50 minutes ago, 4DThinker said:

You are likely right kmealy.  The big tool manufacturers got smart and now encourage brand loyalty with the battery powered tools. The batteries and charger you got with your first purchase (charger, 2 batteries, Drill and a Driver for example) come in handy when adding tools as "tool only" purchases that you can use your current batteries with are far less expensive than buying a new brand with new charger and battery included with the tool.   I've got older battery powered tools with failed (NiCad) batteries that no replacements exist for.  The battery on what was my favorite B&D drill now refuse to recharge and no replacements exist for it either. Also, there were never (that I know of)  other B$D tools that could use that same battery. 

4D

Yes, it would be foolish to make a universal battery format, right?  The theater group got some DeWalt drills from another group closing shop.  In order to get new batteries from DeWalt, we had to get adapters.

 

Sort of like interchangeable shopvac hose fittings, oh wait.

 

Edited December 15, 20223 yr by kmealy

2 hours ago, 4DThinker said:

   I've got older battery powered tools with failed (NiCad) batteries that no replacements exist for.  The battery on what was my favorite B&D drill now refuse to recharge and no replacements exist for it either. Also, there were never (that I know of)  other B$D tools that could use that same battery. 

4D

Have you looked into rebuilding . It is not as cheap as it used to be but not that hard if you have a soldering iron.

6 hours ago, Gerald said:

Have you looked into rebuilding . It is not as cheap as it used to be but not that hard if you have a soldering iron.

I've given that a thought.  Not a crisis as I have more working drills (including corded and battery powered) than a 4 man crew would need in an air hockey board factory.  As I'm retired now with more time on my hands than I know what to do with I may put it on my To Do list.  Wondering right now if I could swap the old nicads in the pack for lithium cells and use the same charger?  Something tells me "No", but I'd like the battery engineers to explain that to me.  

4D

I’m not totally surprised at the Festool choice but they are clearly pricey.  It shocks me a bit that Bosch didn’t make the cut.

2 hours ago, 4DThinker said:

Wondering right now if I could swap the old nicads in the pack for lithium cells and use the same charger?  Something tells me "No", but I'd like the battery engineers to explain that to me. 

 

https://www.remodelormove.com/can-you-replace-nicd-batteries-with-lithium-ion/#:~:text=Lithium batteries can be used in NiCad drills%2C,A NiMH battery can replace a NiCd battery.

 

 

1 hour ago, Cal said:

 

https://www.remodelormove.com/can-you-replace-nicd-batteries-with-lithium-ion/#:~:text=Lithium batteries can be used in NiCad drills%2C,A NiMH battery can replace a NiCd battery.

 

 

Thanks Cal.  I opened up the B&D battery and decide testing the cells and replacing the bad ones was a job I didn't have the patience for.  A quick google search did find a NiMh replacement for under $20 at Amazon so I've ordered it.   I guess that drill and it's battery has enough fans out there to keep industry interested in supporting it. 

I was lucky to use tools under production demands. The company foreman liked Makita , so everyone got new Makita drills After 7 years, I’d say it safe to say they were great drills. 

Of note and not in that reference article: NiMH batteries cannot be charged in NiCAD charger , but NiCAD can charge in NiMH charger.

 

I have been down this road lately with drill got at Estate sale. It is NiCAD so looked at lithium with adapter and since this is for son is a bit high. Probably going with NiMH with charger and one battery $38 on eBay 

What I don't know for sure is if the original cells are NiCad or NiMh as they are not marked at all.  What the replacement battery does claim is that it has circuitry in it to protect against overloading, overheating and total discharge, and for intelligent power management.  Also that it is compatible with the Firestorm drill I have and has a 30 day money back guarantee.  Amazon itself is also pretty good about refunding returns that don't do what they promise to.   In the comments and questions of the battery page it looks like the consensus is that it works with the OEM charger.  

4D

New battery arrived.  Put it on the OEM charger and it charged up fine with no smoke escaping.  Instructions even advised charging it on the OEM charger.  Runs the B&D FireStorm drill just fine. 

Seems like I've got another battery powered tool (Coleman Brand) that no longer has working batteries. Likely a Walmart or K-mart find from when battery powered tools were relatively new. I'll have to venture out into my icebox garage and see if I haven't thrown out that tool. If replacement batteries are available for it that'll be a Christmas miracle.   

 

Quick check and the Coleman kit was two 18v batteries + charger, with a drill and a light.  Brought them into the warm house to thaw out.  I also found 2 more firestorm batteries out there.  I'll let them warm up and see if they'll charge. 

Edited December 24, 20223 yr by 4DThinker

Love it @4DThinker you're able to give old tools renewed life. Careful though, it can be addicting with no known cure or treatment.

4 minutes ago, Grandpadave52 said:

Love it @4DThinker you're able to give old tools renewed life. Careful though, it can be addicting with no known cure or treatment.

My addiction was to buy new tools when old ones started failing or complaining.  Fixing those old tools, in the hope that someone can make use of them is just a boredom killing pastime that helps me know what to keep and what to throw away.  When the weather warms up again I'll take a tour through the hidden recesses of my garage shop and find the abandoned tools I know are there to see if they have any life left in them.  I know I have a Craftsman router in a home made router table that hasn't been used for a few decades.  My original Skil router sits on a shelf I can see from the garage door and also hasn't been touched since I invested in better routers.   I did find a home for my old craftsman 8" table saw.  A brother-in-law took it thankfully when I upgraded to a larger/better table saw. 

 

The two B&D batteries I brought in from the garage failed when they were put on the charger.  I think I knew that though.  The last one that failed which got replaced with a "improved" upgrade does demonstrate how valuable that drill had been to me.  I'm sure it only came with one battery.  That there are three demonstrates I continued to invest in it for several years. The chuck snaps off to reveal a driver head.  4D

The Coleman Drill + Light kit has warmed up and been dusted off.  The cable on the charger power source has been cut though so no checking the batteries at the moment.  These were good tools until their batteries wore out.  The head of the light articulates to aim wherever you need it to.  A clever design.  A check online for replacement batteries so far hasn't found more than a pricey battery refurbish service.  Amazon wants to show me Craftsman batteries when I've searched for Coleman batteries and they don't match.  Google provided K-Mart and Sears links when I searched for Coleman Drill Batteries.  It is possible both places sold some version of this drill, but neither link had batteries for my particular kit.  Still looking, but this kit will likely end up in the landfill. 

4D