Corless Drill Battery Charger Kaputz!

Beemer · September 18th, 2004, 01:11 PM

Since there isn't really a forum for my particular problem, I thought this would be the place.

I have a corless drill, Black & Decker "Firestorm". 14.4V
The charging unit quit. Seems to be the transformer end of it as there isn't any warmth to the touch when plugged in.

I contacted the retailer, Canadian Tire, and they told me that to order one would cost $60.00 or $70.00 bucks! Youch!

Anyone know where I can get a transformer for this baby, cheaper?

Transformer spec's as listed in the moulding of the same:

ps180
418337-02
Class 2 Battery Charger
Input: 120v~60Hz 15W (Nom 15W)
Output: 17.4V DC 21mA (Nom 17.4V ====)

Cheers!

OuTpaTienT · September 18th, 2004, 01:28 PM

I have a friend that had a FireStorm 18v. After his 3rd charger stopped working he just gave the drill away. Ridiculous how shotty their battery chargers are (or used to be anyway).

Is it one of the older Firestorms? The kind with the 2 prong connetion? You realize don't you, those old Firestorm batteries are interchangable with DeWalt batteries. I would assume that means similar DeWalt charger units should also charge those type Firestorm batteries. I mention this just in case you have any DeWalt hardware that you could use. Buying DeWalt stuff will be even more expensive so that's probably not an option. Although, a DeWalt charger is surely not going to fail like those B&D disposable chargers.

thekingofpain · September 18th, 2004, 01:37 PM

Doubt this will help---I had a Makita that did the same thing, I dont rely on it for everyday use but to buy a charger cost more then I wanted to put out, had a friend tell me you can usually pick up the entire tool at a Pawn Shop for very cheap, but it might be a time bomb ready to fizzle like the one I have----
So I just bought a complete new unit from Harbor Freight online, its not as high quality a unit as the Makita but it sure suits my purpose, if I relied on one for daily use to make a living id probably buy something better--- http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=44849 cordless, reversable, keyless chuck, 6 way clutch and 18v to boot (way better then my Makita 12v) plus I only paid $29 for it during a sale---wonder if they ship to Canada? Ive been entirely happy with Chicago btw, I have the drill motor, a circular saw, a Sawzall, power miterbox, and a hand held bandsaw...

OuTpaTienT · September 18th, 2004, 01:58 PM

Wow. Good stuff on ebay. #1 & #3 are just damn good deals...steals actually. But note on #2 it is a great deal so far plus it comes with a charger.

eBay item 4325548851 (Ends Sep-19-04 09:10:31 PDT) - DeWALT Heavy-Duty XRP 1/2" 18V Cordless Drill - DW988
$0.99 22 hours left. No reserve!

eBay item 4324385731 (Ends Sep-19-04 10:18:05 PDT) - Dewalt DW995 18 volt Cordless Drill - Adjustable Clutch
$25 23 hours left. No reserve.

eBay item 4324631160 (Ends Sep-18-04 12:22:50 PDT) - DEWALT 995 18V CORDLESS DRILL W/25 pc accessory
$30 1 hour and 30 minutes left!!!!! No reserve.

originel · September 18th, 2004, 02:05 PM

DON'T BUY ANYTHING YET! sorry about the caps but this is important. I also have a firestorm 14.4v drill and the same thing happened to me, but this actually applies to any drill with that type of charger. What causes this to happen is a battery dies and ends up pulling too much current through the charger and then kills the charger. The reason you went through 3 chargers out is not because of bad chargers, but a bad battery that killed the chargers.

you obviously will need a new charger, but first determine which battery is bad (if not both) and get a replacement for that too. Go to www.dewaltservicenet.com to get a new one. Chargers are around $10 and batteries are around $35.

OuTpaTienT · September 18th, 2004, 02:11 PM

I'm telling ya, my buddy is not a lone story of bad chargers from B&D's Firestorm line. I know others that experience similar issues.

And what do you mean by "bad" battery. I know my friends Firestorm battery, the one that supposedly killed the 3 chargers, was a still working battery. It would hold a charge and power the drill as well as any new battery.

Beemer · September 18th, 2004, 02:12 PM

I'm not reading to many good write-ups on the Firestorm 14.4V . All the bad publisity is to do with the charging units.

I may take TKP's suggestion and look around the extoggery shops.

Thanks guys.

Cheers!

originel · September 18th, 2004, 02:14 PM

Just cause it holds a charge doesn't mean it's bad, my battery did too. Batteries can go bad in different ways, and they don't all result in a battery that doesn't have a charge.

I will mention that i'm on my third charger that isn't a stock unit. This is how i proved that i had a bad battery, not a bad charger. It's the fsmvc

edit: i can't seem to find it on dewalt's page, but then again their site sucks. Amazon has it for $35.

OuTpaTienT · September 18th, 2004, 02:20 PM

I don't doubt you about that. But the thing is, this issue doesn't seem to crop up in other lines of cordless drills. I've worked with Makitas, DeWalts, Craftsman, Milwalkee, Firestorm, just to name a few. The old Firestom line is the only one to routinely have this problem happen.

Beemer · September 18th, 2004, 02:29 PM

What ever the case, I stepped out of my norm of buying expensive and went cheap with the Firestorm. Get what you pay for still holds true.

Just got a call from Canadian Tire. At first, the rep didn't recognize who I was. I did a bunch of tech work for the Service Manager a while back. The rep said he's looking into my problem a little further. They may have a charging unit hangin' around in the back somewhere. Crossing my fingers as I may get it free!

Cheers!