Makita drill on Amazon

[Swingman]

Agreed, although IME there has always been a big difference in cordless drills when it comes to quality/longevity. My original Makita cordle$$, bought 25 years ago, lasted over a dozen years before I was forced to replace it ... it also fell off a dozen ladders during that time and never missed a beat. My Dewalt 18v, bought to replace it, is still kicking at around ten, although there have been quite a few battery rebuilds in the interim.

Basically, I've never had a under $100 cordless drill last as long as either of those, and I've bought a couple or three.

That comes from you having the wisdom/experience to chose the correct tool for the job. :)

[Robatoy]

Well, errmm, yes. But how many hobbyists tackle heavy-duty projects with hobbyists tools? "Well, I got this 3.1 volt $19.00 Flack & Pecker drill/concrete mixer combo and whilst trying to build a 2000 sq ft deck out of 'free' railroad ties...the fukkin thing went up and broke on me! Then...it is likely for me to say "you need a better tool!" The reply is then likely to be: "you are a tool snob!!!"

...and so it goes.... . . . I think I will have another cold drink.

[FrozenNorth]

Flack & Pecker, hahahaha. SWMBO always makes a bit of a racket when I buy a new tool, it was funny last weekend, she wanted to drill some holes in the bottom of some rubbermaid buckets she uses for gardening waste/weeds etc so the water will drain out. I said sure, grabed my 14.4V Dewalt cordless, popped a one inch hole saw onto it, and handed it to her.

She came back a bit later, and said it was awesome. I know it isn't the best thing out there, but it will hold its own against a lot of them.

[Han]

Robatoy wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Sometimes you can get quite a bit out of a cheap tool.

Some 30 years ago, in our first home, we needed more sun in the yard (50x100ft). So I cut down a pine tree (trunk about 10-11" in diameter), partly while standing on the edge of the roof since the tree missed piercing the corner of the roof by an inch or two, and I didn't want the tree to take out the roof. After that the cherry tree had its turn. Near the ground must have been at least 18" in diameter. I still remember cutting off the last big limb, and thinking - this is not right, the ladder is standing to the left of both where I am cutting and the trunk. That was rectified successfully, thank whoever. Unfortunately, the $99.99 14" or so electric chainsaw died before I got the trunk down. Had to find someone with a real chainsaw.

[Larry Jaques]

A: Almost every hobbyist who has ever tried a heavy-duty project. Nature of the beast. That's how I've discovered which tools needed to be heavy duty. If it burns out during a project, opt higher next time.

He should have bought the Skil, not the B&D.

Go forth and fester not again, sinner.

-- Remember, in an emergency, dial 1911.

[Larry Jaques]

I got a lot of life out of my trusty Remington 14" chainsaw. And when it died at age 20+ this year, I got a $40 HF 14" chainsaw to replace it. It has already taken down two thick old apple trees and I'm ready to limb a maple and a sweetgum shortly.

The old Rem died of plastic failure. The bar swings up from the proper position, but the saw still runs like a champ. Scary, wot?

-- Remember, in an emergency, dial 1911.

[Leon]

Aaaah yes Grasshopper

[Puckdropper]

Han wrote in news:Xns9EF9980303715ikkezelf@

207.246.207.32:

*snip*

Sometimes all you need is the cheap tool. I've turned hundreds of nuts with the cheap wrenches from Menards (they're cheap enough to buy a dozen sets or so and put them in dedicated places) and measured thousands of voltages with the HF multimeter (cheap enough to dedicate as well).

For anything with a motor, buying a really good one and only crying once makes a lot of sense. (Anyone else hate loud motors?)

Puckdropper

[Bill]

I picked up DeWalt's 10 Amp 1/2" drill (corded) for myself for Christmas ($95 at the time). Plenty of torque... I still use my (much less powerful) cordless drill for most tasks, but both drills together are a good combination (for me).

Bill

[krw]

No, a hobbyist can just *want* a certain brand or model, with no justification at all. It's a business decision for the professional, though "want" may enter into the formula too. ;-)

A hobbyist isn't likely to wear out either tool. Though there is an argument to be made for batteries.

[Swingman]

Go back and read what you responded to ...

It isn't the "hobbyist" doing the justification - it's what did the manufacturer do to the product to justify selling it at a lower price?

The point is, in case you missed it also, is you can bet your sweet ass something is different besides the color scheme.

[krw]

I read it. You said "regardless of user status", which is false, IMO. Hobbyists are motivated differently than professionals. A hobbyist may just buy the most expensive, assuming it's the best (Festool anyone? ;-). The marketing to each group is also different.

Sure, there is product differentiation in any consumer (or pro) product. Sometimes the only difference is that it is differentiated.

One would like to think so but there certainly is no guarantee of that. I've worked on products where the only difference between models was the marketing and the specs dictated by the marketing department. Though this is besides the point.

[Swingman]

Tsk, tsk ... What on earth could possibly be "false" about ANY user asking a prudent, sensible question regarding a product they are contemplating purchasing, "regardless of user status"?

[krw]

I'm sure you understand that there is a difference between what is "prudent" and what *is*. That's only part of what's "false". ;-)

[Robatoy]

For short few years, Bosch had a green line of tools, basically copies of the blue bodied ones. BUT..... The belt sander had bushings on the motor shaft in the green line and proper ball bearings in the blue incarnation. The drills had white plastic gears, vs the steel ones in the blue line. Thee are a ton of examples like that. I have two non-restricted air blowers. They are identical in all aspects. One I bought 20+ years ago for $ 30.00, the second was $7.00. One has a Blue Point logo (From The Snap-On truck) the other I bought at Canadian Tire.

[Swingman]

My SIL from Yorkshire couldn't believe I was using Bosch tools. All the Bosch he'd ever seen in the UK at the time were green, and cheap POS'.

[Robatoy]

One interesting observation was that the 'green Bosch' in-line beltsander reappeared many years later as a Ryobi.

[Gooey]

Sears is selling the C3 Drill and trim Saw combo for $79.99 with compact lithium C3 battery and multi-charger. #9 25776

I have C3 tools and bought it to upgrade my charger and battery. I was able to sell the last package I bought (thanks to Craiagslist) - replacing the battery ad charger with my old ones and got back enough to bring my net cost of the new C3 battery and new Multi-charger down to about 40 dollars.

Considering the list on the Lithium Battery is $79.99 and the charge has to be worth twenty-nine or more, I came out AOK.

[Dave]

Hey, if you don't like it here, I'm sure quite a few people will be perfectly happy to say goodbye to you.

[krw]

They're *everywhere*.

If you were half as smart as you think you are you'd know how to use a killfile.