Anyone able to recommend Erbauer power tools?...

[blondini]

2005 - rubbish
2008 - still rubbish = useful update.

 

[neds]

I bought an Erbauer mitre saw for the odd cuts here and there and found it to be pretty good. Its a little rough around the edges but does straight cuts fine. Just what I need it for, Cant use it for delicate work but chopping up 2x4 you cant go wrong. I don't expect it to last long, maybe less than two years, in which case I'll take it back to screwfix as its got a 2 year guarantee.

 

[d3matt]

I didn't notice that this post was so old. I haven't been on the forum for a while, so went through this section looking at old posts. But I didn't go back many pages, so not too much is written in this section.

I'll check next time.

 

[Just_back_from_the_pub]

I have a Erbauer 18v drill and while it initially seemed great, the drill didn't last. Like everything in life, you get what you pay for. ...................

d3matt, as if the OP cares, the question was asked 3 years ago the rate this forum moves anything over a month is old.

Please check the date a post was made before you reply

Actually, Breezer, I haven't made a decision yet, so I am still looking. These things shouldn't be rushed, you know.

 

[alecat]

piggin excellent,,, had 18v drill / driver, jigsaw and recip for 3 years and not a bit of trouble. as a self employed joiner / builder they get a lot of heavy duty use and I would recommend them to anybody.

 

[steelystrings]

I have two of these drills. First was replaced under warranty second developed same problem within 3 months, that being the front bearing goes.
No I didn't use it with any side thrust just straight drilling and only DIY not pro.
Battery life is incredible though, and generally the drill is fine, but you can't get spares so I would give that make a miss in future.

 

[Markymilarky]

Hi Chums,
My Brother in law is a chippy, he has 2 Erbur cordless 18v drills that he's used 6 days a week for the last 2 years and he hasent had any problems at all. He said he bought them because of the long Gte and because the battrys were cheap. he has 8 batterys. Also he says he doesent have to worry so much if they get stolen off site as there cheap to replace next day with screwfix. He's quite a carefull and methodical worker so he takes care of his tools.
I have a Dewalt 12v cordless, it's nice and light but the gearbox has fell apart twice now in 2 years. out of warenty it's cheapper to buy a new cheap drill then repair it.
I have 2 bnq performance pro 18v drills that i've had for 3 years. There covered in plaster n cement and scratches, I've used them very heavilly for everything including mixing looooads of plaster and they still go like the day i bought them, very happy with them. I bought 8 battrys as i have the recip saws as well. Cant get the battrys now so I buy the ryobi 18v +1 battrys take out the innerds and put them in the bnq cases so i can keep all the gear going. (£20 each) ... the recip saws are brilliant too.
Cheers Chaps merrrrrry Christmassssssssssssss. mark

 

[streetlighter]

I had one of there jigsaws came in a case looked alright for £30 with variable speed and pendulum action.
Everytime i tried to use it the blade fell out of its holder it was sent right back to Screwfix for a refund.
I bought a factory reworked Dewalt in the end for the same price off eBay still using it now.

 

[trionic]

I just bought a 24v Erbauer cordless combi drill. Quality seems okay but I've not used it in anger. Heavy though and there might be a touch of chuck run-out. Screwfix brag about them having Mabuchi motors (we assume that's a good thing ) and metal gearboxes. Could be good, could be crap.

Also just bought a DeWalt 12v cordless drill driver and despite just being 12v, it's very torquey and feels well made. Shame they're owned by Black and Decker

I did loads of research about power tools before buying and every brand is great and every brand is crap. There just is no consistency in peoples' experiences.

Perhaps the only brand that emerges better than the others is Makita.

The "availability of spares" argument is almost pointless. The spares cost so much that repairing anything other than a top-of-the-range drill will not be feasible. Makita/DeWalt/Bosch charge £40 just for a trigger and gearboxes/motors cost much more. There's little difference in cost between repairing an expensive drill and buying a cheap new one (then you'd get new batteries too).

Repairing with spares makes sense only if you buy top-end power tools, such as a £500 Makita cordless. Even then some c**t will nick it.

The only way you win is to play them at their own game: buy power tools with a decent warranty period, say two or three years and make sure that they fail just within that period You get another with a new warranty and you're good for another couple of years.

d3matt, as if the OP cares, the question was asked 3 years ago the rate this forum moves anything over a month is old. Please check the date a post was made before you reply

I just found this thread through a Google search and have found the information useful despite (or because of?) spanning three years. IMHO it's up to the reader to take account of the posts' dates.

Starting new threads unnecessarily reduces the value of the forums as a reference because related information fragments and consequently searching for information becomes tedious.

(No, I'm not a moderator on here but I am on another and very busy forum.)

 

[screech]

The only way you win is to play them at their own game: buy power tools with a decent warranty period, say two or three years and make sure that they fail just within that period You get another with a new warranty and you're good for another couple of years.

as far as i'm aware warranties don't work that way, for example you buy a drill with a 3 year warranty and it fails after 2 years 9 months and you get a new one the new drill is only under warranty for the remainder of the initial warranty period, i.e 3 months. but then that might only apply sometimes, i don't know everyone's policy

 

[Bilioustrumpstaine]

It does often work that the warranty starts again with the issue of a replacement tool, but in a lot of cases you will simply have your original tool repaired and returned to you, or the tool will be sent away and it will be reported as having been used too heavily and therefore the warranty is invalid.

B&Q are quite bad with warranties on their power tools and will often fob you off with a third party company that deals with warranty work

 

[trionic]

If it helps anyone decide what to buy, here's what I ended up doing.

As usual with these things, I made a meal out of it and bought an Erbauer 24v cordless combi, a DeWalt 12v cordless drill/driver, a Makita BHP452 18v cordless combi and a Makita 9.6v cordless drill/driver

What I wanted was a Makita 18v li-ion cordless combi that was about the same weight, diameter and length as the DeWalt and affordably priced. The BHP452 is actually ligher, both in body and in battery and is shorter too. Diameter's about the same.

Tha Makita's powerful enough to make the both the DeWalt and the big, heavy and clumsy Erbauer redundant. I returned the Erbauer and DeWalt and now have the Makita 9.6v ni-cad drill/driver and BHP452 18v li-ion combi.

Online I quickly found a BHP452 kit with two 3.0Ah batteries for £200 My local toolshop (Bell Tools in Gloucester) price matched that so I got online price with counter service.

Well chuffed. The Makitas feel really solid, especially the more pro-oriented BHP452. Can't wait to use them properly

So shop around, find out which are last year's models and get a knock-down deal on one of those. Toolshops are surprisingly willing to price match. The worst they can say is "no", or laugh at you

I was looking at the price of spares for the BHP452, UK vs. US. The spares are, predictably, much cheaper in the US and makes the tools well worth repairing.

For example, a gearbox assembly in the UK will cost £60. In the US it's $35, which even at today's weedy exchange rate is a reasonable £24. Carriage would offset that by some degree but it'd still be worth it.

Of course, this only works when the tool you bought was one offered for sale to the American market (and my Makita 6261DWPE 9.6V drill driver wasn't ).

 

[Crispins59]

I have had a 14.4 cordless driver for two years used nearly every day and it is superb, the lion type should be just as good downside only 1 battery and 3hr charge

 

[DaveSinner]

you would be a mug to buy an erbauer cordless, when in screwfix there is another brand - cant remember the name which is the same drill by the looks of things, but free batteries for life?

i remember reading it a few catalogues back so if they are still doing that offer then get them - good drills though

 

[mattylad]

Please have a look and see if you can identify it, I nearly bought the 18v one they are doing for 99 last week.

Wanted to check on here first.

I would be interested to find out which one has free batteries for life.
(and why?)