Power Supplies Reviews

I purchased on of these at Lowes for $90. Initially I attempted to used it in the horizontal position. With only very light pressure the speed would slow down drasticaly. When I removed the piece of wood I was working on the belt speed remained reduced and the motor began to smoke. On attempting to restart the motor the rpm's remained low and I shut it off before it started smoking again. I had to start the sander with the belt disengaged and then re-engage the belt. On attempting to use the sander in a vertical position, I found that the platen would not stay vertical to the table surface. There was about 10 degrees of play in it. When I returned it to Lowes the tool manager showed me in the operating instrucions that the platen is set to vertical with respect to the FINGER GUARD, not the table. I couldn't believe it. Delta expects you to use the 1 inch wide finger guard and not the table as a work surface when sanding at 90 deg.. Pathetic. Thank goodness Lowes took it back in retun or I would have had a very expensive boat anchor.

I got this unit to sand 2 x 4 cedar for a play set. I got the unit home and desovered that half the wholes for the guards were not threaded. So I spent an hour tapping them and assembling the guards. Then I plugged it in and.....nothing.
I returned it and got a new unit, within 10min the belt was slipping and a strong smell of burning rubber was smelled. then I had to hand turn the belt when switching on the unit to get it started.
It has a cheap clutch and a cheap motor. save your money and buy somthing better like the Model 31-695 (That is what I plan on doing)

Seeing as how I paid under $80 for my unit at a holiday closeout/clearance sale in a local home center, my rating of "5 Stars" is directly relevant to that key fact. Well-packed from the factory, easy to assembly, minimal adjustments required, good instruction book. Really light in weight given it's size and it's reasonably quiet too. Low or no vibration and I used mine clamped onto a B&D Workmate with no problems. The miter and fence assemly is a bit too loose in the track and so it has a tendency to slip right out. But, once I realized it did, I was more deliberate using it and didn't have any further problems with it. I did not experience any problems with the belt portion during operation -- no walking or chatter. It did a really good job of sanding a 6" cutdown piece of Douglas Fir rough planking. The end result was a very smooth, uniform surface all the way around including the ends. All-in-all, this is a well-made and very solid-performing, low-priced piece of equipment for a small, cramped and tight-budgeted shop like mine. Be mindful of your actual needs and your means when choosing this type of unit. It's probably not a wise choice for heavy or frequent use.

rather get the DW272. I don't know if it was an isolated instance, but I couldn't keep the nose assembly tight. I believe the threads were stripped, and it wouldn't stay tight.

The DW272 has not had the same problem. When I purchased it, my instinct said "plastic isn't durable and it looks like it could be weak at the nose", and well in this case it proved to be true.

I certianly wouldn't rate the DeWalt tools based on the quality of this drill/driver...they make better products, I own many...and will continue to buy them.

I went out and got this for a deck I was putting up. After owning the DeWalt DW 257 for 24 hours and using it to screw down 5/8 pressure treated deck boards to 2X12 joists the thing wrung itself completely in half. Immagine the look on the clerks face when I returned the gear/ clutch assembly in one hand and the body in the other. Needless to say I got a refund and bought something else. While I love my DeWalt framing nailer and a DeWalt/ Emglo compressor I'm now leary of buying yellow....

I purchased the DW257 about a month ago and layed the boots to it immediatley. I intalled a new sub-floor on the already existing 3/4 inch floor. I used 3" floor screws to go into the house floor joists. Worked beautifully, the screws zipped right in. The depth adjuster worked great.

I have alot of drywalling to do as well. I have been using it for the drywall that I am now doing (waited to write this review untill I used it on drywall). Again, the screws zip right in, the depth adjustedment makes this tool dummy proof.

I have read a couple of the reviews above. You certainly have to learn how to hold and balance the tool in your hand for clean fastening (like any other tool). Once you do that... this tool is it!!

This works, but you you have to realize its limitations. It is limited primarily by the fact that it can only slowly move power into a working battery in another car that happens to have run-down its charge.

It will let you get enough charge into a well-working car battery in order to start a car.

It will NOT, however, let you move enough power from one car to another to start a car that currently has an old, broken or worn out "dead battery." For that you'll still need jumper cables, an AC starter, a jump box OR a new battery to get a car going that has a truly dead battery.

This product is a great, safe idea, and it'll let you get a car going when someone let the battery run down, BUT, it will not let you jumpstart a car when its battery has died due to age or malfunction of the battery itself.

Picture this as a straw moving a bit of power slowly into the discharged-but-working "dead" battery, while you really need a fire hose (jumper cables) to start a car that has a no-longer-working battery.

To summarize : Great when someone left their headlights on, worthless when someone's battery has given up the ghost for good.

The Easy Quick Jumper is a cinch to use, but may not actually take less time than the tried and true conventional jumper cables. Ok, sure you don't have to open the hood, but it actually takes anywhere from 10-15 minutes to charge up the battery in the dead car enough to start the vehicle. If you're in a hurry and feel confident in knowing what you are doing, jumper cables are the way to go. However if you want something that's safe, easy and are willing to allow a few extra minutes, the Easy Quick Jumper is not a bad alternative and works extremely well.

I bought this a number of months ago, just in case. Yesterday, I accidently left my blinkers on too long and my car just wouldn't start. So I pulled this great device out and hooked it to a fellow co-workers car(who also happens to be a woman) and it took about 5 minutes. It worked quickly and easily with no fuss, no guess work, no messy car stuff, no worrying about hurting yourself or blowing anything up. Yes, there are still women out there who don't know how to do this stuff by themselves. For me and I think many other women, this is a great way to not have to rely on someone else or get messy in the process.

As sold this item provides 150 watts maximum. It has to be modified at considerable effort to provide the 300-500 watts claimed. This modification voids the warrenty and has a high likelihood of ruining the unit for good. In addition, unless you design your own interchangable rewiring, once modified, it will be usable only when directly connected to a vehicle battery and NOT via the cigarette lighter. If you need versatility, look for a unit that comes with interchangable or dual power cords (one for direct battery connection, one for cigarette lighter connection). If you need the higher wattage, get one already wired for direct battery connection. If you don't need the higher wattage, you can buy a smaller, less expensive unit.

I bought this to be some power backup at home and when camping. Got the product and tried to run my 27 inch TV on it.... only to find it didn't work.

Looking at the guarantee, it indicated that an additional accessory is necessary to test the guarantee. (A direct connection to the battery.) I purchased the necessary equipment and tried the inverter on the 27 inch TV. After several unsuccessful attempts (5 or 6) the TV did come on.

It ran for more than an hour on the inverter. By that time it was late at night and I had to go to bed... disconnected the inverter from the battery.

The next morning I got up early to continue the test. (I wanted to see how long the TV would run on a full charged battery.) In my morning haze, I connected the polarity in the connection wrong. (Just for a small fraction of a second, and the switch on the inverter was in the off position.) The inverter is now dead. It no longer functions at all.

Now I'm investigating how much $$ it'll cost me to get a working inverter.... (The warrantee does not cover this mistake, so it is my dime now.)

BE CAREFUL! THIS PRODUCT IS VERY UNFORGIVING .

I suggest looking for an inverter with polarity protection... this one dows not have it.

Gramps got tired of havin' no entertainment in the outhouse. Well, Cousin Eddie found this little Xantrex power pod and plugged it into the lighter of his '57 Edsel flatbed and by golly, we got instant power to the old Magnavox in the half-moon! Now, Gramps can take care of business and watch his favorite "Hee Haw" reruns. 'Cause we got us a two-seater, Granny will often join him. They call it "quality time."

But this nifty inverter has many other uses, yessirree. Cousin Buford runs a live wire out of it and de-feathers them chickens in about six seconds, and Aunt Mira sticks a screwdriver in the AC outlet whenever she needs to straighten her hair (she says it's the best hair straightener she's ever used).

Shucks, we never knew the wonders of 'lectricity 'til this Xantrex power tool came along. Ain't technology a marvelous thing!

I bought this heat gun to strip the paint of a doorway in my apartment. Initially it worked well, but after a few hours of intermitten usage it just stopped working. I thought that the tool had burned out, but after cooling down completely it started working again. I guess there must be some kind of temperature-activated relay which cuts the power to protect the gun from overheating. In the end this heat gun got the job done, but the power cut-off occured several times more, and it was annoying having to stop what I was doing and wait for the gun to cool off. If you're looking to do just light-duty heating work, this would be a good tool for you. Otherwise go for something more reliable and durable.

This product lasted for all of two months. I used it often but only for short sessions. Looks nice on the outside, but a very lightweight product on the inside. True, it's made for light-duty home projects and is priced accordingly, but I'd still prefer to spend a few dollars more on a product that I can be confident won't abruptly fail. I bought a Milwaukee.

I used the heat gun to remove window tinting from my car windows and it worked great.

I opened my i700 with delight hoping that I would finally have a decent studfinder so that I could hang my shelving. I was quite disappointed. It did find the AC lines with ease and accuracy but as far as finding the wooden studs, no such luck. The lights would flash, the thing would beep and off it went. I made my walls look like large sheets of swiss cheese following this things poor advice. The only reason for any stars at all was the AC finder mode working well. Tapping the walls with my knuckles and hammering finish nails in the walls to look for studs was more accurate. I was very disappointed. This thing will be destined to collect dust in my "junk drawer" for all of eternity. This begs the question is there really a studfinder out there that works if this one supposedly is the best?

I returned this item to Home Depot a day after I purchased it. I tested it on a wall with 1/2 inch drywall where panelling had been removed and i knew where each stud was located (the nail holes were not spackeled). The screen indicators flashed all over the place and I'd have had better luck just knocking on the wall. My $20 finder outperformed this overpriced contraption in every way.

I would reccommend this stud finder to anybody who is having difficulty finding studs on plaster and lathe walls. We would have never found the stud without it. It's not perfect but it definitely worked for us.

The new Versapak battery I recieved was weaker than the origional five year old battery I still had. One of the two origional batteries quit working and I ordered a new one. The new one delivered only about half the torque to my screw driver and did not last long even after overnight charge. Perhaps I could have just recieved a defective one. I like the B&D cordless driver and will try again to order another one.

I presentlly am keeping these batteries as a spaare. But having used the product before I'll tell you they don't have a long life and are expensive, based on the initial cost of the product that these battaries operate.

i was unable to purchace the item at home depot and target. so that is why i went to amazon.com but after ordering this item i found it at another target store at a much lower price. $18.00 for a package of two and your price was $27.29. that is my complaint. p/k/h

Recently purchased the 2414NB Cut-Off Saw and bought it based on the reviewer from Upland CA (1999) stating it was made in America. I also went to the Makita web site and felt confident the saw was made in America. It is made in China. Was very disappointed. It is now my understanding there isn't a cut-off saw made in America today so will give this saw a fair try. Hopefully the Makita name will keep it together. Will provide an update in a couple months. Respectfully, Larry Butterfield.

It is well worth it to by the 2414B(insted of 2414NB) model. It costs a little more and is slightly harder to find, but it is a much better saw. The pivoting head doesn't seem all that wonderfull in theory, but after a few cuts you will love it. The 2414B is a 5 star saw. It puts out plenty of power to make quick cuts, dynamic parts move smoothly, and the blade guard doesn't block the view of you marks. A very well designed machine. However what makes it singular, is the pivoting head.

I got this chop saw about a year or so ago. It works great with good power to go through thick 2" and 3" stainless pipe and tube I have cut with it. I would suggest finding the 2414b model as being able to "rock" the saw helps to cut through tough steel. It seems like when you cut steel with a normal chop saw it gets half way through and doesn't cut as fast based on the angle. The 2414b lets you basically adjust the saw angle so that it gets through it quicker. I would give it 5 stars but my saw developed a problem. It tripped the breaker as soon as I turned it on, without even cutting steel. Took it to service and they corrected the problem. I debated with many saws and tried many, but this is the best.

The newer production 12-volt drill drivers aren't worth your money. do some more research (as I am in the process of) and get something else!
My first Dewalt 12-volt drill driver (from 1993- or 94) was great, versitile, heavy-duty, and the batteries lasted longer than their spec'd work time. It finally started wearing down when it got to 10 years old and I bought two new batteries for it--they didn't perform well, one would work great for 10 minutes and die while the other would work at about 60% power and die 12 hours later.
I finally got a whole new Dewalt 12-volt system last fall and both batteries are terrible. Each lasts for about 20 minutes tops worktime (1 and 1/2 hours on the job, medium duty woodwork or drywall hanging). I'm really disappointed in this product and will steer away from Dewalt products in the future.

I've had this drill for 4 years. The 400 in-lbs of torque come in very handy for sinking lag screws deep into wood or for using Forstener bits. And you can't beat this drill for the variation in speeds that it can produce. And--it's really, really tough. I can't count the times I've knocked it off the bench. Never a chip.

The weakness is the battery life. It may be called an extended run drill, but those NiCad batteries never did go that long, and after 4 years, the memory effect has definitely set in. One option would be to replace the batteries, but cordless tool technology has developed. The key to the longest run time is the most amp-hours. The Panasonics seem to be at the top of the heap with 3 to 3.5 amp-hours with their NiMH battery packs, and Makita's lithium ion batteries on their 18 v unit have 3 amp-hours. Either NiMh or lithium ions will long outlast the NiCads in terms of both time-between-charge and number of charges. To me, that's a good reason to upgrade.

Still--let's give the XRP it's due. In it's day and age,400 in-lbs of torque in such a package was quite nice, and the durability has been impressive. I just think that given the evolving battery technology, there are better values today.

This is my Third Dewalt Cordless Drill. I have a 9.6 volt, an older 12 volt and now this 12 volt. For me, 12 volts is the right size/power combination. This unit is much nicer with the three speeds, it handles most needs. Sometimes it is a bit tricky to shift gears. I love that the chuck can be tightened with one hand.

I bought this drill because I needed new batteries for my existing 12volt. Made more sense to by a whole new kit and get the new features and extra drill than to just buy two new batteries. While, just a home owner, I heavily use all three drills and they keep on going.

In April I bought two replacement 92942 SKIL chargers for my cordless drill and screwdriver from Amazon and had not used them until yesterday. Last night I put two batteries in each of the 2 new chargers (plus 1 existing 92942 charger) and plugged them all in. About two hours later I smelled electrical burning and found that all the wall transformers for the chargers had melted. ALL THREE OF THEM! I received a nasty burn trying to remove the wall transformers from the AC outlet and had to resort to using oven mitts. I had had this happen last summer to two other identical chargers that I had had for five or six years. Same thing....melted transformer. I found posts on the internet that this was a common problem with this charger. But, I figured in several years of knowing this issue, Skill would have fixed the problem. Wrong!

Today I emailed both Amazon.com (who I purchased the chargers from last month) and Skil. Skil said the chargers melted due to bad batteries being placed into them. I asked how I would know if the batteries were bad before placing them in the charger. "Just take them to our service center and have them checked" was the answer. OK, before I use my cordless screwdriver to hang a picture tonight, I need to take the batteries to their service center to make sure that they won't burn up the charger or the house?

So, I have to assume that the first hint that I'd have of a battery being defective would be the fact that my house would burn down! Fair assumption, right?

So the Skil Customer Service rep tells me that I should not leave the battery in the charger longer than the three hours it takes to fully charge them. I told her that the instructions state, in three seperate sentences on the same page, not to worry about overcharging the batteries and that it was OK to leave them charging unattended indefinately. Oh, and by the way, last nights melt-down of the two, identical new chargers occurred a full hour short of the recommended 3 hour charge.

I just bought a new charger to replace the one that burned up.
The previous one was for a single battery. It appears I
had a bad battery which I suspect may be shorted. Anyhow, the
new two battery unit shorted out the primary coil the first
day and is no longer usable so I'm having to purchase another
unit. This will be the third charger unit. It would have
been nice if the unit had some sort of fuse or overload protection but it doesn't.

This works great. I like a dual battery charger which allow me to alway have a reserve battery to use when I need it. It is alway a good idea to have a spare battery in-case there is times when the use of a tool require long period of battery usage.