October 2007 Archives - CopTool - Power Tool Reviews & News Blog

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October 31, 2007

Most Popular Power Tool Blogs

power tool blogs

This is a list of the most popular Power Tool blogs on the internet today. Sure these guys are the competition (as they mostly represent retail sites) but they are all good resources for anyone interested in power tools, DIY projects and industry news. If you subscribe to RSS feeds we have put together a RSS Feed which includes all of these sites. VIEW THE ULTIMATE ALL-IN-ONE POWER TOOL BLOG RSS FEED

CopTool.com – Obviously you’ve already found us and know this is your number one source for power tool news. We focus on top manufacturers of professional tools and equipment so we don’t cover many of the discount DIY power tool lines. Blog posts have been every few days but we are adding some good people to the team and will be blogging daily very very soon. Visit Ohio Power Tool to purchase tools and equipment.

ToolMonger.com – Tool Monger is a great site! Multiple posts per day, good projects, and wide variety of topics covered. As far as I can tell there is not a close association with any one retail outlet so I feel they have fair reviews.

Ridgid Forum – This is a great forum for power tools and especially for plumbing tools (for those that don’t know more than the Home Depot line, Ridgid is king of plumbing tools). The power tool section is extremely useful as well on all makes and models; you can talk about whatever is on your mind. There is a blog section where users can create there own blogs which hasn’t taken off yet but could potentially be very interesting moving forward (similar concepts work well for careers like Real Estate Agents).

Power Tool Geek – The first really popular power tool blogger, Brian has been at it for several years. They represent ToolBarn.com so probably should be our mortal enemy but these guys are pretty good, although we haven’t seen many articles from them recently.

ToolCrib.com – Mostly focused on woodworking tools this blog is fairly well written and useful. It appears to have some active users who comment frequently. New posts every few days and they must have a referral account with Amazon because they have lots of links to Amazon to sell tools.

ToolSnob.com – This blog is alright but all over the place. Run by blogpire which appears to be a large network of random blogs, it looks like it writes about who ever is paying them at the moment. Never the less there are some good posts in here from time to time.

As I mentioned above, all of these blogs are available in a single RSS feed: Get it Here

Posted by Jay A. at 10:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)

October 24, 2007

Bosch 36V Battery - FatPack vs. SlimPack

A common question with the Bosch 36v Litheon tools has been, which battery should I get the SlimPack or FatPack? Also, why are there two different batteries options? Both batteries provide 36 volts of power for the most heavy-duty applications and both batteries are lithium ion so there is little power fade during usage. However, there are some good reasons to have the two sizes.
The difference comes down to simply run time vs. weight. In the chart above you can see the SlimPack is tested to run about 15% longer than the Bosch 18v battery. (Remember the power of the 36V is still significantly greater) The FatPack has a 100% longer run time than the Bosch 18v battery. The down side to the FatPack is it weighs 1 lb. more and costs almost 50% more. Currently the SlimPack BAT818 is $99.50 and FatPack BAT836 is $142.50.
Clearly it comes down to preference but typically the SlimPacks are used more commonly with drill/drivers in applications where weight might be a concern. The FatPack is typically the battery of choice and our recommendation most of the time.

One final advantage for both of these batteries is Bosch’s Provantage warranty of 2 years. If you are going to rely on these tools this is a huge advantage. The warranty will replace the battery and will do so within 48 hours. Obviously no one has been using these for 2 years (they haven’t been around that long) but so far we have not heard any negative feedback on battery problems or fading battery life which we can't say about the discount brands.

If you need help or have any questions please talk to the professionals at Ohio Power Tool.

Posted by Jay A. at 08:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 09, 2007

Top 7 New Power Tools of 2007

Below are the top 7 new tools of the year. Obviously everyone will have their own opinions but this is an overall composition of our opinions with customer reviews and insight.

1. Ridgid SeeSnake Micro – The SeeSnake Micro is not like any other tool you have in your garage. It’s a 3 foot long waterproof snaking camera with a light on the end. With it you can look into walls, ducts, heating & cooling units, engines, pipes, drains and any other confined space. Additional 3 foot extensions are also available. It would be nice if in the future you could take some kind of picture with this but that’s about my biggest complaint. This is a very handy tool and has a wide variety of uses. More than anything it is really just lots of fun to play with.

2. Bosch Breaker 11335K – The 11335K Breaker Hammer is the newest Bosch electric demolition tool. This is a great addition to the existing arsenal of SDS-Max hammer drills & Bosch Brute tools. At only 35 lbs. this jack hammer is very versatile with vertical, angled or horizontal positioning. I had to make this one of the top tools of the year because who doesn’t feel like a bad ass using a jack hammer horizontally? Like Arnold Schwarzenegger in Total Recall.

3. IR Mini Air Tools – Ok so this is really a whole line of air tools but I was having trouble picking just one of these new Ingersoll Rand tools and they are pretty cheap so buying the whole line is still very reasonable. These are great tools all around, perfect for home user or professionals looking for compact tools to fit into those hard to reach places. Mini Grinder - Mini Drill/Driver - Mini Sander - Mini Polisher

4. Milwaukee V18 Battery – How can a Battery be one of the top new tools for 2007? It is because the V18 Lithium Ion battery works with all your previous Milwaukee 18 volt Ni-Cad tools. If you already have several 18 volt tools or a combo kit you can upgrade to Lithium Ion for $179 (see previous article). Additionally the charger still charges your old batteries so you can use them as back ups.

5. IQv Cordless Impact – Ingersoll Rand’s new line of IQv cordless tools is pretty impressive. Everyone knows IR as the trusted name for air tools and especially impact wrenches but not necessarily electric or cordless tools. The IQv line really had some big shoes to fill and I think they did an excellent job. You have a wide selection of IQv impacts powered by Lithium or NiCd in either 14.4V or 19.2V. The IQv line also includes other tools common to IR users such as grinders, drills and ratchets which can use the same batteries and chargers.

6. Bosch 36V Circular Saw 1671K – Obviously everyone has seem a cordless circular saw before so why would I include the 1671K? Simply put this is the first cordless circular saw I would actually want to bring to a job site. In my mind cordless circular saws are still not an alternative to a good corded saw because saws need lots of juice. Previous cordless saws were good for 4-5 cuts which is a joke if you are building anything larger than a door stop. The 36 volt Bosch is good for at least 20 which if you have a few extra batteries and a good corded miter saw or portable table saw should be extremely useful on any jobsite. Around the house with an extra battery the 1671K by itself would get most jobs done without any down time.

7. Milwaukee 12V Micro Driver – There seems to be a theme here with the micro & mini tools. Everything gets smaller but at the same time more powerful and the 2401-22 is no exception. It’s not a secret Milwaukee created the Micro driver to compete directly with the very successful Bosch PS20-2 & PS40-2 (I’m sure we’ll see a micro impact shortly) and with good reason. The Lithium Ion tools have added seriously power and battery life making it possible to have small tools that can do big jobs. Plus I think this thing just looks cool.

Posted by Jay A. at 10:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

October 03, 2007

Great Deals on Bosch Litheon 36V Tools

The Bosch 36V tools are arguably the best cordless tools on the market. Using Lithium Ion technology these tools can provide all the power needed to get the job done right. With two battery options “SlimPack” and “FatPack” you have the choice between light weight and longer battery life. The 36V SlimPack weighs less than a 14.4V NiCad. It delivers twice the voltage and up to 15-percent more runtime than competitive 18V tools. The pack’s lightweight design makes it perfect for one-handed and overhead applications with a drill/driver or hammer drill/driver.

The 36V FatPack delivers twice the voltage and runtime of an 18V NiCd battery without a weight penalty. These heavy duty cordless tools can even replace your corded tools normally used for jobs like forty-five-degree bevel cuts with a circular saw, reciprocating saw demolition work, and serious drilling into concrete.

Previously these tools were also fairly high priced when compared to other Lithium Ion tools and certainly NiCd cordless tools. This is not the case any more, for the most part the price on the Bosch 36V tools has come way down and during October Ohio Power Tool is offering a $100 trade-in instant rebate on any of your old 18v tools. This puts the 18636-03 drill/driver with 2 SlimPack batteries at $218.50 and the top of the line CPK40-36 4 36 Volt tool combo kit with two FatPack batteries at $642.50.

Check out all the Bosch 36v Tools and if you have any questions do not hesitate to contact the professional staff at Ohio Power Tool. We will help you find the right tool for the job.

Posted by Jay A. at 04:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)