choffmann
Member
Okay yall, I've noticed since I started working construction, that dewalt tools are really losing their reliability. Can anyone relate, or am I just howling at the moon?
Dewalt tools...
- Thread starter choffmann
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back2class
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- Jan 7, 2009
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They always sucked. When I was working as a pro they proved to be junk. The last cordless drill I purchased back about a decade ago was Ryobi 18v and it was superior in all respects...or at least equal. Went through about 4 drills and a few other Dewalt cordless tools before I realized they were ****. Can't speak to other brands these days, but I highly doubt anything made Black and Decker has improved over the years.
thewatusi
Well-known member
When I worked in construction I used a Dewalt cordless drill and beat the piss out of it. Never let me down.
CwazyWabbit
Well-known member
I think it depends which level you buy at. Some of the cheaper ones are little more than homeowner rubbish. The top of the range stuff still seems well built.
Beemer533
Well-known member
At home and at work we pretty much use dewalt exclusively with no real issues; both new 20 volt and old 18 v stuff. As mentioned they do sell some low grade versions for cheap at HD and loews, I wouldn't bother with it for anything more than occasional home use.
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woody 73
Well-known member
Been using dewalt for many years now no problems with the tools but the batteries are killing me in the wallet.
rsanter
Well-known member
While there may be other good brands of cordless out there, the dewalts I think are great and have served we well over the years.
I am still stuck on the 18v series because I have a bunch of them.
I have batteries that are 10 years old and still working fine. I have worked them hard and they keep working
Bob
I am still stuck on the 18v series because I have a bunch of them.
I have batteries that are 10 years old and still working fine. I have worked them hard and they keep working
Bob
Beemer533
Well-known member
That's not common though. I travel with mine all the time just tossed in a Pelican case with no issues..
DanarchyCustoms
Well-known member
Never had a problem, dropped my 20v impact off a genie lift and it still runs 3yrs later.
Farmall450
Well-known member
Can't beat them, IMO. Here there are more Milwaukee guys but in the real world...
Last 10 years i've seen more red and blue on the site than yellow.
Sam'sAutoParts
Well-known member
I beat mine and they just won't die. All my cordless stuff was bought used and its still going nearly 8 years of abuse later.
Farmall450
Well-known member
According to compete.com:
Views of Milwaukee's website, march - 129,850
Views of Dewalt's - 223,129
This would imply DeWalt is nearly twice as popular. Sure, it's not sales, but it is a very strong indicator.
Mohawk Dave
Well-known member
wow Farmall. That's a cool website and info you provided.
I use red battery stuff, but my corded drills are yellow. Hell, even the Military specs out DeWalt corded drills in a lot of the tool kits.
I use red battery stuff, but my corded drills are yellow. Hell, even the Military specs out DeWalt corded drills in a lot of the tool kits.
Jobsite, not internet. You said real world.
PelicanPines
ALLIANCE MEMBER
The only dewalt tools I killed were ones purchased in eBay deals that were too good to be true. I still have the 1st 18v hammer drill I purchased new from home depot the first year they were out. I acquired about 10 drills/impacts over the years 18/20/14.4 All the ones I purchased new are fine.
I have heard "stories" of how bad they were but mine always worked. Now the saws are pretty useless for me. They never seem to cut enough on 1 battery. Even my 36v saw is weak compared to corded tools.
I have too much ******* in them to switch to a new brand at this point.
Oh yea... did get a refurbished 20v impact from CPO that smells like its burning but it has not let me down in any other way.
I have heard "stories" of how bad they were but mine always worked. Now the saws are pretty useless for me. They never seem to cut enough on 1 battery. Even my 36v saw is weak compared to corded tools.
I have too much ******* in them to switch to a new brand at this point.
Oh yea... did get a refurbished 20v impact from CPO that smells like its burning but it has not let me down in any other way.
1990 Grand Wag
Well-known member
Never let us down (B&D Professional or DeWalt)! As for cordless, believe it or not we still have a few of the old Univolts (probably a mix of nostalgia, they still work, and we can purchase non OEM batteries on Ebay)! As long as we can get the batteries and they still work, we use 'em!
Bestfromnw
Member
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- Apr 7, 2015
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- 17
Never had an issue and I use all of mine hard! I've got 1/2 impact 1/4 impact , 2 drills, grinder and rep saw; they've been dropped, stepped on, wet and used in 110+f temps - not a single issue
kgorman
Well-known member
I don't use my 18v professionally, but I do use them a ton. Especially the compact 1/2" impact, that thing has taken a licking. I have a couple newer lithium batteries and they work great. My initial tools are more than a decade old now.
That said I am using a Bosch 12v impact the most these days. Love the light weight.
That said I am using a Bosch 12v impact the most these days. Love the light weight.
Around here most of the construction guys are still using Dewalt stuff. Generally the only "pro" guys using the cheaper cordless are the fly-by nighters. When you see most of their stuff, it's thrown in the back of a ratty pick up or in a bucket.
The only issue I've had with my Dewalt stuff was shortly after I bought my set. One of the batteries appeared not to be holdign a charge for very long. I emailed Dewalt, they replied back requestign a date code on teh battery. I sent it back to them along with a link to a forum (with picture) showing when I bought the kit. They sent me a new battery replacement.
The only issue I've had with my Dewalt stuff was shortly after I bought my set. One of the batteries appeared not to be holdign a charge for very long. I emailed Dewalt, they replied back requestign a date code on teh battery. I sent it back to them along with a link to a forum (with picture) showing when I bought the kit. They sent me a new battery replacement.
Coach James
Well-known member
Actually B&D has owned Dewalt since 1960, but were not using the Dewalt name. Around 1992, B&D started making a new line of power tools aimed at pros and named the line Dewalt.
Coach
bcradio
Well-known member
This gets the first post of the year award.
It seems most people on here only associate DeWalt (and maybe the other brands too) with their cordless tools. DeWalt makes some excellent corded tools too. I have had great luck with their grinders, demo hammer, table saw, miter saw, cutoff saw, clamps, corded drills as well as many of their 18 and 36 volt tools. The only issue I have had with any DeWalt tool was their 36v drill i bought had a wiring issue that caused the trigger not to respond occasionally when pressed. I took it over to the DeWalt repair center and had it back in an hour (loose wire).
Do people only use cordless drills and impacts on here?
Beemer533
Well-known member
Good point, I do use quite a few of their cordless tools including grinders, several different sized SDS drills, hole hogs, and circular saws.. I've not had an issue with any one of them..This gets the first post of the year award. [emoji481]
It seems most people on here only associate DeWalt (and maybe the other brands too) with their cordless tools. DeWalt makes some excellent corded tools too. I have had great luck with their grinders, demo hammer, table saw, miter saw, cutoff saw, clamps, corded drills as well as many of their 18 and 36 volt tools. The only issue I have had with any DeWalt tool was their 36v drill i bought had a wiring issue that caused the trigger not to respond occasionally when pressed. I took it over to the DeWalt repair center and had it back in an hour (loose wire).
Do people only use cordless drills and impacts on here?
I think I use the cordless stuff so much, it is the first thing that comes to mind..
This post edited by the NSA
Beemer533
Well-known member
Farmall450
Well-known member
Don't you think there will be a correlation between the two?
What you see is a SMALL sliver of what occurs in the whole country, never mind the world.
Garage journal gets a lot more visits than tool talk, and that's because a lot more people are on it talking
Walmart gets more than Blain's farm and fleet; that's because more people go to walmart (more stores) than farm and fleet.
i think it depends on the application and the uses.
the at home guy will NEVER see a difference between brands unless faced with a super heavy duty project and then possibly a difference.
a guy who has a home shop may see a difference, but probably won't bother because they will jump on the line that has the tools they need (woodshop vs metal shop type of deal).
the professionals will see all kinds of difference depending on the applications. seems like dewalt stuff is just fine in most woodworking and general construction, as are most other brands. but when it comes to metalshops where you are constantly chucking up drill bits, taps, countersinks, etc. not to mention sawzalls and all the other types of tools, it feels like a crapshoot.
every place i've been has used dewalt as their shop tools, and i've always hated it, the impacts feel clunky to use (18v nicad with the double trigger). the drills always felt like they bogged down real easy. but then i've also worked with guys who only use milwaukee or makita and swear that there is no comparable. but seen when their stuff fails too....
if it does the job, and doesn't fail every other week, is there really a problem with it?
one thing that is awesome is makita has the best chargers and charging times. so if you work for yourself you can keep less batteries on hand and get the same work done. big plus there.
the at home guy will NEVER see a difference between brands unless faced with a super heavy duty project and then possibly a difference.
a guy who has a home shop may see a difference, but probably won't bother because they will jump on the line that has the tools they need (woodshop vs metal shop type of deal).
the professionals will see all kinds of difference depending on the applications. seems like dewalt stuff is just fine in most woodworking and general construction, as are most other brands. but when it comes to metalshops where you are constantly chucking up drill bits, taps, countersinks, etc. not to mention sawzalls and all the other types of tools, it feels like a crapshoot.
every place i've been has used dewalt as their shop tools, and i've always hated it, the impacts feel clunky to use (18v nicad with the double trigger). the drills always felt like they bogged down real easy. but then i've also worked with guys who only use milwaukee or makita and swear that there is no comparable. but seen when their stuff fails too....
if it does the job, and doesn't fail every other week, is there really a problem with it?
one thing that is awesome is makita has the best chargers and charging times. so if you work for yourself you can keep less batteries on hand and get the same work done. big plus there.
nicksnothereman
Well-known member
Better than consumer grade but not by much.
92GreenYJ
Well-known member
I don't hate. I have both Dewalt and Milwaukee in my boxes for my main power tools.
Cordless:
Dewalts:
18v 1/2" drive drill
1/4" impact driver
1/2" impact driver
Corded
Reciprocating saw (sawzall)
Jig saw
Hammer drill
4.5" angle grinder (I have abused the ever loving **** out of this thing and it rocks)
Milwaukee:
Corded:
1/2" drill
Sawzall
Hmmm, guess I am a bit yellow biased. But it's the 18v stuff that does it. One battery type for all the tools and all that. It's all way better than the Ryobi or black and decker stuff I used to use.
Cordless:
Dewalts:
18v 1/2" drive drill
1/4" impact driver
1/2" impact driver
Corded
Reciprocating saw (sawzall)
Jig saw
Hammer drill
4.5" angle grinder (I have abused the ever loving **** out of this thing and it rocks)
Milwaukee:
Corded:
1/2" drill
Sawzall
Hmmm, guess I am a bit yellow biased. But it's the 18v stuff that does it. One battery type for all the tools and all that. It's all way better than the Ryobi or black and decker stuff I used to use.