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181 of 195 people found the following review helpful:
This Looks & Feels Like the Future
This new driver/drill from Makita is a great piece of work. I bought this unit just days ago, so this review is just an initial impression.
The BDF452HW is super light, easy to handle and has good power. The batteries are physically small, but still pack 18 volts. The L/I batteries have a very flat run-time curve...they stay full power until right at the...
Published on November 13, 2006 by Jeff Shultz
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126 of 137 people found the following review helpful:
Great drill -- beware the batteries/charger!
I bought this drill in about January or February. The drill itself is great, but something is flakey with either the included 1.5AH batteries or my charger as extended stays in the charger have killed both my batteries (both with and without the charger plugged in!). Makita does not sell 1.5AH batteries, only 3.0AH replacements which are nearly $100 and twice the size...
Published on May 29, 2007 by Howard Beale
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181 of 195 people found the following review helpful:
This Looks & Feels Like the Future, November 13, 2006
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
This new driver/drill from Makita is a great piece of work. I bought this unit just days ago, so this review is just an initial impression.
The BDF452HW is super light, easy to handle and has good power. The batteries are physically small, but still pack 18 volts. The L/I batteries have a very flat run-time curve...they stay full power until right at the end of the charge. They recharge in 15 minutes (for real). Makita seems to have capitalized on the advantages of new battery technology and combined it with a well built, smooth, advanced tool.
If you need brute power or a hammer drill, this is not the drill for you. If you want a medium to medium heavy duty drill, this lightweight beauty is close to perfect. I'll update this after several months of use. Right now, I couldn't be more satisfied.
*Update (04/13/07) After using this drill for several months, I still think it is the best drill/driver in this price/usage range. The batteries are excellent and the available power continues to satisfy me. This drill is lightweight, reliable, feels like quality and has the umph to drill even 2" Rock Maple and drive 2" lag screws into the same Rock Maple with no sweat. After living with it, I'd buy it again!
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126 of 137 people found the following review helpful:
Great drill -- beware the batteries/charger!, May 29, 2007
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
I bought this drill in about January or February. The drill itself is great, but something is flakey with either the included 1.5AH batteries or my charger as extended stays in the charger have killed both my batteries (both with and without the charger plugged in!). Makita does not sell 1.5AH batteries, only 3.0AH replacements which are nearly $100 and twice the size of the 1.5AH units.
I'd give this unit 5 stars if the batteries performed as they should have. I'm working with Makita on a battery and charger replacement as this is clearly a problem with this (my?) unit.
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96 of 106 people found the following review helpful:
What a great product, but with one pitfall, August 7, 2008
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
I've owned a 12v Dewalt drill for 10 years and although it still works great running on it's second set of battery's, I was looking for something with a bit more power,12v tools seem to run out of juice on larger heavier jobs so I was looking for an 18v drill.
Did some research and came up with the the Makita BDF452HW and ordered it from Amazon. First impressions great ! What a beautiful well balanced tool, fits in the hand very well, extremely light, ratcheting chuck, LED light, lots of torque for those heavy jobs, and the cherry on top is the quick charge Lithium ion batteries. I was very impressed with the whole package so I took it for a spin. By chance the first task that came to hand required some finesse, a 1/16" hole in a small computer connector, not the typical work for this heavy duty beast but you have to use your new toy.
When I drilled the hole, the drill bit shook and the drill itself seemed to have some vibration so I did so careful testing. After testing various bits and setups I determined that the chuck was off center and was causing any drill bits to wobble, not greatly, but enough you could feel it and enough to physically bend a small bit. I had noticed a previous review mentioned chuck wobble but after assessing the large number of positive reviews I dismissed it a just bad luck, it happens.
***** Five stars to Amazon's customer support, I returned the drill for an exact replacement, no charge and three days later I had another Makita in my hands ready to test. Sadly the second drill also suffered from the same fate, off center chuck causing the bits to wobble. I must be too critical so I compare drill holes with the Makita and my 10 year old Dewalt. I noticed two striking differences, the Dewalt was completely without any vibration, no doubt here, it was perfect. The second thing I noticed was the trigger speed control, the Dewalt was very smooth and seemed to be infinetly adjustable allowing me to very accurately control the speed, were the Makita had distinctive speed steps, not quit the control but definitely adequate. Oh yeh and the Dewalt weighted a ton compared to the Makita.
In conclusion, and honestly with great regret I sent the second Makita back for a refund ( ***** Stars to Amazon again !) and ordered the Dewalt DC720KA. It works great and has all of the features of the Makita with two exceptions, weight (its a heavy weight @ 4.8lbs but still very compact) and battery technology, still using NiCad battery's, rather than Lithium Ion.
The Makita is a great product if you can get lucky enough to get one that is put together well, sadly I had two in a row bad. Since the chuck is a little off center, this indicates poor manufacturing tolerances. This may have been a bad batch from a failed CNC machine, or it may be indicative of a more general problem, poor manufacturing practices that ultimately translate into poor quality and usually along with that a poor repair history, and a short product life. Only time will tell if this is a freak batch or indicative of a bigger issue.
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91 of 101 people found the following review helpful:
Great for smaller hands and women., January 28, 2007
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
I got this drill after I checked it out in a local hardware store. It felt so good in my little hand. My husband's old (ancient) Porter Cable 12 volt is wearing out and we're building a house. Instead of trying to find batteries for his old Porter Cable, I decided to get the Makita for Christmas. ( I know..I'm not your typical woman, I'd rather have electronics and power tools) This way I can help my husband when we're putting up drywall instead of standing around.
On to the drill. I absolutely love it. It's lightweight, powerful and it's stubby in length. Many times my husband has a tough time getting into small areas. The LED light is great too, after ten seconds of non use, the light slowly goes away. My husband is impressed with the power. I am a petite woman and it fits my hand nicely. The only problem my husband finds is that he has a tendency to hit the forward/reverse button instead of the trigger. I don't have this problem, he must hold it different than I do. I think he's just not used to the difference from his Porter Cable. We're both quite pleased so far. I don't like bulky tools.
Update: After nearly two years of heavy use my husband has stolen my drill from me. He loves it. Last weekend, he drilled through a steel beam in the basement. He's hard on stuff, but the lil Makita drill has held up superbly. The batteries charge quickly as claimed too. I'd definitely buy this drill again.
Update: It's been nearly 3 years now and one of the batteries finally died. :(. I've been reading about other people having problems with the batteries not lasting long. I guess 3-4 years is the typical lifespan. I ordered a new battery. Drill still working fine. I dropped it off a ladder this past weekend, as I cringed, the drill was fine. I do wish the batteries didn't cost so much. When I charge them, I try to take them off the charger as soon as they're done charging. We completely drain them too since we use the drill so much. This might help extend the battery life.
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
OK for DIY projects - otherwise get Pro version, March 17, 2008
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
Makita makes two versions of this tool The Pro version has 100ft lbs. more torque, twice the charge capacity, and includes the bit holder and the belt clip in the kit. This version is targeted at the homeowner and this is why the lower capacity batteries. For most purposes this will not be a problem as the kit comes with two batteries and a fan cooled charging station that can recharge a battery in under 20 minutes.
The chuck is also a DIY grade chuck and not nearly as good as the ones on most other "pro" level cordless drills from DeWalt or Milwaukee. It was also a bit bothersome to find that the bit holder and belt clip were left out of the kit as these are standard items with other Makita, DeWalt, Bosch, and Milwaukee cordless drills. These items are not even in stock at Makita's customer service center so even if you are willing to pay the extra $20 to purchase and have these 2-bit items shipped to you, this is not an option.
The drill performs well and the LCD lights that turn on and off automatically are very helpful in more situations than one might first realize. Having benefited from the lights with a number of projects I would not even consider buying a cordless drill that lacked this feature.
Torque although less than other 18 volt cordless drills is still more than adequate. I easily made 11" holes in my ceiling for in-ceiling mounted speakers for my home theater using the excellent Hole Pro hole cutter.
Hole PRO X-305: 1 7/8" to 12" Adjustable Twin Blade Hole Saw Cutter with Tungsten Carbide Blades 3" 4" 5" 6" 7" 8" 9" 10" 11" Capacity
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36 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
Wobble, May 4, 2008
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
I really liked certain aspects of the drill, but unfortunately was still forced to return it and get something else.
I'll start with the good stuff. First off, the weight and feel was perfect, exactly what I was looking for. I'm a sculptor, so I need something light and compact when I am working all around a piece, sometimes in hard to reach, uncomfortable positions. The LED light is good in that it stays on for a little while after it is pushed. More manufacturers should add this feature. It doesn't center exactly on the bit tip, but the way it's positioned under the chuck, like all the drills I've seen, I don't think it will ever be perfect. The power is fantastic and it's the only compact I've seen with 450lbs of torque. I doubt I will ever need that much, since I'm not drilling or screwing into concrete or anything like that, but it could be useful for some people. The charger is the fastest I've seen at 15 minutes. I timed it and it really does charge in or under 15 minutes.
Now I have to talk about the reason I returned it for something else and few other negatives. I bought it at Home Depot, I like to get a feel for tools I buy and they had a power tools sale going on at the time. So I picked one of these up and tested it at home for about a day. I noticed instantly that there was some vibration I wasn't used to in drill. When I looked at the chuck I noticed it was wobbling a bit. I put a 1 1/4" spade bit in as I was drilling holes at the time. I spun it and looked at the tip of the bit, man this thing was wobbling all over the place. By my calculations it had a 1/8" wobble. That might not sound like much, but try to drill a big hole in plastic or a small hole through metal and see what happens. I decided to try and drill a hole out with the spade bit since I had it on anyway. I used a scrap piece of hard plastic as that was the material I was working with presently. Now I knew the bit was ok as I had drilled out some nice clean holes in some other plastic using my old corded Ryobi drill. After trying it out with various speeds and settings, the results were uneven holes, some larger than they should be and chipped edges. The drill was shaking and vibrating like you wouldn't believe too. So I take it back and get another one. After I get it home I test it out and guess what, same results. I even try to drill a small 1/16" hole through some sheet metal. After it flew across the metal for a minute it finally caught and started going in. Man, this bit was shaking back and forth, the whole drill shaking like crazy. I was afraid the bit was going to break off and fly into my eye. So back to Home Depot I go. This time I show the hardware guy and see what he has to say. Maybe I've just gone crazy and am being overly critical. He pops in a spade bit and even he can see the wobble and knows this isn't right. I tell him this my second one, so we take a new one off the shelf and open it up. He pops the spade bit in that one and guess what, same wobble. We decide to test out the comparable Milwaukee compact lithium drill to see if this is just something all the cordless compact drills share. He pops the spade bit into the Milwaukee pulls the trigger and no wobble, smooth as butter. He says maybe they got a bad pallet and could check to see if there was a new skid of the Makitas in the back. I decided to not take anymore chances and swapped out for the Milwaukee.
My reasoning is this is a Makita, not a Skil. It's supposed to be a quality product from a quality manufacturer, I should not have to go through 3 different ones to get a good one. I suppose this may be the world we live in now that everything is made in China, but I think I took more than enough chances on this drill.
Also Makita, don't be so cheap to not add a bit holder and belt clip, come on now.
This may be an isolated incident and I don't want to badmouth a good tool, but I can only comment on my experience. To all the people that are happy with the Makita, I'm glad. To anyone looking to buy one, I suggest you test it out in the store first to make sure there aren't any problems like I had.
On a side note, I didn't have the drill long enough to experience the battery problems some people have had. I don't know if that problem has been fixed or not. The batteries seemed good for the time I used it.
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49 of 58 people found the following review helpful:
Just the coolest power tool on the planet, November 12, 2006
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
I own a wide array of cordless power tools, but after seeing and realizing it's potential - had to make Makita's new compact 18 Volt LXT (Lithium-Ion) drill part of my arsenal. There is a tool for everything, heavy duty, high torque for big jobs, and light duty for trim-out and finish work. The problem is heavy duty tools are bulky and/or heavy, and light duty tools, while compact/lightweight are wimpy and/or task specific.
This drill represents the next step in the evolution of cordless tools. Makita comes close to achieving perfection with the concept of reigning in the size of, while retaining the "power" in your power tool. It is extremely powerful while being very compact (8" long/9"tall and lightweight 3.5 pounds total including battery). This approximates the size and weight of a high quality 9.6 volt drill by comparison, but has the power of a true 18 volt powerhouse.
The four pole motor delivers smooth, precisely controlled power (450 inch/lbs torque, 2 speed (0-400/0-1500 Rpm). Professional grade standard features include; user replaceable carbon brushes and an all metal transmission with variable clutch and Jacobs single sleeve one-handed keyless 1/2" chuck. The drill has an ergonomic comfortable grip and balanced feel, which when combined with it's unbelievabley light weight significantly reduces user fatigue.
It derives it's power from what I would describe as a "pancake" battery pack which when installed protrudes 1-1/8 inches from the bottom of the drill. This new style battery is totally unique and is in my opinion a "stroke of genius". It significantly reduces weight and eliminates bulk. This let's you get in tight spaces and doesn't tire your arm during extended use. It is a 1.5 Ampere-hour battery, but packs a punch. The kit comes with two batteries and while you may say 1.5 Ah isn't construction standard compared to the 3 Ah, think again. "They give ya 2 of 'em, so you can git 'er done" and they recharge in 15 minutes compared to 30 min - 1 hour for other typical packs. By the way, the larger 3 AH Makita lithium batteries also fit this drill. So is makes a great add-on or starting point to your Makita LXT power tool kit. - Leonard Electrician from Panama City Beach, Florida
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32 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
Kills batteries DEAD if left on charger. Skip this drill and look at the Milwaukee, October 18, 2008
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
I have just returned my 3rd unit. There is a problem with the charger killing batteries that are left on it for extended periods of time. Even though the owners manual states you can leave batteries on the charger and the charger should "maintain" the battery. Once the batteries die you can not bring them back to life.
Owners report this is a very common problem with this drill.
My new drill is the Milwaukee 18v Li-Ion. Same price, does not kill batteries, and has a handy LED battery level gauge on the battery.
Skip this drill and buy the Milwaukee for the same price. Plus the red Milwaukee does not show dirt and grim like the white Mikita.
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23 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
Nice Drill, Bad batteries., January 5, 2008
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
After six months of use both 1.5ah batteries have died (one of them after 3 months) and will no longer charge. I purchased one 3.0ah battery ($80) and am satisfied with it. The size and features of the drill are great. I purchased separately the bit holders, it would have been nice if they were included. Amazon offered me 30% of the purchase price as a refund for the whole package, obviously not worth it. I guess I will contact Makita and see if they will do anything for me. Batteries should last longer than this.
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38 of 48 people found the following review helpful:
Defective Battery, January 16, 2008
This review is from: Makita BDF452HW 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/2-Inch Driver-Drill Kit (Tools & Hardware)
I've used this drill for work almost everyday for a year. I bought this drill in January of '07 and have used it almost everyday (light to med duty) as a car audio installer.
I've replaced both original batteries and both replacement batteries as of last week. Luckily I live near a service center and they've discretely replaced my batteries with a simple analysis on their battery dyno. So basically I've been there 4 times. They've never asked for a purchase receipt but on my 2nd to last replacement battery, they engraved the date and some reference number. But the replacement that I got last week wasn't engraved.
I own many lithium-ion tools (including the BDF451 for home use), flashlights (Light & Motion Arc Li-Ion $500 HID bicycling light), camera ($1000 Canon 30D SLR), etc and I know how to care for the batteries. I've never let them run completely out.
I've had Makita check my charger the first two times as well. The batteries are definitely defective. The charger luckily blinks alternately to show that the battery is infact not charging. In otherwords, the charger is working properly.
Otherwise, the drill itself has plenty of power, is definitely light weight, and has a handy LED light too. But the run time is hit and miss. Sometimes I won't need to charge it for a couple of days and sometimes, I'll need to charge it twice a day.
Overall, I'm very dissatified with the battery which is a majory bulk of the price of the drill.
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