email sent

 

Does he sale it online or what i am in need of a new SDS Hammer drill i burned the motor in mine and need to get a replacement will buy a used one for the right price. shoot me a PM adn let me know thanks

 

If you go with Dewalt, pay the extra and get the XRP batteries.

We have the regular and teh XRP's at work, the regular will put in about 300 screws with the hammer drill, the XRP's will put in 1200+ on one charge. Thats about what we do in one 10 hour day, but we have went 2 days on one charge on the XRP's by forgetting to charge them when we leave.

 

Yeah after still even more reading, I'm beginning to realize that a lot of brands are moving now towards an all lithium line up as the technology in the battery becomes cheaper.

I don't necessarily need the tools for the next month or two, so I think I'm going to monitor the market and stores and wait till the cost of the lithium technology goes down and get a set like the Mil lithium combo.

You guys have provided AMAZING amounts of information and I'm so glad I asked first before running out and buying something.

Duke

 

Ok coming from a contractor point of view. The only tools I buy are Dewalt I have 15 guys working for me and they use only Delwalt. I have dropped the drills off 2 story buildings and they still work. I have put in over 1000 3/8 tapcons drilled into concrete in one day. The dewalt 1/2 inch impact wrench I was using was tearing its self apart it was working so hard- finally after about 5 hours I switched to a 1 inch impact just becuase I thought the sucker was going to melt in my hands (I felt bad for the tool). Also I like the color- its cool opening a tool box seeing it glowing yellow.

As for batteries.. Dude you have to keep them plugged in. I alone carry about 10 batteries with me. I always have 2 sometimes 3 or 4 charging at a time. That is how quickly you can go through them. Your frequency will depend on the amount of stress your putting on the tool. There is a difference between putting screws into steel and putting screws into wood. Takes alot more power to get into the steel.

Dewalt has gone with a new chuck its steel over the older black plastic ones. I haven't yet had a chuck go bad (over 3 years). Now the one thing I don't like about dewalt is the freakin trigger. There triggers will go out. I don't know extactly how long it takes or even if the abuse my company puts them through causes it. Don't take it to get "rebuilt" just buy a new trigger they cost like 20 bucks (less if you buy in bulk) through the new trigger in and you get a new drill (feels like it). Also they are a little heavier than the other (18v). But you get over that. The trigger goes for all there drills and impacts.

Yes you can over tighten a nut or screw with an impact wrench. I have broken the heads of nuts and bolts right off using my dewalts. Or you just strip the threads out. This will happen with all impacts. I own them because they are lighter then the drill motors and I try to use only self tapping screws. But for real power I use the drill motor.

I have one kit from dewalt its the 18v think 8 pcs kit. The rotor hammer in it rules it works better them my bosch- but the battery only lasts like 25 holes (3/8 to 1/2 inch for going about 4 inches in.). Not to discount bosch when I do get a good rotor hammer they rule- but its 50/ 50 on them.

Milwakie is a good brand I see alot of guys using them. Makita has a pretty looking, and small 18v impact. On a job sight the guys are only using milwakie and dewalt. Some use the makitas but not many. People make fun of ryobi its a joke (the drywall guys sometimes use them) But they also spend 5 hours talking 2 hours eating and 1 hour working- that is until they are all fired. No one uses craftman- I don't know why.

Black and decker does own dewalt. But my friend is incharge of accounting at B and D. He says Dewalt is run as a seperate entity- Black and decker trys not to associate with Dewalt publickly (from fear of losing sales at Lowes/ home depot). They are doing great with there connections in China.

Most people I see on the job sites are using 14 or 18 volts. Me I only own the 18 volts. 14 volts work really well for wood working. I have to have the power to go into concrete and aluminum. I like to have extra in case I need it. Like my truck

I would stay away from anything over 18v.. The manufactures are just trying to create an arms race. But its your arms that suffer with all that extra weight. Also look into recharging times.. Alot of companies don't bother to say how long it takes to charge a battery. Sometimes Its hours or even 1 hour. With a dewalt its about 20 minutes. Don't worry about batteries just remember to keep them plugged in - nothing slows a project down more then a dead battery.

So look into getting a kit- either from dewalt or millwakie maybe even makita (but they are expensive and I'm not sure worth it). Don't go over 18v's. Check your recharging times (before buying). Then- remember "safety first".

 

I don't have time to go through the entire thread and look.. but has anybody suggested Hitachi? Don't laugh just yet.. they have a full 5 year warantee. They were priced considerably under Porter Cable, Dewalt, Makita, and Milwakee (The only other brands I'd consider) at least as of about 3-4 years ago. I used to work for a tool company selling tools to mainly contractors. The most popular brand was Dewalt, but there were many of them making the shift to Hitachi just because of the added warantee.

Check out what you are getting for the money... don't just look at price and assume that all 18v drills are roughly the same. Torque, battery life, speed, weight of the tool, re-charge time of battery, warantee, etc. all play a part in the cost of the tool.

 

This thread has really opened my eyes to what I need to look for in picking a cordless tool set and I really thank everyone!

Those lithium battery tools REALLY look appealing for the reduced weight and additional battery life, but the cost is still too high.

I'm going to keep my eyes open for good deals while shopping for the next two months as I don't need them right away.

I was all about buying this week though since I have a 10% coupon and $250 gift card.

Duke

 

I paid $600 for the dewalt 6pc (hammer dr, circ, reciprocating, cut off, 90' drill- and the stepchild light) around three years ago, and while I don't use them every day they are really put to the test when I do.

I had a $600 wet saw for 12" tile that was almost useless for 18", the cut off tool with a 4" dry cut diamond blade goes through slate, travertine, etc no problem. After a while I got so good w/ it I was cutting 4" tile w/ a speed square and the cut off tool, so I just sold the wet saw.

The 18v hammer drill is incredible though I haven't used a lot of other brands. The minute you pick up a craftsman/ryobi you realize why you bought the dewalt. The clutch itself must be a masterpiece of design, the way it spins up and brakes. My favorite task for this tool is leaving the 1/2" drill at home and mixing up 1/2 buckets with a paddle mixer. It has power to spare and has thrown me up against a wall pretty hard when a self feed auger bit binded up one time. Taught me to respect that little tool!

The best use I've found for the right angle drill is using a wire brush attachment to get loose paint off. Then of course when you need a right angle drill for drilling it's nice to have.

Dewalt has a local repair facility here and I think they stock about every part for these things locally.

Have fun and don't shoot your eye out.

 

you too

 

Obviously the Ford techs don't care, as it took ALL my effort with a breaker bar and cheater pipe to even break them loose after they did brakes. Words don't do my anger justice.

The proper way would be to buy an torque socket* made for the correct ft/lb for our truck. They're pretty expensive though, so I'd recommend getting them 1/4 past tight with the impact and using a torque wrench if you already have one to finish the job.

* http://www.torqstik.com/

 

I use bosch "blue line" and works well I only have the 18V hammerdrill and I'm very happy after 4 years of sopradical but heavy use.

 

Yikes! You were not kidding on the cost there.

Duke