Makita TD090DW VS. Bosch PS40-2 - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum

EsotericMason · 02-13-2009, 03:14 PM

I was searching some past threads and it seems the Bosch is fairly popular with decent reviews. Anybody use the Makita version compact impact? What are your thoughts? The Makita can be bought for a much cheaper price vs. Bosch is there a huge difference in performance or comfort?

Thanks in avance.

jiffy · 02-14-2009, 12:21 PM

I have used both of them at a demo show. I find them to be very similar, but if the Makita is cheaper I would go that route. Makita also makes a habit of coming out with multiple tools for their battery systems. I would not be surprised to see more tools using that battery some day.

jaros bros. · 02-14-2009, 01:06 PM

Get back to us on what you buy and how you like it. I really like the Bosch tools. I have hitachis for my impact driver right now and I love them. Practically everything else I have is Bosch.
I haven't been impressed with Makita's product lately although I liked their drills that they made about 5 or so years ago.

SDC · 02-14-2009, 02:55 PM

Are these the ones your talking about? I have the makita and love them. One of my guys has a bosch not as much power as makita

http://www.jlconline.com/cgi-bin/jlc...f2eb5de536&p=1

valleyman · 02-14-2009, 10:00 PM

I bought the Bosch PS40 when it first came out. I like it but I felt it was too slow driving screws for cabinet installation. I would also use it to drill holes in styles and it was very slow and loud for this. I went and bought the Makita 18 volt Compact Impact driver (the black and white one). This driver is much faster and more powerful. It weighs about the same as the PS40 and it's the same length (bit holder to the back of the housing) so it fits in tight spaces. It is a little bit longer top to bottom with the battery attached. I clip it to my belt and don't even know it's there. Which comes to my only complaint, they don't include the $3.00 belt clip, you have to order that.

MikeNeufeld · 02-14-2009, 10:12 PM

Now that I own the new Panasonic Impact/drill Driver combo, I am totally blown away at how good these tools are. For 14.4 V they handle any task well and have great duration/battery life. http://www.toolsofthetrade.net/indus...05143&artnum=5

They are light, so you can use them all day without breaking a sweat, and have a variable speed trigger switch to work at 3 different settings, depending on applications. They do not have a trigger led light but a push button down below where the battery is. My advice would be look at this impact driver, it is amazing. Thanks WarnerCont for guiding me in the rite way...lol

Resta · 02-14-2009, 10:32 PM

If you have a bosch made in Germany - it is Bosh and if your makita made in Japan - is Makita. But right now both of them made in China

. A year ago all Makita Combo kits were made in Germany and cost over 600$. Right now they all are from China and litle more than 300$. I realy dislike that these tools made in China, they are short-term tools.

jiffy · 02-15-2009, 01:22 AM

I have been really impressed with my Lithium Ion tools from Makita and would recommend them to anyone. They are the lightest tools I have used and that makes a big difference when you are carrying them all day. I also see at the Makita website that there are around 30 tools that use that lithium battery. I like options and there seem to be plenty for that battery system.

dangtong · 02-17-2009, 01:45 PM

I have and been using both. Performance wise, I'd say they're not that much different. You can't go wrong with either one. Personally, I prefer the Makita a little bit more due to better feel and better balance in my hands.

Bosch 10.8/12v Litheon line currently have more tools than the newly introduced 10.8V from Makita. Take that as a buying factor if you want to add more tools as Bosch has advantage over Makita (so far).

$$$ wise, it's hard to beat Makita drill and impact driver combo being sold at home depot for $150 or even $130.

WarnerConstInc. · 02-17-2009, 04:02 PM

Mike- Hey man I really liked my panny's, they are great cordless tools. They have a huge amp hour rating due to the fact that they use square battery cells instead of round.
The main difference between all other cordless drills and Panny's/Festool's have brushless motors.
They actually convert DC to AC and have a 3-phase motor.
There are no wearing parts, very efficiant.

Guys I am not a real big fan of most L-ion batteries, they just cant seem to take the cold weather too well.

jiffy · 02-17-2009, 07:27 PM

The simplest solution...don't leave batteries in the cold. I put all of my batteries that I need to use in a bag. Take the bag where the temperature is not so extreme.

There is not a panasonic in the 12v or should I say 10.8V category. Since there aren't any true 12V in the category either.

EsotericMason · 02-17-2009, 07:47 PM

Thanks for the replies guys. It looks like I am going to go the Makita route. You can pick the driver and the impact up as a reconditioned set online for about $100. I know alot of people on the site don't agree with reconditioned but for a tool I will use once a week the price is right.

I do have to say that I am very happy with all of my Makita Lithium Ion cordless tools. Being a masonry contractor they may not receive the day in day out abuse a carpenter may give them but I can say they thrive in the punishing abrasive enviroment that masonry is. I have been more than satisfied with their power and durability. I also find that bringing the batteries in at nite improves their performance the following day. Sometimes I charge them on the way to the site in the truck if its super cold. They seem to hold up to upstate NY winters and to me thats impressive.

Golden Rule · 02-23-2009, 07:19 PM

I have had 2 makita kits. I loved them at first...ABSOLUTELY loved them I was trying to tell everyone to buy them. About a year and a half later over half my batteries have stopped working. 2 chargers have crapped out. Both of my 6 1/2" saws quit. To make matters worse.....There were only 2 of us using them...and not even every day. They just are not a long term investment. I love the impacts but be prepared to buy many many new batteries.

joshua1 · 02-26-2009, 06:23 PM

Technically speaking, the nerds would say that self discharge and loss of power should be lower at low temperatures, on paper, but in real life I find that temperature is a real factor in battery life. Doing work recently in a huge fridge at -26 deg, our batteries lasted about 2 minutes each, so bringing them in to the warm would be a good move for any guy working in a colder environment. wasn't too good for us either, the snot froze in our hooters!