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I miss this tool SOOOOO much!

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Fugio

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Dec 5, 2014
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About 6 years ago I bought a Coleman branded flashcell cordless screwdriver. It was one of the most amazing tools I've ever owned.

Like an idiot I gave it away as a gift to my boss at the time. He was really nuts about futuristic technology and loved it.

Then, when I went to buy a replacement, they were all gone. 5 years and I still can't find another one.

I just found this page that shows them in Australia (not Coleman branded) and sent the company an email. But I think it might just be an old page since that store doesn't show them in their search.

http://www.flashcell.com.au/

Have any of you guys ever owned a flashcell powered tool? I REALLY miss that thing!!!
 
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stikman56

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Never owned one. I run the Snap-On CTS561CL at work and home and love those things.
 
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Fugio

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Well I just spoke to the company in Australia that makes them! They have a version for sale in the EU that's 240v, which doesn't help me.

BUT, they said it will be for sale again in the USA in June of this year!!! They said it will be available at "select" Sam's Club stores, whatever that means. Very exciting!
 
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loudog212

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Lancaster, PA
I love my dewalt 7.2 volt. Sure its bigger but it may be one of my most used tools around the house. got a cheap set of 1/4 hex drill bits to use with it. hex shank 1/4 drive adapter will allow for small sockets and its extremely torquey
 
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kctyphoon

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maybe its me - but i dont see whats so great about it.. seems like an awfull lot of stoping to charge the thing...BUT if you were so set on buying one, i imagine you could just the the 240v version and just use an adapter from a travel kit with it intead of waiting..

theres so many lithium screwdrivers to pick from today, it just seems like a hassle to me.. alot of people wish Dewalt would just make a lithium version of the old 7.2 screwdriver they still sell cause it was so good for its time. i drywalled my entire house with that thing, and it was one of the best tools i had ever bought at the time.. wonder if they will still be selling their nicad tools when we finally get flying cars..
 
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gungatim

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west mich
had one, tossed it. didn't last long. same tech I believe as those little 2" remote control cars that were popular at christmas a few years ago. capacitor charges up works a bit then needs another quick charge.
 
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uart

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gungatim said:
capacitor charges up works a bit then needs another quick charge.
Click to expand...
They might be useful in some applications, but I think LiIon is going to be a lot more versatile.

I watched the video on the linked page and was a little unimpressed by just how unspecific they were about run time. I quote the video verbatim:

Drop it in the charger when you take a break. And in just 60 seconds it stores enough energy for "plenty" of run time.
Click to expand...

Wow, so this thing's official capacity rating is "plenty". A very nice technical spec! I wonder just how long that actually is?
 
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Fugio

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The thing about it that I liked is what you guys seem to think is a drawback. See, sometimes I just need to screw in a single screw, or just a few. Never at work. This is an around the house tool.
It stored energy for a really long time. But even if it was completely dead, I could have it charged to 100% in a bout a minute. No need to go out to the garage for my drill or spend an hour charging something.
This thing saves so much time on small jobs like fixing a door knob or hanging something with a drywall screw or building crappy ikea furniture.
And I don't think a capacitor ever really goes bad. It won't ever hold less of a charge like all batteries will eventually. And it's impervious to heat or cold which is nice I guess.
You can only drain a Lithium Ion cell to 2.2v before you have to stop. But you can drain a cap down to zero. Mine would do more screws that you'd think. The 60-90 seconds later it would do some more.
And I have to say that watching the little fuel gauge go from empty to full while it charged was pretty fun to watch. I know, simple minds are pleased by simple things. But I still liked watching it. :)
 
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bcradio

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Jan 30, 2012
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New Mexico
Fugio said:
The thing about it that I liked is what you guys seem to think is a drawback. See, sometimes I just need to screw in a single screw, or just a few. Never at work. This is an around the house tool.
It stored energy for a really long time. But even if it was completely dead, I could have it charged to 100% in a bout a minute. No need to go out to the garage for my drill or spend an hour charging something.
This thing saves so much time on small jobs like fixing a door knob or hanging something with a drywall screw or building crappy ikea furniture.
And I don't think a capacitor ever really goes bad. It won't ever hold less of a charge like all batteries will eventually. And it's impervious to heat or cold which is nice I guess.
You can only drain a Lithium Ion cell to 2.2v before you have to stop. But you can drain a cap down to zero. Mine would do more screws that you'd think. The 60-90 seconds later it would do some more.
And I have to say that watching the little fuel gauge go from empty to full while it charged was pretty fun to watch. I know, simple minds are pleased by simple things. But I still liked watching it. :)
Click to expand...

Actually capacitors going bad is probably the most common failure on modern electronics.

If you have ever had to replace your main board on your washing machine because it went bad (or similar), good chance it was a 5 cent capacitor that was all that went bad on it.
 
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Scimmia

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Dec 2, 2014
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Kirbot said:
Capacitors can go bad eventually, but it might take 20 years
Click to expand...

It might, but things went to hell in the late 90s. A stolen mis-transcribed electrolyte formula led to the market being flooded with caps that didn't last more than a couple of years (if you were lucky). We're still feeling the effects of it today, as there are still a lot of cheap caps on the market that just don't last.
 
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shampoop

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Scimmia said:
It might, but things went to hell in the late 90s. A stolen mis-transcribed electrolyte formula led to the market being flooded with caps that didn't last more than a couple of years (if you were lucky). We're still feeling the effects of it today, as there are still a lot of cheap caps on the market that just don't last.
Click to expand...

I've never heard of this. Any articles describing the situation?
 
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GuyllFyre

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Sep 2, 2014
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Scotia, NY
Scimmia said:
It might, but things went to hell in the late 90s. A stolen mis-transcribed electrolyte formula led to the market being flooded with caps that didn't last more than a couple of years (if you were lucky). We're still feeling the effects of it today, as there are still a lot of cheap caps on the market that just don't last.
Click to expand...

I know I've replaced or re-capped hundreds of computer motherboard that have had this issue.
Nothing like poor Chinese industrial espionage to make life hell for everyone on the planet.
 
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Fugio

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Dec 5, 2014
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Correct, I certainly know what Sam's Club is. They're everywhere! But I don't know what they mean by "SELECT" Sam's Clubs.

About 6 years ago I was wanting to buy a HID floodlight/flashlight. But I didn't want to spend a fortune. The best one available, at the time, was clearanced at "Select Sam's clubs. And the prices varied WILDLY from about $35 to over a hundred bucks. Lucky for me I was travelling for my company at the time and had an event in North Carolina where one was for sale. I got one of the last ones and brought it back home to Dallas with me. Lots of fun getting through TSA with a high powered searchlight! Actually the TSA in NC was super friendly. They all just wanted to play with he light, and they did.

Hmmm, I seem to have gone off on a tangent.

Gonna go read about this capacitor plague now!
 
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