Cordless Power Tools For Those of Us Too Lazy to Drag Around a Cord

When I was 5 years old, cordless power tools had not been invented yet. In spite of this my father decided to build a house. It was actually a wonderful event. Back then in rural New Hampshire the neighbors- note our nearest neighbor was about a mile away- actually showed up every day after work and helped my dad build the house.

There must have been 20 or 30 of them and they kept showing up for weeks, putting in the foundation, and building the walls, and raising the walls until it looked like a "house skeleton".

Once they had the roof on and we got to putting the sheet rock up I finally got to help. I was only 5 but I got to "mud" the joints. And just to make sure I didn't do a messy job I got to sand the job I did with a block sander. Oh how my little 5 year old arms used to hurt after long hours of sanding and I longed to use the electric sander that my dad had but I was too young.

Finally my dad took pity on me and showed me how to use the electric sander and I got my first taste of using power tools. Even in the beginning I hated all of the cords running everywhere and I didn't like dragging the cord around, but what was I to do-- It was BCPT, before cordless power tools.

Many years later I received a gift which included a somewhat cheap cordless drill. I used it for a small job and I was sold. Despite the fact that it was not a great drill I could see that for me cords would soon be a thing of the past.

Over the years cordless power tools have kept on improving and today they can do just about any job that can be done by a corded tool. In fact 36 Volt cordless tools claim to be every bit as powerful as corded tools. See the video demonstration below where the Bosch 36 Volt Drill goes head to head with a corded drill.

Cordless Power Tools are the only way to go for me now. Realize that I no longer make a living using power tools as I did when I was younger but for the most part there are very few jobs if any that cannot be done with cordless tools.

Now this comes from the guy my stepfather called in to jack hammer a ditch in the middle of the winter 4feet wide 5 feet deep and 20 feet long. I loved the hard stuff, that is except drilling in hard concrete with a corded drill and a dull masonry bit. I did need a chance to succeed.

Now you can even get cordless skill saws and what we used to call sawsalls though that is actually a brand name we used to use somewhat like Kleenex for any reciprocating saw. Even small tools like the Dremel tool have well reviewed cordless models like the dremel 8200. For some time cordless dremels were looked down upon but starting with the 8000 series they are starting to get some respect.

You can see why I like cordless tools but why should you. Well some people like my dad will never like cordless tools because they are used to a cord and if it ain't broke don't try to fix it. But if you look at the portability and the fact that you can use a cordless drill in the middle of a desert to drill a hole in a cactus (perhaps a use you would never think of but the point is far from any electrical outlet) you have to admit that there are some things to like about cordless tools.

Some positive points include:

• You can stop tripping over tangled power cords.
• If you have ever dragged a corded tool through a tight crawl space I think you could appreciate cordless.
• You can put it in your tool belt ready to use.

Some of the negative points:

• You can always find your way out of a tight crawlspace by following the cord back.
• Because of the battery cordless tools often are a bit heavier than corded tools.
• If the batteries run down you are in trouble. (on the other hand a power failure would be the other side of the coin.)

When all is said and done it is a matter of choice. I however am a cordless fan and my dad is not and that really has not come between us so it should not cause any irreconcilable disputes between friends though there could be some heated discussions at the "local pub".