HandyMan'sMom

OK. I opened the battery pack and tested the little batteries inside the shell. Most of them tested at around 1.300 V, but one of them was a little less (1.100 V.). Being that it is a series circuit, does that effect all of the batteries or just that one? The drill will run at first but will lose its charge very quickly. Chris

Thanks for all the thoughtful replies. I think I'm going to have to have his Dad take over and sift through these options with him. We appreciate all the input. It may be a bit before we're able to check back, but feel free to add any more thoughts. This has been helpful.

Ha -- my 12-year-old son just educated me on my recent question... "Mom, Porter Cable is a brand." (sheepish grin.)

OK; good to know. Pardon my ignorance, but what's a cable -- I know what a "cable" is, but what exactly are you talking about as to something that could be used in the stead of a battery pack? About the drill and battery, it does look old but doesn't look beaten up. We tried to post a picture, but somehow it didn't go through. The label on the drill is worn off, but the label on the battery says: Ni-MH Rechargable NIckel-Metal Hydride Battery. It does have a rather large number on it, which actually may be the model number -- 1834. Then it says 18V 2.6Ah. Thanks for the help.

Thanks for the tip. :-)

Good advice. Any thoughts on where to get Makita batteries?...and where they'll let you try one without purchasing? Seems like at Lowes they're all in hard plastic packaging -- would they let you break into one of those just to try it? Thanks for the help.

Hello, I've logged in on behalf of my son, who is becoming quite the handy-man and tool enthusiast. He recently found at a thrift store an 18-volt Makita drill for $5. The drill seems to be fully-functional, but the battery pack is bad. Right after it has been charged it works somewhat but is not as powerful as it should be. In addition, it loses power very quickly. My son is wondering what the best course of action would be... 1) Should he just forget this whole thing and trash the drill? 2) Should he buy a new $88 battery? 3) Should he try to repair the battery? 4) Should he save up his money and just save it to take advantage of one of those DeWalt deals where he can trade it in for $50 off a DeWalt drill? (Note that would have to be a very long-term, perhaps unrealistic savings idea.) We can't supply a model number, because it's old and the tag was worn off. We'd appreciate any insight on how we might be able to turn this $5 find into a cool, usable tool, especially anything that could be done on a low budget.