Air tools vs. electric ?

The other option, for lighter work, is cordless tools. I have had several that used nickel metal hydride batteries over the years, and my experience with them was always that the charge had gone away in storage, so I left it on the charger, which no doubt costs more in the long run, and then the batteries were fried, I guess from over charging, while they were waiting for me to use them. After doing that for a while, I decided they suck and gave up on cordless tools.

Until...

Some months ago, a friend gave me a small Rockwell 3rill impact driver/screw gun set, and the lithium ion battery packs (made in 2013) were pretty much shot after years of usage. I found out that with that model driver, Rockwell will send free new battery packs if they fail. Checked it out, still cost me about $7.00 each with paying the freight, but with the new batteries the power is strong, charging is fast, and last a long time on a charge. They are VERY quick to recharge, seem to have good control of the float voltage, and seem like they might be OK with leaving them on the charger, but I have not tried that, the manual does not mention it. The carrying case, lots of tooling, and charger that came with it seem to make for a useful driver for making quick work of smaller and lighter and mobile jobs. We will see how the set works out... (Thanks again, Andy!)
 
I moved 4 years ago, and still have not hooked up the big air compressor. The lithium powered drills, have been so much easier to grab, and have held up to all kinds of torture. Someday I will get the compressor hooked up, and lines run, but I doubt it will ever become the main source of power that it once was.

I have not found a good replacement for the butterfly impact, or the air ratchet, so for under the hood stuff I still power up the small compressor.
 
Not to sidetrack but like other batteries lithium batteries do not like to sit on the charger. Their happier in the 75-90% area. They should be worked throughout the range of battery life. Most batteries have a minimal cutoff percentage that’s why lithium don’t limp along they stop power to the tool before you deplete beyond a recharge. I have smart batteries for my drone that if charged 100% for more than a week it discharges the battery to 75% to keep happy. Batteries have come a long way but theirs still room for improvement I believe.
 
Bob your experience is very consistent with the difference between NiCd batteries and LiPo or other variants of Lithium Ion. The self Discharge rate of NiCd is very high and so they do not hold a charge on the shelf long. Also they do not do well in float charge situations as they can develop a "memory" that reduces the usable capacity. LiPo on the other hand has a very low self discharge rate making it that is not usually needed to float charge them. However, if you do choose to leave them on the charger they are not very susceptible to the "Memory" effect.
 
I understand the higher cost of running the air compressor, But would really like to see actual numbers that factor in the cost of replacement tools, the comparison of the lifetime, ect. I can't see electric tools handling production work as good as air. But then I have been out of that world for quite some time.
 
I used to have the same trouble with NiCad and NiMh battery chargers. I bought a programmable outlet like the one pictured below off Amazon for $12. My NiMh charger for a DeWalt 14.4V is plugged into this and comes on once day a week for an hour. Press of one button turns the timer off in case I'm using the tool and need to continually charge batteries.

I haven't noticed a draw-down problem with the Milwaukee 12V Li-ion batteries. But plan on doing the same sort of thing with those.

Bruce



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I still use air tools for suspension work, and it will be hard to replace my 1960's 3/4-drive Ingersoll impact monster. But with modern battery powered tools, it's easy to forego the air. I have this dinky little Bosch impact thing with a 1/4" hex drive that blasts the lugs off and on all four wheels on cars, and that still blows my mind. Bosch makes a battery angle grinder that holds up to a plug type for 30 minutes at a time. I bought a corded electric impact a few years ago to use in spots where I had no air, and it does pretty good for most stuff but won't break loose a harmonic damper bolt. So, for me, in light of all of the good stuff on the market today, it's foreseeable that I could replace air power, but only after they have an electrical impact that bests my monster wheel stud breaker.
 
I've never been a heavy user of air tools. Though I do have a large compressor in a side room of my shop, and the previous owner plumbed it nicely for air distribution, I'll often just roll up my California Air Tools mini-compressor.

Air tools that as yet have no substitutes ... sandblasters, air nailers, 1" stapler, and machine tool misters.

I'm slowly converting a lot of other tools from line power to batteries. LOVE the M12 and M18 line from Milwaukee. And I still have a number of 18 volt Makita drills. Of course, there's a whole bunch-a-lot more fantastic battery tools available from other manufacturers. But I've made the "executive decision" to limit the number of battery types I have to inventory and keep charged.
 
I have used pneumatic tools all my life. I knew that they were inefficient, but that was part of the cost of doing business. In the past 10-15 years, battery-powered tools have come a long way and I use them more and more. Prior to that 10-15 years, battery-powered tools were crap. They weren't worth using. Pneumatics were the only way unless you wanted to deal with the perils of 120 vac.
I don't think I have ever used a decent pneumatic drill. I have always used a corded drill until recently.
Randy
 
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