What is your take on the quality of Makita (batteries)?

[Lew]

About 12 years ago I got given a Makita 14.4V drill in a box with a load of bits & pieces (this one https://www.buyaparcel.com/p/uncategori ... ah-269129/). This served me fine, but after about 8 years neither of the batteries would hold any charge anymore. Apart from the screwdriver bits that seem to wear quickly, especially the torx ones - I never had any other issues.

[edit] I just remembered that the rubber from the grips was also starting to come loose) [/edit]

So almost 4 years ago, rather than buying 2 new batteries I spend a little bit more and bough a new drill (off t'internet). An 18V one with a hammer function this time ( http://www.makitauk.com/products/front/ ... 8391DWPETK ). Already one of the batteries is dead, the other one only lasts for a little while. All the bits in the box are rusty (I keep this stuff in the garage, which is not heated, but also not damp). One of the batteries never fitted in the drill properly, only with great effort would it slide out of the socket. Bits get stuck inside the bit holder when doing heavy work and I have to use pliers to kind-of counter turn them before they will come out.

Is this normal? I am almost tempted to believe the 18V is a fake Chinese copy or something, I really didn't think a Makita would be that bad. Are my expectations just too high? How long should stuff like this last?

I have power tools from the 90's (black&decker) and 80's (two beasts of a hammer drill & angle grinder, both Metabo) that show their age but still work like they day I got them.

[ayjay]

I have Makita stuff dating back to the 70s, it's still all good, the planer is still on the original brushes and it had some heavy usage for over 20 years until I changed over to 110v, (I also have a jigsaw and a circular saw, both still working fine).

I had a poor experience with a Makita cordless drill bought in the 90s, one battery was dead from brand new and because of a cock-up at their main agents it took me six weeks to get a replacement. I had to get really stroppy with them on the phone to achieve a satisfactory resolution, to their credit they did then deliver a new battery to my house by mini-cab.

I also had a small corded Makita drill that died just out of warranty, this all put me off the brand and I've not bought any more since.

I do have an 18v Makita cordless which I won in a competition, it's a good drill but it's developed a fault - when it's under load on the slower speed I have to keep the speed change switch pressed forward other wise it slips and stops screwing.

In the 70s they had just started importing tools into the UK and I believe that they were much better then than they are now.

[big-all]

to be honest seven years is more than reasonable time for batteries to last
the 1.3ah red batteries are aimed at the diy market and made down to a price so will give up a bit sooner

[Someone-Else]

to be honest seven years is more than reasonable time for batteries to last

What 7 years?

So almost 4 years ago, rather than buying 2 new batteries I spend a little bit more and bough a new drill

I would say that battery technology has changed from ni-cad to that new fangled name. I would say in being able to charge them when you like as opposed to waiting till nearly flat the price we have had to pay is how long they last, and I would say 4 years is average now.

[Job and Knock]

In the 70s they had just started importing tools into the UK and I believe that they were much better then than they are now.

Under their own name, yes, but Wolf bought-in and rebadged Makita belt sanders and power planers from the early 1960s onwards and they also sold the Makita 4-1/2in grinders for a few years in the early to mid-1970s whist they were developing their own 4-1/2in "Grinderette" grinder. It should be mentioned that other Wolf products such as the drills were designed and made here in the UK - and that the current tools branded "Wolf" are low-cost Chinese generic stuff with a label stuck on them and have nothing at all to do with the original London firm.

So almost 4 years ago, rather than buying 2 new batteries I spend a little bit more and bough a new drill (off t'internet). An 18V one with a hammer function this time ( http://www.makitauk.com/products/front/ ... 8391DWPETK ). Already one of the batteries is dead, the other one only lasts for a little while. All the bits in the box are rusty (I keep this stuff in the garage, which is not heated, but also not damp).

Sad to say 4 years ago you were buying a product which had already been out of production for 2 to 3 years, possibly a bit longer. That 18 volt range was the top model when it appeared in the early to mid 1990s(?) but the LXT Li-Ion range displaced that starting in about 2002/03 (in real terms)

... the 1.3ah red batteries are aimed at the diy market and made down to a price so will give up a bit sooner

I remember those red batteries - they really didn't carry much of a charge and in trade use they used to go flat 4 or 5 times a day, even when they were new (but TBH deWalt 1.3Ah batteries were no better) - which is why everyone in the trades used to buy the 1.3 NiCds to start with (because cordless kits cost an arm and a leg in the 80s and 90s) and then upgrade to NiMHs when they became available - and the last time I can recall seeing Makita OEM NiMH batteries on sale must have been 7 or 8 years back. I think the OP may well have bought old stock at the time as that model of drill was almost certainly defunct by the time he bought them - so the batteries could be far older. In terms of battery life, on Li-Ion I've generally had 3 to 4 years in trade use with more recent Makita batteries giving me 5 years in two cases (I attribute this to the improvements in the tools themselves - the newer "D"-series tools have battery safeguarding circuitry built-in which really seems to work), but back in the days of NiCd and NiMH batteries I absilutely never got more than 5 years out of anything - and the red 1.3 NiCds were often only good for 2 to 2-1/2 years (because they were recharged so frequently)

As far as rust goes, bare unprotected metal can do that if it is anywhere it comes in contat with condensation. Many of my tools live permanently in the van which gets parked every night in my lock-up. I do oil my tools, but in it's so damp in this country that I spend time most weeks dealing with a tool or two which has some rust. It matters little if the tool is Japanese, German, Chinese or American - given the opportunity they all rust. It helps if you store stuff away and drop in little sachets of silica gel (they come free in many products) or wrap the tool in some VCI paper

I pondered the OP's query earlier today and

to be honest seven years is more than reasonable time for batteries to last
the 1.3ah red batteries are aimed at the diy market and made down to a price so will give up a bit sooner

[Manc chippy]

My 4ah ones got nicked.
I now have 5ah batteries and I love them.
One of the issues with these batteries is their lifespan wham you rapid charge them. I havnt yet had any die in me yet. If you are concerned about the life of it then get an older charger.

[Job and Knock]

I now have 5ah batteries and I love them.
One of the issues with these batteries is their lifespan wham you rapid charge them. I havnt yet had any die in me yet. If you are concerned about the life of it then get an older charger.

The OP's Makitas are the earlier generation NiCD tools - nothing like the modern Li-Ion stuff, so it doesn't use the same chargers, etc. In NiCd days there wasn't such a thing as a fast charger, AFAIK at least not from Makita. Makita have always offered a fast charger for the Li-Ion battery packs (for the first 5 years or so of Li-Ion production it was the only charger) - the slow charger was a later, low-cost option.

[big-all]

i never use fast chargers for anything and have enough batteries to avoid running out
now in a high pressure work envirnoment they may be the only viable option
i work on the principle that work things harder they fail quicker

[Lew]

Thanks for that. I am a bit of a noob when it comes to these rechargeable things. As I said, I got given the first one and I just bought something on the internet that looked the same but was slightly more powerful. I had no idea there was such a difference between NiCd & Li-ion batteries or even that that second box I bought would have been old stock.

I prefer tools that plug in anyway with the exception of these cordless screwdrivers.

[Job and Knock]

I can understand where you are coming from. The discussion about suitability of cordless tools for DIY work has been had many times on many fora in recent times. It's unfortunately a fact of life that cordless power tool batteries, like mobile phone batteries, don't last forever - in fact they have a relatively limited lifespan, as you've discovered. The other problem isthat NiCd battery production is almost at an end. Under the so-called "batteries directive" (2006/66/EC), the sale of consumer Ni–Cd batteries has now been banned within the EU except for medical use, alarm systems and emergency lighting. Portable power tools were originally included in that list but in 2016 a ban came into force on them as well. This because cadmium, being a heavy metal, can cause substantial pollution when discarded in a landfill or incinerated and so requires specialist disposal. Despite this there are still a few firms selling non-OEM compatible battery packs and/or offering to recell existing battery casings. I don't know tat I could recommend these - in the past when I was keeping old NiCd/NiMH Makita stuff going alongside my new 18 volt Li-Ion kit I did use pattern batteries, but they didn't really have a tremendous life span

[big-all]

as an aside
li-ions are far far better than nicads as you dont have to flatten them to recharge them so you can top up charge while you have a cup off tea or bacon butty
they weigh less and more off the stored energy can be used

[Job and Knock]

[Rossl1985]

i have only ever spent my own money on Makita and Bosch tools.

all the LXT Makita range i have is all of good or very fair quality and ive had a fair few tools out of that range from drills, circular saws, multi tools etc. i have only ever had a problem with one drill but that fell off a roof which im sure helped it die.

ive heard a few people say that the LXT batteries dont last very long but mine have been going for 5 years and are still very strong and charge times are good which is a plus, dont let the li-ion batteries go completely flat and they last well

[DIY_Johnny]

My 3Ah Li-ion battery (LXT range) is about 6 years old. Used consistently for about 2 years and left in a cupboard for about 3 years and used evey 6 months for about an hour.

I'm using it regularly these days but battery has only about half the charge at the very most . It's still fine for me as I time the charge around my regular tea breaks.

[davemcdavidson]

I've never had an issue with them! I think they hold their charge really well, charge fairly quickly, especially with the bigger fan powered charger and provide pretty good running time.