Cordless impact driver

[DRShahan]

I can't speak for the impact, but I have the 20V dewalt hammer drill, sawzall, and grinder and really love them all.

For those of you with the 18V line looking to upgrade, dewalt makes an adapter to use the new batteries with the old tools. I've never used one, but I expect that's really useful.

http://www.dewalt.com/products/accessories/batteries-and-chargers/batteries/18v-to-20v-adapter/dca1820

[T-Mo]

I can't speak for the impact, but I have the 20V dewalt hammer drill, sawzall, and grinder and really love them all.

For those of you with the 18V line looking to upgrade, dewalt makes an adapter to use the new batteries with the old tools. I've never used one, but I expect that's really useful.

http://www.dewalt.com/products/accessories/batteries-and-chargers/batteries/18v-to-20v-adapter/dca1820

Interesting. I wonder how much weight it will add to the tools?

[Don McCombs]

Amazon says 7.8 ounces.

[John *.?-!.* cub owner]

.........

Interesting. I wonder how much weight it will add to the tools?

The 20 volt battery is physically smaller, so it probably comes out about the same.

[outdoors4evr]

I have had battery packs rebuilt in the past. Won't do that again. The rebuilt packs were rebuilt with new batteries of a higher capacity (more amp hours per cell) but they only lasted a year before the pack shorted and failed.
If considering changing brands of tool, do it when most of your battery packs fail. The battery packs are more expensive than new tools.

[John *.?-!.* cub owner]

Another thought, which is what I did on many of my Dewalt tools was once I got a couple of chargers and 2 or 3 batteries I bought bare tools. They come without batteries, cases, or chargers, but once you get some on hand you don't normally need a separate set of batteries for each tool just for home owner use.

[dgrapes59]

Like many I have quite a few DeWalt 18 volt tools, including an impact, which I am happy with for the general use I do. My wife bought me a 20 volt driver and I absolutely love it, mostly use for driving screws, and with all the projects I have been doing it has been great. As the 18 volt batteries die I struggled with investing in more. I kinda related the conundrum to having cases of 8 track tapes when cassettes came out for us old folks Rural King advertised a "new low price" on the 18 to 20 volt converters for $29.99, so I picked one up. Works great so far and the combined converter and battery is comparable to the 18 volt in size and weight. I did spring for a couple new 18 volt batteries from Amazon since all of the tools seem to be going strong and the last couple batteries lasted about 3 years (I put the date on them with a sharpie). Now the newer, more powerful offerings are making me wonder about going from cassettes to CDs.....

Good luck,

[T-Mo]

Another thought, which is what I did on many of my Dewalt tools was once I got a couple of chargers and 2 or 3 batteries I bought bare tools. They come without batteries, cases, or chargers, but once you get some on hand you don't normally need a separate set of batteries for each tool just for home owner use.

Right now I have these in my 18v Dewalt arsenal. 1/2 inch Impact Wrench, 1/4 inch Impact Driver, 3/8 inch drill, reciprocating saw, light, and a circular saw. I have three battery packs and two chargers. I would like to add the jig saw next to the arsenal.

[daddydip]

guess it depends on how much your going to use it, in the shop air, I have a ryobi from the depot and a couple other ryobi drills that i like around the house, after my old 18v milwaukee just started to feel outdated and bulky I went there, now retired and thinking i may start doing a little side work, i just picked up a milwaukee 18v fuel set that i like and may expand on because they are brushless and milwaukee used metal gears to build there tools versus the plastic stuff a lot of others use which don't stand up, the other issue is batteries if your going to have accompanying tools...

[outdoors4evr]

By the time you get to CD's, those whiz bang kids will start using MP3's or some crazy IPod or phone thing!
(Might want to skip the CD's)

[John *.?-!.* cub owner]

By the time you get to CD's, those whiz bang kids will start using MP3's or some crazy IPod or phone thing!
(Might want to skip the CD's)

[Bob McCarty]

By the time you get to CD's, those whiz bang kids will start using MP3's or some crazy IPod or phone thing!
(Might want to skip the CD's)

John, David put in his post that the newer, more powerful tools were making him think it might be time to switch from cassettes to CD's....

[John *.?-!.* cub owner]

OK, I missed that part looking back over the posts, Thanks. I have converted from air impacts to cordless in practically all my uses, though I have not found a cordless ratchet I liked yet. About the only time I get out an air wrench anymore is if I have a larger bolt that is stuck. I have an air impact that has 500+ ft.lb. of torque. If it won't unscrew one, it will break it off with a little patience.

[outdoors4evr]

The point is... Keep what you have as long as it is viable. Then skip a couple of iterations of technology to the latest and greatest.