shufflebeat
Joined: 09/12/07
Posts: 2272
Loc: Manchester, UK
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power tools scam?
#959676 - 19/12/11 02:56 PM
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I find myself in the ridiculous position of considering paying the guts of 60 quid for a
replacement battery for a green Bosch screwdriver/drill or replacing my perfectly good one
for significantly less to get the *two* batteries that come with a new one.
This doesn't make sense and staff at B&Q (quietly) agree.
--------------------
Ohm's Law states, "Your PA isn't as powerful as you think it is".
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The Red Bladder
Joined: 05/06/07
Posts: 2071
Loc: . ...
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Re: power tools scam?
[Re: shufflebeat]
#959683 - 19/12/11 03:18 PM
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Almost all these batteries are made by the Haiding company and the insides are totally
interchangeable within types and shapes.
The green Bosch range batteries are
made of NiCad 1.2V, 1.2Ahr units and placed together in various plastic housings. Just
find a battery supplier on eBay or elsewhere that had the same voltage and shape as the
one you need and get that, then swap out the insides. They usually cost between £20 and
£25 with PP for a 24V unit.
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. . . Delete This
Here be Dragons
Joined: 23/06/08
Posts: 3888
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Re: power tools scam?
[Re: shufflebeat]
#959685 - 19/12/11 03:26 PM
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check the battery types, and amp-hour ratings.....
you may find the 60
quid monster, is actually about twice as "big" as the ones that come with the replacement
unit....
i'd also point out, sadly, that 60 quid is fairly unremarkable
as battery prices go, especially if it's lithium ion, rather than NiCad or NiMH , the
Li-ion jobbies for my power tool kit are £70-80 each, even on ebay...
for my
previous kit, they were even more.....
.
the entire power tool
industry underwent a bit of a revolution a couple of years ago, and for some reason,
things generally started being more expensive..... and not as well made..... but
generally, batteries.... stopped being considered as freebies.... , and started costing
serious money.....
look up high capacity , fast charge batteries for Dewalt,
or Makita, and their ilk.... and be sitting down when you ask the price.
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The Red Bladder
Joined: 05/06/07
Posts: 2071
Loc: . ...
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Re: power tools scam?
[Re: shufflebeat]
#959695 - 19/12/11 04:02 PM
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What the dragon says is sadly true. If your batteries are dead, that suggests that they
are about six years old - all you get from batteries! Six years ago, batteries were far
cheaper. The new generation of 18V and 24V 3Ah batteries will last you all day, without
having to fanny about with recharging. If you are 25m up a tree, limbing, or you are on a
roof, that makes all the difference in the World.
But yes, these babies cost
£80 each and more. The NiCd are cheaper, but one-third of the capacity.
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Madman_Greg
Joined: 07/12/06
Posts: 707
Loc: The back of beyond
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My place is probably not quite as expansive as Mr Bladder’s looks on the web, but I have
4 acres to look after. For years I have bought B&Q stuff and it’s crapped out after
2 years or whatever. Now I do not use in a trade manner only personal use only. But the
battery screwdriver is probably the most used tool in the box so worth investing in my
mind.
This year I bought a £300 deWalt 3.0AH 18v drill and it is great.
Never had a battery drill where I could drill for say 4 hour stretches onto masonry on one
battery. Or use a single battery all day for things like fencing.
It sounded
like a lot of money at the time, but now I think it’s really worth it. And the new
battery technology is great. But I am not looking forward to buying replacement batteries.
But at least I will not be buying replacement drills every 2 years or so.
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Madman_Greg
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shufflebeat
Joined: 09/12/07
Posts: 2272
Loc: Manchester, UK
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Re: power tools scam?
[Re: shufflebeat]
#959912 - 20/12/11 08:36 PM
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I disassembled a battery left over from my last screwdriver and had planned to find some
cells as you described, TRB (mmm... good name for a band, that) but have since spotted
this:
item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?itemId=200685686722&index=1&nav=SEARCH&ni
d=24709692358
Snake oil or genuine magic?
I take your point about
batteries costing real money but two dead batteries after less than two years light
domestic use is not good enough.
My gripe is that given your assessment the
initial price must be held down in order to appear attractive (fair enough) but I suspect
the short life of the batteries is a business decision rather than bad luck (not fair
enough).
--------------------
Ohm's Law states, "Your PA isn't as powerful as you think it is".
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. . . Delete This
Here be Dragons
Joined: 23/06/08
Posts: 3888
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Re: power tools scam?
[Re: shufflebeat]
#959927 - 20/12/11 09:55 PM
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nope, short life of batteries is generally user misuse...
note, MIS use,
not ABUSE
certain battery types have very fixed ideas about how they
like to be used, and how long they'll last..... find some reading materials thru
google.... and compare the desired lifestyle of the typical battery of a given type, with
how people (DIY, as opposed to trade) typically actually use them.
if
they're properly cared for , they last considerably longer....
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shufflebeat
Joined: 09/12/07
Posts: 2272
Loc: Manchester, UK
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Re: power tools scam?
[Re: shufflebeat]
#959938 - 20/12/11 10:49 PM
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My first screwdriver was a Black and Decker "stick" type that lasted me for years,
eventually giving up the ghost when I dropped it from height once too often. I replaced it
with the old version of the Bosch which saw me through two house moves and the various
repair and construction that involved. That was eventually stolen in a break in (minus
battery, idiots) to be replaced by the one in question.
Until now I seem to
have managed.
--------------------
Ohm's Law states, "Your PA isn't as powerful as you think it is".
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