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Are you a cordless or corded tool guy

mobiledynamics

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Joined
Mar 14, 2010
Messages
5,052
Location
Gotham City
Weekend warrior. Sorta interesting how the cordless platforms have evolved. Everything from saws, to sub scanners, to inspections camera, etc, etc.

For me, the only cordless items in my rig are my Panasonic 18V 1/4 impact, Panasonic 14.4 Hammer Drill and Impact.

At the frequency that I use them, everything else is all corded.
Besides, tools go bad if they just sit around.......I spin my Hole Hawgs, Hiltis, etc every 6 months just to keep the greases flowing
 
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bcradio

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Joined
Jan 30, 2012
Messages
6,017
Location
New Mexico
I prefer corded for pretty much everything except a drill and impact driver. I have cordless of pretty much everything I use (as well as corded), but still think corded is better for me.

Cordless might be nicer if you were on a farm or something without easy access to power.
 

David W

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Joined
Apr 4, 2011
Messages
1,353
Location
K.C. MO
I have corded for everything except a screwdriver. I just don't see what's so great about cordless powertools. Sooner or later the battery goes dead and its usually sooner.
Now if I did field work where there is no outlet, that would be a different story but even then I'd strongly consider some sort of inverter or generator for the service truck/van.
 

NC-Fordguy

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Joined
Mar 10, 2012
Messages
1,391
I have both, and both serve their purpose. However, for heavy jobs I prefer corded.

^This......

If I was drilling holes in 1/4 plate steel corded is the way to go.

Drilling pilot holes in pressure treated decking, cordless is nice
 

djkeev

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Joined
Feb 8, 2012
Messages
1,223
Location
North Western New Jersey
I have both in corded and cord less.
Saws all,
Skil saw,
Drill
Impact drill
Portable lights.

What am I doing? Two quick cuts with a saw? Cordless. An all day project with hundreds of cuts? Corded.

Same with the drills, five holes or 500 holes?

Dave
 

Outlawmws

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Joined
Aug 9, 2011
Messages
39,332
Location
The Badlands
Corded except for light screw/drill guns; If it is a bigger hole, corded. saws, grinders, and the like are all corded. Those tools eat batteries to fast to have much use with me.
 

trboxman

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Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Messages
679
Location
North Bend, WA
I try to use the best tool for the task, sometimes that's cordless, sometimes that's corded, and sometimes it's human powered.
 

ncfh

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Joined
Jul 1, 2011
Messages
777
Cordless tool girl here ...when I can get away with it.

The newer cordless tools are so good I find myself using them for jobs I definitely would have run a cord for just a few years ago. The fact that I can do serious metal work at all, all day without stretching a cord amuses me to no end.

Twenty 7/8" holes in 1/2" plate, 300' off the ground? Cordless Magnum! Sweet!
 
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RedFordTruck

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May 10, 2012
Messages
921
Depends on what im doing. If im in the garage with easy access to power, then usually corded. If Im up on a ladder trying to sand, then the 18v cordless sander is great.

MY cordless set consists of an 18V Porter cable set that was super cheap at Lowes ($130 for sawzall, drill, circ saw, light, charger and 2 batteries). With added tools to the array (Sander, jigsaw, mini-vac). Not the best but they get the job done.
 

signcrafter

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Joined
May 9, 2012
Messages
12,515
Both, in my opinion you should have a corded version of everything you need. And then buy the cordless.
 

Jack Olsen

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Staff member
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Mar 22, 2009
Messages
6,678
Location
Los Angeles
I hate cordless tools.

The battery gives up at the most annoying time possible -- always. The batteries seem to have shorter and shorter use cycles as the tool ages. And then the whole tool becomes obsolete in a few years, replaced by a new battery/tool/charger system.

I have many corded tools that are much older than me. My cordless tools will be junk within a decade, no doubt.

That said, I have a few cordless drill and a cordless impact driver that I use a lot.

But I still hate them.

If I could get a reasonably-priced corded impact driver, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. The battery to the one I have goes dead while it sits on the shelf -- and when I swap in the spare it's usually well on its way to being dead, too. :mad:

So I guess I'm a corded guy, who still has to spend some time with the cordless stuff.
 
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crewchief888

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Joined
Dec 3, 2009
Messages
13,753
Location
NW indiana
all the above

including air powered.

whatever suits the need at the time.

so far i'm having great luck (battery wise) with the ridgid li-ion drills i bought.

i hate dragging ext cords or air hoses when i dont have to.


:beer:
 

Mr Ratchet

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 3, 2011
Messages
931
Location
Michigan
Out of all of my power tools, only one is cordless. It's an 18 volt drill and it works great for lighter jobs or when I have a quick job or no power is near by. As good as they have become over the years, they still do not compare to the corded versions. I replaced an older 14v a couple of years ago. The drill still worked great, but I replaced four batteries and a charger in the time I had it. It was as cheap to by the new 18v than to get two more batteries for the 14v. The newer 18v is as compact and light as my older 14v and the 18v has a whole more power and run time. It's the same deal with air nailers. All use hoses and no battery operated ones.

pow1.jpg
 

Talus

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Joined
Apr 15, 2012
Messages
116
Location
Southside CT
Most everything I buy is corded. I don't use power tools very often so it's nice to not have to worry about a dead battery or charging when I need to use the tool.
 

GSteg

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Joined
Apr 27, 2009
Messages
1,295
Location
Earth
I use my tools mostly for automobiles, so cordless wins. From impact guns down to ratchets, it's nice not having the hose in the way.. When I use to do construction (on my own time anyways), I use corded tools.
 

Brad54

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Joined
Jun 13, 2006
Messages
4,646
I LOVED my 18v cordless Dewalt 1/2-inch drill... the thing practically lived in my hand.
Then eventually the batteries died, and to get replacement batteries would have been almost as much as a new tool!
meanwhile, my corded Skilsaw worm-drive circ saw is 15 years old and performs like new, my dremel tool is 15 years old and performs like new, my 3/8 Craftsman drill is 25 and performs perfectly, and I've got a couple more drills that are over 50 and perfect...
And then there's my dad's stuff that's between 40 and 60 years old and all works like new.

Cordless tools come with an expiration date.

Corded tools do not.

-Brad
 

Outlander

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Joined
Jul 30, 2010
Messages
5,154
Location
Quebec, Canada
I use the cordless drill alot. It seems the cordless sawsall and circular saw in the kit don't really have the juice for much of what I want to do.
 

cderalow

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Joined
Nov 13, 2011
Messages
1,326
Location
Potomac, MD
I've got both. Each have their time and place. In a shop or working on the same task all day, corded.

On a site or doing a bunch of varied tasks, I grab the duffle bag and the charging station and I'm on my way.
 

betcd

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Joined
Feb 26, 2012
Messages
133
Location
florida
It depends what i am doing if it lighter jobs or some where there is no power then it's cordless and for the heavier then use corded
 

2manytoyz

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Joined
Sep 20, 2011
Messages
419
Location
Central FL
Corded is my last choice these days. Can't remember the last time I actually used a corded drill, circular saw, jig saw, sawzall, drop light, etc.

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Think I have 7 batteries for the Dewalt tools, and 4 for the Makitas. The batteries are pricey, but they last me about 3 years. Usually wait for deals around Christmas to buy batteries or tools.
 

Harwinton

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Joined
Apr 26, 2012
Messages
196
I'm surprised nobody in the drill business ever thought of making a drill that ran off of rechargeable C or D batteries that are easy to replace. If I get a 12 volt cordless drill, that's something I might do. Or I'll hook it up to an adapter to plug it into a car outlet.
 

jamesc

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Joined
Jun 13, 2010
Messages
209
Location
Ontario Canada
I prefer cordless, I am loving the m18 line from millwaukee, I just got a smoking deal on the 1/2 impact, its nice having batteries that interchange with lots of tools. the drill is nice, I love using electric over air for drilling, so much easier to control the speed, but air usually is more compact. heavy duty stuff i pull out the cord though. I have heard good things about the 36v and 28v cordless stuff that contractors use for things like cottage building on islands.
 
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