Tools I need

[GrahamLinton]

So the short story is I am being asked more and more to do home repairs etc. I have managed until now with the tools I have but they're wearing out fast. Having lost my job recently I have decided to give this a go, part to full-time. So I need some decent tools and your help.

I have about £1500 to spend. I need

Corded drill (I have an SDS but need something smaller)
Circular Saw, corded or cordless
Jigsaw

What would be your suggestions for these? I don't want to buy twice so want decent kit please.

Thank you very much

Graham

 

[CBW]

Hi Graham,

I know you don’t want to buy twice, but I find Lidl’s power tools decent enough. Also having had Dewalt and Makita cordless the batteries weren’t that good on either. Does the drill have to be corded? Also why not just use the sds?

 

[flameport]

I have about £1500 to spend.

Is that actually what you meant to write?
£1500 for just those 3 tools is grossly excessive.

 

[catlad]

Cordless for everything these days. I run grinders off the new generation bosch batteries and it like having a mains tool .

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Also having had Dewalt and Makita cordless the batteries weren’t that good on either.

But just how many generations ago (of batteries) was that? My oldest Makita 18 volt 5Ah LXT batteries are now 5 years old. My oldest DW 18 volt 4Ah Li-Ion batteries were new in April 2016. All batteries are in trade use, so 4 to 8 charges a week.

 

[CBW]

But just how many generations ago (of batteries) was that?

The Makita: some li-ion and ni-cd all s*** imo. They lasted 2-3 years before dying. This was about 5 years ago. Some 18v some 24v, all in region of 3ah.

The Dewalt: possibly 10 years ago, li-ion batteries 18v 1.5 ah , drilled about 10 holes before the battery needed changing.

 

[Diver Fred]

I'd not bother with corded drills / tools. On trade you ought to be using 110V kit or PAT testing very regularly. With cordless that is not necessary.

You can get some pretty good deals on cordless tool sets eg - Makita in your budget you could buy that kit and a couple of extra batteries and still have change.

 

[GrahamLinton]

£1500 is correct. I have some other tools to buy with this budget (angle grinder, hammers, saws, tool boxes, etc) I may even buy a table saw and planer too it is takes off) but I don't mind going for cordless tools if that saves the battery issues. I mentioned the budget because these are the 3 main items I don't want to scrimp on.

I've a few Lidl Parkside tools, a cordless drill in fact, but it is a little old now, and worn. My Makita SDS is large and heavy so cannot use it for all the jobs, like when using wire brushes, it is far easier with a smaller corded drill. I have found the need for a smaller drill although I appreciate what you're saying but it definitely is too big and heavy.

So if you were me with my budget what would you go for?

 

[motorbiking]

My favourite tool is my makita impact driver, I reckon it cut the labour on my garden room by half. You need to be thinking differently though, if this is going to be a business. Think about the kind of jobs you want to go after and then choose tools for that. Are you looking at decorating jobs or garden work?

A decent chop shaw, a good hammer drill, a jigsaw, a planner and maybe a router will cover most jobs.

 

[catlad]

You will need to consider where you will be working if you are going to use an impact driver as everybody within a 100yds will be able to hear you, as apposed to using a normal drill and people in the next room won't be effected.
If you are going to be working inside then a good dust extraction system will be needed.

 

[HERTS P&D]

I'm sure this thread is a wind up.....................'I'm going to be a handy- man, what tools do I need?'

Andy

 

[Deleted member 174758]

The Makita: some li-ion and ni-cd all s*** imo. They lasted 2-3 years before dying. This was about 5 years ago. Some 18v some 24v, all in region of 3ah.

The Dewalt: possibly 10 years ago, li-ion batteries 18v 1.5 ah , drilled about 10 holes before the battery needed changing.

So at least one or two generations back, then. NiCd were always tricky to deal with, but they were replaced by NiMh some 20 plus years ago and by Li-Ion something like 15 years back. If Makita and DW were so bad I doubt that most of our joiners would still be using them (the firm I work for at the moment has a roughly 60/40 split between the two makes, with about 45 guys a mixture of cards in and subbie - there are a couple of guys with Hikoki or Milwaukee, but it's only a few of them)

DW changed their Li-Ion technology and the circuitry inside the tools about 5 or 6 years back. Makita changed the same at around the same time ("B" series to "D" series in 18 and 14.4 volt tools). Both are now sufficiently reliable (and powerful with sufficient run times) that many joiners and other trades have moved over to cordless (with some exceptions such as recip saws, 9in rip saws and 9in angle grinders and power hungry tools of that ilk), at least they have on bigger sites.

Technology moves on.....

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I'm sure this thread is a wind up.....................'I'm going to be a handy- man, what tools do I need?'

Plunger, shovel, drain rods, string (as in how long is a piece of.....)

 

[opps]

On trade you ought to be using 110V kit or PAT testing very regularly

Won't most PAT testing of 240v tools be little more than a visual inspection given that most don't have an earth. That said, all of my dust extractors do have an earth. I suspect that is largely because of the anti-static vacuum hoses.

I was under the impression that PAT testing isn't a legal requirement (although it is advisable).

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I was under the impression that PAT testing isn't a legal requirement (although it is advisable).

All tools used in trade need to be PAT tested - the HSE insist on regular PAT testing and it's certainly a (small print) requirement in my Insurance. The rules which once applied only to construction sites now apply to all self employed trades (PUWER 98, etc)

As to PAT testing of negative earth 230 volt tools being just a visual inspection, that's not true - the tools still need to be put on the tester and the tests run (AFAIK earth continuity and 500 volt DC insulation tests to metal components such as chucks as a minimum)