D W

You've probably got a bad Hilti battery. One of my new 3.0ah Hitachi batteries charges from flat to full in only 5 minutes! Hitachi have very fast fan cooled chargers, but I'm going to use common sense in this case. It's a bad battery. It likely ran too flat while in storage. I've had the same happen with individual 18650 cells I use for flashlights.

My first Lufkin tape. I'm quite impressed. Build quality feels great. The blade is a little too curved compared to other tapes I have, but I guess that's where the 3.5m standout comes from. Blade printing is not a good as a Japanese tape but better than the Stanley tapes I own. The lock switch is great on this. Very easy to use. Just like rocking a light switch as opposed to sliding it. I like it. And....great to buy an Australian made tool! The only Aussie tool I own.

A built in sharpener is a great idea. Those fastcaps look pretty good. I agree about the Komelon self locks, I don't think my 3.5m is anywhere near the durability of a Fatmax. It feels extremely high quality though, the spring is super smooth and I'd rate the blade as the best out of all my tapes (far ahead actually). I've spent way too much and ordered a few different models from Joybuy, Ebay, and Rakuten (via translation): - Deli 5m x 25mm auto lock - Komelon 5.5m x 25mm self lock chrome - Kaidan 5.5m x 25mm auto lock pro (pictured above) - Shinwa 5.5m x 25mm tough gear self stop

I've noticed that tab as well. I have the 18V version and I figured maybe it's so any leaning on the back of the saw (to push it hard onto the shoe) does not transfer to the battery and it's clips. If that's the case, then it's a good feature. Otherwise all that forward pressure will go onto the battery clip mechanism (like you're forcibly trying to remove the battery without pressing the release buttons). Their angle grinders also have that tab. Multivolt looks great.

Hitachi (the full sized drill) and possibly Metabo have it as well. Or I could be mistaken. I nearly went for the 18V compact Bosch DDS183 but ended up going with an 18V compact Hitachi DS18DBFL2 (which doesn't have it). I just use the clutch. It seems to be quite effective. For what I do, it doesn't slip, and it's saved me a few times while drilling metal. Actually, I'm certain the Hitachi manual says to use the clutch to avoid kickback (yes, I savour the entire experience and read the manuals). I don't use large hole saws though, so perhaps a clutch won't hold for those.

I just checked mine and it's plastic. Wtf I could have sworn it was that powdered metal stuff. Nope. It's a Type 1 (see side label) and dated 2017 in the battery slot.

I've been looking online for Komelon and other self lock tape measures to buy. Not an easy task when you want pure metric ones. I've found a 5.5m/25mm Komelon self lock, but I'm curious to see what else is out there. I already own the 3.5m version and it's outstanding other than short standout (16mm blade) and somewhat too-soft rubber. I found this site that basically has 4 pages of different Japanese tape measures. It appears to be photos only, but if you translate the page using the browser, the tape measure brand and model will be shown. Worth a look! Lucky they're hard to buy, I'd start a collection otherwise. http://kanai-marukin.com/marukin_041_01.html Here's a few that caught my attention:

Stock up, buy as many as you can!

That's quite good. Check out what Aussies have to pay for that set: $639 AUD (~$461 USD). That's some high priced plastic. Dewalt for comparison at the same store: $269 AUD (~$194 USD).

+1 for Oz Tool Talk. Great guys and great videos. I'm hoping they get a hold of some Multivolt tools soon.

I'm interested in one. Until now I've done all sanding with a multitool or by hand. I haven't actually used an orbital sander.

I've bought a heap of tools lately, but this hammer was on my wish list for the longest: Estwing 15 oz Ultra hammer (short ~350mm version). I needed good quality locking pliers for welding. I wanted Knipex but saw these Stanley Fatmax ones so I thought I'd take a gamble. Very, very impressed! Seriously. I have both Grip-on and Knipex locking pliers already. These feel just as smooth, solid, and as well made as my Grip-on! Not at all sloppy. I really like them.

I've been needing a 250mm Knipex pliers wrench for a while but I came across this "copy" in the local Bunnings; a Trojan Multigrip Wrench. It was only $29 AUD with a lifetime guarantee, and so far it seems to operate pretty much on par with my 180mm Knipex pliers wrench. The red on the Jaws are removable rubber shoes. I'm really liking it, especially considering it's 1/3 of the price of the Knipex. If you're in AUS check them out. I think the quality is ok for the price.

Multivolt becomes more appropriate if they end up doing X2 with the batteries (so 18V, 36V, and 72V).

Hikoki Multivolt battery 5.0ah/2.5ah. I chose this over the 8.0ah/4.0ah for it's smaller size and lower price ($40/22% cheaper). I don't have any Multivolt tools yet, but I've been holding off getting a 6.0ah to use on the 18V reciprocating saw knowing these weren't too far away (for the fuel gauge!). Great to have 36V without the weight. Future Multivolt tool purchases will likely include the circular saw and grinder unless the reviews are saying they aren't very good.

One brand should go out on a limb with this idea: Removable and sealed 3 or 5 cell cartridges or pods that you load into slide packs like we know them today (like loading individual batteries into a flashlight for example, but cartridges into slide packs which would essentially just be containers for the cartridges). The slide packs would come in a few sizes such as 1, 2, 4, and 8 cartridge packs. You could then "build" the sized battery you need. A 3 cell per cartridge approach would allow "12V", "24V", "48V", and a 5 cell per cartridge approach would allow "18V", "36V", "72V" etc. Both have advantages. So a tool would be rated by the minimum number of cartridges or pods that are needed for it to run (with voltage not really being the thing that is referred to). With a 3 cell per cartridge approach: A "12V max" tool would be rated 1+ (1 cartridge minimum). If you use a slide pack that holds 2 cartridges, then the tool would increase the run-time by using them in parallel. Hypothetically it could also use a 4 or 8 cartridge pack for extra long run-time. A "24V max" tool would be rated 2+ (2 cartridges minimum) and use the 2 cartridges in series. If you use a 4 cartridge pack, then it would use two pairs of in series cartridges in parallel. A "48V max" would be rated 4+...and so on. This approach could allow a 12V rotary tool to exist on the same platform as a 48V mower.

Same here. It was hard enough to find our local release date. All we got was "October". I'm looking forward to the US release. I'll consider that the "Official" release date (US have a huge market and the most YouTube channels/reviewers). It's a damn shame about the "Metabo HPT" name though.

That might be for the US only. Online stores in Australia are listing it as 'In Stock', but I guess it may not be actually true. One store does have a YouTube channel and have 2 videos up (the 36V rotary hammer and 36V impact wrench). I placed an order for the small battery yesterday so it should be here in 2 days time if it's actually available. I'll try to post a mini review when it arrives. I wondered about that. It was a great idea from Dewalt.

If Makita uses bigger cells, then X2 tools are going to be seriously heavy and huge. Flexvolt are big with 15 cells, but Makita are possibly going to have 20 x 21700 cells on a single tool! 😨 I think Hitachi/Hikoki with Multivolt have a better approach. It's like a middle ground between Flexvolt and X2. A single 18650 Multivolt battery will do 36V and be exactly the same size as one of their original 6ah 18V batteries. To improve runtime (and likely power), they also have a bigger 21700 cell 8ah/4ah version. It's bigger, but not as big as Flexvolt or 2 x Makita batteries. We haven't seen any reviews yet, but in theory Multivolt is looking like a winner. I kind of wish it was Makita that came up with the idea instead (or be the first ones to copy Flexvolt if you prefer I put it that way).

That is a great design! Exactly what I was hoping to see. Ryobi have some great ideas.

My TD170 does this, about 5mm in/out. I didn't think much of it until I tried another brand (which only had about 2mm movement). Not sure if it's normal or not, but it's definitely something I've disliked about the 170.

So multivolt has started appearing around the world. Anyone purchased anything? I'll be ordering a battery this week. Interesting to see they have two battery sizes (both ah and physical): -18650 cell 5.0ah/2.5ah -21700 cell 8.0ah/4.0ah

I agree. It looks great. I haven't used it much yet, but initial impressions leave me a little underwhelmed, considering the level of "hype" about this tool. There really is a lot of hype but very few actual reviews or comparisons. It's definitely not as good in build quality as the Makita, which is made in Japan (Hitachi in China). There's something not quite right about the balance as well. The Makita feels slightly heavier (I'd say it's the battery) but it's balance feels perfect. The Hitachi is not as perfectly balanced. I tried a couple of small screws but I really couldn't tell the difference in smoothness or sound levels having a 3rd hammer. I'll have a look at the Specs and compare them at the same rpm, which will probably be more noticeable (Hitachi is 4000bpm at 2900rpm, Makita turns much faster to get 3800bpm at 3600rpm). So per rotation, the Hitachi has more hits.