Value of NiCad Tools (esp. drills)

[Anthony Whitesell]

The family has been cleaning their shops this weekend and we collectively put together two boxes of NiCad drills, chargers, and dead battery packs. I put together a test battery pack to verify each tool and charger works. Now the question is what to do with them. Is there any value or demand for old NiCad tools and chargers? What do you think the chances are there are people looking for bare tool or chargers for NiCad tools (especially drills)?

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I still use my 9.6 volt Makita's from the 80's & 90's. My fleet is getting very raggedy. Time for another snoop around eBay. Last time I bought one someone else had the same idea and there was an exciting bidding war in the last seconds of the auction. I can probably find the price.

[Myles Moran]

I was just asking myself the same thing today. Cleaning up the basement i came across my old 12V nicad drill. Logically i should recycle the batteries and toss the rest, but i can't pull the trigger on getting rid of it.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I keep meaning to make a video of how to open up the battery's and replace the cells.

Oh well Its been done. Take your pick from several on YouTube.

[Anthony Whitesell]

The plastic ones that are ultrasonicaly welded together? I have those for a 3/8" impact driver. Works great. Hate the fact there is no "center off" position on the Fwd/Rev switch. I don't bother rebuilding them as I can't get them to stay back together once I glue them (I have tried MANY glues).

[Anthony Whitesell]

Ditto. That's my problem. The tools and the chargers work fine. I wonder how many "Maurice's" there are out there that need a replacement tool. Guess I will toss them on facebook marketplace and see if there are any fish in the pond.

[Ray Newman]

Talk about timely! I need a replacement DeWalt D9310 charger for my old DeWalt flashlight batteries.

Please Let me know if you have one and the price inc. shipping to ZIP 98580.

[Bruce Wrenn]

I have a couple of PC "MagnaQuench" 12 V drills that I'm considering converting to corded drills using a cheap auto battery charger, or a old laptop battery charger. I can often buy laptop chargers for a buck in Restore or other thrift shops. I would need to add a DC to DC transformer (about $6 on Ebay) to get voltage right. I have a very nice Sears booster pack that was given to me as there was no charger, and none was available. Charging, it uses 17.2 volts, so with dc to dc transformer, I charge it.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

Mike Dulak still uses 4 old 7.2 volt Ryobis on his hardware bench. I made him a power pack and converted them to wired in 2006. When you find a drill that is just right it is hard to let it go!

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[Maurice Mcmurry]

I have a couple of PC "MagnaQuench" 12 V drills that I'm considering converting to corded drills using a cheap auto battery charger, or a old laptop battery charger. I can often buy laptop chargers for a buck in Restore or other thrift shops. I would need to add a DC to DC transformer (about $6 on Ebay) to get voltage right. I have a very nice Sears booster pack that was given to me as there was no charger, and none was available. Charging, it uses 17.2 volts, so with dc to dc transformer, I charge it.

Be sure to do the math on your transformer. It needs to be fairly hefty. Those 12 V PC's draw quite a bit of current. I used parts from Mouser.

[Anthony Whitesell]

Sorry no NiCad Dewalts.

Craftsman 9.6V, 10.8V, 12.0V, and 14.4V
Skill 9.6V and 12.0V
Ryobi 12.0V
plus two no name 12V drills (those are headed to the recycling bin and I don't mind).

[Ed Aumiller]

I have 12v nicad drills (B&D),,, also have 20v B&D tools... went on ebay and found adapters to allow the 20v batteries to be used on 12v tools...

They have more power on 20v and work just fine...

[Phil Gaudio]

I have a number of plug-in tools that can be handed down to future generations. Battery operated: they are a replaceable commodity. I've replaced them multiple times as battery technology has improved. I think there is limited value in the NiCad tools at this point.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I have a number of plug-in tools that can be handed down to future generations. Battery operated: they are a replaceable commodity. I've replaced them multiple times as battery technology has improved. I think there is limited value in the NiCad tools at this point.

This is a sad assessment of current affairs. I fight against it. Another reason I keep using NiCad is that I can pull one out of the van on a cold morning and it works. Even on a very cold morning.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

The plastic ones that are ultrasonicaly welded together? I have those for a 3/8" impact driver. Works great. Hate the fact there is no "center off" position on the Fwd/Rev switch. I don't bother rebuilding them as I can't get them to stay back together once I glue them (I have tried MANY glues).

Using a heat gun is the way I open and close them.
"Impact" has not made its way into my wood working vocabulary or tool kit.

[Zachary Hoyt]

I use 18v DeWalt tools with cheap aftermarket NiCad batteries. I was without cordless tools for about a decade, but in 2018 or so I saw a well used 8 tool assortment with 2 chargers on Craigslist for $150 and bought it, and now I use some of them every day. If the drill or the impact ever die I will try to replace them, since I've gotten used to them and find them handy. I think that platform will go on for a while with aftermarket support since it was pretty popular in its day.

[Anthony Whitesell]

"Impact" has not made its way into my wood working vocabulary or tool kit.
Gotta fix the cars too. WWing isn't the only hobby or chore to do around the house.

[Richard Coers]

About like asking what kind of value there is in 1970s typewriters. With brushless motors and Li-ion batteries, your equipment is now horribly antiquated.

[Anthony Whitesell]

Having tried everything from 9.6V to 18V for the work I do and the jobs I need the tools for, I opted to stay with the 9.6V tools. My main logic was that only having 8 cells means less chance of a cell going bad and cheaper to fix when one does go bad.

[Anthony Whitesell]

Many libraries use IBM selectric (is that their name?) typewriters as it allows them to adjust and "manually edit" (ie place whatever they want where ever they want on the page). Like the NiCad tools, not a lot of value but to the right person there is some value.

[Anthony Whitesell]

This is a sad assessment of current affairs. I fight against it. Another reason I keep using NiCad is that I can pull one out of the van on a cold morning and it works. Even on a very cold morning.
That is true. NiCads are not subject to the same issues as the other chemistries in cold temperatures.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I really do need some new drills. I will keep my old ones a while longer. Battery Outfitters and others do a good job keeping battery's available for lots of old tools, appliances and electronics, no soldering or hacking required. fixing a charger can be as simple as replacing a capacitor. When I open a charger up I need help from Dads former farm and shop hand, a quiet Korean War veteran, who spent 4 years as radio opperator on a secret, tiny island in the Pacific.

[Anthony Whitesell]

I really do need some new drills. I will keep my old ones a while longer. Battery Outfitters and others do a good job keeping battery's available for lots of old tools, appliances and electronics, no soldering or hacking required. fixing a charger can be as simple as replacing a capacitor. When I open a charger up I need help from Dads former farm and shop hand, a quiet Korean War veteran, who spent 4 years as radio opperator on a secret, tiny island in the Pacific.
Unless it is the Craftsman charger(s) I have where they underrated the wattage of the resistor and they burn out. I'm surprised I haven't had them catch on fire.

[Lisa Starr]

I still have a old, very, very used Hitachi 9.6 drill I use sometimes. One battery holds a decent charge, the other, not so much. If the price was right, I'd pickup another battery.

[Zachary Hoyt]

Using a heat gun is the way I open and close them.
"Impact" has not made its way into my wood working vocabulary or tool kit.

I never had used an impact screwdriver till I got this kit. They're not as fast as some drivers, but they're compact and light and strong. If I'm going up on a ladder or crawling under something the impact driver is much handier, and it fits between stud frame members better since the body is only about 6" or 7" long. I also have a 1/2" square drive Makita corded impact wrench that I bought secondhand for parting out dead tractors (back when I did that) and also use for driving lag screws or putting nuts on bolts quickly. It makes a 1/2x3-1/2" lag screw drive into a pilot hole as easily and quickly as a deck screw is driven with a cordless drill.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I still have a old, very, very used Hitachi 9.6 drill I use sometimes. One battery holds a decent charge, the other, not so much. If the price was right, I'd pickup another battery.

I bought some China Direct on eBay. They were not very good. This outfit has been reliable.

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[Keegan Shields]

My father loved those NiCad drills, the old blue green Makita models. He was skeptical of the flashy new models.

When I gave him an M18 Milwaukee Fuel drill/driver set a few years ago for Christmas - it made him a believer in the new technology, which was no easy feat.

Upgrade to 18v brushless motors and Lithium batteries - you won't regret it...


(I did keep the free tool that came with it, but don't tell anyone :))

[Jim Becker]

Some tools can take upgraded batteries to replace the NiCads...my original 12v Festool drill/driver was like that. But a lot of the older NiCad tools just don't have good options for that.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

The Milwaukee fuel it the one that I am drawn to. I think it would also be a good platform to build an electric assist bicycle around.

[Derek Cohen]

I have and use a 25 year old 12v Panasonic drill …

https://i.postimg.cc/qJpZfC9w/Panasonic3.jpg

It originally ran on NiCd, but about 2 years ago I switched to NiMh. These use the same charger.

If it is going strong, why not use it?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Mel Fulks]

Yep Panasonic is good , not brain surgery…., I mean that’s my guess.

[Brian Tymchak]

Talk about timely! I need a replacement DeWalt D9310 charger for my old DeWalt flashlight batteries.

Please Let me know if you have one and the price inc. shipping to ZIP 98580.

Ray, I have a couple of Dewalt 9116 chargers that I used to charge my old 18v XRP NiCads. It says it charges anything 7.2v - 18v. I think they are the same form as the 9310s that I googled up. They've been sitting in the "I really need to get rid of this stuff" box for over a year since I switched my cordless tools over to Ryobi, so if you want these I'll throw them in a box if you cover shipping and a Paypal fee. I plugged them in, stuck a couple of the old 18v batteries on them, and they seemed to work (lights blinking). PM me if you're interested.


490722 490721

[Rick Potter]

There are adapters made to fit a popular battery into a different tool, mine fits my Makita 18V batteries to a couple inexpensive Ryobi 18V tools I don't use too often. They are made with 3D printing, and I got mine through Amazon.

This seems like an opportunity for some 3D guy to come up with adapters for popular NiCad tools. You see old Makita's at almost any garage sale.

[Ray Newman]

Brian Tymchak: Just sent you a PM! Thanks

[Eric Anderson]

Most of the good ni-cad battery packs can be rebuilt. We have a Batteries Plus that rebuilds dewalt 14.4 batteries for about $40. I'm currently replacing my collection of 14.4 drills/drivers/impact drivers and passing them on to my son for general home use.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

It's a buyers market for old 9.6 V Makita drills on eBay. I put 20 or 30 on my watch list this morning and have 10 emails with offers and price reduced notifications.

Is that video of the DeWalt electric dragster sill around?...

[Donald G. Burns]

I have a decades old 12v blue Ryobi CB120N drill that came with NiCAD's. The batteries died some time ago and Ryobi stopped making batteries for it. So it sat unused for a couple of years. Last year I found that a Chinese company was producing 12v Li Ion batteries for the newer Li Ion version of this same drill. So I bought a charger and some batteries and now it's a backup drill for lighter jobs.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I gave all mine away to my grandson and a few nephews.
I've noticed they have all treated them with great respect.
So great that they sit enshrined & revered in the "sacred pile of unused crap" in the corner of the garage cathedral..

[Dave Sabo]

Talk about timely! I need a replacement DeWalt D9310 charger for my old DeWalt flashlight batteries.

Please Let me know if you have one and the price inc. shipping to ZIP 98580.


are they 12v or 18v ?






Most of the good ni-cad battery packs can be rebuilt. We have a Batteries Plus that rebuilds dewalt 14.4 batteries for about $40. I'm currently replacing my collection of 14.4 drills/drivers/impact drivers and passing them on to my son for general home use.

For me the economics of that haven't made sense in a looooong time. A re-built pair is going to run you $80+ and for just under $100 I can buy a 12v LiIon kit from Bosch that 2 batteries with better technology, longer runtime, and I get a new brushless drill with better ergonomics in the deal.

[Thomas Wilson]

I have an old Racal dust helmet (more than 30 years). Both the NiCad batteries and the charger are bad. I found a source for replacements and ordered them. The batteries were the same but the charger that came was not the same as the old one or the same as the charger pictured from the source. The plug did match so I tried it. It burned up the batteries on the first charge.

Racal was bought by 3M. New versions of the helmet are used for infectious disease isolation wards and are incredibly expensive. Back in the day, it was a good solution for dust protection. Wish I could solve the charger problem.

[Ray Newman]

Dave Sabo: 12v for DeWAlt 904 flashlight.

[Dave Sabo]

I’ve got an old Univolt express fast charger from back in the day that should work on those packs. 13min max charge time was awesome.

Yours for the postage if you’d like.490887490888490889

[andrew whicker]

If you are into NiCad, there seem to always be a lot floating around ReStore (Habit for Humanity stores)...

I donated a drill there with two NiCad batteries and charger. New stuff is too comfy, light, snappy, powerful, etc.

[Brian Holcombe]

Using a heat gun is the way I open and close them.
"Impact" has not made its way into my wood working vocabulary or tool kit.

Impact drivers are easier on the screw and more effective at driving them. When I worked at a motor shop I learned that removing bolts was better done with an impact gun than with a breaker bar, not only was it much faster but easier on
the parts as well, generally speaking.

[Rollie Meyers]

I have a Milwaukee 14.4V drill that is in my opinion the most comfortable drill around, problem is all my Milwaukee 14.4V, & 18V NiCad batteries are DOA, & have M12, & M18 Milwaukee tools & batteries, I had sent in a 18V NiCad battery to Batteries Plus as they were then known, there was very little difference in cost for them to rebuild, vs buying a new OEM Milwaukee NiCad, at one time in the past, looked into buying NiCad cells to assemble them myself to rebuild them, but never did. It's a sad waste of good tools.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

Impact drivers are great. I mostly do not like the noise and hand feel. I also think pre drilling for wood screws is important. Impact wrench's in an auto shop are great too, if the user is experienced. I have stopped counting stripped and broken off wheel lug nuts, oil pan plugs, etc.

[andrew whicker]

One of my next purchases is one of the impact + hammer drill. Those are nice for small concrete jobs... which are most concrete jobs in my world.

[Ron Selzer]

One of my next purchases is one of the impact + hammer drill. Those are nice for small concrete jobs... which are most concrete jobs in my world.

Andrew if you are interested in using 3/16-9/16 concrete bits then DeWalt has a promotion on right now on their 12 v max. I bought a set for work and got the SDS plus rotary hammer for free. I have not used the rotary hammer yet ass I left on medical leave not to long after buying this little set. I have used the 12 v max drill and impact driver and really like both of them. Real nice when out mounting paper towel dispensers, flags, pictures etc using 3/16 and 1/4 masonry screws. Sure beats packing the 20v masonry drill with 6 amp battery and the 20 v impact driver everywhere for little things. As I get older I like carrying less weight to get things done.
CPO is participating in this also. Strongly thinking about getting a set for myself at home.

ree product with purchase at Select Retailers†Purchase the XTREME 12V MAX* brushless 3/8 in. drill & impact driver kit (contains two compact and performance packed tools), get one select tool free from the following products: DCF903B, DCF901B, DCH072B, DCS512B, DCS312B, DCF503B, DCS353B
Participating Retailers:Lowes, ACE, and other select retailers CPO also
Eligible Products:XTREME™ 12V MAX* Brushless Cordless Drill & Impact Driver Kit (https://www.dewalt.com/product/dck221f2/xtreme-12v-max-brushless-cordless-drill-impact-driver-kit)
XTREME 12V MAX* Brushless 3/8 in. Cordless Impact Wrench (Tool Only) (https://www.dewalt.com/product/dcf903b/xtreme-12v-max-brushless-38-cordless-impact-wrench-tool-only)
XTREME 12V MAX* Brushless 1/2 in. Cordless Impact Wrench (Tool Only) (https://www.dewalt.com/product/dcf901b/xtreme-12v-max-brushless-12-cordless-impact-wrench-tool-only)
XTREME™ 12V MAX* Brushless Cordless 9/16 in SDS PLUS Rotary Hammer (Tool Only) (https://www.dewalt.com/product/dch072b/xtremetm-12v-max-brushless-cordless-916-sds-plus-rotary-hammer-tool-only)
XTREME™ 12V MAX* 5-3/8 in. Brushless Cordless Circular Saw (Tool Only) (https://www.dewalt.com/product/dcs512b/xtremetm-12v-max-5-38-brushless-cordless-circular-saw-tool-only)
XTREME 12V MAX* Brushless One-Handed Cordless Reciprocating Saw (Tool Only) (https://www.dewalt.com/product/dcs312b/xtreme-12v-max-brushless-one-handed-cordless-reciprocating-saw-tool-only)
XTREME™ 12V MAX* Brushless 3/8 in. Ratchet (Tool Only) (https://www.dewalt.com/product/dcf503b/xtremetm-12v-max-brushless-38-ratchet-tool-only)
XTREME™ 12V MAX* Brushless Cordless Oscillating Tool (Tool Only) (https://www.dewalt.com/product/dcs353b/xtremetm-12v-max-brushless-cordless-oscillating-tool-tool-only)
Click the product links above and select Buy Now to view participating retailers.
† Offers vary by retailer. Restrictions apply. Please see your local retailer for details.

[Vince Shriver]

I've tried several batteries, China-direct for 9.6ah - sadly disappointed every time. None hold a charge for any length of time. Went to Battery Direct in hopes, but they are "under construction". I'll keep them in mind for future attempts. Thanks for posting.