Cordless power tools: best for boat?

patagoniadave

patagoniadave

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Apr 11, 2022
76
Irwin 34 Citation San Carlos Meixico
I am going to go buy a cordless hand drill later today or tomorrow. Brands often group them with other power tools and is cheaper to buy the set than the individual tools. I am only 4 months into boat ownership, and not sure which tools are a must have, and which will gather dust (or corrosion). I can't picture needing a circular saw, unless I start a major overhaul and need to work on cabinetry. Reciprocating saws are just fun, but probably hard on fiberglass. Could come in handy demasted half way to Hawaii. Will I regret not getting an impact driver for stuck hardware? I think a jigsaw would be handy, or some sort of dremel equivalent, but I do not remember seeing those in kits.

Thanks for any thoughts. Bonus for input on rivet guns.
 
MikeHoncho

MikeHoncho

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Dec 28, 2015
1,897
Laser, Hunter H30 Cherubini Tacoma
Impact gun and a drill set. I’m not a fan of Dewalt but the 20volt set I have have been workhorses. The batteries last a long time. The lithiums charge really fast.
 
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Terry Cox

Terry Cox

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Dec 25, 2000
5,900
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
Hi Dave. Tried cordless drills on the boat, but alas not enough use to obtain any kind of life out of the batteries. Instead, since I have plenty of 12V house bank battery power, I picked up a 12V drill that still had the battery attached from a local thrift store for next to nothing and removed the spent battery guts, then wired in a long cord with a 12V plug on the end. Works great.

Over the years I've installed 12v sockets around the boat; each cabin plus the cockpit. The cord is long enough to reach just about any point where needed. Never have to worry about whether there is available battery power. Just right for those small boat jobs.
 
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patagoniadave

patagoniadave

.
Apr 11, 2022
76
Irwin 34 Citation San Carlos Meixico
Terry Cox said:
Hi Dave. Tried cordless drills on the boat, but alas not enough use to obtain any kind of life out of the batteries. Instead, since I have plenty of 12V house bank battery power, I picked up a 12V drill that still had the battery attached from a local thrift store for next to nothing and removed the spent battery guts, then wired in a long cord with a 12V plug on the end. Works great.

Over the years I've installed 12v sockets around the boat; each cabin plus the cockpit. The cord is long enough to reach just about any point where needed. Never have to worry about whether there is available battery power. Just right for those small boat jobs.
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I have a friend that did that. He was on my boat helping me drill out a broken rivet. I could not tell if it was his drill, or my power supply, but it was barely able to do the job. I like the idea though, I may just try it on principal. Thanks
 
MikeHoncho

MikeHoncho

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Dec 28, 2015
1,897
Laser, Hunter H30 Cherubini Tacoma
The newest battery technologies are amazing. I’d take a cordless quality set over a corded (can’t find them in a small size) anyday. You’ll use the impact gun a lot and have the drill for emergencies.
 
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patagoniadave

patagoniadave

.
Apr 11, 2022
76
Irwin 34 Citation San Carlos Meixico
MikeHoncho said:
The newest battery technologies are amazing. I’d take a cordless quality set or we a corded (can’t find them in a small size) anyday. You’ll use the impact gun a lot and have the drill for emergencies.
Click to expand
I can see the impact being pretty useful, thanks for confirming.
 
capta

capta

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Jun 4, 2009
4,905
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
I always used cordless whenever possible, even with a genset. However, it was always a pain to recharge the batteries as we normally only ran the genset for 1/2 an hour twice a day. Then I found a Ryobi charger that ran off 12 volts and using that and their +1 batteries I never had another problem with half charged batteries for my cordless tools.
 
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D

dlochner

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Jan 11, 2014
12,694
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
The tools I use the most are a cordless drill, an impact drill, oscillating tool, and a sabre saw. An angle grinder is also handy.

Since the tools will live on the boat, don't over buy, midrange tools work well. On the boat we have Porter-Cable. Lithium batteries are best because they don't self discharge, recharge quickly and are smaller.
 
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Ralph Johnstone

Ralph Johnstone

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Jan 4, 2006
7,150
Hunter 310 West Vancouver, B.C.
I have an old hair dryer permanently on board for working on hoses. Won't start a hose job ( :)) without the dryer handy.

When it comes to electrical wiring, a heat gun is a must for glued electrical heat shrink tubing.
 
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Tally Ho

Tally Ho

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Jan 7, 2011
5,436
Oday 322 East Chicago, IN
Impact driver, drill, oscillating tool, jig saw, angle grinder. If you could also get a small circular saw in the package, that would be icing on the cak.

i like Master Force sold at Menards (good value brand). But if traveling the world, better to go with a big brand like Ryobi, Dewalt, etc.

Greg
 
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patagoniadave

patagoniadave

.
Apr 11, 2022
76
Irwin 34 Citation San Carlos Meixico
Tally Ho said:
Impact driver, drill, oscillating tool, jig saw, angle grinder. If you could also get a small circular saw in the package, that would be icing on the cak.

i like Master Force sold at Menards (good value brand). But if traveling the world, better to go with a big brand like Ryobi, Dewalt, etc.

Greg
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I forgot all about oscillating tools, thanks for the reminder. I'm m in Mexico, so it will be interesting to see the brands at home Depot
 
Rick Webb

Rick Webb

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Jun 2, 2004
3,498
Hunter 23.5 Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida
I have Dewalt, not for any particular reason except started out with those as it was on sale. One advantage is they are sold everywhere other brands seem to be sold at one store and not another. The oscillating saw you will use more than you think. I've bought other tools that go with the battery line that have proved their worth many times over. The fan has been a life saver on several occasions. The usb adapter for the battery has been a godsend to charge a cell phone when other options were not available. Cordless grease gun seemed silly till you've used it. Flood light and spotlight e worth having well. 1/2" and 3/8" impact get used a lot. They have just come out with a 20V 3/8 ratchet, that'll be on my Christmas list.

They have a line of 12v tools as well that would probably be fine for most tasks on the boat but unless they are way cheaper than the 20v may not be the value they seem to be.
 
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M

MFD

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Jun 23, 2016
182
Hunter 41DS Pacific NW USA
Over the past ~5 years I have trended almost entirely DeWalt. The thing with cordless equipment is that often you are buying into the battery/charging system for the tools so mix & match does not work well. I keep one of the higher powered chargers on the boat and have two batteries - one thin, one heavier. I also have some other heavier duty corded equipment that I usually do not keep on the boat but is also rarely needed. DeWalt also has a little mini shop-vac that does double duty for basic boat cleaning on a regular basis. In all honesty the mini-shopvac thing is not that great, but having the same batteries/charger for everything makes it a win for me.

+1 on picking up an oscillating saw even though you may not be exactly sure right now what you are going to use it for. Extremely handy tool for cramped spaces, oddball cuts of weird materials, etc.
 
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patagoniadave

patagoniadave

.
Apr 11, 2022
76
Irwin 34 Citation San Carlos Meixico
MFD said:
Over the past ~5 years I have trended almost entirely DeWalt. The thing with cordless equipment is that often you are buying into the battery/charging system for the tools so mix & match does not work well. I keep one of the higher powered chargers on the boat and have two batteries - one thin, one heavier. I also have some other heavier duty corded equipment that I usually do not keep on the boat but is also rarely needed. DeWalt also has a little mini shop-vac that does double duty for basic boat cleaning on a regular basis. In all honesty the mini-shopvac thing is not that great, but having the same batteries/charger for everything makes it a win for me.

+1 on picking up an oscillating saw even though you may not be exactly sure right now what you are going to use it for. Extremely handy tool for cramped spaces, oddball cuts of weird materials, etc.
Click to expand
I had an oscillating saw in the RV (used it all the time), but it was corded, so my brain was not making the cordless battery powered connection (lost all those tools in the divorce). I did love all the random extra things like a light or phone charger than ran off of the battery system. I think the one I had was Ryobi or some such brand.

Thanks for the feedback, it is very much appreciated.
 
M

MFD

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Jun 23, 2016
182
Hunter 41DS Pacific NW USA
patagoniadave said:
I had an oscillating saw in the RV (used it all the time), but it was corded, so my brain was not making the cordless battery powered connection (lost all those tools in the divorce). I did love all the random extra things like a light or phone charger than ran off of the battery system. I think the one I had was Ryobi or some such brand.

Thanks for the feedback, it is very much appreciated.
Click to expand
Yeah - it seems kind of silly, but the little LED lights that most of the modern tools have are super handy!
 
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Rick Webb

Rick Webb

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Jun 2, 2004
3,498
Hunter 23.5 Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida
Dewalt makes all sorts of lawn equipment as well I have the blower, line trimmer and chain saw. If my mower ever goes out I'll have one of those as well.

I am waiting for the Dewalt outboard motor. They are missing the boat on that one.
 
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patagoniadave

patagoniadave

.
Apr 11, 2022
76
Irwin 34 Citation San Carlos Meixico
Rick Webb said:
Dewalt makes all sorts of lawn equipment as well I have the blower, line trimmer and chain saw. If my mower ever goes out I'll have one of those as well.

I am waiting for the Dewalt outboard motor. They are missing the boat on that one.
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Chainsaw might do better than the "sawszall" in a de-masting situation....
 
mermike

mermike

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Nov 21, 2012
702
Yamaha 33 Port Ludlow, WA
I'm a fan of the Milwaukee M12 series of tools. Smaller and lighter than my DeWalts, plenty of torque and battery life.
 
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