gokartergo
Member
Does anybody now who makes the firestorm tools for lowes?? Just wondering if there any good??? Thanks Dan
??? about firestorm
- Thread starter gokartergo
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wood-of-1kind
Member
I think they are Black & Decker brand. Sorry but can't add more. Personally I like DeWalt.
Rifleman1776
Member
As Peter said, Black & Decker. Tools and batteries are OK but chargers are very cheap and tend to go bad. That leaves you with useless batteries and tools. DAMHIK. 
Recently, I purchased a DeWalt drill. The charger for the DW accepts the (older) style Firestorm batteries so I am now back in business. Do check other sources for either B&D or DW tools. I got my drill from Amazon for $50.00 less than Lowe's. Downside to the DeWalt being made so much better, it is very heavy. Unless you are Muscle Joe, holding it up for very long is near impossible.
Recently, I purchased a DeWalt drill. The charger for the DW accepts the (older) style Firestorm batteries so I am now back in business. Do check other sources for either B&D or DW tools. I got my drill from Amazon for $50.00 less than Lowe's. Downside to the DeWalt being made so much better, it is very heavy. Unless you are Muscle Joe, holding it up for very long is near impossible.
jcollazo
Member
They are Black & Decker. You can go to www.firestorm.com to see more
Aderhammer
Member
Frank are you saying you're a weakling? I did crew at school the first half of the year and i could spend a 6 hour night building nothing but platforms and we used DW drills and it didn't kill my arms!
gokartergo
Member
Thanks. I m going to be buying miter saw.. I really don't need a large one. I was thinking about the firestorm for it's price. But I am rethinking this.. I usually buy small and then find out I need bigger and better.
Jarheaded
Member
Black and Decker is a local company and their commercial line is Dewalt. The firestorm is just another rebadging of the same tools that have been put out for years, just with some minor changes. For homeowner use, it is perfectly acceptable, but it is not a commercial tool. I have several friends that work there and have told me that the reason you can get a much lower price at certain nationwide stores, is because they are made with cheaper parts. Where there should be bearings, you may find bushings instead, and they won't last as long. All of their tools are well made and changing out a bad part is easy if you have any mechanical ability. I have a 12volt, 14.4 volt, and 18 volt Dewalt drills, and any of them are lighter than my 19.2 volt Porter-Cable.
Rifleman1776
Member
Long story short: tore up my right shoulder about four years ago. Not all muscles functioning anymore. I'm right handed but can curl about four times as much weight with left as right arm. It's still heavy.
toolcrazy
Member
My experience with cheap batteries, don't do it. My boss keeps buying the cheap rechargables for the shop, and they last half as long as the better quality, like dewalt or makita.
leehljp
Member Liaison
I dumped homeowner tools (B&D and similar) years ago and have never looked back. PC, DeWalt, Bosch, Milwaukee, - I don't do professional things but these tools never let me down. Even Ryobi and Grizzly hand held tools are a step above homeowner use. My perspective is not about tool snobbery, but about the ability to get the job done and still be working fine when the job is over - and also take a beating when a helper drops it. Buying hand held tools a little above the need - usually rewards the owner with a much longer tool life.
igran7
Member
Firestorm is a step above regular Black & Decker tools. However, Black & Decker, Firestorm, Dewalt, Porter Cable & Delta are all the same company.
Gadget
Member
As a profesional carpenter/cabinet maker, I like ridgid dewalt and bosch. Any of those with a lithium battery is the way to go. I have had firestorm (bought it in a pinch for money) but the batteries if left sitting for some time crap out. This is true of most nicad batts. Nimh is the next choice but lithium although expensive have a great deal more capacity with no memory issues. Bottom line is that spending a little more or maybe twice as much save greif and money in the long run.
Aderhammer
Member
I've used a DeWalt compound miter saw, another crew experience, and I loved it. I'd buy the quality.
rincewind03060
Member
I had a charger go bad on my firestorm. A web search indicated that others had the same problem.
Apparently when the battery goes bad it frys the charger. It would have cost $65 to replace the charger and another $50 to replace the bad battery. I replaced the whole shebang with another brand and haven't looked back
Apparently when the battery goes bad it frys the charger. It would have cost $65 to replace the charger and another $50 to replace the bad battery. I replaced the whole shebang with another brand and haven't looked back
sbell111
Member
I bought a B&D cordless drill nearly ten years ago. It finally crapped out a few months ago. For my personal use, I'll buy another one without a single doubt. If I were a contractor, I'd buy a professional drill, but I'm not, so I'll buy the drill that serves my purpose economically with the knowledge that it will probably let me down and need to be replaced down the road (somewhere around 2017, I imagine).
RonInSpringTX
Member
some of the Craftsman stuff isn't too bad either, IMO. Sis-n-law bought me a 19.2V drill for Christmas. My wife bought me a universal Craftsman charger that was suppose to fit the 2 18V Craftsman drill/batteries I got a couple of years back. She gave it to me after her Thanksgiving day-after shopping spree!! I said, "SWEET"!! Took it out to the shop, 18v didn't fit!! Ugh. I told her this & she said, "well, I'll take it back" but she never did. Christmas comes around & she bought 2 19.2V batteries, to go with my sis-n-law's present!! Now I have 2 18V drills (flashlights also, and a smaller circular saw) 5 18V batteries, and a 19.2 V drill with 3 batteries. I'm loaded for bear!!![8D]
[8D]
rjwolfe3
Member
I use Firestorm tools. Last year for father's day, Lowes had a buy the drill get any other tool free. So far the batteries have held up. If I had the money I would have gotten a higher quality set but this set is working so far. I remember someone saying once, buy the best you can afford. Just my half cent.
Rifleman1776
Member
Mine worked just fine also. It was the chargers that went out and were not replaceable. Now, with my DeWalt drill and charger, I can still charge the B&D Firestorms and continue to use them. What with gifts and trying to replace the B&D stuff, I have ended up with a total of four cordless drills. Overkill but sometimes handy as it can save changing bits when I need several different for a job.