Plug-It Hand Power Tools, i.e. Drill

[friedchicken]

Not everyone is smitten by batteries, contrary to what industry marketing might have you believe;

It would make perfect sense to have more plug-it hand tools; Have one cord on the bench, and then you have your plug-it drill, plug-it impact, plug-it sander, plug-it planer, plug-it whatever.

Would be really nice. I actually quite like corded power tools, but dealing with the cord is always a hassle!

 

[Michael Kellough]

On the other hand, frequently disconnected plug-it cords get loose in the tool end connection and they are responsible for tool end shorts that sometimes require plug-it socket replacement, or worse.

You have to be vigilant to signs of loose connection and and shorting to be able to replace the cord before serious damage occurs.

 

[Cheese]

It would make perfect sense to have more plug-it hand tools; Have one cord on the bench, and then you have your plug-it drill, plug-it impact, plug-it sander, plug-it planer, plug-it whatever.

Milwaukee offered that option for years. The cords were available in 10' lengths for bench work and 25' lengths for on-site work. Unfortunately, they currently only offer a couple of drills and a circular saw with that option. Back in the day, most of their tools had that as an option except for vacs & mag drills.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

Not everyone is smitten by batteries, contrary to what industry marketing might have you believe;

It would make perfect sense to have more plug-it hand tools; Have one cord on the bench, and then you have your plug-it drill, plug-it impact, plug-it sander, plug-it planer, plug-it whatever.

Would be really nice. I actually quite like corded power tools, but dealing with the cord is always a hassle!

That is exactly how my workflow evolved. The largest share of the tools I used every day, in a large cabinet shop, were Festool, for this exact reason. I have a Plug-it connected to a CT26 on one end of my area and another on a CT15 on the other. With the lone exception of a CXS, all of my cordless tools are Makita. (Drills, drivers, trim routers)
This one factor was a lot of the incentive to expand into Festool. I, like many others, started with a DF500, because of its uniqueness. Then I moved on to RO90, for essentially the same reason, unique. At that point, I shifted my focus to everything else in the system.

On the other hand, frequently disconnected plug-it cords get loose in the tool end connection and they are responsible for tool end shorts that sometimes require plug-it socket replacement, or worse.

You have to be vigilant to signs of loose connection and and shorting to be able to replace the cord before serious damage occurs.

In over 10 years of working like this, I have never had that type of failure. I'm sure it has happened to someone. I have also seen someone who didn't twist/lock the cable. They just plugged it straight in, like the wall outlet. This was one of the subcontractor/installers, using an ETS EC, on Corian countertops. I have no idea how many times he got by with this before I caught it. He just didn't know any better. It was his first experience with this, and no one told him.

 

[mino]

Not everyone is smitten by batteries, contrary to what industry marketing might have you believe;

It would make perfect sense to have more plug-it hand tools; Have one cord on the bench, and then you have your plug-it drill, plug-it impact, plug-it sander, plug-it planer, plug-it whatever.

Would be really nice. I actually quite like corded power tools, but dealing with the cord is always a hassle!

Check out Protool PDP series drills .. you can still "make one" if you buy the Narex descendent EV/EVP series /same thing, different color/ + swap-in in the relevant Protool connector.

Go protool.de -> parts catalogue .. pictured drawings over there.
...

The long story:
TTS closed shop on the Protool, brand in 2014 because it did not sell ... enough. Sure, PlugIt IS great. I have an angle grinder as well as drills with it ... BUT. One needs to understand its benefits ... and too few did/do so even today with all the Youtubes of the world.


Just another case where TTS/Festool/TANOS really REALLY fails in educating the general customer public about the capabilities their tools possess ... they truly do an utterly disastrous job at it.

On the other hand, frequently disconnected plug-it cords get loose in the tool end connection and they are responsible for tool end shorts that sometimes require plug-it socket replacement, or worse.

You have to be vigilant to signs of loose connection and and shorting to be able to replace the cord before serious damage occurs.

The connector costs $5$10 to replace .. easy-peasy. Most tool-end connectors are even identical, so it is practical to carry a spare along on site as the same part will fit most tools.

Compare that to fixing broken fixed cable /a VERY common issue with non-plug-it tools/ where one has to crimp it properly with specialist tool while shortening the cable ... way easier to just swap the PlugIt part.

 

[mino]

@friedchicken
1) get this one:

Příklepová vrtačka : Narex.cz

Příklepová vrtačka pro stavebně-montážní práce a údržbu mnohostranné použití při vrtání do tvrdých nebo měkkých stavebních materiálů díky příklepovému mechanizmu a robustní…

www.narex.cz

It is a "post Protool" Protool PDP 20-2.

2) The get the connector - Protool spare #489926

/available through Festool as a spare part, I think related Festool spare will be the same thing, just not sure the Festool #/

 

[friedchicken]

On the other hand, frequently disconnected plug-it cords get loose in the tool end connection and they are responsible for tool end shorts that sometimes require plug-it socket replacement, or worse.

You have to be vigilant to signs of loose connection and and shorting to be able to replace the cord before serious damage occurs.

I don't think this is true.

For better or worse I'm on U.S. 120VAC, so importing corded tools from overseas rings difficult.
I don't even need/want some adamantium quality tool, just a decent drill/angle grinder/whatever corded tool with a plug-it connector. It would make storage extremely easy; right now I have all my corded tools on a shelf with the cords going through some holder thing off to the side.

 

[jeffinsgf]

I have used a sleeved vacuum/power cord with my Festool gear for 5 or 6 years now, and wouldn't have it any other way. Like friedchicken, my biggest beef is the power cord in storage. My Fein MultiMaster probably qualifies as an antique. When I got it, I was pleased with the extra long power cord...I still am except when I have to wrangle the whole thing back into a blow molded case that just barely contains all that cord. If Festool had kept selling the Plug-It dongles, I would at least 3 or 4 more tools converted to that system, the MultiMaster being first on the list.

 

[Packard]

I always ask myself, “Where am I going to use this tool?” That is the deciding question for battery or cord.

A while back I bought at DeWalt corded drill. I was looking for a drill with a high spin speed under load. As I recall this one had about 3,000 RPMs. I will check when I get home. I use it exclusively to drill for dowels, and when I am building a cabinet, that is a lot of dowels. And they are always drilled at my bench. So an easy choice.

I would suggest that question for every power tool being considered. Doubly so for nail guns which get tethered to both electric cords and compressors.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

I have used a sleeved vacuum/power cord with my Festool gear for 5 or 6 years now, and wouldn't have it any other way. Like friedchicken, my biggest beef is the power cord in storage. My Fein MultiMaster probably qualifies as an antique. When I got it, I was pleased with the extra long power cord...I still am except when I have to wrangle the whole thing back into a blow molded case that just barely contains all that cord. If Festool had kept selling the Plug-It dongles, I would at least 3 or 4 more tools converted to that system, the MultiMaster being first on the list.

I always had that issue with my Multimaster, and it was even one of the Systainer units. For whatever reason, they don't sell one that way anymore. The Lamello Zeta P2 is the same way. I really do like the longer European style cords, but that is definitely a down-side. The good part id that the cord is the same length as the CT hose.
Last time I checked, you can still buy an empty Fein-branded Systainer, but not the whole kit.

I'm surprised that no one has ever made an aftermarket version of those. Seems a fairly easy 3D print?

 

[peter halle]

@mino. Is Narex (the power tool company - not the hand tool / chisel company) still part of the TTS family?

Peter

 

[mino]

@mino. Is Narex (the power tool company - not the hand tool / chisel company) still part of the TTS family?

Peter

Yes. The factory at Česká Lípa is effectively a TTS operation since the 1990s .. the same line makes those drills that makes TPCs and the like .. when I wrote that drill is a Protool with a different livery, that was literal. It is literally the same thing in different color.

While, e.g., their EFH 36-E9 router (I have) used the OF 1010 spindle, but had different everything else, that drill is a Protool inheritance in all its glory.

---

Unfortunately they are phasing out the "original" Narex power tools. There was no R&D done on them since Protool was closed. The angle grinders are gone this year for example, so expect the Festool Diamond cutting system to go soon as it is based on a Narex grinder that just got canned.

These days Narex is mostly a local Czech/Slovak sales operation, they are shifting to rebranded Chinese kit /think Dewalt/Makita, not Ryobi/ gradually with only a few hold outs made inhouse. Most stuff done/made at the factory is now Festool.

So there are now basically two "classes" of Narex tools - those made in house which are basically pared-down Festools /as far as quality goes/ at a more reasonable price. No Centrotec, no PlugIt, no all-inclusive and no 10yrs parts saves you bucks... And then "newer" Chinese-sourced stuff. All the corded drills are in-house and all date to the Protool era. There re some new-ish inhouse tools like the cordless 60V kit and the magnetic drills introduced in the late 2010s, but I believe that COVID manufacturing crisis was where the plug was pulled on Narex doing in-house stuff.

All the R&D crew now working on Festool stuff and, what I gather, existing inhouse tools are manufactured until they sell/remain competitive then are phased out with no replacements or Chinese kit. Do keep in mind that Narex markets only in the CZ/SK local market - which is (relatively) big given how industrial we are over here, but still, it is too small a market in the grand scale to fund dedicated tool development.

 

[peter halle]

Yes. The factory at Česká Lípa is effectively a TTS operation since the 1990s .. the same line makes those drills that makes TPCs and the like .. when I wrote that drill is a Protool with a different livery, that was literal. It is literally the same thing in different color.

While, e.g., their EFH 36-E9 router (I have) used the OF 1010 spindle, but had different everything else, that drill is a Protool inheritance in all its glory.

---

Unfortunately they are phasing out the "original" Narex power tools. There was no R&D done on them since Protool was closed. The angle grinders are gone this year for example, so expect the Festool Diamond cutting system to go soon as it is based on a Narex grinder that just got canned.

These days Narex is mostly a local Czech/Slovak sales operation, they are shifting to rebranded Chinese kit /think Dewalt/Makita, not Ryobi/ gradually with only a few hold outs made inhouse. Most stuff done/made at the factory is now Festool.

So there are now basically two "classes" of Narex tools - those made in house which are basically pared-down Festools /as far as quality goes/ at a more reasonable price. No Centrotec, no PlugIt, no all-inclusive and no 10yrs parts saves you bucks... And then "newer" Chinese-sourced stuff. All the corded drills are in-house and all date to the Protool era. There re some new-ish inhouse tools like the cordless 60V kit and the magnetic drills introduced in the late 2010s, but I believe that COVID manufacturing crisis was where the plug was pulled on Narex doing in-house stuff.

All the R&D crew now working on Festool stuff and, what I gather, existing inhouse tools are manufactured until they sell/remain competitive then are phased out with no replacements or Chinese kit. Do keep in mind that Narex markets only in the CZ/SK local market - which is (relatively) big given how industrial we are over here, but still, it is too small a market in the grand scale to fund dedicated tool development.

Thank you. I looked up what companies TTS controlled and Narex popped up but it has been a long time since I read that name here and sometimes the internet isn't correct (IMAGINE THAT) especially withholdings of privately owned companies. Also saw that they own a company having something to do with foaming plastics.

Peter