Drill questions

[Robbo]

It was only the old Ni-Cd batteries that needed to be fully drained and then fully charged, or they would develop a memory when only part charged. With the new Lithium battery technology, they can be part charged, fully charged or whatever without the problems of old. With many brands now doing the "Skins" it is a good way to go if you are requiring several power tools or more, and it is a good idea to have two batteries as well.
I know that it is a clever marketing tool but this one works both ways.

[Coolblue80]

I've got the Ryobi gear and find it great value for the money.  I re screwed my whole roof with my impact driver and it never missed a beat.  And that was 40 year old hardwood battens. Fully expected it to die but 18 months later it's still going strong.
Cheers, Mike.

[Elky]

It was only the old Ni-Cd batteries that needed to be fully drained and then fully charged, or they would develop a memory when only part charged. With the new Lithium battery technology, they can be part charged, fully charged or whatever without the problems of old. With many brands now doing the "Skins" it is a good way to go if you are requiring several power tools or more, and it is a good idea to have two batteries as well.
I know that it is a clever marketing tool but this one works both ways.

Generally lithium being ok to partially charge is true, I have had issues with a couple losing capacity, so I have enough batteries to allow me to get thru a day without charging, thus enabling me to do it at home ( I do lots of small jobs where I have had the issue of forgetting my charger and leaving it in the power box and having to drive back, I should get an inverter but mehhh)

[jimc1]

Keep an eye out on the specials tables at Bunnings and Masters. I picked up a brushless Hitachi drill driver combo for $340 three weeks ago. Deal of the century I think

You have to use the batteries otherwise they will die and become expensive and useless tools

[grafy82]

Just in Bunnos again and they have a brushless Ryobi kit there now. Drill, 5.0ah + 2.5ah batteries and charger.

[Robbo]

Just in Bunnos again and they have a brushless Ryobi kit there now. Drill, 5.0ah + 2.5ah batteries and charger.

I'd say that's a pretty good price for all of that. The 5aHr battery will be handy if you are using it on a brush cutter or hedge trimmer.

[akarosco]

Ozito is to tools what Great Wall is to 4x4s.
Cheap & falls apart at the thought of anything 1/2 serious.



Relax, put the diff lock on, climb another sand dune & enjoy the view.

[grafy82]

Ozito is to tools what Great Wall is to 4x4s.
Cheap & falls apart at the thought of anything 1/2 serious.



Relax, put the diff lock on, climb another sand dune & enjoy the view.

Interested to know if you've used their new red power x range. I know the old grey ozito gear was a bit dodgy, but I have been flogging the new range gear and its holding up well. And once again, 5 year warranty I it does happen to die.

[achjimmy]

Another ryobi one user. I bought it for the van to use with the Bos jockey wheel, drop jacks and screw pegs. Only went ryobi for $$$ and it was the only one gnat offered a 12v charger (didn't want invertors) also got the vac and camp light to use the same batteries. Just brilliant and considering updating the old pana and staying with the same range. The only critisism I have of the cheapies in ten drills is they don't spin faster enough!  Okay for most stuff but the higher speed makitas etc are better with rivet drills etc.

Also add I see the bunnings availability as plus, there stores are everywhere so if I was caught and need a battery

[andyandcill]

Another YES vote for Ryobi.I have pretty much the full range of skins and run 3 batteries which are about 4 years old and still holding good charge.
I use them daily for work and cant fault them.They get used and abused and still keep going.
A handy addition is the 12 volt charger can charge batteries from car so have Charged batteries where ever you go.

[NewieCamper]

Another Ryobi user. Started with a drill, then a hedge trimmer and recently I bought a second hand lot  from a tradie who had flogged them and then upgraded so I've got a kit of around 15 tools. A couple of the second hand bits were dead, but for amount I've paid I've got nothing to lose with them.

Don't worry about the biggest battery for a drill, I've got 2x 1.4ah and 2x 4ah. The smaller batteries are great for the drill, nice and light, no loss of power and run time is plenty. The bigger batteries make a difference on high speed stuff like the circ saw or blower. Having two smaller batteries for a drill is good, always keep one charged in case.

The other thing I did was when I bought my Ryobi drill I had some old GMC 18v gear that had dud ni-cad batteries. I bought the cheapest Ryobi skin I could find (torch) cut the base off it, grafted it to the gmc battery shell once the batteries were removed. Now it's possible to use the old gmc drill, jigsaw, recip saw with a Ryobi lithium battery. The battery/skin system does lock you in a bit, but not completely.

[noel_w]

One thing to add about the Ryobi, I bought a drill kit about this time last year and the charger died a few weeks ago. One of the LEDs would just flash dimly, not like it used to. Took it back to the green shed and they replaced it (as they should) but they did say there was a faulty batch of chargers. They checked the serial number against their list. So if yours is about 12 months old may be wise to get it checked. This is the single battery charger, not the multi battery one..

[Coiled]

I have had the Ryobu stuff for about 6 years. Bought it when we bought out first house and doing renos. The gear is incredibly good value and of a high enough quality to last. That being said we bought another house at the start of this year which saw me needing a couple of extra skins so I decided I would get some makita gear too.  I decided on Makita over the other trade gear due to the spread of skins they have that are useful to the home handyman. If you can afford it do it! All skins feel great in the hand and have heaps of punch, far more than my ryobi gear. When it comes to things like circ saws the ryobi gear uses odd diameter blades limiting yoir options considerably.

Advice - Buy Ryobi or step up to trade quality Makita or Milwaukee. The Ryobi gear is far from junk and the price gap to the good gear is stuff all especially when looking at skins. To buy the middle ground you are just paying extra for what is really no gain over the Ryobi.

[Andy_Q]

In a moment of weakness on Saturday I grabbed a Ryobi 1/2" impact driver kit. It came with two batteries and I really do not need four.

If anyone is after a brand new 5Ah battery rrp $139. I'll let it go for $100. Send me a pm.

Might sell the charger too if anyone wants it.

Edit: pick up near Penrith nsw.

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[stiffbreeze]

We have a fair few AEG 18v brushless gear as both hubby and I just really like them. Great power, batteries last a bloody long time in all the tools except the cordless angle grinder (seriously those things suck power but brilliant nonetheless if you're ever stuck and need to do quick fixup job in the bush). For me, I find the aeg stuff to be slightly lighter and not as heavy/clumsy when using compared to other tools. We also have been buying cheap nasty Ozito woodworking tools for camper trailer mods in the garage but those things smoke/get hot after a while. If we were to get serious with woodwork, we would buy better brands.

Only thing like others have said, you are restricted to only being able to buy additional skins from Bunnings (compared to other brands), plus Bunnings never have sales. They do have a lot of floor stock in different combo kits from time to time which might be useful. You can negotiate a discount with Bunnings if you say you'll take your cash to Masters instead. Been there, done that.

Masters are starting to sell the Dewalt and Stanley Fatmax gear which are solid. The stanley fatmax power tools range are just breaking into the aussie market so they having decent sales at the mo. Other brands - makita and hitachi are nice but can get pricier. If you do solid work, spend the money on something that will last for years.

[feisty]

We have a fair few AEG 18v brushless gear as both hubby and I just really like them. Great power, batteries last a bloody long time in all the tools except the cordless angle grinder (seriously those things suck power but brilliant nonetheless if you're ever stuck and need to do quick fixup job in the bush). For me, I find the aeg stuff to be slightly lighter and not as heavy/clumsy when using compared to other tools. We also have been buying cheap nasty Ozito woodworking tools for camper trailer mods in the garage but those things smoke/get hot after a while. If we were to get serious with woodwork, we would buy better brands.

Only thing like others have said, you are restricted to only being able to buy additional skins from Bunnings (compared to other brands), plus Bunnings never have sales. They do have a lot of floor stock in different combo kits from time to time which might be useful. You can negotiate a discount with Bunnings if you say you'll take your cash to Masters instead. Been there, done that.

Masters are starting to sell the Dewalt and Stanley Fatmax gear which are solid. The stanley fatmax power tools range are just breaking into the aussie market so they having decent sales at the mo. Other brands - makita and hitachi are nice but can get pricier. If you do solid work, spend the money on something that will last for years.

Mate had a stanley fat max drill. Went back three times for three different issues in a month. Masters person said they have a high return rate. Stanley, Dewalt and black and Decker all are stanley brands. Personally I steer clear of them all. Love the AEG stuff. Went through an unergonomic phase. You had to be a contortionist to select forward and reverse and their stuff was poorly balanced (still tough as nails though). All that is behind them now.
Shame they seem to be a bunnings only brand now

[NewieCamper]

Shame they seem to be a bunnings only brand now

That's what I regret about starting out with Ryobi gear. Can't buy it anywhere else, which means it's hard to get it discounted. Ebay often has Ryobi one+ gear at prices higher than Bunnings.

[kylarama]

So the trigger brake has just died in my 7-8 year old Makita (160nm) impact driver. 

$40-$50 for new trigger or $270 for 280nm brushless 1/2" impact wrench.

Decisions decisions...


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[xcvator]

Ozito is to tools what Great Wall is to 4x4s.
Cheap & falls apart at the thought of anything 1/2 serious.



Relax, put the diff lock on, climb another sand dune & enjoy the view.

That statement is a load of crap
I have an Ozito impact drill and it's the BEST 1 I have ever had including "Hilti, Metabo and Bosch"
The  $ 40-00 battery drill is amazing value, I use 1 for running in 150mm tech screws instead of tent pegs. Just yesterday I dismantled a sleeper garden bed unscrewing 100mm screws that had been in the wood for 3 years with it. For the price why would you go and spend 1 or 2 hundred $'s if your not a tradie, even then these would probably be better value.
If your a brand name snob, sure spend the money, me, I look for value for my dollar spend, and "ozito" gives me what I need and more

[RebsWA]

That statement is a load of crap
I have an Ozito impact drill and it's the BEST 1 I have ever had including "Hilti, Metabo and Bosch"
The  $ 40-00 battery drill is amazing value, I use 1 for running in 150mm tech screws instead of tent pegs. Just yesterday I dismantled a sleeper garden bed unscrewing 100mm screws that had been in the wood for 3 years with it. For the price why would you go and spend 1 or 2 hundred $'s if your not a tradie, even then these would probably be better value.
If your a brand name snob, sure spend the money, me, I look for value for my dollar spend, and "ozito" gives me what I need and more

X2 and the warranty is for replacement

[akarosco]

That statement is a load of crap
I have an Ozito impact drill and it's the BEST 1 I have ever had including "Hilti, Metabo and Bosch"
The  $ 40-00 battery drill is amazing value, I use 1 for running in 150mm tech screws instead of tent pegs. Just yesterday I dismantled a sleeper garden bed unscrewing 100mm screws that had been in the wood for 3 years with it. For the price why would you go and spend 1 or 2 hundred $'s if your not a tradie, even then these would probably be better value.
If your a brand name snob, sure spend the money, me, I look for value for my dollar spend, and "ozito" gives me what I need and more

Opinions are like arseholes, everyone has one.
My opinion is clear & unlikely to change.   These things are cheap for a reason.
I hope you have a good experience with your unit.



Relax, put the diff lock on, climb another sand dune & enjoy the view.

[Champin]

IMHO there is nothing wrong with the cheaper brand power tools. The only thing I would be mindful of is using a drill bit larger the about 10mm. The cheaper drills don't like being loaded up that much for too long. In saying that I have also experienced some very average name brand drills too. I reckon it's like anything. You look after it, it will go the distance.

[kylarama]

Generally the issue with the cheaper tools is the quality of the battery cells used and the charger technology (charge time), they're usually the first things to die.  I'd say there are tons of perfectly good cordless tools gathering dust in sheds because the batteries are dead and replacement batteries not a $$$ viable option.
The other issue is the models tend to change often, leaving batteries and tools non-compatible with newer stuff.

[Hewy54]

Bought my first cordless 17 years ago. A Black and Decker to help build a shack. Died about 4 years ago so bought a Rockwell. Has done 3 large sheds, 2 extra large verandahs, still going strong. Bought a Ryobi One a few months ago just because of the extra bits that can be attached. For non trade use I do mot see the use of spending a huge amount.

[Artie01]

Never ceases to amaze me how aggressive some people get with their opinions.....

Initially I bought a heap of Ozito tools (because I'm a cheaparse) and found that every one of them died over a shortish period, there is a very good reason why the brushed items (jack hammer) comes with spare brushes, they chew through them. The replacement warranty wasn't in force back then (or at least not at my local Bunnings, warranty was honoured in a couple of cases but it was always a battle).

Eventually my confidence in the brand failed and I replaced them with the Ryobi range, to date, have not had a failure and my carpentry hobby hasn't had to be interrupted because of it.

Again, like arseholes, as was so eloquently stated, this is just my opinion based on my experience, I'm sure many of you have had great experiences with the Ozito brand......