Air tools versus power tools

[Scruffy Bodger]

Battery tech is improving constantly and quickly. The difference in power & runtime on a lithium-ion cordless drill for example, new now compared to even 3 years ago will be remarkable. That said, certain tools suit being cordless better and it's to do with style of use. Short burst stuff e.g. drills, impact wrenches are ideal and it'll feel like the batteries last forever. Constant full-power stuff like grinders or sanders are never going to be quite as good on that front, although they're getting closer all the time.

 

My view - cordless drills and screwdrivers are useful round the house,l as well as the workshop, so invest in a decent one. You don't really need anything else to be cordless unless you're out working on building sites every day, so I'd just get everything else you might need on 240v mains. It'll certainly be a hell of a lot cheaper that way too.

 

Air tools are for factories and I don't really understand why anyone would bother with all that faff at home. Again, just my view.

 

Totally agree with you on the cordless drill bit. I've got a brushless Dewalt 3 speed, all metal job, it's got a handle for a reason! In 1st gear it's a wrist snapper and will happily twist you up it's got that much torque. Also I only bought 2ah batteries for it. Even on site I don't have an issue with the smaller batteries as the charge time is so short. It saves weight in the tool and can be considerably cheaper than the 5 and 6ah batteries now available. You should be able to get 1000 charge cycles out of a decent battery so I went for the cheaper, smaller option.

 

Ps. If you haven't had Li-ion stuff before do NOT run the batteries right down every time you use them or leave them flat as you will shorten the life of the battery significantly.

[djoptix]

Makita for most things. Compressor for blowing up tyres, cleaning stuff with blow gun. 240v grinders. You need all of these

[DaveDorson]

If I didn't have a workshop with a big compressor and air, I'd probably buy a load of battery stuff, GOOD battery stuff, not cheap stuff.

 

I'm quite lucky, I've got a decent workshop with air and stuff.

[JimH]

The only air stuff we use are big fuck off air drills and 1" impact wrenches. Once drills get over 1/2" electric drills are just too bloody dangerous and when a wind drill takes a bite it just stops so no one gets their wrists broken. However, we can use those because we have a three cylinder compressor which puts out about 120cfm. Battery stuff is limited to a few Makita battery drills which are handy when you are working with wood and light stuff. As soon as you need something to run a lot (like a grinder) the battery stuff is just a pain in the arse because you need about a squillion batteries to get anywhere. Incidentally, we are talking about running grinders for hours on end here rather than the occasional slice or buff out of sheet steel.

 

My own view is that unless you are on a building site or have a real need to drill 1" holes in RSJs just buy stuff that runs on 240 volts because it is just so much easier and cheaper.

 

As with who to use we never go past Makita. Yes there are those who make higher quality tools but they cost an awful lot more.

[DodgeRover]

110v is an absolute PITA and any site safety officer insisting on its use should be made to walk round carrying a transformer all day.

The regs actually state 240v is fine if protected by an RCD,

 

If you like Mikita then have a look at the Katsu range of tools, same tool in a different colours at a lower price.

[Dan_ZTT]

The only air stuff we use are big fuck off air drills and 1" impact wrenches. Once drills get over 1/2" electric drills are just too bloody dangerous and when a wind drill takes a bite it just stops so no one gets their wrists broken.

Not sure about other brands but when I was at Bosch (left about 2 years ago) we had some clever clutch tech with rotation sensor chips in the more powerful drills, both mains & battery, which would stop the motor instantly if the bit caught. We used to jam them on purpose in sales demos to prove they worked, with those you couldn't break a wrist even if you tried. Granted anything without that sort of protection can be properly dangerous though.

[Dippy]

I can see that air powered stuff is not as popular now with good battery powered gear on the market.

 

In an ideal world air, battery and mains are all required.

 

Its worth having at least a small cheap compressor just for a blow gun and pumping up tyres, im lucky to have a decent sized one to run the shotblast cabinet and have a selection of tools to go with it the main pro to this is the tools are fairly cheap if you hae a decent compressor.

 

Cordless tools,best for stuff you use a lot as not tethered, for me this is a drill but also have a corldless grinder which as mentioned by others is shit for big welding tasks but great for a quick patch repair or using a cutting disc.

 

Ive not got much in the way of corded tools now but a grinder as once you go cordless its nice to stop tripping over cables. I still trip,over the airline but the air tools I use are not used regularly.

 

The one air tool I do think of replacing with cordless though is the impact wrench.

[sierraman]

Air is ok but your neighbors might get fed up with the noise.

 

Not a fan of cordless grinders, they’ve not got the same stall speed that a corded one has I found. They’re ok for cutting padlocks off lock up doors etc though.,

[reb]

I'm in the market for various power tools, mainly an impact gun. I'll be going for mains because the bastard car is about 10ft away from my kitchen window and I have an extension lead. I also have relatively little money, so the less I spend on tools the more I can spend on doing silly things to cars.

 

My friend had the idea of getting a big fuck off inverter and running his tools from his car. That sounds like a bad plan on many fronts already. He's gone and ordered one from China. No doubt I'll be offering up a fire damaged VTi on here soon...

 

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[JimH]

Not sure about other brands but when I was at Bosch (left about 2 years ago) we had some clever clutch tech with rotation sensor chips in the more powerful drills, both mains & battery, which would stop the motor instantly if the bit caught. We used to jam them on purpose in sales demos to prove they worked, with those you couldn't break a wrist even if you tried. Granted anything without that sort of protection can be properly dangerous though.

Got a model name for the Bosch? The biggest electric drill we have is a Makita 6300-4 which after only 27 years of building lorries and shattering 1/2" drills has started to make a bit of noise so we might be in the market for a properly butch 13mm electric drill that isn't scary to use.

 

To tell the truth we solved a lot of the problem by acquiring a Rotabest which is so much nicer having a big magnet keeping things safe. However, there isn't always a big bit of metal in the area to stick it to.