Power Tools & General Tools Recommendations & Advice

zom247 · 20 Nov 2019 at 10:14

pastymuncher said:
After a lot of umming and ahhing I ended up going for a Erbauer ECDT18-Li-2 kit with a pair of 5Ah batteries. I was a bit wary of the weight of the batteries but the balance is perfect. It's a cracking drill and is much quieter than my old Silverline. It's on offer at the moment for £115.

Thanks, that looks like just what I need. Are they end of line as they are advertised as clearance items?

pastymuncher · 20 Nov 2019 at 10:42

zom247 said:
Thanks, that looks like just what I need. Are they end of line as they are advertised as clearance items?

I am not sure because there is no mention of it being EOL on Screwfix. It's a really good drill and is of massively better quality than my old 20v Silverpower drill. The Silverpower may have been cheaper but it did last me 7 years before the batteries wouldn't hold a charge. The Erbauer has a 2 year warranty and the batteries are compatible with several other Erbauer EXT tools. The wife is getting me the cordless vacuum for the car for my birthday and I am hoping to pick up the angle grinder cheaply between black Friday and the New Year sales.

darreny · 20 Nov 2019 at 13:09

b0rn2sk8 said:
I’m going to be hanging some new doors soon, they’ll be standard hollow doors, nothing fancy or hardwood. What’s the best tool for trimming the bottoms? Electric planer?

Anyone got any recommendations? I think it would be fair to say this is likely to be the only job like this I will be doing so it doesn’t need to a high end model, just one that is sufficient. Prices seem to vary significantly. I have screwfix and tool station nearby and online of course!

If it's only the bottom then circular saw and a straight edge, especially if it needs a slight angle.

Martynt74 · 22 Nov 2019 at 11:07

Just picked up a Ryobi Hedge Trimmer.

As a heads up Amazon are doing 20% off Warehouse deals, there's some decent stuff on there which usually end up being virtually brand new.

Blinkz · 28 Nov 2019 at 09:52

JRJ said:
Right on cue up pops a 20% off Ebay coupon Seller:buyaparcel

Dewalt DCK266P2T £251.99

Just seen this deal -https://www.ffx.co.uk/tools/product...Li-Ion?tduid=cafe69482ebdfee077008ffe3077edad

Which has the top of the range drill as well as impact driver 2x4ah batts and charger for £250. Seem a pretty good? There’s another with 2x5ah batts for £310 but not sure the slightly bigger bats are worth £60??

what do people think? I’m looking to get a new drill and thought this might be a good place to start?

PlacidCasual · 28 Nov 2019 at 09:58

I got that kit last year with the 5Ah batteries for about £279 at my local dealers (might have been less it was very good deal at time). The Batteries are too big it takes me weeks to get them down one bar just doing DIY. If I were a jobbing chippy or electrician might get through a bt quicker bu they're fairly hefty. Luckily I have over DeWalt batteries that are a better size.

Blinkz · 28 Nov 2019 at 10:09

Thanks for the reply, guess no issue with the 4ah batts then!

Would you say the kit in general is good for DIY or would the smaller DCK266 with the less powerful drill and driver be more suited? They are the same price of £250 so I just figured getting the more powerful ones made sense.

lewism · 28 Nov 2019 at 12:44

Blinkz said:
Thanks for the reply, guess no issue with the 4ah batts then!

Would you say the kit in general is good for DIY or would the smaller DCK266 with the less powerful drill and driver be more suited? They are the same price of £250 so I just figured getting the more powerful ones made sense.

If it's the same price get the 276. The drill and impact will do anything and everything for a DIYer. 5ah batteries are only decent for the hungrier tools.

To be honest I prefer my 10.8v Dewalt kit to the 18v stuff. Does around 80% of what I need and it's much lighter in the hand.

Psycho Sonny · 28 Nov 2019 at 13:17

I already have a circular saw and drill. I am hoping to make my own shed / summer house next year from scratch.

what else should i be looking to get? Already have a sander too.

rhysduck · 28 Nov 2019 at 13:21

Impact Driver.
Hammer

Mark M · 28 Nov 2019 at 13:41

rhysduck said:
Impact Driver.
Hammer

Chop saw too if you are cutting down a lot of boards to the right length.

PlacidCasual · 28 Nov 2019 at 14:45

@Psycho Sonny a spirit level, a tape measure, chop saw, a lot of cheap clamps, more cheap clamps, a workbench (maybe).

Blinkz · 28 Nov 2019 at 16:43

lewism said:
If it's the same price get the 276. The drill and impact will do anything and everything for a DIYer. 5ah batteries are only decent for the hungrier tools.

To be honest I prefer my 10.8v Dewalt kit to the 18v stuff. Does around 80% of what I need and it's much lighter in the hand.

This was my concern. Whilst the 276 is the same price for more power/torque etc is it going to be overkill and too heavy for home DIY?

b0rn2sk8 · 28 Nov 2019 at 17:21

If you need less power you can pull the trigger less.

If you need more power you are stuffed.

Buy the better drill if it’s the same price.

Blinkz · 29 Nov 2019 at 12:47

b0rn2sk8 said:
If you need less power you can pull the trigger less.

If you need more power you are stuffed.

Buy the better drill if it’s the same price.

Def good points, I was thinking more of the size, weight and balance of the drill though. Would the small one be easier to use?

Oh Ed not again. · 29 Nov 2019 at 13:03

Can anyone recommend a good table saw?

I'm musing the Dewalt 745L, Bosch GTJ10 and the Makita (model number escapes me but at same price point).

b0rn2sk8 · 29 Nov 2019 at 15:36

Blinkz said:
Def good points, I was thinking more of the size, weight and balance of the drill though. Would the small one be easier to use?

Mines a brushed model so weighs far more and is far larger than all of the brushless models. So I would still get the more powerful one regardless.

Mark A · 29 Nov 2019 at 15:46

Psycho Sonny said:
I already have a circular saw and drill. I am hoping to make my own shed / summer house next year from scratch.

what else should i be looking to get? Already have a sander too.

A Jiggly saw is always handy.

Martynt74 · 29 Nov 2019 at 16:49

randal said:
Can anyone recommend a good table saw?

I'm musing the Dewalt 745L, Bosch GTJ10 and the Makita (model number escapes me but at same price point).

I've always believed the Dewalt to be the best of the bunch due to the rack and pinion fence.

JRJ · 30 Nov 2019 at 21:52

Blinkz said:
Just seen this deal -https://www.ffx.co.uk/tools/product...Li-Ion?tduid=cafe69482ebdfee077008ffe3077edad

Which has the top of the range drill as well as impact driver 2x4ah batts and charger for £250. Seem a pretty good? There’s another with 2x5ah batts for £310 but not sure the slightly bigger bats are worth £60??

what do people think? I’m looking to get a new drill and thought this might be a good place to start?

I initially went with the 266 with 5ah batteries, very good tools the 796 is very well balanced with either 4ah or 5ah batteries, but I've since added a bare 996 to my tool bag just for the extra grunt (half my renovation is an old stone house and the hammer struggled a bit on the 796)