Power Tools Reviews

I am painting my free standing garage. The scrapping with a heat gun is just ok. I don't want to be soaked in all kinds of chemicals. I decided to use a belt sander to clean up the wood, after the scrapping. I read all the reviews. I went to the stores and looked at them, then, I made a decision. The Makita 3 by 21 Belt Sander was the one. The review of the Porter Cable where the carpenter needed 70 stitches scared me from the PC, especially when I saw how open the front end was relative to my knuckles and fingers. I liked the front cover on the Makita, also, the front end of the sander can get closer to corners and boxed in areas. After pluging it in and sanding down an area I know I made a solid decision. It worked smoothly and precisely. The variable speed was a nice feature. I was able to adjust it to my needs. The paint came off easily. The position of the cord and bag was much better thought out than the PC. Now I can make head way on this job. Next will be the doors.

This tool is a handyman's dream. The price on this tool has tumbled elsewhere because Makita is reportedly phasing out this tool for reasons I don't know (hefty price?, hefty weight?, hefty size?). Too bad the Amazon price is still very high. Note that the BTD200SH is an impact driver and not an impact wrench. An impact driver has a quick change 1/4" hex chuck, whereas an impact wrench has a 3/8" square socket drive head. Only the impact driver has been discontinued. The identically built impact wrench version is still being manufactured.

First a caveat: I am only a homeowner and not a contractor. I use my tools to fix my own home and a couple of my mother's rental properties. My views are from a novice user's/handyman's vantage point.

I bought this tool after a contractor, whom I hired for a major repair job, touted to me the benefits of impact drivers when used to drive long wood screws. The benefits are: no hand strain, dramatically reduced chances of stripping the screw heads, being able to drive screws that your regular drill/driver would not have a prayer's chance of driving in the first place.

How does an impact driver do all that? An impact driver works by combining rotational action (as on a regular drill) with a strong hammering action in the rotational direction. The hammering action doesn't kick in until the rotational resistance reaches a certain point. Here is an analogy to help you understand the impact action: if you've ever changed tires with a factory original one sided nut wrench, you'd pull the lever as hard as possible in order to loosen a nut. Sometimes the nut may be so tight that it may be stuck and the wrench won't move. What do you do? You reposition the lever of the wrench and you step hard on the lever a couple of times until the nut is suddenly loose. The stepping action is almost identical to the impact torque action of the impact driver.

The Makita BTD200SH has 1774 in-lbs. of maximum torque (or equivalently 149 ft-lbs, or 200 Newton-meters for the metrically minded). For comparison, most top-notice 18V drill drivers fall in the 475 to 550 in-lbs. maximum torque range. And most other impact drivers on the market range from only 800 in-lbs. to perhaps 1200 in-lbs. This easily makes the Makita BTD200SH the most powerful cordless impact driver by a huge margin, although Milwaukee has an 18V cordless impact wrench with an even higher torque rating (240 ft-lbs), but the Milwaukee is an impact wrench and not an impact driver. Unfortunately for the Makita BTD200SH, along with the most torque in the class title, it claims the most weight in the class title as well. It weighs a comparatively very heavy 6.3 lbs., even though most 18V and 24V drill/drivers easily weigh this much. Most impact drivers, on the other hand, weigh only 4 lbs. or less. Maybe a combination of high price, heavy weight, etc. led to poor sales, which then forced Makita to discontinue the product. The true weight aside, it doesn't feel that heavy in the hand because the T-handle is very well balance.

To use an impact driver, lay the tip of a bit firmly and perpendicularly on a screw head and press the trigger slowly at first. Because impact drivers have a very high rotational speed, it's best to start slow to prevent the tip from jumping out and stripping the screw head. Once the screw starts rotating, you can then increase the RPM. The amazing thing with impact drivers is you don't feel the reaction force. Although the impact driver is torquing the screws at 1774 in-lbs., you don't feel any opposing torque at all. It's simply amazing. Try using a drill/driver even at 500 in-lbs. and your wrist may twist off, but not so with an impact driver. The only thing you'll feel is the very loud noise of the impacting action. It will get loud enough when driving large screws that you will need ear plugs. Besides driving screws, it can also act as a drill, although it can only accept quick change drill bits with a 1/4" hex shank. I've not tried the drilling mode myself but numerous reviews from other users of impact drivers show that it can handily drill up to 3/4" diameter in wood. Larger holes may cause the tool to vibrate excessively because of the impacting action. I have a feeling this impact driver will retire my cordless drill/driver or at least relegate it to true heavy duty drilling tasks only.

Tool specs:

bare weight with one 1.7 AH battery - 6.3 lbs.
maximum torque: 1774 in-lbs.
No load speed: Low 0 - 1,600 RPM; High 0 - 2,000 RPM
Impacts per minute: Low 0 - 2,500 IPM; High 0 - 3,000 IPM

The tool comes with a hard molded case, a 1-hr. quick charger, a 1.7 AH battery. I've read someone else's review on Amazon that the 1.7 AH battery holds enough charge to drive 1000 to 1200 1/2x12 lags before needing a charge(incredible), so maybe having only 1 battery is not too much of a drawback. I've not used mine often enough to verify the battery charge life. Still I bought a second kit, mostly just to get a second battery, which costs $130 retail anyway, and also to buy a second driver, charger, and hard case almost for a song before all the current closeout stocks are gone.

I don't get to use this little guy every day but when I need it , there is nothing else that will do. It is very compact and light. It has pretty good torque and speed. Of course you're not going to be running large self feed bits with it. That's why they make the big bad RA drills. This is perfect for tight spots and awkward situations though . It will drive any screw you need it to and works great for tight quarters drilling. Even though it's not the largest cordless , it is the most dependable on the market.

The tools have exceeded my expectations. The circular saw sounded weak running it without a load. When I actually sawed wood, 2x4,4x4, it cut very quickly.
The third battery was an unexpected plus.

IF ANYONE DOES IN FACT READ THIS, THE MAKITA DK1841DL 18V IS ABSOLUTELY TOP QUALITY. I WOULD REFER THIS ITEM TO SERIOUS CONTRACTORS, ETC., WHO NEED PRO GRADE EQUIPMENT IN THE FIELD! THE PRICING AND SERVICE THAT I RECEIVED FROM AMAZON.COM HAS BEEN SPECTACULAR. I WILL BE ORDERING IN THE FUTURE FOR SURE! MIKE FROM PALMDALE.

A first rate kit from Makita. The tools are all great quality with real power behind the 18V batteries.

I'm using this tool for sculpting wood with "Kutzall" type burrs. I have been using a Foredom flex shaft tool for years but was looking for something with a little more guts and power for mass stock removal. The Makita did all this and more--in additon to its raw power I also find the rigidity of the tool helps make even fine cuts more controllable. Not shown in the illustration above is the multi-position removable side handle which adds greatly to the ease of controlling this workhorse. Over the years I have owned many Makita tools, and this die grinder, like all my other Makitas, is a superb tool and a great value.

Great torque, nice slow-variable speed. Allows use of aggressive cutting bits!
A steal at [low price] Cylinder Head Abrasives sells a similar version for [higher price], so the Makita is quite a deal!

I have had this sander for about 3 months now.. I am a 25 year self employed cabinet and furniture maker.. I have had and or used almost every belt sander known to man.. This is the best 3x24 belt sander I have ever had the pleasure of working with, and it is becoming apparent to me that it may be the best belt sander of any brand I have ever used. Hard to know the whole scoop until I see how long it will hold up. But in my experience Makita's generally do a pretty adequate all around job anyway. So it may just be the sander of sanders.

I normally wouldn't choose Makita as my number one choice, but after some serious shopping a few months ago it seemed the only way to go. This little machine has everything that counts and except for my one complaint it is missing nothing. Compare this to any other belt sander to see if the other one you're looking at has got everything is should have... Then buy this one, cause you won't find it.

This is an exceptional belt sander with only one flaw in my opinion.. I think the handle grip should have a little more tilt downward toward the back and not be such a flat a grip. It seems to cause my wrist to bend unnecessarily and I find it a bit tiring, noticed more when sanding on a higher table... My wrists aren't the greatest though, so you may not even notice it.

But besides that one "flaw"?? It is the best balanced belt sander I have ever used, It is compact in design. It has a low center of gravity. It sands flat with no dimples. It never, and I mean never goes off track. Put the belt on, adjust it once maybe, and don't touch it again until you change belts; amazing.

The bag is in the most logical place it can be, on the inside towards you, not hanging up in the air like some models which always irritated me anytime you did anything other than use the sander on materials that you lay flat on a table to sand. If you need to use it side ways, or in awkward positions or even not so awkward positions out on the job or in the shop, that design of bag is really quite stupid to have. There are a few models made by Makita that have that terrible bag location as well as other brands. But not this model 9920.. This is the bag of bags.. This Makita has a sturdy enough bag, that when full, it does not drop below the sanding surface and it never falls off. It doesn't sway in the wind either like the others I just mentioned. It stays firmly in place even when full without ever getting in the way. It is easy to empty as well. What more could you want.??

One of the very most important design details in my opinion for any belt sander is the ability of the belt to sand flush right up next to a wall. This one does it best. The motor housing is wisely and logically designed in far enough from the open belt side to let you put that baby right next to something with great precision... Can you tell I like this sander?

Yep,, lightweight, yet sturdy. Plenty of power, quiet, It is very quiet for any belt sander. It also comes with a 15' cord. What a great idea huh? Don't need to drag around an extension cord. To bad many other manufacturers don't see the simple genius in that longer cord. The variable speed works superiorly. This is a superior belt sander! $200 bucks,, or more, what a steal.... I am seriously considering buying another one because you know how it is, you find something you love and then they stop making it.. Problem is, it feels like this little baby will last this one man shop for 15 years.. I hope to retire by then and I bet this thing just may get me through my tinkering. I will let you know in 15 years....

Sincerely,,
Barry

Thank you Lord for the blessings.. Praise Yahaveh through in our Lord Jesus Christ

Don't waste your time with any other heat gun. The Makita is the best by far. The temperature adjustment knob is a little bit of a pain to use, but other than that it has the best heat of all the other guns I have used. I used mine to strip all the paint off the exterior of a 2000 sq. ft. bungalow and it is still going strong. I burned up a cheap Harbor Freight model after about 25 hours. I also used the Milwaukie, but it just didn't seem to heat up the paint as well as the Makita. Stripping paint is a boring, tedious job, so treat yourself right and get the job done faster so you can drink beer and watch the grass grow.