Cordless Drills

[klillemo]

Panasonic

Panasonic

Has anyone here had experience with Panasonic? Have heard good things about them & they are supposed to be the only ones who builds their own batteries.

I have used the EY6432GQKW on original batteries for about 8 years but I know others that did not last as long.
http://www2.panasonic.com/consumer-...rs/model.EY6432GQKW_11002_7000000000000005702

I am now to the point that I realllly need new batteries but two batteries runs near the cost of new drill. I know they are old school NiMh but this drill is so torquey that it beat all the yellow 18Volts it went up against, and it was lighter. I regularly use it with 7/8" auger bits through 2bys. I have used it for augering full depth into landscape timbers for 5/8 dowels. It does not stop. Not even when I had a bit jam and twist my hand into a cross brace, jamming my finger on the trigger full on and stalled. I bought a new motor as the old one smelled a little after that, but it never quit so I have the spare motor new in box.

I see ski areas use this drill as a snow drill to place race poles all the time. Cold weather performance appears to be well established by that alone.

My only fret is what to do next? Do I stay with the NiMh I know and love or switch to the Panasonic Lion.

 

[Bulldog1401]

I have a 18V li Milwaukee that I like, but it won't finish a hole on a fresh battery sometimes. I think it is some kind of overload protection in the drill.

I really like Milwaukee tools. Their sawzalls are amazing. I have the 28 volt lithium -ion drill and have the same problem.

 

[Dennis Alwon]

I have been pretty happy with my Ryobi 18V- came with a flashlight and drill. My helper uses it now and its been going strong for a few years now.

 

[izak]

a contractor I worked for for several years had bought about 10 soft bags of Makita Lithium combo packs-1/2 drill and 1/4 impact.
Looked like a blue lunchbox.

we were on a job a couple years ago where it got down in the 20's, (and below) and when the guys would get the drills out of the truck to start working, they wouldnt hardly work at all, even when charged.
In fact, easily 10 or 12 batts were ruined by being used (and charged) at those low temps.

I did some research, and realized that those batteries really ought to be up around 60 degrees or more before use, and definitely before charging.

I bring my DeWalt Lithiums inside the house during the winter, which is where they get charged, and when I take them out they go into the cab of a warming or warmed truck

 

[SmithBuilt]

I will add Hitachi.

We have always had DeWalt tools. For the most part satisfied. We needed to replace our small drills and found the small hitachi on sale bought two of them. After abusing them for more than a year I can say they are very tuff. May have to try the 18v hammer drill next.

 

[sd4524]

Dewalt 18 v tools are what I use. The batteries drive me nuts. I bought a power hammer drill a year ago and I really don't mind pulling out the extension cord if i have a lot of drilling to do.

 

[stevero]

I have used the EY6432GQKW on original batteries for about 8 years but I know others that did not last as long.
http://www2.panasonic.com/consumer-...rs/model.EY6432GQKW_11002_7000000000000005702

I am now to the point that I realllly need new batteries but two batteries runs near the cost of new drill. I know they are old school NiMh but this drill is so torquey that it beat all the yellow 18Volts it went up against, and it was lighter. I regularly use it with 7/8" auger bits through 2bys. I have used it for augering full depth into landscape timbers for 5/8 dowels. It does not stop. Not even when I had a bit jam and twist my hand into a cross brace, jamming my finger on the trigger full on and stalled. I bought a new motor as the old one smelled a little after that, but it never quit so I have the spare motor new in box.

I see ski areas use this drill as a snow drill to place race poles all the time. Cold weather performance appears to be well established by that alone.

My only fret is what to do next? Do I stay with the NiMh I know and love or switch to the Panasonic Lion.

Most, but not all, battery packs can be opened up and the cells replaced. You can do this for a fraction of the cost of a new battery pack. You can buy NiCad or NiMh 1.2v batteries wifh solder tabs on line, and renew the battery pack yourself. For a 12v battery buy 10 cells; for an 18v battery buy 15 cells, etc. One thing to watch for: Most battery packs I've worked with use either C or "sub C" batteries. The sub C's are smaller, so make sure you buy the right ones. The on-line battery stores should give you the measurements so you can compare with what you have. Also some retail battery stores can rebuild the battery pack for you. Don't know how the price compares with a new battery.

 

[John120/240]

re built batteries

re built batteries

The DeWalt 18v batteries that i have had re built usually cost $ 18 to $ 20 less

than new batteries. Battery life is compareable.

 

[480sparky]

For years, I would buy a new DeWalt every January, rotate my old one to 'back-up status', and sell the old back-up on ebay.

Last January, I bought an 18v LiIon Makita. Just the other day, I realized I hadn't even considered replacing it.

 

[LarryFine]

Also some retail battery stores can rebuild the battery pack for you.

Batteries Plus rebuilds for a set price per cell.

 

[Little Bill]

Of the Dewalt Cordless Drills, which model/battery size/battery type do most of you use?

 

[guitarchris]

We bought the Bosch combo pack and have been loving it. The Makita was lighter but the Bosch seems more like a professional tool than a homeowner type tool. Metal gears and tons of torque. I'll report back after a year or so (sooner if it craps out).

 

[LarryFine]

Of the Dewalt Cordless Drills, which model/battery size/battery type do most of you use?

I use and love the 36v DeWalt stuff: hammerd-drill, recip saw, circular saw, flashlight, angle grinder.

I'd love to have the impact driver. Mayhaps one day. :roll:

 

[Little Bill]

I use and love the 36v DeWalt stuff: hammerd-drill, recip saw, circular saw, flashlight, angle grinder.

I'd love to have the impact driver. Mayhaps one day. :roll:

How many batteries do you have for all those? I've been checking on the 18v Lithium-Ion. They are supposed to last longer (per charge) and charge faster. Does the 36V weigh a lot more, and do you get more torq or just longer run time?

 

[LarryFine]

How many batteries do you have for all those?

On on the drill and two spares in the case, one on the recip saw and one spare in the case, and one stays on each of the other tools. That's a total of eight.

I've been checking on the 18v Lithium-Ion. They are supposed to last longer (per charge) and charge faster.

The 36v batteries are also Li-ion. Each one contains an electronic pack that prevents over-draining and I guess that helps long-term battery life as well.

Does the 36V weigh a lot more, and do you get more torq or just longer run time?

They're a tad heavier, I guess, but, they're definitely as strong as their corded counterparts. I consider the charge life to be excellent. They seem to go on forever.

Higher voltage means lower current for a given power level (gee, where have I heard that before?), so that also helps the battery life. I have zero complaints about them.

 

[PetrosA]

Now that the poll has more than 100 responders, I think it's safe to trust it somewhat. I'm not surprised that DeWalt has almost 50% since they spend more on advertising and promotion than anybody else hands down. They also never putzed around with overload protection and have a reputation as a do-or-die tool. I think it would be interesting if age was taken into account because I'm curious how many of us older guys who were introduced into electrical work when Milwaukee ruled are still brand loyal or whether in spite of our age we've moved on to something else, especially considering that Milwaukee is only third (I didn't live in the US during the 90s and early 2000s, and I hear that that's when their reputation started to decline).

On the overload protection note, I recently burned up my Metabo and had to take it in for service. I live 1/2 hr. from their US headquarters so I just dropped it off in person. I thought it had overload protection built it, but it turns out they use two types of protection - a temp sensor in the battery (which is what my drill had) and a Hall sensor on the motor (which is in addition to the battery sensor on some models). Service was excellent to say the least! They found a fault in the winding and the drill was made better than new while I waited. We got to talking about motor protection and the techs said that a lot of buyers ask to have it removed because it slows down their crews. They'd rather have their guys burn up the tools than waste a few seconds for the sensor to reset. I thought that was an interesting tidbit, especially considering that Metabo tools aren't on the cheap shelf...

 

[hurk27]

When cordless got past the stage of being a neat toy (none of them at first had any power and the first ones were those slow 6 volt screw drivers) Makita came out with a 7.2 volt drill, it was ok at the time, but wasn't that good as a screw driver as it would coast after letting off the trigger, then Dewalt came out with a 7.2 that had about twice the torque and RMP, but the best thing was it had dynamic braking even the next line of Makitas still didn't have this, as I had the 9 volt series, then Dewalt came out with the 12 volt series, and with the torque it had it was hands down, later the 2 speed version came around, then the 3 speed after the 18 volts came out, Milwaukee didn't even enter the picture until the 18 volts were long out, and the price was ridiculously high, a Dewalt kit was around $580.00 and Milwaukee for their kit was around $899.00, I was still using a 12 volt Dewalt I rebuilt from a few old ones when I found an 18 volt Dewalt kit at Sams Club for $289.00 which was a steal, it had the 61/4" skill saw instead of the 51/2" and the snake light, but didn't have the sawzall but had a coupon for one for $99.00 which I couldn't pass up, this deal you ended up with 4 batteries and 2 chargers.
A few of our guys did spend the money for the Milwaukee 18 volts kits, but after about 3 years we all had Dewalts, one even had a LI battery Milwaukee kit, but it didn't last and battery replacement was high.