Makita Cordless Drill - Battery Replacement

Dennis The B

Dennis The B

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The batteries on my Makita cordless drill, have finally given their last gasp. It's a 14.4 volt, NIMH, 2.6A.

Replacement prices are on the steep side. Factory replacments run about $80; down to about $70, discounted at some independents

Looking at places like eBay, non-Makita brands run as little as about $30, and they're 3.0A, for the most part.

Anybody have any luck with "Brand X" batteries?

Any other suggestions? The newer Lithium-ion, 20 volt drills are looking pretty good. The Porter Cable is $150, less 10% at Lowe's. Just thinking.
 
I usually just buy a new tool if the price is right.Depending on how much use that drill has had,it may be worth it.
 
I had to beat

I had to beat my head against the wall about my DeWalt. The battery was about fifty bucks and I thought the drill was well worth saving. Glad I did because I've used it lately more than in the last 10 years.
 
Look around for refurbished tools from the manufacturer too.The few Ive had have been well worth it.
 
My wife has had the same Makita (9.6V) for over 10 years, and won't use anything else, I was able to get a factory replacement battery for $70 about 3 years ago and it is still going strong. Almost had a catastrophe last year when the trigger switch went out, but found a local repairman that replaced it. The wife is an interior decorator and hangs all her own drapery, blinds, etc. She will condescend to use my cheap B&D 14V when she has a big job and wants a backup.
 
A place like Batteries Plus will replace the cells in the battery case. I've done that with my Porter Cables and have had good luck with it. Much cheaper than buying new batteries.
 
Supposedly, some battery units develop crystals which prevent them from charging. I'm told that using a car battery charger, you can "shock" the crystals off, allowing the battery to charge again. If you do a Google search, you should find a number of references on how to do this.
 
Batteries Plus rebuilt my Craftsman 18v batteries on 9-09. I just looked at the sticker they put on one of them. They are still going strong, and have had some hard use over the last two years. As I recall, it cost just a little more than half what anyone wanted for new batteries.
 
cmort666 said:
Supposedly, some battery units develop crystals which prevent them from charging. I'm told that using a car battery charger, you can "shock" the crystals off, allowing the battery to charge again. If you do a Google search, you should find a number of references on how to do this.
Click to expand...

It's called ZAPPING. You can zap NIMH and NiCad batteries back to life. You need a higher voltage supply than the battery you are trying to recondition. Watch this demo Ni-CD Battery fix for free - YouTube. Guy uses a 14.4v to recondition a 6v battery.

Easyest way to do this is to use a TIG or MIG welder with the voltage set to around 20-22v for your 14.4v battery.

I've still got a 18-20 YO Ryobi 7.2v drill that works because of a buddies tig welder. Those batteries have been zapped several times with the tig welder.

Just be aware that batteries can also have a KABOOM.

Class III
 
Try O'donnell batteries. They have replacements for a lot of stuff. I've purchase a lot of different batteries from them but none for my Makita.
 
Cooter Brown said:
A place like Batteries Plus will replace the cells in the battery case. I've done that with my Porter Cables and have had good luck with it. Much cheaper than buying new batteries.
Click to expand...

While they will do NiCad batteries, they rarely are equipped with the certs to do NiMh batteries or Li Ion batteries. These have a hazard rating on them that exceeds most small shops ability to work on them. We have battery replacement service from Interstate batteries at our shop, and they do not have the certs for it. And none of the tool service centers can touch the NiMh or Li Ion internals (We are in Long Beach Ca, so not like I am dealing with small town lack of anything!!:confused:)
OP, the question boils down to how much abuse did the drill take. I have run Makitas for 23 years now, from the 7.2 and the 9.6 on up the scale. I loved the 14.4 series drills. In the end, my 14.4 lasted 5 years, and I ran maybe 20 batteries thru it. I gave up and went to the 18v system.
The 18v kicks the 14.4 pretty hard, it's a great system. Some-odd 20 tools that all run on that battery. The GOOD battery is the 3.0Ah, and they cost $100 ea, or $175 for the 2 pack when you can find it. If your drill is used, and worn?? Replace it. If it has been treated well, and is low abuse?? Get factory batteries. Run it for another 8 years!;)
 
I don't know if this will work on your Makita, but when one of the batteries went out on my Dewalt drill I went to Lowe's to get a replacement. They were around $80.00 each. Then I noticed a circular saw that came with two of the same batteries that the drill used. It was on sale for $190.00. I bought it and use it as much or more than the drill and have three batteries I can use on either one. I'm still ahead because I bought the drill NIB at a yard sale for $50.00. If I have more battery problems I'm thinking I may need a saws all or something similar.
 
H Richard said:
My wife has had the same Makita (9.6V) for over 10 years, and won't use anything else, I was able to get a factory replacement battery for $70 about 3 years ago and it is still going strong. Almost had a catastrophe last year when the trigger switch went out, but found a local repairman that replaced it. The wife is an interior decorator and hangs all her own drapery, blinds, etc. She will condescend to use my cheap B&D 14V when she has a big job and wants a backup.
Click to expand...
those are good drills ,nice and light especially when compared to the dewalt .
 
get the impact driver ,you can change your tires with it and once you drive screws with that you wont like using drills for anything but making holes
 
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