re: Dewalt 18v NiCad Battery Life

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First off. Get rid of dewalt the new shite is poo. If your in Houma I can hook you up with some sweet Milwaukee action next month. Got. Big sale going on.

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Sawzall, Impact Driver, 2 drivers (1 big/normal size, 1 slightly smaller w/ light. 1/2" and 3/8" maybe?). I use the shite out of the sawzall (mostly pruning small limbs and bamboo these days). The regular driver gets regularly used. Smaller driver is used when I'm drilling and screwing, so I don't have to constantly switch bits. The impact driver was a huge time saver driving lag screws gor wooden play structures, but it hasn't had much use lately.

I also have a never before used 6-1/2" (I think) circular saw and a rarely used flashlight, along with four apparently worthless batteries and two chargers.

I'm not in Houma, but I know how to get there if the price is right. I also know how to read a credit card number over the phone, if you know how to ship a box of tools!

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I've tried a second charger in case the first was screwed up somehow. Same deal.

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They gone baw.

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What is typical battery life?

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For NiCd batteries? Depends on service conditions, how often they were charged, and the condition they were in when charged. NiCd batteries deteriorate in a condition called "memory", they simply won't charge anymore. If you were charging them when they were only half depleted, charging them when too hot or too cold, or simply would let them self-discharge for weeks at a time you would have shortened the life span of them. New stuff is all Lithium-Ion and anybody says that the old stuff got better battery life is flat out lying to you. You could send off the old battery packs to be rebuilt but even with upgraded cells you won't have the charge capacity and total lifespan of a Li-Ion system. You can get adapters to run 20V batteries or get the 18V lithium batteries with a new charger to keep your old tools running.

I think they all have their down falls as they aren't really designed to last a lifetime. They would rather have repeat customers over their lifetime than have you only buy that product one time from them. Having said that, Milwaukee has a 3 year warranty on their batteries, which for the most part is what will go out first on your avg joe blower.

All we got at work is cordless Milwaukee stuff, bandsaw, drills, impact drivers, sawzall, etc and they are all stout and built well. No problems yet and the batteries are great. Also a lot of the other trade fields have them as well.

For home use (weekend stuff at most) they should last a good bit longer than their warranty. You could also get away with Makita as well. A coworker has the new Rigid stuff and they seem pretty good and powerful too. I think for most people, most major brands would be more than enough, so that is why I think it should come down to their warranty and if the company actually stands by their warranty (reviews). Which is why I suggest going with the one with the best battery life and longest warranty for it. The last time I looked it seemed to me to be Milwaukee (about a year ago).

I thought DeWalt bought Milwaukee?

Stanley Black and Decker owns Dewalt and Techtronic owns Milwaukee as well as Ryobi and you don't have to look close to see the tech sharing between Ryobi and Milwaukee even if they sit in different markets.

Keep an eye on Amazon, they run tool specials all the time. But I bought a drill/saw combo for 129 with charge and two batteries. I believe I got the adapter for about 30 dollars.

Bottom line, it's cheaper just to get a whole new set,than try to piece stuff and batteries together just to keep a 10 yo drill going...everything is lithium now which is better.

I picked up a practically new 5-piece 20V set for $250 at a pawn shop. Since then I've bought a few 4Ah and 5Ah batteries and tool-only deals to expand from there.