DeWalt Reviews

Using my Senco SFN40 nailer I've gone through a box (4000 nails) without a single jam.

I am the proud owner of a Porter Cable MS200 stapler. I have installed several hundred sheets of roof and side sheathing using these staples exclusively. Not one mis-fire. As I build mainly custom homes, most has been 3/4 stock. The holding power of just a few staples will make a believer out of anyone....

B&D-VersaPak SnakeLight! Wow! Nice! An Extra Eye! Personally I like Black & Decker's VersaPak tools for light duty hobby activities in my laboratory. I don't see well so anything that helps me with fine detail work is welcome! This tool does just that by concentrating just the right amount of light in a small space that is nonglaring. I am so pleased with my SnakeLight, I am contemplating the purchase of another! With the light comes a 3.6v Black & Decker VersaPak Screwdriver, dual port VersaPak charge and one silver VersaPak battery. Given the fact that I will most likely be using the light when using the screwdriver, it would have been nice if they would have included TWO Batteries! I won't hold that against them as you get what you pay for! Now, shall I purchase another?

DeWalt D24000 10" wet tile saw

One reviewer called this tool a "game changer" in the wet saw business. I agree. Having done tile work for years using mostly MK brand tile saws, when this saw came on the market, its benefits were obvious. Here's an analogy. At a car show when mini-vans were still fairly new, a salesman was showing his model, which had a sliding door on one side. Next to his display was a competing mini-van with sliding doors on both sides. He knew immediately that his mini-van was an obsolete design.

Compared to this wet saw, every other model near this price point is an old-design.

Here's why:

1. DeWalt made this a LARGE capacity saw, but light enough for one person to carry. Although the tool is only 70 lbs., you never have to lift that much. DeWalt advertises "two trips" to transport the tool:

Trip 1: Tub (water trays, miter and table extension, stored inside) and the fold-up tool stand.

Trip 2: Saw assembly with rolling table locked in place, and water pump. (54 lbs., total).

Rather than carrying an awkwardly shaped 54 pounds, I transport the tool in three trips:

Trip 1: Saw assembly minus the pump and sliding table. (44 lbs., total.)

Trip 2: Tub (with water trays stored inside) and a 5-gallon bucket holding the water pump, table extension, and miter gauge. The water pump is supposed to be secured to a slotted "mini-table" on the saw-assembly when being transported. Instead, a quick-release connector on the water line of my saw allows removal of the 3 lb. water pump. Click on customer photos.

Trip 3: Custom made tool stand and a customer-made wooden carrying case with the 7 pound rolling table. The table has three sets of double rollers which could be damaged if it's dropped. The case protects the table when it's being stored or transported. Again, click on customer photos.

2. The team that designed the water-containment system must have been told they'd get 50 lashes if it didn't work, because it's very effective. Other large wet saws regularly spray lots of water to the front, and drip water off the sides. Consequently, they make a mess of the areas surrounding the saw. Install the forward and right drip trays on this saw and nearly all water is trapped and routed back into the tub, with only minor dripping. (The trays are not as robust as they should be, so you have to be careful not to break the tabs that hold them on.) Most water spray is actually caught at the cutting point by the excellent rubber apron on the back side of the blade guard.

There are, however, two cases where all water will not be contained. One is when the motor is tilted to cut tiles at an angle; in this case, some water will be sprayed to the left of the machine. Also, if cutting very large tiles that extend beyond the right extension tray, some water will run across the top of the tile and drip on the right side of the machine; you can stop most of this, while cutting, by skimming your hand on that tile to scoop the water back into a tray.

3. This saw does plunge cuts; e.g., for electrical outlets or registers. Without this feature, about the only way to cut a square in the middle of a large tile was to use a portable (e.g., 4.5") wet saw. With this DeWalt, loosen the plunge lock, align the tile under the blade, and lower the blade as it cuts. Do this four times, once per side of the square/rectangle, on each side of the tile, and you've got a clean hole.

4. Powerful direct drive motor. It is loud, but it's also a work-horse. DeWalt made it 15 amps, probably so it can be plugged into virtually any 110v outlet without blowing a breaker. Direct drive means there are no gears to wear out, which why my previous wet saw died.

5. Huge capacity for a saw in this price range and weight. 24 inch rip and 18 inch on the diagonal. You may not need that much on every job, but it's great to not be limited by the tool. Impressive to be able to cut 24 inch square slate. Most amazing thing is cutting a 3.5" thick concrete paver in one pass. I've cut slate pieces so heavy, I could hardly lift them onto the table. I've also ripped a 36 inch long, inch and a half thick, slate paver, by setting one end on top of the table stop and cutting half the paver's length, then flipping the slate end over end to complete the cut. There is 13" between the blade and the motor support, so you can cut up to 13" from the side of a tile.

6. The motor easily tilts and locks at 45 or 22.5 (degrees), so cuts are possible without using an accessory cart block. These are the only angles mentioned by DeWalt, because the table has slots to receive the blades for these angles. However, you can actually cut any angle (e.g., on half-inch thick material) between 0 and 45 degrees if you lift the blade and tile above the table so the blade misses those slots.

7. The rolling table has thick rubber bonded to the top, to prevent slipping tiles. A great innovation. The table can be put onto the saw assembly, or removed, quickly and easily. The table has a slide-lock to keep it from coming off the saw and can be "locked" into two other positions, for transporting on the saw assembly.

8. Saw comes with a reversible 45 degree miter which clamps to the table and works well.

9. The excellent water pump is rated at 170 gallons per hour, which is more than adequate. Search on "little giant 518200" via Amazon or Google [Froogle, actually], for more details.

The DW24001 tool stand is designed specifically for this tool. The tub bottom has four molded sections that fit into the stand top. Since I'm tall and wanted the wet saw higher than the DW24001 allows, I designed my own stand.

The tool has adjustable rollers to align the table for sliding smoothness and squareness to the blade. My tool needed no adjustements.

As with any wet saw, cleaning is no fun. I put all the parts on the grass and use a hose at low water pressure to rinse of the various parts, being careful to keep water out of the motor. Also run water backward through the water pump to clean out the insides.

The box this thing comes in is huge. It's very well packed and protected, and there was zero delivery damage to the tool.


DeWalt DW861W Wet/Dry Masonry Saw

This tool appeared on Amazon.com in September 2005, but DeWalt first made it available in February 2006, which is when I bought one. It was worth the wait...

Pros:

- Unusually powerful motor for a small saw (12.5 amps)
- Blade spins at 11,500 RPMs for efficient cutting
- 4.5" blade included with saw is excellent. Described as extended performance (XP) "450x longer life than abrasive blades", suitable for "tile, porcelain, and other masonry products", part number 626708-00. Retail price is about $30.
- Two-pronged rubber electric cord has a built-in GFCI, is 13' long, and is soft/pliable rubber.
- 1/4" clear water line has built-in 5-PSI regulator (at house pressure, water line would burst or pop off the water "manifold"), is 13' long, and is clear & pliable. Water regulator has female threads to receive male end of a garden hose.
- Manifold has valve to control water-volume spray onto both sides of blade, and is blued brass. Setup keeps the blade very wet.
- Cuts 0 to 45 degrees, just like a wood-working circular saw
- Comfortable handle with no sharp spots; fits my large hand
- Tool is easy to control
- Push-button option to lock switch to the ON position for long cuts
- Steel sole-plate has thick zinc-plating
- Suitable for production use at a stone/granite/slate fabrication shop; with the proper blade, can cut the hardest stone-like materials: concrete, concrete-stucco, patio-pavers, brick, porcelain, marble, granite, or any tile.

Cons:

- Does not include a carrying case, probably to keep the price lower. Unfortunately, if you transport or store this tool, it really needs one. Portable wet saws have no blade guard, as it would obstruct the water manifold. Even with the blade fully raised, it still extends past the sole-plate by about 1/8", so you have to be careful setting the tool down so as to not damage the blade. Also, 13' water & electric lines, with a bulky GFCI and regulator on their ends, make the tool a bit unwieldy to carry. I made a carrying case out of wood.

Other:

- My saw has no serial number. The spot on the tool after the words "serial number", is blank?
- The saw is loud; no doubt due to the very high RPMs.

Summary:

The Makita 4101RH is also a professional-brand portable wet saw, but it:

- costs $100 more
- has a cheap-looking plastic water "manifold", vs. brass on the DeWalt
- has less powerful motor (7.9 amps vs. 12.5 amps for the DeWalt)
- comes with a cheaper blade than the DeWalt

The DeWalt DW861W is a fine choice for the professional tile-setter, or the serious Do-It-Yourselfer.

I used one of these sanders to remove heavy textured paint from the plaster walls of my 1890's Victorian in Maryland. This involved sanding every inch of a 3000 square foot house with heavy grit (60 grit) paper over a three month period. I estimate that I ran this unit for over 30 hours a week for the entire three months without a break. I still have it and it works fine.

The unit has a couple of problems that I noted over time:

1. The dust collector is cloth over a steel spring that tears where the cloth meets the hard plastic base of the dust collection bag.

2. The pad that accepts the hook-and-loop paper sometimes tears when removing the paper. This is easily replaced, but isn't cheap to do.

3. While the dust collector works pretty well (until it tears, that is), it is small and you have to stop work often to empty it. This is not a problem with the small jobs I use it on now, but it was annoying when I was sanding the walls.

4. Paper is costly and you will have to be careful of which brand you buy. There are some sanders with just 4 dust collection holes, while this one has I think 8, so you need to buy the paper that is right for the sander. They do sell it in 25 sheet packs, which cuts down on the cost. We used about 10 such packs, each costing about $10 to $15 at the big box store near us.

One final bit of advise: Always wear a resperator or face mask when sanding paint. Safety glasses are a must too.

This is perfect because all that I need for wiring,check or whatever you want in electricity ,obviously, is near my hands and don't waste my time .

I recently purchased the Ballistic Nylon Technician's Pouch for my husband and it was just what he had been looking for. He couldn't recommend it enough to co-workers. It fit his work needs perfectly. My brother was so impressed with the efficiency of the pouch that he is going to purchase one also.

This is one helluva hammer holder. I has a large top opening that allows my hammer to enter easily. I have gone through many hammer holders in my years of construction. This one however has held up for the past year trough our great Candian winter and all. A product deserving of the DeWalt name.

Great storage...I would recommend to anyone for the size and durability!

This is a BOSS compressor. The 8 hp Honda engine fills the 17 gallon tank in a few minutes. Then it goes to a low idle. Both compressor and engine come ready to go. Just add gas and pull the cord. The unit is packaged so all you have to do is remove three bolts from the shipping pallet. No assembly! I've ordered a sandblaster to use with it. I can't wait! Rust, look out! Heck, cats and dogs look out! Now, I can fix my new fence that the cop drove through with the air nailer !