New DeWalt 18v tools

[RalphVa]

Has anyone replaced their old 18v DeWalt tools with the new 20v lithium ion ones?

I can replace all our 5 tools with 5 of the new ones for $438. Looks like. About time. Our DeWalt 18v ones date back to 1994.

Biggest problem with the old 18v ones was the way the batteries click in and out. Some batteries were devils to get out of the tool, particularly any non-DeWalt ones I bought at the local battery store.

How do the new ones work?

I've 18v B&D chain saws/grass whip and 40v lawn mower & chain saw. These batteries release quite easily. The 40v ones just slide in and have a single clip release to pop them out. The B&D ones have a single release on one end of the batteries.

Ralph

 

[Jim Nelson]

I really like the new DeWalt 20V stuff with the 3.0 batteries.They have a single clip release that is easy to use.The only" problem ", if you can call it that, is the impact driver is too powerful and you have to be careful or you'll twist things off,but they are fine for lags. I have a 12V driver/ drill set that I prefer for screw driving. The 20V 3/8" square drive impact is super for wrenching and works great for lug nuts.

 

[George2615]

I own a 20V Lithium DeWalt 1/2" cordless drill I use at work.

In the home garage my Ryobi and Milwaukee cordless drills have seen their last days. Batteries won't hold charge any more on the Ryobi and the Milwaukee gears recently wore out. I also needed to replace a HF 1/2" corded drill that had worn the teeth off the chuck so can't keep bits tightened.

For Christmas I used a couple gift cards I rec'd. and bought the following:
18V Dewalt 1/2" cordless drill (wanted another 20V but none of the local stores had any in stock).
DeWalt must have had some kind of deal with stores (maybe closing them out) because they had tons of 18V drills on sale.
Corded Milwaukee 1/2" hammer drill
Husky Die Grinder

The 20V Dewalt at work I've had for about 1 1/2 years and the batteries are still great and slide in and out like new.
I had some B&D cordless tools years ago and was not impressed. I did look at new B&D cordless drills but they cost more than the DeWalt or Milwaukee and only came w/ one battery.

 

[newbury]

My son talked me into getting him one of the 20V max sets (drill, circ saw, recip saw, impact driver, 2 batteries, charger & bag) for his birthday.

Note there are differences in quality of the "kits", different drills, different circ saws, different recip saws.

I was so impressed by the time the batteries on the drill lasted versus my 10 yr old Milwaukee I bought the drill w/ 2 batteries last year and this year bought the circ saw and 2 of the newer XR 5 Amp hour batteries from CPO. And I was pleased that the new XR batteries worked with the older equipment. They are very easy to insert/remove from all the equipment.

Reading here and elsewhere it seems the Rigid or some other brand might be better, but on the occasions I get on a job with my son it's nice to have swappable batteries.

 

[KennyG]

I picked up a Dewalt Lithium 20v drill last summer. I've used it a good bit, including replacing the siding on my pole barn. Light weight, lots of power, long lasting batteries. Only limitation is that mine isn't a hammer driver but I've got a B&D drill for that.

 

[tman1020]

The new 20 volt stuff with 3 or 4 amp batteries is much improved over the old 18. They have a 20 volt framing nailer that is unreal. Direct competition for pass loads. They seam better in every way some are even built in usa. Only negative is they don't have the full tool selection available yet.

 

[mikehaugen]

I bought the 20v compact drill and impact driver set (not the brushless ones) for $148 around thanksgiving on a whim. I didn't think I'd like the slim battery packs and almost bought a pair of the bigger ones since I also found them on sale from $180 to $100, but never did. I gotta say I'm pretty impressed with the slim batteries though. Probably wouldn't be good for something like a circular saw or grinder though.

Only issue is that the impact driver has a burning smell when you use it. I googled it and most people seemed to think it was normal and I couldn't find anyone that had any problems.

 

[gkm]

I bought a new Dewalt 20v lithium ion and it's been an outstanding purchase. So much better than the old 18v I had. The batteries are awesome, they hold a charge forever, charge quickly and have plenty of power. I will be buying the 4 amp twin battery pack really soon.

BTW, I got my 4 piece set on sale at Lowe's for 299.00 on sale a few months back. One of the better purchases I've made in quite some time.

 

[LD1]

I am not a fan of the dewalt 20v stuff. Most recent experience was with a few new drills they got for us at work. Only 1.5AH batteries and all plastic. (no metal in the gearcase).

Personally I am a fan of Milwaukee M18 Fuel (brushless) tools. Which is what we had prior to getting the new dewalts at work. They came up missing But if it means anything, no one has stolen the dewalts:laughing:

The dewalt drills are DCD780. And the M18 Fuel drills were alot nicer, last longer, better battery. But this is just my :2cents:

 

[RalphVa]

Thanks. I'll look into the Milwaukee M18 tools.

Sounds as though the new 20v DeWalts last longer (than old 18v) on the batteries, and the batteries are much easier to use.

Ralph

 

[LD1]

Not an issue for a single user, but I dont like the lack of charge indicator on the dewalts.

When working in a shop with multiple guys, you have no idea when you grab a drill if it is charged or not. Or having the spare batteries on top of the cabinet, knowing which ones are full charge that just came off the charger? or which ones are dead and waiting on a charger to free up.

 

[motownbrowne]

I bought the impact driver and compact drill/driver kit for $140 at fleet farm. Made in USA. Haven't used them much, but happy so far. I saw northern tool has the brushless hammer drill and impact kit for $179 this week. Regarding batteries, I like them so far, but they actually seem a little loose, almost floppy when mounted on the tool. I'm sure I can solve it but it applies to the original question, so I thought I'd mention it.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

I am not a fan of the dewalt 20v stuff. Most recent experience was with a few new drills they got for us at work. Only 1.5AH batteries and all plastic. (no metal in the gearcase).

Personally I am a fan of Milwaukee M18 Fuel (brushless) tools. Which is what we had prior to getting the new dewalts at work. They came up missing But if it means anything, no one has stolen the dewalts:laughing:

The dewalt drills are DCD780. And the M18 Fuel drills were alot nicer, last longer, better battery. But this is just my :2cents:

+1 on the Milwaukee Fuel, we use them a lot at work and in my opinion are far superior.

 

[Jim Nelson]

Not an issue for a single user, but I dont like the lack of charge indicator on the dewalts.

When working in a shop with multiple guys, you have no idea when you grab a drill if it is charged or not. Or having the spare batteries on top of the cabinet, knowing which ones are full charge that just came off the charger? or which ones are dead and waiting on a charger to free up.

My 3.0 DeWalt batteries have a charge indicator.

 

[Scooby074]

I have a pretty full set of the Dewalt 18v Xrps. Circ saw, Recip, impact, Flour work light, Hammer drill, 16ga brad nailer, radio and about a half a dozen batts. Ive been very happy with them, but they are starting to get long in the tooth. It seems that DW has moved away from the old 18V nicad line with nothing new coming down the pipe so far that Ive seen

Ive been considering the new Dewalt 20v (actually still 18v, just marketing) especially after seeing their new 20V LED spotlight but have really been leaning towards the Makita Brushless 18v LXTs.

No matter what I go with Id have to replace a lot of tools eventually to get back to what I have now for selection and Im not looking forward to that. There is always the option of running 2 different style batterys I guess unless DW gets smart and reworks some of the new 20v Max tools to work with the millions of old 18v XRP nicad style batteries out there.

 

[strum456]

The Milwaukee Fuel line of tools will blow your mind. I just keep buying more of them and using my corded tools less and less. Their high torque impact gun has 1100 foot pounds of torque! Yes, 1100 foot pounds, that is not a typo. More than a Snap On Thundergun, or a Titanium IR.

 

[kevinwak]

I really love my bosch cordless drill and impact driver. Used them all day long when I built my house. Batteries last forever.

 

[gkm]

My 3.0 DeWalt batteries have a charge indicator.

Same here...no problems w/ quality, battery life, quick charge and made in USA.

 

[mikehaugen]

I am not a fan of the dewalt 20v stuff. Most recent experience was with a few new drills they got for us at work. Only 1.5AH batteries and all plastic. (no metal in the gearcase).

Personally I am a fan of Milwaukee M18 Fuel (brushless) tools. Which is what we had prior to getting the new dewalts at work. They came up missing But if it means anything, no one has stolen the dewalts:laughing:

The dewalt drills are DCD780. And the M18 Fuel drills were alot nicer, last longer, better battery. But this is just my :2cents:

Well then I guess they have made great strides. We actually had the exact opposite experience. We had 2 of the older milwaukee 18 volt drills here and they quit working relatively quickly (can't remember what was wrong with them, it was about 7 years ago) They then bought an 18 volt and and i think a 36 volt (maybe 24) dewalt they couldn't be abused enough. The 18 volt eventually grew legs and the big one I think got ran over or something. Now we have an 18 volt makita compact and we also got an older 14.4 dewalt from another plant that shut down that looks like it was through vietnam and still works well. The makita is even fairly impressive for it's small size.

Maybe I should have given Milwaukee a second look as it seems there new line is getting a lot of praise. The dewalt pair I bought was an impulse buy when hd had a sale going on. I have a ridgid set I've been pretty happy with but needs new batteries. I will still eventually get new batteries ir rebuild mine as I did like that set and the drill was a little beefier and was a hammerdrill.

 

[LD1]

Never used older Milwaukee stuff so I cannot compare. I can say, their new Fuel stuff does have a 5yr warranty:thumbsup:

For years I avoided cordless tools. We always had good stuff where I worked, but at home, with not using them often, I was never getting good life out of tools or batteries. Alot of that was cause I bought cheap stuff.

When I finally decided I wanted a nice drill/driver set, I did a TON of research and read lots of Independent testing stuff. General consensus was that the Milwuakee battery system was far and away the best. And the tools (FUEL) also had a slight edge. But there are other "brushless" tool from other brands now too.

And I cannot praise Milwuakees warranty enough. Since I am nearing in on building my pole barn, I wanted some more batteries and more drills and 1/4" hex drivers. So I bought some used on ebay, so now I have 2 Hex drivers, 1 drill, and 1 hammer drill. Plus 4 2.0AH batteries and 2 4.0AH batteries with 3 chargers. One of the drivers died after about an hour of use. Wouldnt change speed, wouldnt reverse direction, etc.

Contacted them to see if they had any idea and if it was a simple part I could purchase. Not expecting any warranty since it was purchased used on ebay. They insisted I send it back to them and they would cover it. 2 weeks later I get a brand new tool, and a note that says they are still evaluating it to see what is causing the issues:thumbsup: