Re: Cordless drill reviews and something ugly..

OK, this is a bit of a rant. But it isn't political, and it IS about

> woodworking tools. The recent thread on cordless drills got me > snooping around as I am on my backup now as another cordless just bit > the dust. So a replacement is on the to-do list. > > I was looking around, and found these reviews (fanboys... please take > them for what they are worth) tonight. From 12/08: > >
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> DON"T miss page two. I am wondering if Ryobi is actually getting > serious about making tools. Looking at their tests, the Ryobi did > embarrassingly well compared to "professional" type tools.

Hard to say here, I looked at the group and it seems like several writers voiced their opinions with out each testing every drill. That was my impression. The Milwaukee, incredibly light weight, yet is in the middle of the pack as far as weight is concerned. The Ridgid and DeWalt each drove 41 and 33 d3" dry wall screws respectively and each got a "Bottom Line" of 4 red dots, what ever that means and then a Ryobi drove 3 times more and got the same rating. I think there were different testers with different expectations and they did not test all of the drills.

> I was disappointed in my favorite brands, and I am not sure about > spending $350 on a cordless drill (add in tax before correcting me) to > get solid performance. > > Speaking of disappointment, check this out: > >
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recent years even before B&D got them I have not been impressed with

anything that PC was turning out, especially their cordless drills. Take me back 15-20 years and it was my brand of choice.

This just in,, PC introduces worlds first job work site cordless coffee maker/ blender/ toaster combo.

Snip

> When B&D bought Skil, they ruined that brand. When they bought > DeWalt, the did the same, but not to the same extent.

Did B&D buy Skil a long time ago? I was under the impression that Bosch was still linked with Skil. And I was under the impression since the 70's that B&D and DeWalt had been linked for some time. Although I think DeWalt was strictly the big tools but do recall when DeWalt started building smaller and bench top tools that looked "exactly" like the B&D tools. I currently have a corded DeWalt that looks like an old B&D drill that I bought for my BIL 18+ years ago. Also I have a B&D router that I bought in

1974 that seemed to change to a yellow color and flash a DeWalt badge on store shelves some 10-15 years later.

And you can

thank a joint partnership with Hitachi for all their strange looking > green tools; these are all over the map with their performance, mostly > mediocre.

Ok, I suspected that there was an outside influence, which tennis shoe company is it? '~)

Reply to
Leon
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Leon wrote: ...

No, and yes...

Actually, that would have been 1960...

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Reply to
dpb

I started losing interest in PC about 10 years ago. I could see that their metal castings were rougher, their fit and finish wasn't as good, and their tools weren't as well made. More and more of their parts (if not the whole product) was made offshore. That in itself isn't necessarily a bad thing, but if no one watches the production line, the quality easily gets away from the manufacturer.

LMAO... I am SURE that's coming.

I strongly believe (as opposed to a fact) that they were associated before Bosch bought Skil. The Bosch parent company retains Skil, but without digging around I couldn't say when I read there was a partnership with Skil and B&D.

B&D used to make an industrial line of tools that were union made, all from parts in the USA. When unions were at their peak, no tools that weren't certified as made in USA were allowed on the job.

About 15 years ago I had an inspection contract for a company that was monitoring construction of a large facility here in town. They were so pissed off that I wasn't a union member they made me wear a different color of hard hat than anyone else on the job! Hard core, them boys was...

They had only a few PC tools, but mostly the B&D industrial line. They all had black plastic cases with satin aluminum metal parts, and a certification seal on them. The saws, some drills, and the large routers were later changed to the DeWalt brand. Then the molds and dies were shipped to other locations and made there, and assembled who knows where. Every once in a while one of those old B&D industrial tools will show up on Ebay. I don't know when they quit making the all USA made industrial line.

You are completely correct about changing the color and badge, though.

Check this out:

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don't know why they quit updating it, but it is an interesting read if you like the history of business. Most folks don't understand just how huge the B&d empire is these days. But seeing the history, it is also a bit frightening to see how much B&D owns, all the way from Baldwin locks to DeVilbiss spray equipment.

Their tools are just another disposable product made by their company. It shows, too.

Now that you mention it, I will be keeping an eye out for a job site toaster oven + hammer drill combo from PC. ;^)

Robert

Reply to
nailshooter41

snipped-for-privacy@aol.com wrote: ...

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AFAIK there never was any and neither company's history information gives any indication that it was ever so.

That doesn't say you didn't read it somewhere; only that probably the source wasn't correct... :)

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Reply to
dpb

*chuckle*

Well, the farther I get along the spongier the old gray matter seems to get. I appreciate getting the benefit of the doubt.

I actually think that article I read said that (like the Hitachi deal) they were just manufacturing for Skil. Of course, that could be something that was stuck in the spongy part..... ;^)

Robert

Reply to
nailshooter41

----------------------------------------------------- Didn't realize B&D ever owned Skil, but by the 90's, with the exception of the "77", the Skil product line was little more than garbage.

It was my understanding that SB acquired the Skil package in the 90's strictly for the "77".

Here in my part of SoCal, Skil & Bosch service centers which were less than 5 miles apart and merged together within 90 days of the acquisition.

Within a year, the most of the Skil crap was no longer on display in the Bosch service center except for the "77" and a couple of circular saws.

Today, Bosch has brought their version of the "77" to the market.

Lew

Reply to
Lew Hodgett

They didn't.

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Reply to
dpb

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