Thread: DeWALT or not Dewalt??

Muscles,
a few things to think about:
DeWalt is made/owned by Black and Decker.
It was originally a company that made radial arm saws which was taken over by B&D. They started using the name for their portable power tools, possibly because they'd downgraded the perception of the B&D name by producing a heap of crappy home handyman stuff in the '70s and '80s.
When they first hit the market in Australia they were offering a 12 month warranty whilst Makita and Hitachi only offered a 6 month warranty.

As they were slightly cheaper and I was buying a lot of tools I bought a lot of them - about 15 or more. I had a lot of problems with every tool going back for warranty repairs (and a few replacements) A lot of it was poor bearings, they had a lot of play after very little use. Drill chucks wobbling around, saw blades drifting off line. Plus there was the jamming trigger on the drop saw (wouldn't switch off:eek: ) and the cutoff saw that wouldn't cut plumb, faulty switch on the grinder, stripped gears on a drill etc etc. I believe that they've lifted their game substantially since then, however I've lost enough time and money to them already and am unwilling to take another chance.

The other thing to note is that no company is good at making everything, they might make a bulletproof saw but a woeful drill for instance. Sadly, there's not a single brand that I would unhesitatingly reccomend

Mick

I was given an 18volt Dewalt drill and was so impressed with it compared to 12volt Bosch that I started to invest in 18volt cordless.
I have
Nailer
Jigsaw
Grinder
Circluar saw
Metal shear
I have had no problems with the kit and would buy more.

Muscles,

I've standardised on DeWalt and have about 10 tools. I've not had any problem with either of them. I never knew they were owned by B&D. If I ever hear of B&D rebranding their own tools as DeWalt I will never buy another again. I agree with Journeyman Mick comments. B&D have a low-value marketplace perception here in the UK. I too remember the awful crap products they started to punt in the 70's-80's and I've never bought another one since with one exception, their power file which I think is unique as I've never seen another one elsewhere. If anyone knows of another please let me know.

So I say from my own experience you can buy with confidence but I'd let the Oz contingent comment further as you guys may have yours sourced from a different country that we in the UK get ours from.

have dewalt drill jigsaw 2 grinders palm sander and saw have flogged them for some years woth no probs at all

Muscles,
I have a number of DeWalt tools, 2 x 18 v drills, 7 1/4 saw ( new), scms & stand, planer & recipro saw & have never missed a beat with any of them.
In 4 years of building including screwing roofs only brushes have been replaced & am also on third set of batteries.
I find them to be accurate & reliable, just like the old ( 1970's) radial arm.
Also notice the batteries have come down in price, first set cost about $180 each but latest set were $120 each. Hardly worth repacking at that price.
Mick,
How long ago did you have those problems? PITA when tools let you down.
Regards, Bill

Coming from a North American angle... Dewalt are top of the pops. But one significant difference, they're almost half the price there than here. So when placed side by side with Makita or Bosch (blue) here I'm not sure the price difference is worth it. I have Makitas top 18v drill, a great drill but find it no where near as powerful or long lasting as the dewalt.

Bill,
I think I bought all the tools in about '93 or '94. Now I'm really upset, everybody else seems to be getting a good run out of theirs, why am I the only one that gets all the dud tools:mad: . I never let my tools labour, keep the revs up, keep them clean and dry etc etc etc.

Mick

Mick,
I'm surprised that you've had so much trouble with your DeWalt tools.

What I've noticed here is that the colors of the tools on the job sites are gradually shifting towards the yellow. It seems that red is holding steady while green, teal and gray are declining in popularity. It seems that as the guys are replacing tools, yellow seems to be winning the battle.

I've had very good results from a yellow planer, SCMS and three out of 4 drills. I had a bit of run-out on an 18V drill that was repaired by DeWalt. The guy at the factory repair store said that the factory packaging was not really intended to sustain the abuse of package carriers. (I purchased it through Amazon.) When I asked about the included plastic carrying case, he said that they are always dropped handle up. (Sounds like road apples, used oats or cow pies to me.)

Muscles

I have the plate jointer and the 735 thicknesser. I am happy with both products although I did have to take the plate jointer back to get the fence alignment fixed.

I've got a yellow scrollsaw and radial arm saw - love em both.

I have the 701 Sliding compound mitre saw,never missed a beat.

I have a DeWalt hammer drill and angle grinder.

The drill hasn't really been put through Hell, but it has done all that I could ask.

The grinder has been tortured. I mean really tortured for a 100mm angle grinder and it has come through with flying colours. I have used it pretty much continuously for almost all day cutting hardened steel (old sawmill blades) and while the wheels disappear rather quickly, the grinder still goes beautifully.

Cam

I have a Canadian made Excalibur scrollsaw that has a deWalt sticker on it

Originally Posted by CameronPotter

The grinder has been tortured. I am really tortured for a 100mm angle grinder and it has come through with flying colours.
Cam

I've got the 9in grinder and its in the same boat as Cam's. Never missed a beat. The DW cutoff saw is also good but it really hasn't had a hard life.

FWIW I wanted to buy a Mak but the guy at the tool/repair shop said "Don't, the DeWalt is better". I trusted him because he repaired tools for a living and he never steered me away from my other Mak purchases. The opposite in fact. He really knew the inside of the tools and it was dissappointing when he sold the business.