Porter-Cable or Craftsman Drill Dilema

Originally Posted by Yoyizit

One of the batteries died about 4 years ago, and I replaced it then. And a week ago, the other original battery JUST died.
>So you have some failure rate data so you can predict how many batts you'd need in the future, other things being equal. Parts failures are a hidden cost of ownership.

Instead of just buying another replacement battery (Currently $35 at Sears on sale), I wanted to look into getting a new 18v or 19.2v lithium-ion set and add an impact driver as well.
>So you can predict costs by staying with Sears.

My plan is/was to buy a Porter Cable impact driver set that comes with two lithium-ion batteries and a charger...and then I'd already have the drill and I'd be set. The problem is, I can't find it anywhere.
>They may have closed off this path to consumers. It's not that they are so clever, it's that others have tried this before and the companies want to close these loopholes.

But ideally, if i could find a Porter-Cable impact driver that came with 2 lithium-ion batteries & the charger...that's what I would like to do. But again, buying them individually would run about $175 just for the two lithium-ion batteries and charger.
>Try online surplus parts places for batteries and see if they can change the buying option equation more in your favor.

My rechargeable watch battery just failed and online they want $35 for two. This is half the cost of the watch.
For the foreseeable future I'll be telling time by where the sun is.

Originally Posted by cprice12

Predicting battery life and replacement battery cost when on sale based on my past experience isn't applicable here because I'm switching from nicad to lithium batteries.

Originally Posted by Yoyizit

Wikipedia can help you with battery technology comparisons.

The actual sale price is driven by all kinds of factors. If this forum has any MBAs they may be able to help with likely marketing strategies.