New drill/driver update

Just posting a follow-up to my post last week about needing a
new cordless drill/driver. Now remember I use it at home and
work and I had been using my personal drill and driver at work
for quite a while. I went and asked the shop supervisor where I
should go to buy the new tools. I said home Depot or Lowe's or
do we as a company get good deals somewhere else. He said no
on the big box stores, and mentioned a local supplier I had
never heard of. Then he asked me why I needed them and I
explained mine wouldnt hold a charge anymore. He then said are
you using your hem here at work ? I said yes. He then told me
don't buy anything I will get you a new drill/driver combo. He
likes the new Makita cordless tools and that's what he ordered
for me. Said he ordered the higher amp/hour Batts too. They
will be in tomorrow. Kinda like waiting for Christmas ! I
would have bought DeWalt because I already have a DeWalt
cordless blower, but I wasn't going to argue about free tools.
I'll let you guys know tomorrow what I actually end up with !

Sounds like a good employer. When I was an apprentice sheetmetal worker all of the journeymen I knew furnished some tools the company was to buy. The company would buy replacement for worn out snips and the journeymen helped me make up my box with some quite servicable tools that has a lot of life in them. Apprentice Local 36 1965-68

I am actually an operating engineer. Local 17 buffalo, NY. Part of running our crushing and screening plant is maintenance. You didn't stay in your field ? Just wondering ! It is a great employer ! Shop supervisor started out on he bottom and still remembers what it's like. Really good guy. He helps guys out whenever he can !

Bonus !

I have owned makita cordless tools for many years and would not trade them for any of the others. My latest purchase was the 1/2? impact...what a beast. I?ve got batteries that are 7 or 8 years old, when they go bad I?ll replace with the higher amp hour ones but theses worked well for me.

Our shop has a number of Dewalt drill/drivers and they are not the best quality. A couple of years ago I bought a Makita cordless hammer drill with 4.0ah batteries and it's an awesome tool. I liked it so much I bought a bare tool for a spare and overall we have never had any issues other than one of them getting overloaded and needing new brushes. $20.00 fix.

Last Christmas I got a couple of Makita 3.0ah hammer drills for home use. These replaced a pair of Black and Decker units that were junk.

I get all the Makita tools from CPO Outlets where you get good prices, great service, and fast deliveries. Refurbs available there too and those are great for the "occasional use" items.

Hat's off to the boss for getting the new drill/driver for you.

Makita makes good tools and I think you will be happy with them.

I have always bought Dewalt. That was what my Dad always owned and I have stuck with them. I had over $2000 worth of older 18 volt Dewalt tools and batteries stolen approx a month ago. The company I work for bought me up with a basic 20 volt max 1/2 drill, 1/4 impact, 6 1/ 2 saw and a light with 2 batteries and charger kit to get me going again.
Just got word this from them yesterday that a new 1/2" hammer drill, angle grinder, sawzall, jig saw and eight 4 amp batteries along with two chargers will be here Thrusday. I do not know how much it wil cost for them to replace everything. It good to work for someone that will take care of you.

They too will not buy from a box store. Everything they buy power tool related comes from a place in GA called Tool Barn. They are tied in with a company here that only does warranty work on power tools. The only tools they sell are used tools that are sold on co-signment.

Tip.. Photograph your power tools along with the data plate showing model and serial number. It takes a lot of headaches out of reporting lost or stolen tools. With the serial number it will show up if your tools are taken to a pawn shop for here they are requaired by law to record serial numbers of pawned tools.

I was a Makita fan for years but I am now DONE with Makita. They scam you on the batteries by having a chip in them that disables them after x-
number of charges despite the condition of the battery. Both of my new batteries went bad within a few months of each other. Same condition -
flashes error on the charger. I did an on-line search of the problem and saw it was widespread and a known issue with Makita batteries. You can buy
new circuit boards on Ebay if you feel confident tearing the battery packs apart. Milwaukee and DeWalt batteries do not have this problem. I still
have my Makita 18V tools but have started to switch everything over to Milwaukee. I will not be buying any more Makita tools.