Cordless Tools

[Clemson]

I got a Lowe's gift certificate for Fathers' Day, and I went down and bought myself a present yesterday. I got a nice set of DeWalt 18volt cordless tools. The set had a drill/driver, a 6.5 inch circular saw, two batteries, and the charger all in a plastic case. It also came with a premium offer good for either another battery ($79) or a set of drill bits ($59). I struggled with the Premium, but I think I am going to get the set of bits. I can do a bunch of work with two batteries. I probably have 3 miscellaneous sets of bits, but they are in different places, and they are missing certain sizes. The saw was sort of a bonus. I wanted a cordless drill, and the saw upped the ante by a little over $100. It seemed to be worth the difference, although time will tell.

Clemson

 

[cowboydoc]

Go with the battery!!!! I have six batteries for my set and I still find myself needing an extra one. If you do any kind of a project at all two batteries isn't even close to being enough.

 

[Golfgar4]

I agree with Richard. Go for the extra battery!!

You can always drill one size smaller than you want if you don't have the right size drill. But you can't drill ANY holes if you got no juice! /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif/w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif

 

[wasabi]

I concur with Richard. The batteries will eventually wear. Keeping them in cycle will prolong their life a while. It is a real pain to be working and have the tool slow due to low battery charge. Having extra in reserve helps.

 

[mikim]

You always need 1 battery in the charger. If you have one in the saw and one in the drill and one goes dead - how far behind is the second? I have that 18V dewalt saw and the battery doesn't even last as long as I'd like - with one battery in the saw and one in the charger - the one in the charger is almost ready when the saw goes dead. My drill is 12 V and I have 2 batteries for it as well. It lasts longer but when on a big job I keep one charging and it's ready when the one in use goes - I don't lose momentum when the battery dies on me - a quick swap and I'm still humming along. If I had an 18V drill I'd want 2 chargers and 4 batteries. If I took a break to wait for the battery to charge - I might quit for the day and my projects would take even longer than they do already./w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif
mike

 

[RobertN]

Richard for President!!! I agree, go for the extra battery! I misplaced mine a while back, and just found it; what a relief, as they are not cheap. I would like to have a third.

I got the Fat pack; drill/driver, circ saw, recip saw, flashlite, charge, two battery combo two years ago for Fathers Day. I love it! I use the stuff all the time.

I have a Makita 12v drill/driver, and have used the 14v drill driver. I like the feel and ergonomics of the DeWalt better.

I also like the flashlite a lot. After having a couple mag lite 2d, 4d, and 8d flashlites, I find the 9v Makita, and especially the 18v DeWalt really outshine the mag-lite.

 

[Clemson]

Well, dang! Now you guys have me thinking I need the battery instead of the drill bits. I have until the end of July to mail in the rebate slip. I may just sleep on it for a few days!

Clemson

 

[Gary_in_Indiana]

I have an old Makita 9.6 V system... a couple drills, a small circular saw and a flashlight. I must have at least half a dozen batteries and don't regret it one bit. One of the handiest things I ever got for that was a car charger for my batteries. Most of the time it's no big deal but, for example, right now I'm doing electrical work in a barn to prepare for new service. Needless to say, that's the only charging option I have out there.

 

[wasabi]

Nah, no sleep required. This is a no brainer! Batteries!!

 

[rmorgan]

Spent the evening screwing flooring to a new dock section. Ran through both batteries. Didn't have a third. Battery!!