!

Sent from my Nokia 5190 using Tapatalk 2

jdubya · January 23, 2013

3/4 drive I assume. That would be a nice tool for working on the heavy equipment!

Oh you said 1/2 inch... That's nuts!

Sent from my Nokia 5190 using Tapatalk 2

Anyone know what the specs are on the Dewalt one? I have the high torque cordless impact ant it struggles sometimes with my truck tires.

kilbornf · January 23, 2013

Depends which model you have,Dewalt model DW059K-2 has 300ft lbs.18V.Milwaukee 18 volt model 2663-2 has 450 ft lbs.Milwaukee hands down.The reviews on here stand behind Milwaukee.Just waiting for the Fuel model to be released.

jdubya · January 24, 2013

What's the fuel model?

LaserBlueZ71 · January 25, 2013

My guess is it will take Milwaukee a fair amount of time to bring a full size half inch M18 FUEL impact to market. Right before Christmas I questioned our Milwaukee rep on this very tool, and according to him, he said Milwaukee had no immediate plans for one. However, he could have not known about it, or maybe information has changed in the last month.

We are selling Milwaukee at our store faster than we can keep it in our stock, and we have extrememy low warranty numbers, I am more than impressed by the FUEL line. We have the new M12 FUEL on order, and I reserved one of each of the new M12 FUEL kits. I will get to buy them before they even hit our store shelves, I can't wait. That is one perk for working for a tool company, getting tools for cost! Needless to say, I don't take much money home sometimes haha.

The best jigsaw in the world, literally, is made by Festool. We carry Festool in our store as well. It is extremely high end, and EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE. It has a very unique design for holding the blade. You can cut through a 4 inch piece of stock, and the cut will be perfectly straight, no blade warping. An amazing feat for a jigsaw. Just about everything they make is the best in the business, but unaffordable even for some professionals. The mitre saw they make is over $1,500, just as another example of how insanely high priced this stuff is.

jdubya · January 25, 2013

I've seen Festool on This Old House. They have some pretty neat tools. I like the circ saw that Tom uses that has the aluminum guide, I could imagine it would be pretty expensive. I worked a couple of woodworking shows when I was with DeWalt, I know there are a lot of brands out there for that category that I never heard of.

Babyhauler · January 25, 2013

Hey Laser,

Really enjoy your input and expertise. I guess that I, like many household users, do not have that much trouble with the tools themselves, but the batteries just suck on most of the lower end tools. My Makitas have held up well for heavy home and some construction work. I knew the Ryobi "kit" I bought with the drill, light, skill saw, grinder & vacuum would not last long with everyday use. Since I had the battery upgraded with the 2.6 amp hour cells, I grab them for quick jobs so I do not have to get out a corded tool. Just one battery is fine since many jobs are small.

So, what would you recommend for so many of us to do to keep our batteries working properly or what to upgrade them to? Ryobi makes a li-ion, but i am not sure of the amp hour on it nor do I trust it as much as my local battery guy rebuilding one of mine. Cost is about the same. I would love all new Makita l-ion 3.3 amp hr tools, but that ain't gonna happen. I guess for long-term use and parts availability, Milwaukee is the way to go if i need any new tools.

Thanks again for helping us.

Babyhauler

Babyhauler · January 25, 2013

how do I get rid of this 2nd post?

It was like I was drunk and repeating myself.

kstruckcountry · January 25, 2013

Wow looks like Festool did their homework on those. They look like awesome tools

LaserBlueZ71 · January 25, 2013

Hey Laser,

Really enjoy your input and expertise. I guess that I, like many household users, do not have that much trouble with the tools themselves, but the batteries just suck on most of the lower end tools. My Makitas have held up well for heavy home and some construction work. I knew the Ryobi "kit" I bought with the drill, light, skill saw, grinder & vacuum would not last long with everyday use. Since I had the battery upgraded with the 2.6 amp hour cells, I grab them for quick jobs so I do not have to get out a corded tool. Just one battery is fine since many jobs are small.

So, what would you recommend for so many of us to do to keep our batteries working properly or what to upgrade them to? Ryobi makes a li-ion, but i am not sure of the amp hour on it nor do I trust it as much as my local battery guy rebuilding one of mine. Cost is about the same. I would love all new Makita l-ion 3.3 amp hr tools, but that ain't gonna happen. I guess for long-term use and parts availability, Milwaukee is the way to go if i need any new tools.

Thanks again for helping us.

Babyhauler

3 Amp Hour batteries are no longer the standard, Milwaukee has raised the bar better than anyone in battery technology.

Milwaukee just released new batteries for their 12 and 18 volt lines. The 18 volt line has a 4 amp hour, yes, 4 amp hour battery now. It's called the Red Lithium XC 4.0. That is the full size pack. The regular compact 18 volt battery they offer is 1.5 AH, the new 2.0 version is 2 AH. The 12 volt lines also received 4.0 and 2.0 batteries, upping the AH rating.

Milwaukee has the best batteries in the business, and I also believe, the best tools. I would not say Festool compares in drills and impact wrenches, simply because they are large and akward. Festool is made in Germany, and as I said before, commands a very high price tag. In my opinion as a tool nut, and as a service technician, Milwaukee is the power tool king right now. They have been for years, and they show absolutely no signs of slowing down. In fact, Milwaukee build quality is INCREASING with every new generation of tool. Most brands get cheaper, Milwaukee is building tools better and better as time goes forward.

How to keep your batteries alive you ask? Lithium chemistry is very sensitive to over discharging and over charging. This is why Lithium batteries have circuit boards and sensors inside, to stop users from destroying batteries. If they were just cells with 2 wires hooked up, every person who uses the tool would kill a battery within minutes or days. DO NOT let your batteries drain down. Chargers are designed to detect a battery pack at a certain voltage. If you leave your battery packs for a year without charging them, when you go to use one, the charger may not recognize it. Why? Because the voltage of the battery pack has dropped below the voltage the charger needs to see to identify a good battery. Usually, that cut off line is 3 volts. An old trick is to take a 9 volt battery, find your POS and NEG terminals on your battery, get a few strips of wire and hook up the 9 volt battery. Only leave it hooked up for about a minute. This will give the cells a tiny jump start, and should be enough for the charger to recognize a good voltage. Batteries today are quite advanced, and only getting better, but more complicated. With the built in safety devices, batteries are pretty fool proof. Charge them regularly if you do not use them, and you should have no issues. Factory defects CAN and WILL happen. These are not just cells soldered to a POS and NEG wire. There are multiple sensors and a circuit board in every battery pack. If one sensor fails, or a solder connection breaks, the battery is no longer good. It doesn't mean it's a bad product, everyone gets a bad apple sometimes.

While lithium batteries are good for up to -20 Celcius, it is still hard on them. If you can help it, keep your batteries inside a heated space. What I hear a lot of people say when I tell them they wrecked their own tool is "well, it's a tool, it should be able to take abuse" To a certain degree, yes. Power tools are not designed to be driven over, thrown into water puddles, used as hammers or prying devices, and they have their limits. I see customers everyday who think they should be able to work tools infinitely without them ever wearing out or failing.

Heat is still your enemy here folks. When I work my own tools hard, I take them off my work piece every once in a while, and run the tool at full RPM with NO LOAD. If your grinding, lift the disc off your metal, and let it spin at full RPM for a few minutes. Cooling fans are attached directly to the armature of the motor. If the tool is running at full speed, you are getting maximum airflow. Because you are not contacting your work piece, there is no load. This cools down the armature, the field, the bearings, and your brushes (in a brushed tool)

Concrete dust, drywall dust, wood dust, metal particles, they are all your enemies as well. Even particles your human eye cannot see, are abrasive. I see tons of portable tablesaws with failed bearings, because the owner was too lazy to blow the motor housing off after each use. The motor housing fills with saw dust, and gets into the support bearing for the armature. The bearing seizes, the motor seizes, most times burning out the armature with it, because the motor is fighting against a bad bearing. The cutting lubricant you see for cutting stone and tile work, mix that with concrete dust, it conducts electricity. I see a lot of angle grinders come in that don't work, covered in stone cutting lubricant, and stone dust. This is sucked in by the cooling fan, and shorts out the armature or the field.

The best advice I can give, is simple. Take care of your tools. I have owned and fixed tools for a lot of years, never once have I had a failure. All of my stuff looks brand new, even if it is years old. I clean and blow off everything after I use it. I am aware this isn't the most realistic thing, and not always possible for tradesman. However, don't do stupid things with your tools, and they will last. Understand that warranty is to cover factory defects, not user error. If you bring me a drill that you burnt out using a drill bit too big for the tool, that isn't warranty. That drill was not burnt out when it left the factory, so how can I get that approved for warranty? Buy the right tool for the job. If you need to use a 6 inch hole saw in hard wood, you need a super hawg, corded drill. They cost $450, but they are designed for big power and large bits. Don't assume your cordless drill is up to the task of drilling 500 6 inch holes in hard wood. Sure, maybe it can do it, but is it meant for that kind of duty? No.

Hope this helps! Any more questions feel free to ask.

aflesch · January 26, 2013

Does anyone know what Sears OEM code 320 stands for?

I know the first three digits of the model number (before the decimal point) indicate who made the tool. My drill starts with 320 but that is not listed on any of the OEM lists that come up in a Google search. Any idea who actually made this drill?

Full Model Number is: 320.26302

fm2176 · February 11, 2013

LaserBlueZ71,

I heard 2 or 3 years ago that DeWalt and Black & Decker are the same thing. Any truth to that?

I've actually had good luck with a drill (14.4 I think). Good torque and holds charge for weeks. I keep it in my camper for lowering the stabilizers.

Years ago, DeWalt and B&D had a universal line that was compatible, the Uni-Volt. I still have a B&D drill with a 7.2 volt B&D battery and an 8.4 volt DeWalt battery. Doubtlessly, the batteries are now junk, but I got my use out of them in the nineties. IIRC, the Uni-Volt line consisted of tools that could use those two voltages as well as 9.6v, and the tools were the same in all but color between brands. The DeWalt store serviced them, though, as my boss would take the company's tools there every so often for repair.

I have a 14.4v Black & Decker commemorative drill (stainless finish, patterned after early drills) that always worked for me. Bought it eleven years ago on clearance at K-Mart and replaced the charger a few years ago. I found a good deal on batteries when the 14.4 tools were discontinued. Last year, though, I upgraded a little when I found a Porter Cable set (drill, impact, light, and two batteries) on clearance for $60. It's excellent for my use.

My brother uses his cordless tools quite a bit more than I use mine, and he swears by DeWalt. Even so, when I got home after New Years and found my house had been burglarized (Milwaukee corded drill, Sawzall, air compressor, you name it, stolen), the Porter Cable set paid for itself. It (and a reciprocating saw I added last year) dismantled my shed no problem. It sits in storage now, waiting to use the shed materials to buil my son a clubhouse when I get home.