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There’s no universal cordless power tool battery – why?

toolguyd.com

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Re: There’s no universal cordless power tool battery – why?

#31

Post by s5300 »

roflyear wrote: post #8
h2odragon wrote: post #4

I want backpack battery packs for the bigger power users. Chainsaws and weed whackers and stuff in the gas engine range anyway. For smaller tools there could sensibly be a couple to 4? perhaps sizes of battery pack, "handheld" for screwdriver to toothbrush to "personal manipulation tools", a bit bigger for handheld drills; double that again for small saws and stuff... any bigger and it begins to become an an unwieldy…

It'd be crazy expensive

Absolutely no reason for it to be. Friends & I in my hobby circle spotweld packs together for various power-tools, though I prefer putting the battery on a load bearing belt or dropleg panel over a backpack.

We have a Dyson vacuum running with like 12 molicell p42a’s in it & it’s insane. Can suck on max setting for like 20 minutes, & even then motor overheating is a larger issue than running out of battery.

Kweld & maletrics spot welders have turned making a custom Li-Ion/else pack into child’s play for the average person who’s turned a screwdriver in their life. Those two are a bit expensive, but older & clunkier spot welders can be found for extremely cheap at this point. They’re more than enough for making power tool packs for you & friends.

Re: There’s no universal cordless power tool battery – why?

#32

Post by jedberg »

I think we as a society used to be much better at standards. Companies realized the value of having standardized components and connectors.

Like, why don't we have a standard for wireless connections to a TV? We have a standard for hardwire connections (HDMI) that is pretty much universal now. But why not a wireless HDMI? Why can't we make it easy for anyone with a laptop to connect to a TV as a remote display?

Companies these days would rather make money from their proprietary connectors and equipment instead of possibly making consumer's lives a little easier and maybe even getting more customers because they are cross compatible.

Re: There’s no universal cordless power tool battery – why?

#33

Post by gertlex »

halestock wrote: post #5

Vendor lock-in. If I buy a Makita drill that comes with a universal battery, I'm just as likely (all other things being equal) to buy a DeWalt or Milwaukee circular saw as another Makita. But if my drill batteries only work with Makita products, I have a big incentive to stick with that brand.

Yeah, but you can use those Makita batteries to power a lawn mower, or a microwave! (I'm not joking) (specifically 18V; there's also a smaller hand drill from Makita with 12V batteries that I have too)

My take: The situation could definitely be better, but it's also pretty nice compared to the NiCD days of 20 years ago.

Caveat: I only just got in on the battery powered tools game in the past 6 months. I went corded for a long time after being burned too many times as a kid wanting to use dad's hand drill once every several months, and the batteries being dead.

Re: There’s no universal cordless power tool battery – why?

#35

Post by sgc »

version_five wrote: post #11

Vendor lock in is obviously a side effect, and there are consumer- hostile reasons why companies like proprietary batteries. But fundamentally the battery shape and power characteristics as well as the charging are still areas where companies can innovate and differentiate themselves. I'd rather have to choose a brand than get some out of date, un-ergonomic "approved" battery and connector that I have to use with my…

You can buy adapters from one manufacturer's battery to another's on Amazon for like 20 bucks. It is 100% manufactured scarcity and lock in.

Re: There’s no universal cordless power tool battery – why?

#37

Post by bombcar »

tpmx wrote: post #23
ClassyJacket wrote: post #15

Becuase the EU hasn't had the balls to legislate this out of existence yet.

Wonder why? cough Germany

Festool can’t even use the same battery across their tools (and even at the same voltage!) so there’s no way they could handle a standardized battery heh

Re: There’s no universal cordless power tool battery – why?

#38

Post by JohnCClarke »

tpmx wrote: post #6
bradgessler wrote: post #2

I'm surprised the EU hasn't legislated something for this—seems like their cup of tea.

The Brussels EU big-wigs very likely don't use cordless power tools personally (unlike mobile phone chargers), so it will probably take a few more years until it reaches their radars. And then it's 50/50 if they'll do something smart or stupid about it. They will do something , though. Edit: There's also the financial interests of german companies like Festool, Bosch, Metabo, Stihl, Einhell. Imagine if they were forc…

Had a quick look at the relative numbers.

The original, 2014, directive aimed to eliminate 51,000 tones of e-waste annually [1]. That works out to about 0.11kg per-person annually.

Currently the average EU citizen disposes of 0.74kg of "electrical tools and medical devices" annually.

So you are correct that power tools and medical devices are a much bigger source of waste.

If you are lucky enough to have an MEP represent you, do ask them why they are not addressing this also.

[1] https://interferencetechnology.com/eu-radio-equipment-direct... [2] https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/headlines/society/202...

Re: There’s no universal cordless power tool battery – why?

#39

Post by pvarangot »

rgmerk wrote: post #20
pvarangot wrote: post #9

While not universal if you stay within Ryobi there's good compatibility among products.

Sure, but it’s the most blatant piece of vendor lock-in since Apple.

Well but the other brands are even worse. Have you ever designed or worked with something with a battery? It's a big liability if the thing catches fire or explodes or doesn't charge up to full performance and it's not easy to design for inter-compatibility while still providing good after-customer service and remaining liable. Ryobi at least is standardized on two battery formats with I think 6 capacities among both and virtually all their products just use those except for the tiny ones that charge on a dock.

Re: There’s no universal cordless power tool battery – why?

#40

Post by DangitBobby »

bombcar wrote: post #24
version_five wrote: post #11

Vendor lock in is obviously a side effect, and there are consumer- hostile reasons why companies like proprietary batteries. But fundamentally the battery shape and power characteristics as well as the charging are still areas where companies can innovate and differentiate themselves. I'd rather have to choose a brand than get some out of date, un-ergonomic "approved" battery and connector that I have to use with my…

One proof of this is the various battery formats a given manufacturer can have; some compatible some not. The reality is that for most tradesmen and users it’s just not a problem at all. If all your tools are one battery, fine. If one is different then that’s the “toilet plunger battery” or whatever, and if you have an eclectic mix then you probably keep them relatively organized. And if you really really want to you…

> One proof of this is the various battery formats a given manufacturer can have; some compatible some not.

Or it's proof that they want you to have to buy their new batteries when your old tool dies.

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