Choosing Einhell drill and multi tool

[Derek M]

I was looking at getting the Einhell 4513949 Power X-Change 18V, 50Nm Cordless Combi Drill | TE-CD 18/50 Li-i 3-in-1 Brushless Drill, Impact Drill and Screwdriver, with a 4Ah battery, charger and hard case for £94 TE-CD 18/50 Li-i BL; EX, UK | Cordless Impact Drill (einhell.co.uk)

Alternatively I could get the Einhell Power X-Change 18V, 60Nm Cordless Combi Drill | TE-CD 18 Li-i 3-in-1 Brushless Drill, Impact Drill and Screwdriver, with 2 x 2.0 Ah PXC Batteries, High-Speed Charger and Storage Case for £110 TE-CD 18 Li-i BL (2x2,0Ah) | Cordless Impact Drill (einhell.co.uk)

The main reason I'm considering the latter is because it has a handle on the side and I figured that might make it easier to use and I guess 2 x 2Ah batteries is also better than one 4Ah battery because they'll be lighter. I could always buy a single 2Ah battery if I buy the drill with the 4Ah one, to have the choice between using a heavier or lighter battery depending on what I'm doing but it will cost an extra £40 and I'm not really sure there's any situation where it's better to have a heavier, bigger battery, rather than using a lighter, smaller one and switching to a second one when the first one is flat.

Is having the handle and two 2Ah batteries rather than one 4Ah the better option?

I also need to get a multi-tool, so if I get an Einhell cordless one I'd be using the same batteries with that. I'm not sure if it's worth getting a cordless one though, as the corded ones are much cheaper, like the Einhell TC-MG 220/1 E Oscillating Multi Tool | 220W Multi-Tool for £30 TC-MG 220/1 E | Multifunctional Tool (einhell.co.uk) vs the Einhell 4465160 Varrito Power X-Change Cordless Multi Tool for £72 VARRITO | Cordless Multifunctional Tool (einhell.co.uk) or the Einhell Cordless Multifunctional Tool TC-MG for £54 TC-MG 18 Li-Solo | Cordless Multifunctional Tool (einhell.co.uk) and I can imagine they're more difficult to use with the bulk and weight of a battery on the end.

I noticed that all the corded ones have "Oscillating" in the name, whilst the cordless ones don't, so I don't know if that means anything?

I also need to get a mini circular saw for cutting through floorboards (18mm) but I'm not sure if it's best to get a cordless or corded one. If I'm going to get a cordless one, I need to take that into account when deciding whether I should get the drill with the 4Ah battery or the one with the 2 x 2Ah batteries.

 

[Wayners]

I'd get the corded circular saw. Plenty of power and go all day.

For smaller jobs I use my 10 volt drill and impact vs 18 enihell I have.
My 10 volt impact will put 6 inch screws in timber as amazing how much power these tools have, never mind the 18 volt so depends what you plan to use it for. The 2Ah batteries will be fine for the drills for general diy but if you plan to put many screws in or put it under strain for longer periods get a bigger battery.

 

[mcprinter]

DIYer

I bought this set a couple of Years ago
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Einhell-4257214-X-Change-Impact-Driver/dp/B06W2JYKSC

Very useful and faster having a separate Drill and Driver.
The 2A Batteries last well and charge in a fairly short time. Some of the cheaper Kit takes hours to charge.
The Drill gets through most things. Corded SDS for anything very hard going.

I have an old Bosch corded Multitool. Sometimes a bit annoying with a Cord but OK most of the time.
Would replace with Cordless if it broke.

 

[Derek M]

I'd get the corded circular saw. Plenty of power and go all day.

For smaller jobs I use my 10 volt drill and impact vs 18 enihell I have.
My 10 volt impact will put 6 inch screws in timber as amazing how much power these tools have, never mind the 18 volt so depends what you plan to use it for. The 2Ah batteries will be fine for the drills for general diy but if you plan to put many screws in or put it under strain for longer periods get a bigger battery.

Thanks. I'll leave the circular saw out of the equation when deciding what batteries to get then.

I've got this Bosch IXO cordless screwdriver IXO 5 Lithium-ion Cordless Screwdriver | Bosch DIY (bosch-diy.com) which is fine for small stuff but it doesn't have a lot of power.

I mainly need a drill for drilling holes in brick walls to put up shelves but I'll also need to screw down the new flooring once I get round to replacing that. The screws won't be that long, maybe 50mm.

I also need to drill holes in the walls, some brick but mostly concrete I think, to fit clips and channel to support soundproofing plasterboard, so those screws will probably need to be a bit longer and an impact driver might be needed for that.

 

[Derek M]

DIYer

I bought this set a couple of Years ago
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Einhell-4257214-X-Change-Impact-Driver/dp/B06W2JYKSC

Very useful and faster having a separate Drill and Driver.
The 2A Batteries last well and charge in a fairly short time. Some of the cheaper Kit takes hours to charge.
The Drill gets through most things. Corded SDS for anything very hard going.

I have an old Bosch corded Multitool. Sometimes a bit annoying with a Cord but OK most of the time.
Would replace with Cordless if it broke.

Thanks. I'll get a cordless Multi Tool then.

The only thing that puts me off the set you bought is they don't appear to be brushless. It doesn't mention the model number for the drill but I looked up the TE-CI 18/1 driver on the Einhell site and it doesn't say anything about it being brushless there.

 

[magicmushroom666]

For general DIY, I much prefer 2 X 2Ah over a single 4Ah, I have similar with my bosch gear and find I always just stick to the 2Ah to make things lighter, and its no hardship to swap to the other battery. All my stuff is brushed and works just fine.

 

[ETAF]

Note - a DIYer, having refurbished a bungalow recently
I have 2 x 2Ah and 2 x 3Ah and 1 x 5Ah, the 2 & 3 Ah - came as part of a kit in the Multitool & Drill

in the Drill, Impact driver & multitool, i tend to use the 2Ah most of the time, because they are light and small
If i know i'm going to use the tools a long while, i tend to use the 3Ah batts then

The 5Ah , i use on the Grinder, Circular saw , planer & Jigsaw
i find it too big and heavy on the drill/impact/multitool

 

[Derek M]

Note - a DIYer, having refurbished a bungalow recently
I have 2 x 2Ah and 2 x 3Ah and 1 x 5Ah, the 2 & 3 Ah - came as part of a kit in the Multitool & Drill

in the Drill, Impact driver & multitool, i tend to use the 2Ah most of the time, because they are light and small
If i know i'm going to use the tools a long while, i tend to use the 3Ah batts then

The 5Ah , i use on the Grinder, Circular saw , planer & Jigsaw
i find it too big and heavy on the drill/impact/multitool

Thanks. I can see how it would make sense to use a bigger battery on stuff like a circular saw and the smaller, lighter ones on the drill, impact driver and multitool, so I'll probably try to get 2 x 2Ah for the latter and then a 4-5Ah for the circular saw.

EDIT: Actually, I'm probably going to get a corded mini circular saw, so I might just get a 3-4Ah battery to use with the other tools if I'm going to be using them a lot.

 

[Keithmac]

Brushless isn't the be all and end all, my Snap-on brushed impact gun has done nearly 20 years of workshop use with no issues.

 

[Derek M]

Brushless isn't the be all and end all, my Snap-on brushed impact gun has done nearly 20 years of workshop use with no issues.

Thanks. That's good to know because the brushed tools (or the kits at least) are considerably cheaper.

 

[Derek M]

Which of the Einhell cordless multi tools would you recommend?

There's this one for £72 Einhell 4465160 Varrito Power X-Change Cordless Multi Tool - Supplied Without Battery & Charger, 16.7 cm*26.8 cm*7.5 cm : Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

or this one for £55 Einhell Cordless Multifunctional Tool TC-MG 18 Li-Solo Power X-Change (18 V, Lithium-ion, Magnetic Tool Fixation, Speed Electronics, Including Accessories, Without Battery or Charger) : Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

Looking at the specs on Einhell's site, I can't see any difference in the specs, although they look quite different physically.
VARRITO | Cordless Multifunctional Tool (einhell.co.uk)
TC-MG 18 Li-Solo | Cordless Multifunctional Tool (einhell.co.uk)

They both have an oscillation decoupled battery uptake for vibration reduction, magnetic tool fixation and a chuck with twelve adjustable settings, oscillating speed 22000-40000 min^-1, No load speed 11000 min^-1 - 20000 min^-1, angle of oscillation 3.2° and sandpaper size 93 mm x 93 mm x 93 mm.

The accessories may differ, as the Varrito seems to come with a BIM plunge-cut saw blade for metal and a diamond segment saw blade for tile joints, which aren't mentioned with the TC-MG 18, but I can't see how those two accessories could be worth £17.

My main uses for the multi tool will be removing old skirting boards, removing a redundant false ceiling of about 4ftx3ft which will involve cutting around the edge of the plasterboard and also through the wooden battens it's attached to, trimming doors, maybe removing wallpaper and sanding some uneven plaster on the walls. So I think I'll mainly be using the plunge cut blades for wood. Is this set of blades good value at £27.70? I know they're compatible with Einhell, as Amazon sells them in a bundle. KWB AKKU-TOP Energy Saving Multi-Functional Tool Kit (7-Piece) : Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

I saw this Amazon Basics set which is about 1/3rd of the price at £11 but I'm not sure they're compatible with Einhell, as it doesn't mention them in the compatible list (it doesn't mention them in the incompatible list either though). You get more blades but they're all the same, whereas with the KWB set you get a variety but I may not need that for the jobs I need to do. Amazon Basics Wood HCS Oscillating Saw Blades - 1 and 3/8-inch (3.5 cm), 10 Pieces : Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

 

[mcprinter]

It has Tool-less Blade change using a Lever. The cheaper one likely to be an Allen Key.
I have Allen Key on my old Bosch. Bit annoying but fine for DIY.

The more expensive one looks nicer!

Saxton Blades often gets recommended on here
https://www.saxtonblades.co.uk/

 

[opps]

Brushless isn't the be all and end all, my Snap-on brushed impact gun has done nearly 20 years of workshop use with no issues.

Although I agree that brushless is often sold as being a "must have", it does have advantages. Earlier in the year I purchased a brushless Metabo 12v drill/driver and impact drill. The brushless versions have more torque, weigh very slightly less, a slightly smaller body depth and have a longer battery run time. I wanted something small and light to carry on public transport. I considered the premium to be worth paying for. If the drill was only going to be used in a workshop, I would have gone for the cheaper brushed version.

 

[Derek M]

Although I agree that brushless is often sold as being a "must have", it does have advantages. Earlier in the year I purchased a brushless Metabo 12v drill/driver and impact drill. The brushless versions have more torque, weigh very slightly less, a slightly smaller body depth and have a longer battery run time. I wanted something small and light to carry on public transport. I considered the premium to be worth paying for. If the drill was only going to be used in a workshop, I would have gone for the cheaper brushed version.

That makes sense. I'm only going to be using it at my house, maybe at my Dad's too but he lives nearby, so I'll just get the cheaper brushed kit, which also has the 2 x 2Ah batteries, which is better for me than 1 x 4Ah.

 

[Derek M]

It has Tool-less Blade change using a Lever. The cheaper one likely to be an Allen Key.
I have Allen Key on my old Bosch. Bit annoying but fine for DIY.

The more expensive one looks nicer!

Saxton Blades often gets recommended on here
https://www.saxtonblades.co.uk/

Ah, good spot. Both of their descriptions refer to "magnetic tool fixation", so I thought they were both tool-less but looking at the manuals I can see that the cheaper one does use an Allen Key.

I'm not really bothered about what it looks like, but I can see that I might find it a bit annoying having to use an Allen Key to swap the blades, so it's probably worth paying the extra £17 for the Varrito and maybe I'll find a use for the two extra blades it comes with.

Thanks for the tip about Saxton Blades, I'll check them out.