Makita cordless drills...explain...
Discussion
Looks like I need to replace my 10 yr old Bosch drills (or one of them for now) and very confused...
When i bought Mine it was cheap and chearfull DIY or professional (Bosch, Dewalt Makita etc) of those it seemed Dewalt was the default choice for pros but the bosch was better value (and served me well) (lots of DIY)
Have a Makita corded angle drill and very impressed with the quality so looking at the Makita range of cordless combi drills. Is there a logic to the models? It'll be my main 'work horse' drill (have a little hitachi 18v) for lighter work (though to be fair to it I've given it some abuse already and it seems fine!)so want:
'professional' quality
2 x 3.0Amp hour Li-ion batteries
Spindle lock
High top speed (1750-2000rpm)
2 speed is fine
Other tools using same batteries jigsaws etc.
Don't need led lights, cases, accessory sets etc.
Do Hitachi do any good Pro stuff?
Something in me still says Dewalt Pro stuff is still over priced for what it is...
When i bought Mine it was cheap and chearfull DIY or professional (Bosch, Dewalt Makita etc) of those it seemed Dewalt was the default choice for pros but the bosch was better value (and served me well) (lots of DIY)
Have a Makita corded angle drill and very impressed with the quality so looking at the Makita range of cordless combi drills. Is there a logic to the models? It'll be my main 'work horse' drill (have a little hitachi 18v) for lighter work (though to be fair to it I've given it some abuse already and it seems fine!)so want:
'professional' quality
2 x 3.0Amp hour Li-ion batteries
Spindle lock
High top speed (1750-2000rpm)
2 speed is fine
Other tools using same batteries jigsaws etc.
Don't need led lights, cases, accessory sets etc.
Do Hitachi do any good Pro stuff?
Something in me still says Dewalt Pro stuff is still over priced for what it is...
Just spoke to a nice chap selling all the Makita and Hitachi ranges.
He reccomended the Hitachi over the Makita saying it was both better made and has 4AH batteries.
He reccomended the Hamemr Drill (DV18DSDL) and impact driver (WH18DSAL) kit with 2 batteries and a voucher to claim a third free for £358 which is not bad at all. Have got a second body as well for £95, so 2 4.0AH Li-ion Combi Hammer drills and an impact driver for £453 which i don't think is too bad...
He reccomended the Hitachi over the Makita saying it was both better made and has 4AH batteries.
He reccomended the Hamemr Drill (DV18DSDL) and impact driver (WH18DSAL) kit with 2 batteries and a voucher to claim a third free for £358 which is not bad at all. Have got a second body as well for £95, so 2 4.0AH Li-ion Combi Hammer drills and an impact driver for £453 which i don't think is too bad...
DoubleSix said:
Meh, That link above to the Makita stuff is a far better buy. Why is the guy trying to sell you on 4.0AH, are you a builder?? Unless you're on site all day and literally banging in thousands of screws etc then 3.0AH is as much as you are going to need for normal heavy home use, the Makita charges in a market leading 20mins as well!
But to the crunch, he should be telling you about TORQUE, us car boys know all about that don't we?? I believe the Makita impact driver has 145nm torque to 140nm in the Hitachi. I did a lot of research and was set on DeWalt before coming to the conclusion the Makita was the b
ks.
He did!! On the top trumps front, the Hitachi drill drivers beat the equivalent Makita for torque. But to be fair it's all irrelevant at that level as you'll snap the head off the screw before you'll run out of torque. My old Bosch put a 1" drill through a 9" awl without issue, so I'm sure the new stuff will walk it.But to the crunch, he should be telling you about TORQUE, us car boys know all about that don't we?? I believe the Makita impact driver has 145nm torque to 140nm in the Hitachi. I did a lot of research and was set on DeWalt before coming to the conclusion the Makita was the b
ks. Not a builder but a sporadic heavy DIYer...have been known to go through several boxes of screws in an evening, and several changes of battery at weekends ;-). Now got a new house to renovate, so flat batteries will not be welcome!
Ordered now, so hope they're not cr@p :-)
DoubleSix said:
Ah well, looks like he's gonna find out for himself! Still, OP you'll have plenty of time to ponder your purchase waiting an hour for it to charge! 
You'll have to provide a link for that 'top trump' though I cant find an Hitachi Impact Driver with more torque than the Makita LXT.
Sounds like you'd made up your mind before starting the thread though, so bit of a pointless one!
I'd actually made my mind up to buy Makita...just which one...but after posting this, did a little more searching and Hitachi got some good reviews and few bad ones. Then had the reccomendation from the shop and had also heard good stuff about Hitachi elsewhere. You'll have to provide a link for that 'top trump' though I cant find an Hitachi Impact Driver with more torque than the Makita LXT.
Sounds like you'd made up your mind before starting the thread though, so bit of a pointless one!
Edited by DoubleSix on Tuesday 2nd October 22:04
Will keep you posted and provide an honest review when I get them. If they look or feel rubbish I'll send them back and get the Makita.
As for the top trumps section of this thread, notice I said 'Drill Driver' NOT 'Impact Driver'
http://www.power-tools-pro.co.uk/makita-bhp458rfe-...
http://www.power-tools-pro.co.uk/hitachi-dv18dsdlj...
A whole 4NM more ;-)
The batteries are 4.0AH and all comes with 3yr warranty (even on the batteries!) so if any of it breaks it's covered
As for the comments on how long they take to charge, they can take as long they like as they'll be on charge while I'm asleep :-D
smifffymoto said:
I use Bosch Blue.
Why?
Because they last,just like your old one has. Buy another Bosch,D&H tools were doing good deals a while ago.
I still love my blue Bosch - built like a brick out house and have taken some serious and unwarranted abuse...but heard bad things about the new blue stuff...built down to a price etc etc...Why?
Because they last,just like your old one has. Buy another Bosch,D&H tools were doing good deals a while ago.
I'll see how Hitachi treats me and report back :-)
roofer said:
A brief rundown on the industry over the last 30 years.
If you had a Kango or Hilti, people knew you were serious.
Bosch began to prove theirselves reliable (German connection helped)
Then the whippersnappers started to appear with those bright yellow things that were re coloured Black and Decker, they wore ponsy toolbelts as well, all the gear, no idea we used to chuckle.
Makita then started to make a name for itself as a sturdy bit of kit that wouldn't let you down, although i still have a 15 year old Bosch SDS that still works faultlessley.
The yellow stuff moved over to metal gears, and became more reliable, and they brought out a nice matching radio as well, that meant all the gear, reasonable idea, and a bit of music to drill to.
Heavy use trades will still stick with Hilti/Kango, i also have a Milwaukee Tek gun thats 20 years old, been abused to death and still works without fail.
Hitachi is excellent quality stuff for the home and light site use, especially for the price.
All the above slightly tongue in cheek, but fairly accurate.
You missed the bit about Dewalt buying Elu and rebranding it as a foothold into some sectors. But apart from that all makes sense and the bright yellow stuff IS just overpriced, over hyped B&D... :-D If you had a Kango or Hilti, people knew you were serious.
Bosch began to prove theirselves reliable (German connection helped)
Then the whippersnappers started to appear with those bright yellow things that were re coloured Black and Decker, they wore ponsy toolbelts as well, all the gear, no idea we used to chuckle.
Makita then started to make a name for itself as a sturdy bit of kit that wouldn't let you down, although i still have a 15 year old Bosch SDS that still works faultlessley.
The yellow stuff moved over to metal gears, and became more reliable, and they brought out a nice matching radio as well, that meant all the gear, reasonable idea, and a bit of music to drill to.
Heavy use trades will still stick with Hilti/Kango, i also have a Milwaukee Tek gun thats 20 years old, been abused to death and still works without fail.
Hitachi is excellent quality stuff for the home and light site use, especially for the price.
All the above slightly tongue in cheek, but fairly accurate.
just off to put some melt on felt on my roof...
Well, went away for the weekend, so not had a proper chance to play yet, but initial impressions are good. Build quality certainly seems to be there - nice plastics used and metal components are finsihed well.
All metal chuck sets it apart from some of it's competitors and feel and balance are good.
Batteries change nicely (some makes/styles I've found stick a bit and you have to wiggle them out/off)
Downsides spotted so far:
Chuck only goes down to 1.5mm, so can't use fine drills for tiny pilot holes (not big issues for most people I think)
Torque/clutch setting ring is VERY stiff - same on both bodies I have ( so not a one off). Hopefully it'll ease off with use, or it will be a bit if an annoyance.
Impact driver - never had one before so no idea what it's like. Seems to take no mercy with crews though, so guess it's a pass!
Will let you know if it breaks...
All metal chuck sets it apart from some of it's competitors and feel and balance are good.
Batteries change nicely (some makes/styles I've found stick a bit and you have to wiggle them out/off)
Downsides spotted so far:
Chuck only goes down to 1.5mm, so can't use fine drills for tiny pilot holes (not big issues for most people I think)
Torque/clutch setting ring is VERY stiff - same on both bodies I have ( so not a one off). Hopefully it'll ease off with use, or it will be a bit if an annoyance.
Impact driver - never had one before so no idea what it's like. Seems to take no mercy with crews though, so guess it's a pass!
Will let you know if it breaks...
BlackCup said:
Is this bad?
I've been hoping it would die for ages and it has...half way through boarding out the loft! It was my Dad's...he wasn't very into DIY! I've read the whole thread but just want to clarify...whats the best DIY cordless drill then for budget? Is this deal any good?
http://www.screwfix.com/p/makita-8391dwpetk-18v-co...
Need it ASAP and its only round the corner...
Matt
Got the little hitachi 18v from b&Q (screwfix do them too) 2 li-ion 1.5ah batteries - great drill but no spindle lock, makes changing drill bits a bit more fiddly...I've been hoping it would die for ages and it has...half way through boarding out the loft! It was my Dad's...he wasn't very into DIY! I've read the whole thread but just want to clarify...whats the best DIY cordless drill then for budget? Is this deal any good?
http://www.screwfix.com/p/makita-8391dwpetk-18v-co...
Need it ASAP and its only round the corner...
Matt
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