Cordless Tools Why I Like Black & Decker

I once owned a 12 volt Dewalt cordless drill back when 12v was considered powerful. I used the heck out of it - used it weekly. From hanging drywall to drilling pilot holes in concrete, I put my trusty Dewalt through all kinds of stuff. And it was great, the battery charge lasted a long time and it took some falls from ladders yet kept on drilling.

Then one day, I was burglarized and along with my Stihl chainsaw and fire extinguisher (that’s right, they took my freakin’ fire extinguisher!) they got my drill. So I had enough stolen with these tools and other times that I filed a home owner’s claim. At the time my 12 volt Dewalt was retailing for around $120. So I went out shopping for my new drill and came upon the Black & Decker Firestorm 18 volt set that included a reciprocating saw, drill, circular saw, and flashlight plus 2 batteries and a charger for $149. So for $29 more than the Dewalt I got a bunch of other stuff that I had uses for – especially the reciprocating saw. Now the 18 v B&D tools are not Dewalt, but I don’t use them 40 -50 hours per week like contractors do. And if you didn’t know Black & Decker, owns DeWalt. But by no means does an 18v B&W have the same power as a DeWalt. I would compare the power of my 18v B&D to maybe a 14.4 v Dewalt.

I hoped that my new Firestorm tools would last me through a year. Well, it has far exceeded my expectations. My reciprocating saw has cut out 600 square feet of ceiling, 100 feet of steel pipe, 5 walls and one shower and it is still going strong. I still even use the same batteries, but they are now starting to show signs of needing replacement. With the drill, I don’t think I can illustrate the amount of use I have put it through; I have drilled holes for electrical wiring, repairing plaster, hanging drywall, and even polished metal with it. I even dropped my drill from about 15 feet onto gravel and it still worked fine, but I was quite lucky that the case didn’t break.

So, for you homeowners skip the high-end Milwaukees. Dewalts, and Porter-Cables and opt for the Black & Deckers or the Ryobi Tools. But skip the Craftsman battery powered tools – I got myself a right-angled goofy-ass Craftsman drill for a wiring job I was doing and I won’t buy another cordless Craftsman tool. The thing is a turd.

Black and Decker will serve the needs of the weekend mechanic and serious DIYer. Use the cash for other tools.