Longevity of battery powered tools?

[Mr Ratchet]

Cords and hoses can be a pain. So can changing batteries and batteries that don't keep a charge. I had a Makita that I replaced four batteries and a charger. The drill was still fine though. Replaced it with a new Milwaukee 18V. I use my cordless for small jobs where I can grab it quick or if i'm not near power. If I'm doing a lot of drilling or driving screws it's my Milwaukee magnum hole shooter. I don't intend to buy anymore cordless. I can see where they work much better for some with the type of work they do.

The both have there advantages and disadvantages. The battery technology needs a giant leap forward before I were to go all cordless.

 

[Chilliwack Murray]

I find cordless impacts great for driving screws and all sorts of things around the house, I even use them for light automotive work like 3/8 and under bolts. There's no comparison with a corded tool if you are on a ladder, moving around or just working around objects. Working out in the weather or on wet, dirty, muddy equipment also calls for air operated tools, see how long battery operated tools last when they are always in the rain, dropped or sitting in puddles or covered in mud, salt and snow.

My problem with them is their short lifespan - the tool, not the battery charge. I used air impacts every day, to their limits and still have them. Once in a while you change a gasket or anvil but most are still in use after 20+ years. I've replaced or spent nearly the value of the tool on replacement batteries and repairs - I've had all the brands and none last more than about 4 years... Less with daily use. It's not uncommon in heavy duty to heat a bolt for 10 or 20 seconds and hammer with the impact for 60 seconds, repeating 5 or 10 times. Cordless tools don't stand up to this, to say nothing of battery life.

I don't think this is an issue unique to cordless tools, nearly everything sold today has a pretty short life expectancy, power tools are no different unfortunately. Until this changes I will stick to my cordless for light duty stuff and air for everything larger.

 

[Mr_B]

^
Yeah lifespan and cost of air is much cheaper and part of reason industry still uses mainly air.
My brother agricultural engineer and hard on the tools and air about all that last past 10yrs, few guys he works with who gone big on battery lines had warranty hassle then sunk loads after warranty on repairs or had no warranty right as broken due to rough work environment.
My airtool maintenance costs in couple decades is next to nothing, new tools/upgrades also very low for top end tool .
airtool drops much better than a battery tool lol, when battery truly needed (location/mobility) they amazing but rest of time they waste of time and finance .

 

[kctyphoon]

Just saying - if the reasoning / excuse of spending big money on professional tools is because of time saved and convenience added, its hard to use that same idea of having to spend more money on things that obviously give people a huge advantage in many trades..

I remember before i forced everyone to go cordless, a guy walking into a building with an extension cord, finding a room and a window that was close enough to the work area so he could run the cord outside.. it was grab a cord, check into the building, wait for someone to show up, find keys, open locked doors, throw the cord outside, hope it reached, come back out, drill 2 holes, go back inside, find the same guy to walk you inside, go upstairs, unplug the cord, go back outside, roll the cord up, put it away, - Then realize you need another hole drilled.. a cordless rotary literally saved 20 minutes or more of nonsense.

 

[Mr_B]

^
For trade mobile and sites yes.
For fixed location and production then no real benefit for higher cost and higher maintenance and available tool specs in other formats.
I buy professional grade power tools might not all be milwaukee as they don't do world class air, it not about not wanting spend out it about choosing what best for work scenario not jumping to conclusions on marking hype or buying as simply ***** for the tool even when got no intended use for it .
It like any tool, they all have strengths and weaknesses and you only get best from it when it best tool for the work environment , sometimes best tool is from HF, sometimes it could be a milwaukee and for another it could be Kuani .
Best tool has not a lot to do with price or brand or warranty it about choosing based on tool design and how it proved itself and how it work in intended usage scenario, warranty and price plays a small part and again needs be selected when really needed and true benefit .

 

[jonshonda]

If I made my living using tools every day, I would go 100% cordless. But I don't.

I don't use my tools on a daily basis for work (or play), more of a weekend warrior. I have a cordless Bosch drill and impact driver, otherwise everything else is corded or gas.

Why you ask? Simply because I don't want to stick any more money into those tools before I pass them onto my kids. Batteries have a limited life, 100% guaranteed they will loose capacity year after year....just the nature of the beast. Corded tools can obviously have their issues too, but if I use a tool 3-10 times a month I am ok dragging out a cord or two.

 

[Mr_B]

^
If you making your living in mechanical repair shop or production line design/setup engineer every day you probably wouldn't want 100% cordless, they not best solution in all scenarios.

 

[ChrisLS8]

Yes as you so clearly have stated about 30 times

 

[Mr_B]

^ yes, I wonder why !

 

[ChrisLS8]

Cause everyone has an opinion

 

[plinker]

Thing I look at is working in a shop, why buy both a 1/2 air impact and a 1/2 battery impact? The air will have better duty cycle, be less bulky and last longer. In the field it may be different depending on service truck capability (referring to service call work).

That said, the 3/8 Milwaukee fuel impact is on par with my Matco air 3/8 impact, the battery got in the way occasionally but the torque was there.

Every one is seemingly diehard for either air or battery, I find both useful, depending on what I'm doing and what I want/need. Opinions arent likely to change on either side so it gets to be beating a dead horse as it were. Everybody's situation and ideas of what works (for them) is different and that's all there is to it.

 

[Mr_B]

Cause everyone has an opinion

Cause to many people absorb too much marketing and trend opinion without looking at the whole range of tool options .

 

[Ign]

Thing I look at is working in a shop, why buy both a 1/2 air impact and a 1/2 battery impact? The air will have better duty cycle, be less bulky and last longer. In the field it may be different depending on service truck capability (referring to service call work).

That said, the 3/8 Milwaukee fuel impact is on par with my Matco air 3/8 impact, the battery got in the way occasionally but the torque was there.

Every one is seemingly diehard for either air or battery, I find both useful, depending on what I'm doing and what I want/need. Opinions arent likely to change on either side so it gets to be beating a dead horse as it were. Everybody's situation and ideas of what works (for them) is different and that's all there is to it.

Well, possibly 'cause when I need to walk out back to one of the parts trucks I just carry my cordless out there.

But last night I needed to clean up inside some 4" sq tube. I have the M28 die grinder (similar to M18) but it's so huge it requires two hands to use with any semblance of accuracy. So I pulled out my pneumatic die grinder 'cause it's sooooooo much smaller.

As you say everything has an application; duty cycle of things like pneumatic die grinders ain't great if you can't keep 'em from freezing up or freezing your hand off. Of course not that cordless would yet be the way to go here...........as I understand it guys who port heads use corded die grinders.........you just can't usually run air for THAT long without feeling like you're holding dry ice, and the "rubberized" tools will still eventually freeze. So there's a win for corded.

 

[Mr_B]

Every one is seemingly diehard for either air or battery, I find both useful, depending on what I'm doing and what I want/need. Opinions arent likely to change on either side so it gets to be beating a dead horse as it were. Everybody's situation and ideas of what works (for them) is different and that's all there is to it.

I agree with that, both very useful and wouldn't want be without either, trick is picking what best for the job and work environment, too many people brain washed by the marketing and tool trends to view all options of battery electric and air thus miss some amazing tool options .

 

[Stuart in MN]

If I made my living using tools every day, I would go 100% cordless. But I don't.

I don't use my tools on a daily basis for work (or play), more of a weekend warrior. I have a cordless Bosch drill and impact driver, otherwise everything else is corded or gas.

This is my thought as well. As a home user, I can go for quite a while without having to use a power tool, and when I do most times plugging in to the wall directly is not a problem. Even if I have to get out an extension cord it's no big deal.


I do have one old Makita cordless drill (it's so old, I think it has a 6 volt battery.) It worked fine for what it was, but it seemed like whenever I went to use it the battery had run down since it had sat around for so long since the last time I'd used it, and eventually the battery failed altogether.


I agree that for daily or professional use they make a lot of sense. Cordless tools have come a long way in recent years.

 

[pbon]

For me, battery tools are more convenient and portable. I have many 12 and 18 volt from Milwaukee. Once you have a few batteries and chargers, you can buy bare tools and they cost less than kits. I rarely use corded or air though I have some of both. My use is DIY but I have a full shop and do quite a bit of property maintenance and car maintenance/repair/modification.

Sure, the battery tools won’t last forever—I figure on 5-10 years before improvements give reason to buy new. I don’t mind paying for the convenience. I also don’t love the sound of air compressors, though I suppose I could buy a quiet one for $1500. With the battery tools, I can gave a conversation. If the compressor is running, it’s harder to do so.

 

[WittHay]

Thing I look at is working in a shop, why buy both a 1/2 air impact and a 1/2 battery impact? The air will have better duty cycle, be less bulky and last longer. In the field it may be different depending on service truck capability (referring to service call work).

That said, the 3/8 Milwaukee fuel impact is on par with my Matco air 3/8 impact, the battery got in the way occasionally but the torque was there.

Every one is seemingly diehard for either air or battery, I find both useful, depending on what I'm doing and what I want/need. Opinions arent likely to change on either side so it gets to be beating a dead horse as it were. Everybody's situation and ideas of what works (for them) is different and that's all there is to it.

I disagree that the 3/8 Milwaukee is comparable to air. The air will last years longer than the cordless and will stand up to oil and general shop environment much longer

My Milwaukee 3/8 Fuel Gen 1 is starting to loose power and getting noisy after 3 1/2 to 4 years of use. The maximum socket size i use on it is 9/16. Also have the 1/2 compact, 1/2 mid torque, 1/2 high torque and 3/4. Also have to be careful not to get too much oil on them. Little more fussing around than air.

It is what it is, need 5 cordless to do the work of 2 air impacts. Not much different than buying double of say 2 or 3 sizes in cordless, because under constant use they will be in for warranty and you still need something to use while it is being fixed

The marketing for cordless especially Milwaukee is like cellphones always replace when something new comes out. Basically get rid of Gen 1 as soon as Gen 2 comes out. When Stubby comes out get rid of Gen 2. When Gen 2 extra short Fatty comes out get rid of Stubby.

Always replacing tools but dont have to worry about warranty

 

[crewchief888]

im 5+ years with my milwaukee fuel 18v 3/8" dr impact and the original 4.0 batteries.


of all the cordless stuff ive bought in the past 20 years, milwaukee has had the longest life.

CM, ryobi, ridgid, SO, bluepoint havent survived more than 12-18 months without battery issues.

 

[Sycan]

I make my living with my tools working in the field out of a service truck, mostly working on newer big trucks. I bought into snap ons 14.4 volt line about 4 years ago and I have been really impressed with the 3/8 impact, ratchet, and their small 3/8 chuck drill. I haven't bought into anybodies bigger 1/2" impacts and don't plan to for a couple reasons. They're huge and heavy, and using air for 1/2" and up keeps my gas powered air compressor running good as letting the compressor sit for long periods of time isn't good.

 

[Mr_B]

The snapon line is bad line to buy into, spec is poor, warranty is poor deal, serice pricing is ridiculous and tool pricing is ridiculous .
Some of the mikwaukee range probably be pretty useful to you and it masive improvement over snapons line .
Seems you happy with your air you good to go but I would consider selling out of your snapon line while still has used market value and trying out something better, while I too love air impacts having at least one decent battery impact when mobile does pay off, my mobile air setup probably not a patch on yours though as I mainly in shop bay and then it 90% air tools .

 

[WWheeler]

I love my Dewalts, and have already posted in this thread concerning my experiences with their 'battery longevity' which has been beyond excellent BUT they don't in any way completely replace the need for air tools and corded tools for me. Each has their place.

I usually use a combination of air and cordless when doing any large job on a vehicle or and a combo of cordless, corded and air for large home improvements, but very often I'm just doing something small or in a location where bringing air or electricity is more time consuming than it would be worth, and that's when cordless is really worth every penny. Each has their place, but I'm almost always using my cordless on most every job. They're definitely the most versatile, and battery life has never been an issue for me so far.

 

[plinker]

I disagree that the 3/8 Milwaukee is comparable to air. The air will last years longer than the cordless and will stand up to oil and general shop environment much longer

My Milwaukee 3/8 Fuel Gen 1 is starting to loose power and getting noisy after 3 1/2 to 4 years of use. The maximum socket size i use on it is 9/16. Also have the 1/2 compact, 1/2 mid torque, 1/2 high torque and 3/4. Also have to be careful not to get too much oil on them. Little more fussing around than air.

It is what it is, need 5 cordless to do the work of 2 air impacts. Not much different than buying double of say 2 or 3 sizes in cordless, because under constant use they will be in for warranty and you still need something to use while it is being fixed

The marketing for cordless especially Milwaukee is like cellphones always replace when something new comes out. Basically get rid of Gen 1 as soon as Gen 2 comes out. When Stubby comes out get rid of Gen 2. When Gen 2 extra short Fatty comes out get rid of Stubby.

Always replacing tools but dont have to worry about warranty

I was referring to the torque level with the m18 fuel, It was on par with my air impact. I used it a lot up fitting trucks with cranes and such, more of less clean work. I had bought it for home actually and took it home later simply because I needed it there. Battery life was quite good. Oil & dirt contamination is/was a concern.

I ended acquiring an m12 3/8 doing automotive repair and it does most of what I need, though it's not got the torque of the m18. I still break out the 3/8 air when needed. I end up using the 1/2 anyway a lot of the time due to rust issues.

 

[ReggieR]

I have some 15 year old Dewalt 18 Nic stuff. The batteries SUCKED but with that uglyass 20 V adapter they're fantastic, tough old tools.

If you buy any of Milfukkees 12V toys make sure you're registered with " Heavy Duty" club because they need a Heavy Duty repair center to fix the garbage. Make sure your junk is registered. Great batteries tho
Go figure. Somebody make an M12 MF battery to M18 Dewalt adapter !

 

[Sycan]

The snapon line is bad line to buy into, spec is poor, warranty is poor deal, serice pricing is ridiculous and tool pricing is ridiculous .
Some of the mikwaukee range probably be pretty useful to you and it masive improvement over snapons line .
Seems you happy with your air you good to go but I would consider selling out of your snapon line while still has used market value and trying out something better, while I too love air impacts having at least one decent battery impact when mobile does pay off, my mobile air setup probably not a patch on yours though as I mainly in shop bay and then it 90% air tools .

I keep hearing how bad Snap On's air and electric tools are. I have 9 different 14.4 volt tools from them, the oldest being about 4 years old now. If it wasn't for different colors I couldn't tell the oldest battery from the newest. The 14.4 volt 3/8 impact is amazing, small enough to get into some tight places and a great fwd/rev trigger. Not sure how smart I would be to sell them just to replace with something that wouldn't work as well.

 

[speed bump]

I take care of my batteries by not leaving them on tools or the charger for extended periods, I always try to run nicads to dead, and store them in a climate controlled environment if they are going to sit for an extended period of time. In the last 15 years I have upgraded 3 times because tools got that much better not because I have ever killed a battery.

Compressed air is a terribly inefficient way to transfer energy but until recently electric stuff just wasn't compact enough to justify.

The only ding I have against corded tools is I am really lazy and 90% of my work requires an extension cord. Shoot, if I didn't need power for lights on my last project I would have bought a cordless circular saw just so I didn't need to string out 125 ft of extension cord.

 

[6PTsocket]

And sand blasting or running a DA sander or anything that needs a continuous supply of air.

The main limitation with cordless tools is the battery. Batteries are expensive and they all eventually deteriorate. If you are working a job where a decent compressor and air system is already provided, all you have to do is buy decent quality air tools and keep them oiled. And even for a DIYer, a Harbor Freight 21 gal gallon compressor will be sufficient for everything except painting and die grinding. By the time your air tool needs to be rebuilt, there's probably something better available on the market. With cordless, the amount of time it takes something to go obsolete seems to be a lot faster and you may have to worry about batteries not being reverse compatible. Air tool fittings are standardized. And then there's the dimensions of the tool. The bulge created by a 18V battery really gets in the way and high powered cordless models seem to be pretty large in size. Even those low power models seem to be less powerful and slightly more bulky. Both have their place. I've got a cordless drill and impact driver. And if I can justify the cost, I might even get myself a Milwaukee fuel cordless ratchet for low torque work.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[Dust]

I bought a set of Dewalt 12v MAX tools about seven or eight years ago. I still have not replaced the batteries, despite using my 3/8" impact and impact driver virtually every day. They last about a week or so before charging, and while the impact wrench has gotten slightly weaker over time, it still removes most bolts easily.

I love battery powered tools. If I need more power I'll go air or corded, but most of the time my battery tools work great.

 

[WittHay]

I bought a set of Dewalt 12v MAX tools about seven or eight years ago. I still have not replaced the batteries, despite using my 3/8" impact and impact driver virtually every day. They last about a week or so before charging, and while the impact wrench has gotten slightly weaker over time, it still removes most bolts easily.

I love battery powered tools. If I need more power I'll go air or corded, but most of the time my battery tools work great.

Good to know about the DeWalt 12v Max. Bought the drill, impact driver, 3/8 impact and screw gun about 4 years ago for home use. I think these are awesome little tools. Batteries hold a charge for months while sitting. Have a DeWalt 12V reciprocating saw and light also, that aren't used much.

Wasn't sure how long the small DeWalts last for daily use by a electrician, mechanic or other trades

 

[FSrepair&fabrication]

I have a few opinions... I’ll start by saying i bought the milwaukee m12 3/8 impact and ratchet 2 years ago and they are the bomb. Did a little job for the neighbor on a honda replacing a hood and headlights. All i needed were those 2 tools and a 10 mm.

But, most of what I do are field repairs on trucks and equipment and unless im doing something light (less than 15mm) out comes the air. Ive restrained myself from buying the m18 1/2 gun (even tho i really really want it) its just big and clunky and has no comparison to an airgun running on 175psi. Besides that i dont see them coming out with cordless blowgun or air hammer as someone else previously said, and I use those every day.

The other issue is heat/repetetive use, try using an m18 or 20v dewalt sawzall for hours on end cutting steel or aluminum. The tool heats up making the batteries drain faster, constant blinking lights when you pinch the blade in the cut, running back and forth to grab another battery which it seems you can use em all up before one has recharged then youre waiting. While all of this ******* is going on the old guys running a corded sawzall off their welder are laughing at you cuz theyve only had to stop cutting once to change a blade. They have their place with wood and light metal work, but i dont think corded is going anywhere fast.

 

[dr_clyde]

Sheesh. You guys treat this stuff like it's a religion or something.

I have all 3. All 3 have uses, merits and detractors.

I have a full time fab shop. I'm sorry, but cordless technology hasn't come far enough yet for me to replace my corded angle grinders, especially the big ones. Cordless is handy as hell up in a lift or on a service call, but in the shop, the corded metabos are king. My stainless finishing tools are corded, as well. Only a few companies make cordless versions of tube sanders and burnishers, band files, and things like that. And they are $$$. I don't need 2. So I'll stick with corded.

I use an impact wrench once a month. Maybe. I have both air and cordless. They both have their uses. In the shop, its almost no work to grab a hose and go to town. In the field, the cordless gets used way more. My dad has corded electric impacts, because he doesn't have the need for a battery one, and he has a tiny little compressor at his home garage. Once a year he needs to take tires off his trailer or whatever, and it works great for that.

I have yet to see a battery powered die grinder that is worth a ****, and as inexpensive as air where I can have a dozen of them all set up different.

I use a cordless drill 99% of the time, but occasionally I need the grunt and keyed chuck of the hole shooter or the hole hawg. And occasionally, I need an air drill. So I have all 3.

A buddy recently was driving thousands of screws. He came over and borrowed my air drill because he kept overheating his cordless impact drivers. He had 2 and rotated them, but still kept tripping them out. CP air drill can run for hours with just some oil and shop air.

I could see using a cordless miter saw on a jobsite before power is up. But a cabinet shop would be far better served with a corded saw.

I guess I don't understand the guys who are so firmly in one camp. Why not use what's appropriate in the situation?

 

[Luciferi]

I have been using dewalt 20v and 12v max (around 15 batteries)for the last 4-5 years and no battery failures. One the 12v is getting a bit weak.

My old 18v nicad dewalt batteries would last about 4 year of constant use.

I have 2 Milwaukee m12 tools that eat though batteries. I don't expect the longevity of dewalt.

I have 20 year old makita battery that I charged last year and surprisingly it worked. Hadn't used it in at least 10 years

 

[Ign]

I disagree that the 3/8 Milwaukee is comparable to air. The air will last years longer than the cordless and will stand up to oil and general shop environment much longer

My Milwaukee 3/8 Fuel Gen 1 is starting to loose power and getting noisy after 3 1/2 to 4 years of use. The maximum socket size i use on it is 9/16. Also have the 1/2 compact, 1/2 mid torque, 1/2 high torque and 3/4. Also have to be careful not to get too much oil on them. Little more fussing around than air.

It is what it is, need 5 cordless to do the work of 2 air impacts. Not much different than buying double of say 2 or 3 sizes in cordless, because under constant use they will be in for warranty and you still need something to use while it is being fixed

The marketing for cordless especially Milwaukee is like cellphones always replace when something new comes out. Basically get rid of Gen 1 as soon as Gen 2 comes out. When Stubby comes out get rid of Gen 2. When Gen 2 extra short Fatty comes out get rid of Stubby.

Always replacing tools but dont have to worry about warranty

It's not the fault of cordless tools (or any other product) - - it's just marketing and consumerism.

If the air tool market were hotter don't think for a second they wouldn't capitalize on EXACTLY the same thing. As it is, they already do:

gotta replace your 2131 for the 2135. Then the 2135tiMax. Now it's the 2235. Things just move a bit more slowly, but it's the same song and dance.

And I've always wanted the Hammerhead, just never got around to ordering one (plus they're not cheap)

I'm not defending cordless here. Or air. Or bashing cordless. Or air. It's just a hot market right now advancing quickly. It'll settle. Like full suspension mountain bikes in the '90s and early 2000's. Now most of the innovating is over and it's baby steps instead of leaps and bounds.

 

[Alpine4x4]

I keep hearing how bad Snap On's air and electric tools are. I have 9 different 14.4 volt tools from them, the oldest being about 4 years old now. If it wasn't for different colors I couldn't tell the oldest battery from the newest. The 14.4 volt 3/8 impact is amazing, small enough to get into some tight places and a great fwd/rev trigger. Not sure how smart I would be to sell them just to replace with something that wouldn't work as well.

Bad stigma from the older 7.2v lines that were **** and the expensive, but weak 18v line. My Makita 18v 1/2" will walk all over the Snappy 18v 1/2" impact. That being said, the 14.4v line is amazing. VERY compact and light. I bought into the 14.4v line to get smaller lighter tools like the 3/8" impact and ratchet. I still run the Makita line and have the 1/4" impact driver, 1/2" impact gun, and a 1/2" drill. When space is of no concern or max power is necessitated those are the tools I grab. I wish the Makita 1/2" was a tad lighter, but I rarely run into anything I cant zip off as a home gamer working on 3/4-1 ton diesels.

The mechanics at our shop have gone to mostly cordless as well. They still run 3/4" and 1/2" snappy air impacts, but mostly reach for their cordless tools. We have had a pretty ridiculous time trying to keep the snappy air guns running, seems we always have one in for repair. One mechanic has the 18v line and prefers it to the snappy air unless hes working on real stubborn fasteners and then goes to the 3/4". For reference they work on a fleet of semi's, forklifts, front end loaders, excavators, and 3/4-1 ton pickups.

 

[dacan23]

For various professions, yes air can be king. But not for a prosumer. I did love air tools at one point, but only being able to use 1 tool at a time, wasnt going to run a multi tap and have spaghetti of hoses. It got frustrating most of the time always swapping tool on the hose, then dragging it from side to side and top to bottom. Air tools are great but unless you have a tap every 3 ft in the workspace like a fab shop I worked in, then its a pain at home.

Plus the M18/12 lines have made me also cut the cord on lights and lights not having a rechargeable battery.

 

[VinceG]

if you have bad luck it will be about 5 months after the Warranty expires

 

[Ign]

if you have bad luck it will be about 5 months after the Warranty expires

For Milwaukee that's 5 years and 5 months. I'm ok w that

 

[Ign]

Sheesh. You guys treat this stuff like it's a religion or something.

I have all 3. All 3 have uses, merits and detractors.

I have a full time fab shop. I'm sorry, but cordless technology hasn't come far enough yet for me to replace my corded angle grinders, especially the big ones. Cordless is handy as hell up in a lift or on a service call, but in the shop, the corded metabos are king. My stainless finishing tools are corded, as well. Only a few companies make cordless versions of tube sanders and burnishers, band files, and things like that. And they are $$$. I don't need 2. So I'll stick with corded.

I use an impact wrench once a month. Maybe. I have both air and cordless. They both have their uses. In the shop, its almost no work to grab a hose and go to town. In the field, the cordless gets used way more. My dad has corded electric impacts, because he doesn't have the need for a battery one, and he has a tiny little compressor at his home garage. Once a year he needs to take tires off his trailer or whatever, and it works great for that.

I have yet to see a battery powered die grinder that is worth a ****, and as inexpensive as air where I can have a dozen of them all set up different.

I use a cordless drill 99% of the time, but occasionally I need the grunt and keyed chuck of the hole shooter or the hole hawg. And occasionally, I need an air drill. So I have all 3.

A buddy recently was driving thousands of screws. He came over and borrowed my air drill because he kept overheating his cordless impact drivers. He had 2 and rotated them, but still kept tripping them out. CP air drill can run for hours with just some oil and shop air.

I could see using a cordless miter saw on a jobsite before power is up. But a cabinet shop would be far better served with a corded saw.

I guess I don't understand the guys who are so firmly in one camp. Why not use what's appropriate in the situation?

You and I do the same thing. Try a corded German Fein and you might re-think Metabo

 

[Farmall450]

I loved my 1/2 impact too until I tried cordless.

Yes air has it's place, ie doing a lot of work right by the compressor in the bay, but damn is the portability nice on cordless, nearly as powerful tools.

 

[kctyphoon]

Just an observation - but seems like most people that present a case as to why cordless still hasn't evolved far enough for them, don't seem to own any of the newer cordless to really make a valid case against them.

Let's make something clear. Cordless will never replace corded for some people. If you spend your day at work drilling large holes into concrete for 8 hours (which I've done) - cordless is never gonna replace that. A cordless grinder on the other hand that can go for an hour straight is a viable option for SOME people to replace a corded tool. If that isnt enough for you, likely cordless won't ever be a good option. That said, most people dont spend their entire day constantly using one tool non stop.

 

[Hilltopmasonry]

Just an observation - but seems like most people that present a case as to why cordless still hasn't evolved far enough for them, don't seem to own any of the newer cordless to really make a valid case against them.

Let's make something clear. Cordless will never replace corded for some people. If you spend your day at work drilling large holes into concrete for 8 hours (which I've done) - cordless is never gonna replace that. A cordless grinder on the other hand that can go for an hour straight is a viable option for SOME people to replace a corded tool. If that isnt enough for you, likely cordless won't ever be a good option. That said, most people dont spend their entire day constantly using one tool non stop.

I agree, for example I have two chipping hammers one is a corded sds max when I have to demo a large wall or drill a lot of holes in concrete and one is an sds plus which is nice for the smaller jobs

They both have their place and one will not replace the other

Battery technology has come so far that People that haven’t tried the new cordless stuff is like comparing a brand new smart phone to a 2005 flip phone and saying how limited the old phone is and a cell phone Will never replace a landline


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