18V brushless power tools - recommended platform/brand

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#2988290 26-Oct-2022 14:27

if you end up going with one of the bigger brands like dewalt or makita remember you can calculate costs using the mitre10/bunnings price promise.

I have never paid retail price on dewalt using that price promise since they both stock the same SKU's

Dewalt also very often have free 5.0a battery redemption promos on tools as well so you can save a bit on batteries while they run their promos

angski

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#2988314 26-Oct-2022 14:39

dt:

if you end up going with one of the bigger brands like dewalt or makita remember you can calculate costs using the mitre10/bunnings price promise.

I have never paid retail price on dewalt using that price promise since they both stock the same SKU's

Dewalt also very often have free 5.0a battery redemption promos on tools as well so you can save a bit on batteries while they run their promos

Toolshed has regular "sale" and freebies on different brand of power tools

Shanemc

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#2988329 26-Oct-2022 16:00

I went with Makita across tools and garden. Using the 18v batteries and 2x18v for the garden range.

I figure they are good quality tools, with a long life and the batteries will be supported long term. And given the number of tools out there, alternative batteries will be available if Makita ever moved away from the 18v platform. The introduction of 40v did make me wonder where they might head, but I cant see them abandoning the massive market at 18v.

Makita seems to regularly run promotions where you can buy larger tools and they give 2x extra batteries. Or power head, with different garden attachments.

There are also a number of competitive retailers (tools and industry supplies, handy tools etc) and i-tools parallel imports. So I have found much cheaper prices. There always seems to be heaps on trademe also, but they are popular so bargains seem hard to get and sometimes itools is cheaper anyway!

mattwnz

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#2988330 26-Oct-2022 16:06

I use multiple brands and different batteries systems. Some tools being quite old, but they are all trade quality. It has the advantage that I have more batteries and chargers, than if I was only using a single system, and many have been superseeded with new batteries and systems. Whereas if you are using a single system, then you often only have the one charger and you may have multiple people using the tools at teh same time. I have found that some tools can lose quite a lot of power when they drain to 50%, and some lower capacity batteries can lack the power of higher capacity batteries. It is especially noticeable on high torque tools. Third party batteries are also often not as good as the originals.

mattwnz

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#2988332 26-Oct-2022 16:07

dt:

if you end up going with one of the bigger brands like dewalt or makita remember you can calculate costs using the mitre10/bunnings price promise.

I have never paid retail price on dewalt using that price promise since they both stock the same SKU's

Dewalt also very often have free 5.0a battery redemption promos on tools as well so you can save a bit on batteries while they run their promos

Often there are exclusive deals and product bundles at each store making it impossible to price match. I picked up my Dewalt ones a couple of years ago with a impact driver and drill which was a really good deal. . But they only include a single battery, so you then have to buy another. Then if you have two extra ones if you have two people using them. That is where having an older drill comes in which has it's own 2 batteries which can be used when the other is charging.

reven

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#2988334 26-Oct-2022 16:10

mattwnz:

I use multiple brands and different batteries systems. Some tools being quite old, but they are all trade quality. It has the advantage that I have more batteries and chargers, than if I was only using a single system, and many have been superseeded with new batteries and systems. Whereas if you are using a single system, then you often only have the one charger and you may have multiple people using the tools at teh same time. I have found that some tools can lose quite a lot of power when they drain to 50%, and some lower capacity batteries can lack the power of higher capacity batteries. It is especially noticeable on high torque tools. Third party batteries are also often not as good as the originals.

you can also buy battery adapters. which is fine for one off tools etc.

but +1 for not being locked into one battery system

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#2988353 26-Oct-2022 17:44

Lizard1977:

Thanks everyone for the useful responses.

I spent a bit of time last night browsing through the websites of Mitre10 and Bunnings, and focussed on Makita, Stanley Fatmax, DeWalt and Ryobi. I searched first for brushless tools, and was interested to find that Makita didn't have as many brushless tools (at least, declared to be) as Ryobi and Stanley Fatmax. ........... In the Makita range I couldn't find brushless versions of the multitool or the circular saw.

hae a look on makitas web site. just about every circular saw 18v was brushless. quite possible the shop was getting rid of older models.

brushless gives a sizable increase in power and efficiency. its often a tradeoff between tool cost and the extra power and run time. i got a brushed version because it was half the price of the brushless and i don't use it much.

Scott3

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#2988741 27-Oct-2022 13:56

In general on brush-less, in addition to the advantages of the bushless motor, generally the better tools in each brands lineup are fitted with this tech these days. And only tools of older design, or newly designed to be cheap to build get brushed motors.

Frankly, the other stuff that goes along with a better tool is more important than the brushless motor (i.e. better drill chuck), but they tend to be bundled these days.

Most brands that market to consumers have entry level tools that are frankly pretty crappy. When it comes to kits (especially the ones that get deep discounts at sale time), it is important to look at every tool in the kit and determine if it is getting decent tools, or basic low cost stuff.

-----

On Makita, they have three 18v brushless saws, and two 18v brushed saws.

On their brushed saw's, At least they have configured the brushes to allow for them to be easily changed if they wear out (frankly unlikely for a DIY user). Many brands require the tool be disassembled to get access to the brushes.

dt

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#2988744 27-Oct-2022 14:05

mattwnz:

Often there are exclusive deals and product bundles at each store making it impossible to price match. I picked up my Dewalt ones a couple of years ago with a impact driver and drill which was a really good deal. . But they only include a single battery, so you then have to buy another. Then if you have two extra ones if you have two people using them. That is where having an older drill comes in which has it's own 2 batteries which can be used when the other is charging.

Yeah those exclusive deals are usually pretty good value too but ive come across quite a few sku's that are the same and can get a good deal on them using their price promises against each other, more times or not bunnings is always 1-2$ cheaper and end up buying from mitre 10

mattwnz

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#2988852 27-Oct-2022 16:36

dt:

more times or not bunnings is always 1-2$ cheaper and end up buying from mitre 10

LOL, I find this almost all the time, which is good, because the bunnings is a long drive away and mitre 10 is just down the road.

I have found that occasionally the bundles contain older models, which are perfectly good, but guessing they do bundles to get rid of that older stock. Battieres you should always be able to get price beats on, just as long as they have stock, which can be an issue at the moment, and my Mitre 10 does not stock all ranges..

Scott3

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#2989080 28-Oct-2022 10:15

On price beats, many of the tool makers have set up to offer different versions of the tools. As a Dewalt example

Bunnings carries the DCM563PB-XE (skin $285 with a 19mm cutting gap)

Miter 10 carries the DCMHT563N-XE (skin $329 with a 25mm cutting gap) - currently has a bonus 5ah battery by redemption).

Basically the same tool, but with a slight change meaning no price matches.

I brought mine used (and spend substantial time taking it apart to sharpen / clean, and fix a minor issue) as I could not justify Around $300 new, but the free battery does change the value position a lot. On free battery rebates, Dewalt has had major battery supply issues for the last couple of years, so they dried up for a while.

Should note that dewalt has recently come out with a flexvolt hedge trimmer (Brushless, twice the strokes per minute, 660mm blade (vs 550 for the above). But this has yet to make it to NZ.

As normal, jealous of USA pricing:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-60V-MAX-Brushless-Cordless-Battery-Powered-Hedge-Trimmer-Kit-with-1-FLEXVOLT-2Ah-Battery-Charger-DCHT870T1/318486600

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#2989202 28-Oct-2022 12:04

Scott3:

As normal, jealous of USA pricing:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-60V-MAX-Brushless-Cordless-Battery-Powered-Hedge-Trimmer-Kit-with-1-FLEXVOLT-2Ah-Battery-Charger-DCHT870T1/318486600

There is a Home Depot about 10 minute walk from our sons house in Boston, I used to salivate when I went and looked at the Milwaukee tools.
They have fourth of July, specials, raceway specials, various other specials that we don’t ever see here.

I picked up an 18 V impact driver skin, LED torch ,battery bag & charger for US$99 .
Another year I got the 10.8 V drill and impact driver ,bag ,charger & two batteries, US$89.
We get royally, turned over here on prices of tools.

mattwnz

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#2989237 28-Oct-2022 14:07

NZ does have better consumer protection laws though than the US if thing go wrong with it under the CGA. That maybe part of the reason we get charged more.

johno1234

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#2989242 28-Oct-2022 14:31

mattwnz:

NZ does have better consumer protection laws though than the US if thing go wrong with it under the CGA. That maybe part of the reason we get charged more.

State based legislation confuses things, but I've always found "no questions asked" return policies apply in USA retail chains whereas in NZ you often have to push a retail store or threaten them with CGA/Dispute Tribunal to get a return - Warehouse being one exception.

Scott3

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#2989246 28-Oct-2022 14:40

Brunzy:

There is a Home Depot about 10 minute walk from our sons house in Boston, I used to salivate when I went and looked at the Milwaukee tools.
They have fourth of July, specials, raceway specials, various other specials that we don’t ever see here.

I picked up an 18 V impact driver skin, LED torch ,battery bag & charger for US$99 .
Another year I got the 10.8 V drill and impact driver ,bag ,charger & two batteries, US$89.
We get royally, turned over here on prices of tools.

So much this.

I follow Dewalt on some other forums. Todays home deport sale:

https://preview.redd.it/3qt5z9kxhcw91.jpg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4b992d7f38f8ad3a2cad9d9560bc206610b77f20

People on the forum are talking about getting the router as the free tool, then returning the batteries (the store assigns a refund value to each part of the deal on the receipt). Net result is they are getting the router for USD105.

18v Dewalt router is $465 at miter 10 (if you buy multiple skins you can get a battery by redemption).

Yes CGA, currency conversion, GST etc impact our prices, but we never get the super sweet power tool deals seen in the USA.

And on top of that we don't get the range of tools either (for example dewalts 12v range is sweet, but not sold here - I imported my 12v dewalt drill from the USA via ebay). With the flex volt hedge trimmer example, we will likely get it in NZ in 3 - 4 months time.

Really want this one, but the cost to bring it in from usa / korea via ebay is just too high for me.

https://www.dewalt.com/product/dcd703f1/xtremetm-12v-max-brushless-cordless-5-1-drilldriver-kit

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