Cordless tools and batteries

SolderIron

Super Member
Sharing my hunt for usable home use cordless tools.

I have cheaper cordless tool sets, and the batteries did not hold charge for long. Tools worked fine by the way. NICAD will not hold charge for long and I have to plan ahead to get them charged. Then I got a Good Will sale Ridgid set with bum batteries. I was able to make one good battery pack out of two bad ones. Interesting circuits on those LI-ION battery packs. It is only 1Ahr pack and works just fine. Then I wanted the 4Ahr batteries (same reason I went from a 50Watt Amp to 250Watt).

I broke down and bought a Ridgid drill and driver set because of its battery waranty. It is kind of pricy and I may have gotten just as well by buying the cheaper brand $99 dual pack batteries and harvest the 4Ahr batteries for the old tools. To get the Ridgid battery replacement is a bit of a hassle from reading. I will see when I get there in 3? years.

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I recently threw out all my cordless tools. The batteries had all given up, and it would have cost more to re-battery them than to replace. I bought an extension cord instead. I have a nice old Makita drill, and as long as the wire is long enough, it will go. I do need a 1/2" drill now though. The Makita is only a 3/8" chuck.
 
The problem is the poor quality Chinese NiCds and often the charger. I've always used Yuasa NiCds and they last forever- I've got some 4AH D size that are over 30 years old and still are fine. I'd rather put $60-$80 into a drill I love, than throw it out and buy another with batteries that only last a few years.
 
Been using a DeWalt LiIon drill and drill driver that came in a set with charger and 2 batteries, used them and have had to charge each battery 3 times in the last year! Now I don't think they last that long and maybe I didn't use them that much but not bad and when they run out of power, it just stops. Takes about 6 hours to charge back up.

They also have (Lowes and HD) periodic sales on the batteries and the XRP longer running batteries (LiIon as well). $200 or less for the set on sale, $100 for the batteries, yeah, pricey till you look at how much LiIon laptop batteries run for.

IMHO, putting money into good tools is a smart investment.

That said, I also use Panasonic/Sanyo Eneloop rechargeable NiMH batteries for AA and AAA work.
 
Posted this here once before

On another forum with many members the discussion about battery tools came up, actually the replacement battery cost. As it turned out none of the members had knowledge of this great deal.

With my electrical business we went through many brands, after decades of pissing and moaning about the cost of replacement batteries I decided the tool only had to outlast the batteries.

In 2004 I went to Home Depot to buy some cheap piece of shit Ryobi and noticed the ad for Ridgid Tools. Then I remembered someone had mentioned they had a lifetime warranty that also covered the batteries, I didn't believe him at the time. The ad in HD mentioned the lifetime warranty.

I called over a sales associate and asked if it was true, his reply "hell no". I showed him the ad and he agreed they were covered, it was true. I purchased a 5 piece kit and the batteries lasted 8yrs of daily commercial use. I mean these tools were actually abused, I wanted new ones as soon as possible, they never skipped a beat.

Finally replaced all 3 batteries in 2012, free of charge and had two tool's reverse switches replaced, also free.

With the extremely high cost of replacement batteries I thought some here might benefit from this.



Here is an excerpt from the warranty info on what is covered.


WHAT IS COVERED UNDER THE LIFETIME SERVICE AGREEMENT
The Lifetime Service Agreement on RIDGID® Hand Held Power Tools, Stationary Power Tools and Pneumatic Tools covers all worn parts in properly maintained tools, including normal wear items such as brushes, chucks, motors, switches, gears and even cordless batteries in your qualifying RIDGID®Brand hand held and stationary power tools; and replacement rings, driver blades and bumpers on RIDGID® Brand pneumatic tools for the lifetime of the original owner. This Lifetime Service Agreement does not apply to other RIDGID® Brand products.
__________________
 
Wow Kingshead, thanks for that. That is one helluva lifetime service agreement. And the original batteries actually lasted 8 years? NiCads at the time? That must be some kind of record, or they have very good chargers that will not overcharge.

Does Rigid now use LiIon, and where are the batteries and tools sourced?
 
it is sometimes possible to revive nicads . it does involve stripping them down and shocking them into life . i have not tried it yet but intend doing in the near future .
 
Wow Kingshead, thanks for that. That is one helluva lifetime service agreement. And the original batteries actually lasted 8 years? NiCads at the time? That must be some kind of record, or they have very good chargers that will not overcharge.

Does Rigid now use LiIon, and where are the batteries and tools sourced?

The dual well charger that came with my 5 piece kit has a very strong built in fan that keeps the batteries cool while charging. The batteries have many holes in the bottom for ventilation allowing the fan to blow through the batteries. I believe this is a large part of why the batteries lasted so long.

When I purchased the set my goal was to abuse the equipment as much as possible and get new ones under warranty, they outsmarted me by being so great, LOL.

Ridgid does now use LiIon and I have no experience with them, but they come with the same guarantee. You can buy Ridgid tools at Home Depot. If wondering about the companies background, Ridgid Tools was making quality tools before I was born, they just recently put a toe into the battery tool market.

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My experience is that quality counts. Back around fifteen years ago (?) I bought a Craftsman 3/8" cordless drill with 2 sets of Nicads and a large flashlight that used the same battery. I think they were 18v. This was my workhorse drill, grinder, driver for neatly ten years. At one point I used it to drill and grind out a rotted wooden boat transom. This involves using 3' extension and different drills for days on end and often with side to side motion. The batteries ran on the edge of overheating and I just rotated them. I feared for my drill so I got a 1/2"B&D corded which burned out within a day and I returned to the Craftsman. A couple of years later the batteries eventually gave out. I'd call that a good run.
A couple of years ago my wife got me a new Craftsman Nextec 320 12v. It is smaller and lighter and has a smaller battery (LI) but it lasts for a long time, has plenty of torque and charges very quickly. I am pleased with it also although it is not so muscular as the old 18v.
In between I have has several cheaper ones and they didn't hold a charge, had little torque and broke fast. The moral is to get the best you can and you will be happy. Craftsman is no longer the best but it is still pretty good. The L ion batteries are great.

PS If Rigid gives those pictures with the drills then I'd get them!
 
I recently did some research and will be going Rigid in my next purchase. I think you have to register your purchase to use the warranty. Even when you get the new replacements when you use the warrantly, you have to register those as well or you don't get the warranty - prolly get out of this warranty a lot due to this technicality. I have an awesome Milwaukee cordless drill/hammer that has little hours but batteries need replaced at $90 and are NiCad and will be bad in a few years, fastest if I don't use it regularly. I'm going with the lifetime guarantee at HD. I likely will not wear out a tool but batteries will die many times.
 
I went a completely different way. I bought up used Makita 9.6V units I have a half dozen of the drills (including one angle drill) a flashlight (I have never used) and a tiny little kick back saw I use for cutting panel and the occasional hard to get into space.

I have I think 7 chargers and now 5 working batteries. I buy them up every time I see them at a Garage sale if the batteries are good. I doubt I have the price of one modern rechargeable in the whole mess. I have recelled a couple of the battery packs and thrown maybe 3-4 packs away. Been using the mess for more then a decade.

Nothing like working on something requiring a screw driver, a counter sink, and maybe a pass through hole and having each tool in its own drill makes things GO FAST.

As to battery life I can keep 3) drill motors working pretty steady on the 5 batteries I have so I'm happy.

Sure if I had to drill a door knob hole or some other heavy load job I can always plug in the big 1/2" Black and Decker.
 
The biggest reason for cordless tools is working without the power cord. I usually work with a drill and power screw together around the house. Most of the time is for one or two crews. You can’t beat a drill and driver being on the shelf and ready when needed. The set I got has the battery status indicate check lights build in. In one charge its been 3 weeks in weekly occasional use and still shows a 100% charge. Probably battery is still new….
 
Somebody donated a set of Makita 9.6 tools for our low budget race team. I poked around on EBay and found a set of aftermarket replacement batteries rated at higher mah than the original batteries, for less than half of what it would have cost to buy factory Makita batteries. Inside, these are all C sized batteries, so if you feel energetic you can open many batteries up and rebuild them with good C sized rechargables.

I did the same with the Roomba, btw. A new battery from the factory was something like $100 from iRobot, I found some proper sized batteries at Fry's and they even had the leads soldered on them. Cost me maybe $20.

I love the convenience of cordless tools. Either at the track, or for small jobs around the house, so much easier than dragging a cord around. Do your shopping for batteries, however, as there are a lot of alternatives out there.

bs
 
I went a completely different way. I bought up used Makita 9.6V units I have a half dozen of the drills (including one angle drill) a flashlight (I have never used) and a tiny little kick back saw I use for cutting panel and the occasional hard to get into space.

I have I think 7 chargers and now 5 working batteries. I buy them up every time I see them at a Garage sale if the batteries are good. I doubt I have the price of one modern rechargeable in the whole mess. I have recelled a couple of the battery packs and thrown maybe 3-4 packs away. Been using the mess for more then a decade.

Nothing like working on something requiring a screw driver, a counter sink, and maybe a pass through hole and having each tool in its own drill makes things GO FAST.

As to battery life I can keep 3) drill motors working pretty steady on the 5 batteries I have so I'm happy.

Sure if I had to drill a door knob hole or some other heavy load job I can always plug in the big 1/2" Black and Decker.

Yeah, those old Makita 9.6 drills are great! I have 2 of them as well as that little saw. I upgraded the blade, and it does quite well. The 2 drills I think I got on Craig's List for $30 over 5 years ago, after my original got stolen. I also find batteries at yard sales/junk shops that last for much longer than seems possible. I like to think of them as my vintage drills!
 
I have a few Black and Decker 18v nicd tools. I find the batteries/tools are ok for occasional home projects. This summer the drill lasted just as long as the Dewalt 18v it was working alongside on a project.

My original battey finally died after 6 years. I bought a Harbor Freight 18v batt for $10. Pulled the cells out and rebuilt the B&D for 1/3 the cost and its higher capacity.
 
Milwaukee 12V lith-ion

I switched to Milwaukee tools 15 years or so back, Two reasons :1.) watched the crazy Milw. rep drop their (at the time) German made cordless drill onto a concrete floor while standing on a 7 fooot step ladder. Still worked -had brocken the battery pack latch on the battereries of my Panasonics a couple of times . New battery time -VERY expensive.Eventiauly -after too many drops -did break the latch on one of my Milwaukee packs (those hard hats on construction sites are sorta useful.). Went into the Milwaukee shop ( did I mention I live in beertown ?) Can this be fixed -ya -we an sell ya the parts- how much-gota look it up -$3.14 . 2.) second reason - I work in neighborhoods where ya come around a corner with a black pistol in yer hand - yer gonna scare someone and if that someone's armed ? Hope Milwaukee sticks to red tools .
Switched over to their 12V and 18 V Lith-Ions last year - frankly -the 12V gets about 90% of the use.
 
I prefer the LI-ION batteries now because they have a very low discharge rate. Supposedly they can stay on the shelf for months and still have useful charge.I suppose I can leave the NICADs plug into the charger all the time, but I suspect I have to design/find a charger that won't overcharge or cook the battery.
 
Li-Ion in low temps

Since we are currently experiencing the joys of 0 Deg. F weather - worth mentioning that Li-Ions aren't nesecarily happy below freezing. As cold as the midwest USA is right now - I throw my battery packs into the cab with me when it gets this cold-otherwise ya can wait awhile for them to be useful on the jobsite.
 
My NiCad Ridgid 18v hammer drill is known as the beast on the job sites by all the LiIon tool owners if that means anything. The corded tools have nothing on my old battery Ridgid tools, the sawzall is every bit as heavy duty as a corded Milwaukee, the circular saw is just as capable, even after all these years they never cease to amaze me. I wish Ridgid still made the NiCad tools.
 
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