Customer Reviews

Makita LXT400 18-Volt LXT Lithium Ion 4-Piece Combo Kit

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

(This is an amendment of my earlier review, based on some feedback from the discussion posts. Thanks M. Black and Stevie Q for your comments. I've also had the kit for 2 years now, which has raised some durability issues.)

My Dewalt cordless drill had served me well, but the batteries were getting weak, and I thought it time to step up to a new technology. There were several choices out there: Panasonic's superb, long-life drills, Hitachi's cool-looking powerhouse, and Milwaukee's 28 v lithium ion kit. Which is the best choice?

I almost bought the Panasonic, which was a great value for the drill alone, certainly from appearances a better buy than the Makita. But I thought I could use the extra tools in the kit. Ultimately, I went for the kit, and I'm glad I did. Put me in the category of those who never had that much use for battery powered tools (other than a drill) because of my perception that they had limited power. I always wanted the biggest, the best. The Makita lithium ion combo kit changed my perception.

First, the drill. That 560 in-lbs of torque is more than enough. It compares favorably to Milwaukee 28 v.'s 600 ft-lbs, and weighs less, only 5.2 lbs. The drill has 3 speed settings, and within each setting you can also vary the speed by pulling the trigger less or more. You have to wonder how they crammed all of that power in such a light tool!

Well, it's not just a drill. Flip the top switch, and it's a hammer drill. I had never used a hammer drill before, always having forced those concrete bits using a regular drill, which worked okay. But as a hammer drill, this Makita tore right through tiles and concrete so fast I had to slow down--deep, fine holes without overheating the bit, and fast. What a pleasure.

All of the Makita tools in this kit have a light that comes on when you start to work. Touch the trigger, and even before the tool starts spinning, your work area is illuminated. If you are working in an area where a lot of shadows are cast, this is a really nice feature. Unlike the Hitachi which also has a light, this light runs right off of your rechargeable battery.

Okay, it was a great drill--for a while. But then I had some problems wabout warranty-expiration time. The drill would not operate at lower speeds. So being a fixer-type, I took mine apart, and found some problem with a pin on a plastic sleeve that is used to change between the 3 speed levels. It was a pretty incredible look inside; I mean lots of gears, and I understood what 4-pole meant--but frankly, the pin in the plastic sleeve was the Achille's heel. So since I was out of warranty, I just bought a drill without a battery for about $80. And it worked really well--for about a year, when the same problem cropped up AGAIN! Sorry Makita, this is a weakness. My Dewalt XRP drill, by contrast, is 10 years old and still runs like thunder.

Now, the circular saw. Initially, I have to say I was impressed. The saw was quite a performer. Though slower than a corded saw, I could rip through several 8-ft pieces of hardwood before draining the battery. The real beauty of the saw is in the quality of cut and control. Whether a cross-cut or a rip, the cut is really smooth, with no wood burns. And the blade guard never gets stuck, even when I'm shaving off the finest amount on an edge. It is so well balanced that I can control it with my left and alone (and I am right-handed). Now, compare this to my monster Skilsaw worm drive. Powerful, yes, but difficult to control, with a lurch when you start it up. Both hands are absolutely necessary. On trimming edges, the blade guard often gets stuck (and this is common on almost every other corded circular saw I have used). So, you have to use your hand to slide up the blade guard while holding the monster with the other, which is difficult. Because it is so powerful and hard to balance, wood burns are common. Keeping it flat on the wood while shaving off the edge is next to impossible. I get much better quality cuts with this Makita. A further advantage is the dust reduction. The Makita, first of all, has a finer kerf blade, 1/16" I think. So, dust is reduced proportionately. Most of the dust exits through a cleverly designed hole in the blade guard in a neat little pile next to the cut, instead of blowing it all over me and the workshop. The texture of the dust is different also; it's not fine dust that blows all over the place, but slightly coarse, so it stays put. Now I won't exactly say that I exit the shop dust-free. But I will say, there's a lot less dust on me, and shop clean-up is a lot easier. And unlike the Panasonic cordless saw, the Makita takes standard arbor diameter blades which you can pick up cheap almost anywhere.

But now, I have some second thoughts about the circular saw. Yes, it can cut a lot, but the rapid discharge can over-heat both the tool and the battery. After one afternoon of a couple of hours of intensive cutting, one of my batteries overheated and was shot--that is, permanently unrechargeable. Not long after that, the saw itself stopped working. When I opened it up, I found a meltdown next to one of the brushes. Sorry--this should not be happening, either to the battery or to the saw. My opinion based on this experience is that the saw is good for 10-15 minutes of moderate load at a time. Beyond that, I would go to a corded circular; otherwise, you can risk ruining both battery and saw. With that caveat, I still love the saw for all of its other attributes.

Finally, the impact driver. What's this? I'd never used one before. Well, it is extremely light to begin with, just over 3 lbs, and puts out 1280 in-lbs of torque, which is over twice that of the drill. By using short bursts of power, it knocks in bolts and heavy duty screws with a lot more ease than your drill, without torquing your arm off. In fact, you hardly feel any torque at all. It's not for every screw, because it has no clutch, so it will break off screws and bolts that can't handle the 1280 in-lbs. Reversable too, so great for changing tires. I've driven #12 screws into 2" of hardwood without so much as a starter hole. It's the tool to use when a lot of torque is required.

By comparison, the Milwaukee 28 lithium ion impact driver delivers 600 in-lbs of torque. At first, I was very impressed by the extra power of the Makita. But in the end, I found that the extra torque actually ended up breaking a lot of bolts and screws. So in the end, I find myself using the drill instead of the impact driver. Overall, I actually wish that the Makita driver had LESS torque, closer to the Milwaukee. Comparing weight, Milwaukee's impact driver weighs over 8 lbs vs. 3.3 lbs for Makita's impact driver and 5.2 lbs for Makita's drill. The hammer drill and this impact drill combined will pretty much takes care of all of my drilling and screwing needs.

The set also comes with a light, which will stand up anywhere and which you can use to illuminate your work area. With all 3 tools providing their own light, I've never used it in the shop. But as a flashlight it's great-lightweight, and 5 hours of run-time on a charge, and the xenon bulb is very bright. I am currently living in Uganda, where we have power outages every other day. So this light gets a lot of use. The fact that I never have to buy batteries becomes a real plus. You can stand it upright and point it at a white ceiling and it will illuminate the entire room. If you need a broad area lit up for some reason, it does quite a good job. The head is adjustable, so you can point it perpendicularly or at a 135 degree angle as well.

I also got the reciprocating saw as a free offer with this purchase. I like it. It seems less prone to overloading than the circular saw, and has a very solid and comfortable feel. I've used it extensively to cut galvanized pipe and half-inch hardened steel bolts. It has proven reliable and easy to control, provided my pieces are well clamped.

Milwaukee has a 28 v lithium-ion set. Milwaukee's 28 v are good if you are doing exceptionally heavy work, and you will get more done on those massive 28 v batteries. But I can't imagine doing much more than cutting through thick, dense tropical hardwoods, which my Makita does just fine. And the Makita tools weigh less-a LOT less. Makita's battery charge time is 45 minutes vs. Milwaukee's 60 minutes. Using the two batteries, I have never been lacking for power between charges. Since the Makita gives me more than enough power, it was a good choice for me. Recently I note that Milwaukee is selling a lot of reconditioned lithium ion equipment and not the new equipment. Maybe there were some bugs to be worked out. I've been working the Makita tools daily for about 4 months now with no problems.

What about those lithium ion batteries? All indications are that they are supposed to take a lot more recharges than even NiMH, and the weight savings contribute to the ergonomic beauty of this whole set. There is a great discussion at the Tool Barn website on this set, including the advantages/disadvantages of lithium ion batteries, and it is worth a read. Apparently, some believe that they can lose amp-hours over time, even if not in use. Makita denies this. Their charger is fan-cooled to control the effects of overheating on battery life, and it charges them up full in 45 minutes, which I can verify. The 3 amp-hours will go a long, long way on everything but the circular saw.

I've used my batteries for 2 years now. One burned out due to my circular saw; the other is still going strong, and had to do double-duty for a while, until I got a replacement for the one fried one. So, I think I am confident in my belief that Makita's lithium-ion claims are probably true.

In conclusion--if you want a set that is lightweight, ergonomically exceptional, will light up your workpiece, powerful enough to drill, screw, or cut just about anything, will last long between charges, and is a lot easier to control than your current mega-tools, the Makita set is cutting edge. It out-specs the competition in every way that matters to me, and at the price I paid, it's hard to beat. On the downside--if you are an intensive user like me, the drill just isn't built for the long haul, which I can say with some certainty after going through 2 of them. I'd downgrade this review to 4 stars, but for some reason Amazon lets one edit the review but one cannot edit the rating.

I have an old Craftsman 18V drill and saw combo that I've used since 1997. They worked great but recently one of the batteries finally died so rather than replace it I decided to buy a whole new combo set. After all, there have been a lot of advancements in cordless tools since '97. In the meantime, I've had the opportunity to use my friend's Dewalt's, Milwaukee's, etc. and they're all great products. But recently I had occasion to use the Makita Lithium-Ion Impact Drill and I knew I'd found my next set! I drilled 3" fencing screws for hours and it was ridiculously easy with the impact-action. I'm telling you if you find yourself running fencing or deck screws with any regularity, you HAVE to try one of these things. Awesome. I immediately searched the web to brush up on this Lithium-Ion technology and beyond a little added expense at this point, what's not to like? So I've since purchased this combo set and it is slick. It comes with a high quality canvas bag. The bag is much more utilitarian than the formed-plastic boxes that usually come with sets such as these. The interior of the bag has two holsters to secure each drill. The holsters are sewn into the side walls of the bag with velcro straps that keep both drills secured. There are also pockets for the batteries and charger. The flashlight and the circular saw fit between but there is plenty of room for the Makita kit and much more (if you need to haul more tools). The exterior of the bag has 4 zip pockets and 2 velcro pockets for odds and ends. Another cool feature concerning the tools is that each tool is equipped with LED lights that automatically illuminate your work area when you squeeze the trigger. I knew from previous experience that the impact-drill had LED's but I had no idea they'd be on the hammer drill, and circular saw as well. An added bonus for me is that the hammer drill weighs in at 4.9 lbs. which is over 1.5 lbs. lighter than my old drill! (...) If you're in the market for a new drill/saw combo kit, this will do nicely.

All of the tools in this kit are a perfect balance of power and size. They provide all the punch of other 18v systems while weighing less then most 12v tools!

Makita could have simply changed to a lithium battery and called it a day. But they did much more; Makita has redesigned the ergonomics of every tool in this set. In the past their tool handles tended to be on the large and awkward side but this new line feels perfect to hold. The grips are smaller and covered in soft rubber. The weight of the tools has been redistributed and are all much better balanced then their NON-lithium counterparts. In addition, the tools have LED lights to brighten the work area and come in an awesome tool bag.

My review of each tool:

+ Impact driver - 10/10 Flawless!

+ Circular saw - 9/10 handle could be a lil more behind the tool

+ Light - 9/10 needs more detents

+ Reciprocating saw - 10/10 awesome!

+ Hammer drill - 8/10 great for a hammer drill but a lil bulky for basic driver use. I will keep my Panasonic 15.6 for most of my everyday driver needs; it is still the best non-hammer drill out there!

+ Case - 9/10 this is a very good tool bag for the basic kit, with interior pockets for the tools and battery charger. They're also several exterior pockets for drill bits and various small tools. One complaint, no pocket for the reciprocating saw. It fits but you have to lay it on top of the circular saw.

I have used the kit for the past 2 months and everything has worked to perfection. OK so 2 months is not much time but I have every confidence the kit will serve me well for years to come! My only real complaint is that as of this date the additional batteries are not readily available (you can get them online but you have to search)

In conclusion this is a great kit with each tool a best in class!

I would say that I'm an occasional "Do-it-yourselfer" from Mililani, Hawaii but this combo kit from Makita just blew me away. I can't believe the technological advances of their product since my first Makita cordless, a 9.6 Volt Drill-Driver 20 years ago-and I still have it. You'd expect an 18 volt cordless tool to be very bulky, but the tools in this kit are compact, very ergonomic, well balanced and not bulky. You won't be wasting energy, straining to work the tools. You'll also appreciate LED lighting on the all the tools. The power and torque behind the Circular Saw, Impact Driver and Hammer Driver-Drill are impressive compared to other brands I've tried. The free mail-in offer for the Cordless Reciprocating Saw was impressive too. It packed power just as my corded Reciprocating Saw. The High Capacity Lithium-Ion Batteries did not fail me. They packed a lot of juice and lasted a while in between charges. Also, I came to appreciate the 4-Position Flashlight. With all the rain that we've been having lately, the flashlight came in handy during blackouts. I didn't need to bringout my gas lantern; flashlight supplied all the light we needed. Overall, the tools performed flawlessly and I had joy using them. This 18 Volt Lithium-Ion Cordless Combo Kit from Makita is truly a great product. Aloha.

I bought this kit back in April. I used to be an Electrician, but now I only have the opportunity to use these tools for volunteer work and projects around my house.

I have owned the Makita 9.6 & 12 volt cordless drills, Panasonic 12 & 15.6 volt cordless drill, and the Dewalt 14.4 volt XRP hammer-drill. I have used the porter cable 19.2 volt kit, the new Milwaukee 28 volt combo kit, dewalt 18 volt kit, and some other miscellaneous cordless tools. So I feel I have a pretty good breadth of experience with cordless tools.

One thing I wanted to mention is that I think the LED lights on these tools are a bonus, but not necessarily a buying point. I would not buy these tools over another just because of the LED.

When you pick up any of the tools and especially a batter itself, you notice the weight difference from tools like the 18 volt dewalt. The tools are very well balanced, the grips are comfortable, and the tools are noticably lighter than the competitors.

Hammer-Drill:
I have seen a complaint about the chuck on this drill and am not sure what they are talking about. I have found the chuck to work just fine and bits do not woble or slip when the chuck is tightened. Maybe they could elaborateon the problem. I don't really understand the reason for a 3 speed transmission, I think the drill would be fine with just 2. The clutch has around 20 settings but I felt the lowest setting was still pretty tight. I like having the selector to switch from screws (uses clutch) to drill (does not use clutch) to hammer. I rarely use the clutch, so being able to turn it off completely for drilling is nice. The hammer-drill action of the drill is fantastic and really speeds up drilling holes in concrete. The drill has tremendous power and seems to last a long time on a charge. I recently put a border on the side of my house to seperate my gravel parking space from my neighbors grass. We used 8x8 pressure treated larch. I used the drill with a spade bit to drill holes for 1/2" rebard. The wood was still pretty wet but the drill had no problem making the holes. I have not had a chance to drill any large holes using hole-saws but I have used a varibit/unibit/stepbit (whatever you want to call it). In my opinion, it is the best cordless drill I have ever used. I like it over the Milwaukee (28v) and Dewalt (36v) because it is much lighter and I feel a cordless tool should not be as heavy as a corded drill.

Impact Driver:
This is my favorite tool. I use it more than any of the other tools, sometimes by choice. I have never owned an impact driver until now and I don't know how I lived without it. The tool is compact and lightweight. I used it to build shelving in my garage and drove 200-300 screws on a single charge. I have also used it to drive a 3/8" lag bolt into brick! Yes, brick, after drilling a 1/4" pilot hole. The torque the impact driver provides is amazing and it easily blows away all other 1/4" hex head impact drivers. If you buy a Makita LXT tool, make sure to also get the impact driver. It will change the way you work.

Circular Saw:
The circular saw is very convenient for light work. It seems this tool drains the batteries much quicker. I would not recommend planning on making alot of cuts with this tool, but if you need to cut a couple dozen 2x4's you are fine. I have used the circular saw to cut 1x4x12 pine longways (12ft) and it cut 6 of them on a single charge along with making about 6 cuts of 16" deep particle board shelving. This pretty much drained the battery and I needed to swap the spare battery between the impact driver and the saw while charging the battery to finish my shelves. I also used the saw to cut 4 sauna tubes (the ones you make concrete pillars with) in half. It got through 3 1/2 tubes when the battery died, but Im not sure how charged it was. In short, where the circular saw shines is where you only need to make a dozen cuts and its easier to grab the cordless tool than roll out an extension cord. Don't expect this tool to replace your skillsaw.

Reciprocating Saw:
The recip saw is nothing special in my opinion. It works good and I would rate it 8/10. I have gotten the opportunity to use the Milwaukee 28v recip saw and it is the standard that all other recip saws are compared to. I found the makita recip saw easy to use and powerful. It cuts through 1/2" rebar easily and I cut that 8x8 pressure treated larch in half with it. The saw is fairly light and seems to be pretty powerful, but if the recip saw is the most important tool to you, I would get the milwaukee instead.

I had the drill/driver repaired in the first year and just now have a dead battery (also in the first year). Before you judge the quality of this product it's important to note that I am a carpenter and general contractor so these tools get *constant* use. That is, I use them as a replacement to corded tools.

I pushed the drill/driver too far by asking too much when using a 5" hole saw. My fault. As for the battery, I cannot say. I will send it back and try to get a new one under warranty.

Overall I am very happy with the LXT and cannot wait until they expand the line. A jigsaw would be nice. I have the sawzall, light, drill/driver, impact wrench and circular saw.

The sawzall uses a lot of juice. Have an extra charged battery. It's comfortable to use and easy to swap out blades. I've never had a blade break off which can happen in some other brands. There's a hook on the side but I find it's improperly sized to hang off a tool belt. It's best used when on a ladder to hook on a rung.

The circular saw is light and easy to control. Following a cut line is simple. You may want to upgrade the blade but that's easy to do. This is the only tool that does not have a hook to keep close on your carpenter's belt. I wish it did so it could be more accessible.

Perhaps my favorite has been the impact wrench. I never thought I would use it but the handful of times I have it's been excellent. Code in MA requires engineered beams to be sandwiched together with TrussLok screws. The impact wrench zips them in with little effort.

The drill/driver gets the most use. All the tools have a "night-light" that turns on whenever the tool is activated. I first thought it was a gimmick but it has helped the most on the drill/driver in dark areas. I've even used it to find screws that I've dropped into a dark corner.

The LXT is a great product and comes close to a replacement for corded tools. As for the failures mentioned earlier I also judge a product on the manufacturers willingness to honor a warranty. The drill/driver was repaired under warranty despite the abuse I gave it and I'm optimistic that the battery will also be replaced without issue.

Because I am not a professional, using my cordless tools all day, they simply fade away.

The fact is, both Nicad and NiMh batteries need discharging and re-charging on a pretty regular basis. As an amateur, using tools in bursts then not for a month or more at a time, I find it a real drag trying to look after the batteries.

I have lost several cordless drills this way, for after time, the battery just loses its ability to either take or hold a charge.

Well, not only do the Makita Li-Ion batteries look after themselves, they weigh hardly anything, either!

The fact that they charge from empty in about 45 minutes is something I just don't understand but find absolutely fantastic. The last NiCad battery powered drill I killed needed charging for about half a day!

These tools are beautifully built, well balanced, strong and give astonishing performance. Because of the light weight and good balance I find that there is far less fatigue at the end of a day's work. Using the impact driver has been an epiphany. This wonderful piece of kit simply fires large screws into wood all day long with no kick back, making it a joy rather than a chore.

Probably the best buy I have ever made in this sort of equipment and I have to say, Amazon behaved impeccably!

Firstly, the tools were cheaper than anywhere else, then Amazon had a 10% promotion, then they delivered them for free! And on time!

I'm a first time home builder who planned to do a lot of hands-on labor to save some $$$. So I invested a little bit of that into some nice tools. I had tried all the brands and ended up with Dewalt. Their cordless tools may be a bit dated but they're still good quality and get the job done.

Recently all my power tools walked off my jobsite. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise, otherwise I would have never found these new Makita tools. Even though the Dewalt 18V set was nice, I didn't want to keep going with the NiCad batteries. I knew Makita made the improvement and used Nickel Metal Hydride batteries but that wasn't enough. I'm glad they went the next step and just in time for me. The Lithium Ion batteries affords them the best combination of power:weight:run-time. The tools look and feel awesome. I even used to think that lights on tools was a gimmick. That was before I was in a shadowed area of a room and the bright LED kicked in and I finally noticed it. Wow, the advantage of seeing your work better in low light situations is great!

These are by far the best designed cordless tools right now. I really can't see how you can improve them to make them any better. Excellent job, Makita!!!

Well, I have waited to do this review until all the other companies released their products. I think the Makita sets offer the homeowner to remodeler the best size/weight/power ratio of them all. The Milwaukee/Rigid Li-ion sets are just too bulky for most and seem better suited to contractors. I have a substantial tool collection and researched each of them before I bought. This set suits my expectations of quality, design and price.

a quick note to the fireman reviewer:

you are never supposed to lean in on a drill while it's drilling, especially never to put your full weight on the drill, any cordless drill, any drill, any time. doing this over torques the motor and never allows it to operate at optimum design speed and torque. in fact it will operate at half or one third power if you do this. read the owners manual or talk to a rep on how to operate a drill.

these makita tools are covered by a 3-year warranty. send them back to amazon or back to makita for a free replacement.

the recip saw rocks too!