JayDubya

I bought a Ryobi cordless trimmer off of ebay, and fount it almost perfect for converting for using the 18 volt DeWalt batteries. The only extra items I needed were a switch from a dead DeWalt device (to pirate the battery contacts at the bottom of the switch) and some two part epoxy to glue the contacts into place inside the handle of the Ryobi. The battery slides in perfectly. The only other thing I had to 'rig' was a method of holding the battery in. I used a Velco strip, wrapped around the battery. Works like a charm. Oh yes, of course I wired it incorrectly at first, and the trimmer ran backwards. Murphy's Law... yada.

Just thought I'd chime in here with some info. I have owned the commercial model 18 volt DW988 XRP hammer drill for almost ten years now, and it came with the best chuck I've ever seen on it. It's a Rohm, but I can find no part number on it. The entire shell of the chuck is one piece and knurled, so tightening and loosening a bit is very easy, since the drill shaft is locked down when off. It has inserts in the jaws (carbide?) and has never allowed a bit to spin. It has a 'hex' cut into the ring surrounding the jaws so you can use a wrench to free up a bit that jams into whatever you're working on. Behind the hex is a 'freewheeling' tapered section that the instructions described as helpful in guiding the nose of the drill into 'fine', or tricky work. It ratchets somehow when tightening, but then goes into some kind of quarter-turn lockdown mode and stops. I'm convinced that the chuck cost more than the drill. If and when the drill fails, I will be making sure that whatever replacement I purchase can use this chuck. It's that good.

Would you happen to know which model number it is? It will be very helpful to use my existing DeWalt batteries.

I have been waiting patiently. Do the engineers at DeWalt have any plans to manufacture a grass nylon string trimmer that I can slap in one of my current 18 volt xrp batteries, or will I be forced to buy another brand of cordless trimmer, battery & charger?