This week, we have Rear Handles, Impacts, Chainsaws, a BOLTR, track saw, blower, and more chainsaws! THIS is your power tool week in review.
Welcome back power tool fans, we’re starting this week with AvE who is back with another BOLTR, or “bored of lame tool reviews” This time he turned his attention to a Makita planer. And right off the bat, he’s not happy with the sticker placement.
AvE | Makita Planer BOLTR
Frog snacks aside, that’s the Makita KP0800 planer which he chose over a DeWALT. And after abusing the little guy he does what AvE does best and tears the thing apart covering every part along the way, pointing out materials used, and points out the things that will break first. In the end, he shares what he likes and hates about this planer in “theft deterrent teal”. And while he points out that this is not a professional tool, it would be perfectly fine for a hobbyist. For the full review, head over to AvE.
Philly Fixed | FLEX Rear Handle Saw
Now I don’t need to tell you guys, that you should be super careful loaning out tools. Unless it’s my neighbor Keith, I usually just say no. That is, unless it’s Jim over at Philly fixed. I’m sorry, but no one could say no to that face…
This time he asked for my treasured FLEX Rear Handle, and a few Stacked Lithium batteries. And this week, he launched his huge Rear Handle Head 2 Head, looking for the very best of 2022. His contenders included the usual suspects from Milwaukee, DeWALT, Makita, Metabo HPT, and of course my FLEX. To test the pro saws Jim chose to equip each one with a new pro blade, the Spyder Tarantula.
Jim forces each saw to not only make difficult cuts, as you’d expect on a framing job, but ran them as fast as he could. But just as important, he took the time to review ergonomics, and sight-lines, and even calls out most brands for choosing to shoot the sawdust right back into the user. But not my FLEX. Speaking of… wanna guess who’s favorite saw comes out on top? For the full review, head over to Philly Fixed.
Tool Review Zone | Measuring Tapes
It’s TAPE WEEK! You know why? Me neither! But Clint over in the tool review zone decided to get into the tape measure spirit, and pull together all of the tapes he had laying around the garage and test each one to see who measures up….
Stanley sent him 4 to celebrate the suspect celebration, and he found four more from Crescent Lufkin. After testing their tape quality, magnetic tips and standout, he does eventually reveals which measuring tape stands out… the most to him. So if your old tape is due for a toss’n, and you want to find the best replacement, I highly suggest you visit the Tool Review Zone.
Man Caver Tools | Best 12V Impact Driver of 2022
Our buddy Dave over at Man Caver Tools is in the midst of a channel renovation. And so far, the results are pretty darn good.
He started with some actual renovation of his garage where he tests tools and shoots videos. And then this week, he launched an entirely new tool review format, starting with a top 12V Impact Driver of 2022. His new format is incredibly fast paced, and the results are easy to read and follow. The tools he chose to test include 12V Impacts from Milwaukee, SKIL, Makita, DeWALT and Hilti. He pushes each one through several difficult challenges designed to test not only their speed, but power and heat management. But probably the most appealing aspect to his new format, there’s a clear winner at the end. To find out which brand makes the best 12V Impact for 2022, head over to Man Caver Tools.
Tools & Stuff | Makita 40V Shop Blower and Accessories
An often overlooked tool in any garage or shop seems to be a little shop blower, but lucky for us the disembodied hands from Tools & Stuff has us covered.
THAT is the Makita GSA01 40V Dust blower, something that Tools has already shown us. But this time, he has a huge collection of attachments that we had never seen before. He carefully details each one, revealing several new uses for the handy blower, including inflating my drink pool floaty, which seems incredibly important, but I think the lego use case may have that beat. The rest of the tips offer creative uses as well, including that hose that hooks up to the BACK of the tool, allowing it to deflate as well. Super handy for using those vac bags for storing clothes and stuff toys. If you need just one more reason to buy this awesome blower, you’ll find it at Tools & Stuff.
I apologize for this, but literally as we were recording just now, I got a call from my in-laws who have my kids on a trip 5 hours from here, and my mother in law just had a medical emergency, so I need to rush down to get my kids. Not a joke. So we’re going to wrap up the rest of our show as quickly as we can so I can get on the road. -Rob
Mastering Mayhem | Gas Vs Electric Chainsaws
Marius from Mastering Mayhem set out to see if a Stihl Gas chainsaw would beat a group of electric competitors. I’m rooting for the EGO. Go figure.
TTC | Makita’s 40V XGT Compact Impact Wrench
TTC reviewed Makita’s 40V XGT Compact Impact Wrench, which comes with some seriously big numbers on the box, and finds out if they’re anywhere close to accurate.
Tinker With Tools | Metabo HPT Recip
Tinker with Tools decided to try reviewing reciprocating saws, starting with the popular Metabo HPT 36V Model, which includes a rebar cutting challenge that gave me a headache. Go check it out.
Tool Box Buzz | RYOBI 18V ONE+ Track Saw
If you’re tired of hearing about Milwaukee’s track saw, Tool Box Buzz thoroughly reviewed the Ryobi 18V ONE+ version, and it yielded a few surprises.
Shop Tool Reviews | EGO 16″ Chainsaw
Shop Tool Reviews got a hold of the all-new EGO 56V 16” chainsaw, which we can tell you from our own experience, is insane.
VCG Construction | Interview Series
Vince over at VCG has started a new interview series, and this week he invited Richard from Finish Carpentry TV, and when you get two experienced carpenters together, the conversation isn’t only informative, but entertaining. It was a great video and we recommend you don’t miss it.
OK that’s it I need to run. We want to thank FLEX and Ohio Power tool for sponsoring this episode, and for Spyder for sponsoring our Production Crew, we have one more show before this month’s $2,000 giveaway! You can find more information below. If you can, do something kind for someone else this weekend, and we’ll see you next week.
