Simultaneous Multiple Tool Melt Down

I have broken one DeWalt tool since switching. I was helping out a buddy, and I stuck a blade in backwards (tang end out) in a DeWalt cordless jig saw. Of course I broke the blade clamp mechanism trying to get it out. I finally looked it up and ordered a new blade clamp assembly today.

DeWalt has been my go-to for many years for battery tools . When I was building cabinets I used the 12 volt drills because they were lighter and had plenty of power . I'm using the 18 volt stuff now except for one 20V drill I picked up at a yard sale .

Re 20V Max vs 18, the working voltage is the same, ~18 volts, because

If you have 18V XRP batteries with stems vs the flat tops of 18V XR or

I consider the arguments about 18V 20 to be moot. Its like saying a car battery is 12V. I have a 36V LiFPo for the trolling motor on one of my boats, but its actually well over 40 static charge.

As long as the voltage is close its really AH and CA that matter.

Yes, I am aware CA may not be a precise term in all applications, but its close enough.

A couple of the tools came with battery adapters already on them. Everything will use the 20V max batteries.

I use 4Ah 18V (that's "badge-engineered" to 20V in the USA) batteries in the SDS-drill I use for drilling sockets in granite. Seems to work very well. About battery size and finding that not the most massive battery seems necessary to get performance which seems absolutely fine.

Have previously asked on r.c.m. when looking to set up this capability.

Are DeWalt drill and battery. Is DCH263. Largest drill using "small tool" batteries (?).

Drill is best no pilot drill to 12mm into hard granite including elvan (very hard fine-grained dykes where magma has infilled fissures in previously solidified granite). 14mm there might be an advantage in pilot-drilling - not less than 7mm because the drill over-powers anything smaller and melts the tool - but not more than 8mm - seem to want to pilot at half the final drill size. Talking about carbide-tipped masonry drills.

Locally the price for 18V DeWalt Li-ion batteries is GBP13 per Ah. Had 4's but no 5's, so as price is pro-rata here, got another 4Ah.

Coming back to your point - the batteries seem just fine, and I let you be the judge of that by describing the work they do.

regards, Rich S

"DeWalt both kind of bogged out instantly with the small batteries and produced respectably with 4AH or bigger batteries."

"DeWalt both kind of bogged out instantly with the small batteries and produced respectably with 4AH or bigger batteries."

Drilling is generally less torque requirement than slicing steel with an angle grinder, or cutting trees with a chainsaw. Even the smallest cheap batteries have been okay for drilling. Just not for very long.

... and my apologies for not having more to add when you were information seeking. For 30-ish years as a contractor (23 owning my own company) I found it was often much faster to use heavy duty corded tools even if it meant lugging out and uncoiling heavy duty extension cords. I promise I can drill every hole in stick frame house for wiring with a corded Milwaukee drill in half the time as a decent 1/2 Milwaukee cordless drill regardless of the battery size. I used my cordless drills a lot on jobs, but not when I had a lot of drilling to do. I also went through the early days on battery platforms for a variety of cordless tools and most of them were garbage from any brand initially, so I just carried corded tools for everything. Its only been relatively recently I started using more cordless stuff besides drills regularly and only this year that I learned that a bigger amp hour cordless tool battery will also often be capable of more cranking amps.

I can't give you studies or reports. I can just tell you what my experience is.