Quick (hahahahahahaha sorry Wes if you are here) review on a recent purchase of the Makita BHP453SH from Screwfix. You may or may not have read this thread here when I started looking for looking for a replacement for my aging Makita 8390D.
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Some cracking suggestions on the other thread, but it boiled down the following:
- I wanted to buy local (FFX would have won out otherwise)
- I wanted two batteries
- It had to be li-ion
- I wanted it there and then (near a Costa Coffee also helped too)
Saw the following deal of Screwfix, and it was in stock near me. I decided I wanted the extra battery, it was half price WBW the body. Total cost - £139.98
Decision made.
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It came in a practical plastic moulded case, and had enough space for 2 extra batteries. You can tell they it's a standard case made for 3Ah batteries, but when the lid is shut, the 1.3's are held firmly in place.
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- The drill
- Batteries (remember I brought the extra one)
- Reversible pozi/flat bit
- Charger
- Drill body
- and of course, some destructions which every man will read......
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the charger is chunky but functional. SLIDE the battery on and it gives a satisfying click - it's held in place nice and firm. It requires a press of the yellow release button to take it out, MUCH better than the previous one - I can recall countless times when I had put the battery in to charge and it hadn't sat properly (due to some crap inside) and hadn't charged!
Indicator lights clearly show the status of the battery (flat, charging, 80%, full). It's also got a maintaince mode too, so should you leave the battery in there it's not going to hurt it!
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The Body - get a load of that, pwharrrrrrr!
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Shape is slightly different to the old one, it's also got a different angle. Feels nice in the hand. Slightly lighter than the 8930D, but there isn't much between the two.
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Wow.
I'm not sure if my old one was just pants or if this is a massivly improved model, but it don't half pull it's weight.
Was fitting some 2x4's onto a brick wall using 4" brick screws. Pilot a 4 inch hole through the wood and brick using a number 6 drill bit - didn't have ANY troubles, nothing. With the old one, I often used an electric drill for this and the battery drill to put the screws in. It was always lacking in this department. Don't get me wrong, it would do it, but there was always the wait.....
Quick change of bit and the brick screws went straight in without any hesitation (they are lovely screws...mmmm).
My 8390D was never as smooth, the 453 just has torque the second the trigger is pressed - buckets of it!
It's driven countless plasterboard screws in and been used for some anchor bolts for a satellite dish bracket. Will be interesting to see how long the battery lasts, but it's going to be worked hard this weekend.
It's early days yet though for usage, but I think it's going to serve me well!
Why the 1.3Ah's....bit girly, init?
I'm really glad I went for the 1.3 batteries though. I talked myself into WANTING the 3's initally, but in reality they are almost 3X the size and weight. I just really don't need them. If I was in the trade and needed the extra run time, yes, maybe. They don't give any more power though.....which I've heard lots of times before.
Charge time is 30 mins to 80% - I think this is going to severely impact my tea breaks (with my old one, it was 20 screws and a tea while the battery had a top up
). Worries/Complaints/Concerns?
Yes. One. During use, it does spark considerably more at the back than any old my previous drills. Hope that's not a sign of bad things to come. Again, will keep an eye on it - it's not far to return should things go wrong.
It's a bit noisy when the trigger is depressed REALLY slightly. It works nicely, but my old one didn't do that.....
Also, it would have been nice to have a work light....but as I've never had one before, I wont' miss it.
Final thoughts.....
Would I reccomend it? Yes, for sure - go buy one now and stop reading this!
Hope that helps....any questions, fire away!
BG
Plus I prefer the colour of Makita 
Any way of waking them up again J&K?
I know better, NOW
hmmmm.......