Battery power tools

Cleaning, fixing, using, repairing, best and worst of your mechanical aids in the garden...

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Stephen
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I was a fairly early adopter of a battery powered drill (late 1980s). My first were Makitas who seemed to have the edge at the time.
When my earliest tools gave up, having changed from professional use to just amateur DIY use, I stuck to Makita, a bought a set, a drill & impact driver. These have done decent serivce for a dozen years & can be useful for a while yet.
But technology moves on & despite having an adequate selection of mains power tools, I have decided to buy before tools fail and the requirement becomes urgent.

So, if/when I shell out the cash, I will, over a period of time want:- drill, impact driver, jigsaw, vacuum cleaner (household - I know Bosch batteries fit both their domestic vacuum and their drills etc.) Also a jigsaw or pruning saw would be useful and, because the water pressure can be utterly miserable on the 'lottie, I thought a pump would be really useful.

What manufacturers do people recommend? I think 18V systems are the starting point. The obvious starting points appear to be Bosch or Ryobi, both of whom have a big selection of tools available.
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oldherbaceous
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Afternoon Stephen, I still think Makita take a lot of beating...and their 18v system is very good...not sure if the do a water pump though.
Kind Regards, Old Herbaceous.

There's no fool like an old fool.
Stephen
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Thanks OH.
This won't be an instant decision because in the end there are a lot of tools.
The Bosch water pump is £150 (with battery) which is a fair bit but not the end of the world. Probably there will be a few pounds to be saved by shopping around. For myself, I'm happy to carry a pair of watering cans but if you can feed a hose, then you can get on with something else at the time you get the watering done.
I'm wondering if I am just over-reacting to the dreadful water pressure. I'm uphill from the tap and the tap is the third in line (three taps, three tanks with ball float valves, so there are five possibilities for the water to go elsewhere.
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Compo
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I had Makita. No quibbles there about how good they are. However I have started to replace them with Einhell. Their power-x batteries are interchangeable and I have now got a strimmer, drill and jigsaw All decent quality and very competively priced. Toolststion sell a wide range of Einhell products.
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Stephen
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Compo - yes, any battery to fit any tool is fundamental, the unnegotiable starting point.
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Colin2016
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For water pumping I use a bilge pump & old 12v battery.

For power tools it Bosch 18volt.
Stephen
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I think it will be Bosch, I'll talk to the local hardware shop (60 seconds walk) as the closeness makes a difference.
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Kayburton
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I would advise you to take tools from trusted manufacturers. They may cost significantly more, but the likelihood that they will last longer is much higher. And if something happens, it will be easier to get spare parts.
robo
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Funny how people have different choices my self I would not touch Bosch again after buying an 18 volt one first time I used it was to remove some 4 inch screws after removing half a dozen it started to smoke back to the place I bought it b and q they replaced it six screws later the same happened on returning it I had one of the shop idiots showing me it was ok as he could put a 2 inch screw into a predrilled hole , I did manage to hold my temper and asked to see the manager who agreed to replace it for any one I liked obviously I had to pay if my choice was more expensive and money returned if it was cheaper I chose an 18 volt jcb I’ve also got hedge trimmers and a strimmer using the same batteries
Colin2016
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Had builder doing some work and he had a huge collection of Makita battery tools. Said Makita are made by black & decker.

Interesting to note they use different voltages up to 56v which are downward compatible
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