Got an email today with some specials on Kobalt and Dewalt at Lowe's. Kobalt is definitely the better buy. Both brands and Lowe's are hopefully all good for the long run. Thinking Kobalt is the sensible choice for my limited (non?) use.
New tool thread
- Thread starter jhellwig
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- Sep 1, 2024
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Not new but new to me. I may get a new one someday, already have the mill and the other model. These are plain bearing lathes.
https://cowells.com/90me.htm
https://cowells.com/90me.htm
Yeah, and like electricity in wires; they work until the smoke gets out.
Yep but to be honest I've had DeWalt and Porter Cable do the same so I'm pretty confident that the Hercules stuff for home use is probably fine. Now if I was making a living in the trades I'd be fully bought into Milwaukee, just the plethora of tools alone is insane.
Mikita costs a lot. There's a reason for it.
I have ancient Makita tools that still work fine
I had one DeWalt drill that blew a clutch after hard use for a couple years DeWalt replaced no questions. One 20VMax battery out of 20 or so died early. Sent a picture of the serial number they sent a new battery
The only tool that let the smoke out for me was a Milwaukee and Milwaukee wouldn’t replace it. Made me sour even though I love their 12V tools now
I had one DeWalt drill that blew a clutch after hard use for a couple years DeWalt replaced no questions. One 20VMax battery out of 20 or so died early. Sent a picture of the serial number they sent a new battery
The only tool that let the smoke out for me was a Milwaukee and Milwaukee wouldn’t replace it. Made me sour even though I love their 12V tools now
I'm considering picking up a new Makita 18V 1/2" impact wrench before the next mowing season. I need to replace the blades on the John Deere zero turn, and I really don't want to struggle with a breaker bar and a 2X4 to remove the blade mounting nuts. I could get an impact wrench at Walmart or Harbor Freight for 1/2 the price of the Makita or less, but I would forever tell myself I should have gotten the Makita.
Tangent thought: Would my Makita 1/4" impact driver be able to bust the zero turn blade mounting nuts loose?
1/4”? No
3/8” yes
3/8” yes
It might. Would be worth a try, for sure.
Only "new" in the sense I forgot I had this. Unknown age, never opened and no idea if it'll work. It's been in a non climate controlled storage unit for years. I've got the battery on the charger to see if its got any life in it.
Edit: battery seems to hold a decent charge. I'm going to use this thing til the Ni-Cd battery dies, then upgrade to some lithium ion batteries.
Edit: battery seems to hold a decent charge. I'm going to use this thing til the Ni-Cd battery dies, then upgrade to some lithium ion batteries.
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I just purchased an adapter on Amazon that will let me use my Makita 18V batteries on ^^this old Craftsman impact^^.
Only "new" in the sense I forgot I had this. Unknown age, never opened and no idea if it'll work. It's been in a non climate controlled storage unit for years. I've got the battery on the charger to see if its got any life in it.
Edit: battery seems to hold a decent charge. I'm going to use this thing til the Ni-Cd battery dies, then upgrade to some lithium ion batteries.
View attachment 251805
Here is a charger and a few lithium batteries in case it doesn't work out. 300+ bought in the last month, must be lots still out there impacting away! I just saw your makita adapter solution, good idea there too, less to juggle.
https://www.amazon.com/Powilling-Re...prefix=craftsman+11375+battery,aps,157&sr=8-4
I was about to buy some batteries until I saw the adapter for $16, so I'll give that a shot and see what happens. I'll get some new batteries and a charger if the adapter doesn't work. Hoping this impact does what I need.
This was my first cordless impact in 3/8” and 1/2” drive. Not near the torque of more modern tools but these still get some use. I kept the 3/8” and use lithium batteries. It’s perfect for the right use that doesn’t need huge gobs of torque. When I changed over to dewalt I gave the 1/2” to my father. It’s a good spare to toss in the truck when he’s going on a long trip. Those nicd batteries weren’t very good if I remember correctly.Only "new" in the sense I forgot I had this. Unknown age, never opened and no idea if it'll work. It's been in a non climate controlled storage unit for years. I've got the battery on the charger to see if its got any life in it.
Edit: battery seems to hold a decent charge. I'm going to use this thing til the Ni-Cd battery dies, then upgrade to some lithium ion batteries.
View attachment 251805
I'm hoping the adapter I ordered works as advertised, so I can use my Makita 18V batteries on this old thing. The only job I need this impact to do is to break loose the mounting nut on my JD zero turn's 3 mower blades. If it doesn't work, I'll have the excuse I need to buy the Makita 1/2" impact.
I concur that these batteries were not very good, at least by today's standards.
This was one of the first attempts to produce varuous tools that shared the same battery, so hats off to Craftsman! I bought the 19.2V drill, impact, and leaf blower, each with a battery/charger, sometime around 2010. The blower was a POS from day 1, with little power but draining the battery in less than 5 min. The drill and impact lasted a few years until I only had one working battery left, and that one didnt last very long. I then switched to the DeWalt 18V (drill, impact, and circ saw) for a few years until the batteries weakened. The new batteries cost as much as a new Li-Ion drill so i switched again (now have Ryobi and DeWalt). Today's products are much better!
