For the price, this is a well-equipped welding machine for private use. However, it is annoying that the fans always run at full speed. This is not only unnecessarily loud, but also promotes the ingress of dirt into the device.

Fortunately, there is a simple solution: a 24-volt fan control with a temperature sensor. Manfred Welding has published a good YouTube video on this topic:

I bought the exact same controller at a low price on AliExpress*. The conversion was no problem, and with soldering equipment and heat-shrink tubing*, the whole thing even looks quite professional.

Der Beitrag Parkside PMPS 200 A1 multi-welding device – make the Fans quieter erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

Bits are everywhere. In toolboxes, with cordless screwdrivers, as promotional items, as extras with spare parts…
What do many of these bits have in common?

That’s right, poor quality. And often rust. During our house renovation, we purchased a bit set from Bosch Professional in the hope that the higher price would mean higher quality. And I was not disappointed: hundreds, if not thousands, of screws have just been screwed in with the Torx bits. And not exactly gently, often with full torque, applied at an angle, etc. Wear and tear is minimal, and not a single bit has broken off so far. The advertised S2 steel is proving effective.

The really good extension with locking function is also not to be sneezed at. The sleeve extension is a real insider tip, especially for slotted screws, to prevent the bit from slipping out sideways.

We now have a second set as a spare. The item number at Bosch is “2607017164*” and the set is often on sale; we paid €15.99 for it. It was a good purchase!

Der Beitrag What a great bit set! erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

After prolonged use and heavy wear, four of our six 8 Ah smart batteries gradually stopped charging. After a quick search, we discovered that this is a known problem that can fortunately be remedied quickly.

To do this, you need to make two jumper cables, preferably with flat plugs at the ends. Then take a fully charged battery and the “problem battery” and jumper + to + and – to – and leave it like this for one to two minutes.

Then carefully disconnect to avoid causing a short circuit and put the problematic battery into the charger, which should now start charging again and, in some cases, already start with 2 out of 3 bars. The reason for this is that at least one of the cells inside has fallen below the minimum voltage limit accepted by the charger and the battery therefore refuses to be charged. Bridging briefly raises the voltage of all cells inside to exceed the charger’s limit voltage, allowing it to charge again.

Unfortunately, this is only a temporary solution. After repeated use with our four batteries, they ultimately failed completely.

In addition, here is the YouTube video that helped me understand the problem and make the batteries usable again:

Der Beitrag Parkside X20V System – Battery no longer charging? erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

Batteries

8 Ah (6x)

PAPS 208 A1  ///  Performance

Very good performance

Relatively heavy
I find the Bluetooth to be a gimmick

‎Does not fit in the case when plugged into some devices (!)
Charge status button quickly became defective
4 of 6 batteries were defective after approx. 1.5 years (heavy use) and were replaced under warranty without any problems

4 Ah (8x)

PAPS 204 A1  ///  Performance

Good performance
Best weight/performance ratio

I consider Bluetooth to be a gimmick

Charge status button quickly becomes defective

2 Ah (4x)

PAP 20 B1  ///  Standard

Works perfectly so far
Pleasantly lightweight, recommended for overhead or tiring work

Chargers

Smart

PLGS 2012 A1  ///  Performance

Charges very quickly
Has been running smoothly so far

The fan gets loud quite quickly
Wi-Fi connection only works on 2.4 GHz networks and is annoying to set up

Dual (2x)

PDSLG 20 A1  ///  Standard

Has been running smoothly so far

Fast (4.5 A)

PLG 20 C3  ///  Standard

Has been running smoothly so far

The fan gets loud quite quickly

Standard (2.4 A)

PLG 20 C1  ///  Standard

 Has been running smoothly so far

20V Tools

Drill driver #1

PABSP 20-Li B2  ///  Performance

Drilling and screwdriving performance is very good
Fits comfortably in the hand
Lighting is useful when working in dark areas

The rubber coating wears noticeably over time

The drill chuck broke quickly
This revision has a known problem with cold temperatures

Drill driver #2

PABSP 20-Li C4  ///  Performance

Drilling and screwdriving performance is very good
Fits comfortably in the hand
Lighting is useful when working in dark areas

The rubber coating is wearing noticeably

The drill chuck is already sticking here too
The response speed to speed control changes is really poor, especially from a standstill. So poor, in fact, that we now only use this otherwise good screwdriver for rough work such as mixing plaster (!)

Cross line laser 360°

PKLLP 3360 A1  ///  Performance

Absolutely great device, now indispensable
Intuitive operation

No memory function

Angle grinder (2x)

PWSAP 20-Li D4  ///  Performance

Cutting and roughing performance is very good with standard materials.
Easy to handle.
Speed-controlled.
This revision has a mechanical push-button on/off switch (the successor models no longer have this!).

Slight leaks in the gearbox

Both replaced under warranty as defective – Not durable under prolonged full load (roughing stone) and 8 Ah batteries, no longer functional after smoke developed from the motor

Impact wrench

PASSP 20-Li A3  ///  Performance

Very good impact performance

Heavy
Gradations somewhat illogical
Handle somewhat weak; with high impact performance, you can feel the device warping

Hammer drill

PKHAP 20-Li B2  ///  Performance

Good performance
Quite handy

Slight leaks at the adjustment knob
The lettering on the adjustment knob quickly wore off

Overheats really quickly when chiseling (slitting)
Replaced under warranty; in chiseling mode, the chisel started spinning at some point (internal lock probably defective)

Angle grinder

PWSA 20-Li D4  ///  Standard

When used as a cut-off saw on a stand, it has served its purpose well so far.

Hand-held circular saw

PHKSA 20-Li A2  ///  Standard

Pleasantly light
The auto-stop function on the saw blade is great
Relatively quiet
Laser guide included and useful

Replaced under warranty; at some point, the power cut out while I was sawing and smoke started coming out of the device. After cooling down, the saw didn’t make a sound.

Compressor and air pump

PAK 20-Li B2 – PALP 20-Li B2  ///  Standard

Works well

Both devices become warm to hot after a few minutes

Paint spray gun

PFSA 20-Li A1  ///  Standard

Not used yet

Heat gun

PHLGA 20-Li B1  ///  Standard

Works well

Few adjustment options

Hot glue gun

PHPA 20-Li A1  ///  Standard

Not used yet
With the hot glue stick inserted, this device will no longer fit in the case.

Soldering station (2x)

PLSA 20-Li B2  ///  Standard

Works well in general

High wear on soldering tips due to lack of adjustment options (can be modified)

Jigsaw and sabre saw 2-in-1

PSSSA 20-Li B2  ///  Standard

Works well
The dual function is well designed

Orbital sander

PAEXS 20-Li B2  ///  Standard

Works well

Quite loud

After prolonged use, the dirt collection container holder breaks and no longer holds

Multifunctional tool

PAMFW 20-Li B2  ///  Standard

‎Poor performance
Very loud
Poor handling
‎Replaced under warranty, the battery (4 Ah) is fused inside! Even with the replacement device, the battery contacts usually stick after a few minutes of use!

Stapler

PAT 20-Li A1  ///  Standard

Powerful stapling

Staples occasionally get stuck in the device
Heavy

Drywall sander

PWDSA 20-Li A1  ///  Standard

Not used yet

Drill driver #3

PABS 20-Li E6  ///  Standard

Reasonable price/performance ratio

The rubber coating is becoming noticeably worn

The components in the plastic housing move/are worn out

Drywall screwdriver

PTBSA 20-Li B2  ///  Standard

Does not function properly
The PH2 bit has a special format AND is soft (!), so it wears out very quickly
Absolutely a bad purchase

Bandsaw

PMBA 20-Li A1  ///  Standard

 Saws well so far, little use

Battery-Adapter (2x)

PAA 20-Li B2  ///  Standard

Works well

Fan (4x)

PVA 20-Li A1  ///  Standard

Good performance, two speed settings

All four now have slight but audible bearing damage

Construction site radio

PBRA 20-Li B1  ///  Standard

Excellent features (FM, DAB, USB, Bluetooth, AUX!)
Can be powered by a 20V or 12V battery or even a power supply

The maximum volume could be higher

Small hand lamp

PLHLA 20-Li B1  ///  Standard

Works well

Large hand lamp

PHLA 20-Li A1  ///  Standard

Works well

Unnecessary SOS function

Spotlight COB

PBSTA 20-Li A1  ///  Standard

Works well
Very bright

Almost too bright
Gets quite warm
Battery consumption quite high

Spotlight SMD

PLSA 20-Li A1  ///  Standard

Works well
Very bright
Can be operated with optional power supply

The positioning of the buttons under the handle is rather inconvenient

12V Tools

Fine drill grinder set with 12V / 2 Ah battery and 2.4 A charger

PPFBSA 12 A1  ///  Performance

Works well

4V Tools

Cross line laser with tripod

PKLLP 360 B3  ///  Performance

Absolutely great device, now indispensable
Useful functions

No memory function
The included tripod is very low

230V Tools

Workshop vacuum cleaner

PPWD 30 B2  ///  Performance

Very good suction power
Many useful functions
High filter performance
Good accessories

The USB-C port is rather superfluous
Heavy and bulky

Multi-welding device

PMPS 200 A1  ///  Performance

Not used yet

Paint and mortar mixer

PFMR 1600 C3  ///  Standard

Stirs powerfully

The initial speed is quite high and the last setting is not saved

‎After prolonged use, the gearbox fell apart, essentially into the mortar pot. That was quite impressive. Repaired with longer, more stable screws and screw lock

Multifunctional tool

PMFW 310 D2  ///  Standard

Works satisfactorily

Very loud
Strong vibrations
Replaced under warranty, teeth on the tool holder are broken (!)

Cutting and pulling saw

PZKS 2000 B2  ///  Standard

Saws acceptably
The laser is useful

Must be carefully adjusted to produce usable cuts
Noisy

Ash vacuum cleaner

PAS 20  ///  Standard

Absorbs well

Der Beitrag Our Parkside tool collection erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

After careful consideration, we decided some time ago to use a battery-powered system instead of corded power tools for our home renovation. In terms of quality, I would only have considered brands such as Bosch Professional, Makita, DeWalt, Milwaukee, etc. – if it weren’t for the really high price, especially for the batteries and chargers.

Milwaukee in particular has undergone several system changes, making newer devices in the same segment incompatible with older batteries. The next step was to discontinue production of the older battery system, and after inevitable defects, the devices gradually became unusable. Absolutely unacceptable. DeWalt did something similar, but some time ago.

What are the advantages of a battery system?

The biggest advantages are mobility and flexibility. In addition, the basic idea of having just a few batteries and chargers that are compatible with many devices is appealing. The convenience is a real bonus when working.

What’s wrong with that?

Actually two things – batteries are basically wear parts, and you also become dependent on the compatible system and thus on the manufacturer. So everything depends on the behavior of the manufacturer of the respective system. In addition, very useful functions such as a vacuum cleaner that switches on automatically on hand-held circular saws, etc., cannot be used.

The starting point

The only cordless tool we already had was a 14.4-volt Makita cordless screwdriver (Newer model*), which is well over 10 years old. It was purchased as a set together with two 2 Ah batteries and a charger in a case. Both batteries have been defective for some time and have been replaced by two replicas from the Far East*. The cordless screwdriver itself still works very well, but has always been a bit weak.

After I was able to purchase a Parkside 20-volt performance cordless screwdriver (brushless!) with a 2 Ah battery and 4.5 Ah charger for a really low price of €66.99 including shipping during a special Black Friday promotion at Lidl at the end of 2022, I quickly made my decision – I would go with Parkside for battery-powered tools.

The reasons were and are obvious:

• Really very inexpensive in relation to quality.
• Green standard devices come with a 3-year warranty, while the black performance versions come with a 5-year warranty.
• Almost all devices come in cases.
• Many items can be ordered online at any time or with short delivery times, and at that time shipping was free for orders over €59 (today €79 with an app coupon).
• There are several different chargers and batteries to suit every budget and application
• The first impression of the performance cordless screwdriver, at least, was “surprisingly good”

However, I still use (additional) 230-volt versions of tools that require continuous power, such as a Bosch Professional SDS-Plus hammer drill*, a Makita 125 mm angle grinder* and a hot air gun.

What is the conclusion after almost 3 years of using Parkside cordless tools?

First of all, it should be noted that we are private individuals; in the commercial sector, I would also recommend equipment developed for commercial use. In that case, the price is also reasonable and the quality is far superior. Our approach was: “If the equipment survives our home renovation, it was a good deal; if not, there is at least a 3 or 5-year warranty, and that should be sufficient.” Renovating is expensive, and if the tools do the job for less than half the cost, then the goal has been achieved.

I regularly checked the Lidl website for offers from the end of 2022 onwards. At that time, there was no explicit advertising for Parkside as there is now, two to three years later. This is also reflected in the price of many items. At first, I wanted to limit myself exclusively to the 20-volt system, but a really good deal on a fine drill grinder, which unfortunately is part of the 12-volt system, persuaded me to go down both paths – even though this is still the only 12-volt device I have.

As expected, our experience has been very mixed—some devices are really good for the price, while others are really poor and unreliable. We also have some 230-volt devices from Parkside, if the offer was good or the intended use is stationary.

We have had bad experiences with the smart batteries, especially with the 8 Ah version. First, the charge status buttons stopped working reliably (even with the 4 Ah smart batteries), then soon stopped working altogether. After about 1.5 years of use, 4 of the 6 batteries could no longer be charged, except with the “jump start trick” . After a few weeks, even that no longer helped; one of the cells inside was defective and could no longer be charged manually. At this point, however, praise for the service department: the complaint was handled professionally and smoothly, and after a week we had four brand-new replacement batteries in use. These are still running well today.

Would I go down this path again?

Yes, but not with every device purchased. Unfortunately, you only realize this after the fact, and as we all know, hindsight is always 20/20. The savings enabled us to purchase significantly more devices than would have been possible with Makita or Bosch Professional, for example. Doubts always remain—something of commercial quality will certainly last a few years longer. On the other hand, Parkside products are not designed for such heavy-duty use, and you can’t expect that of them.

One could argue that you should focus on quality when it comes to the most important tools, which would mean having several parallel systems in terms of battery-powered tools. It has become clear that these devices are indispensable and heavily used:

• Drill driver
• Angle grinder
• Hand-held circular saw
• Jigsaw
• Hammer drill

All in all, Lidl’s long warranty period and service make up for many negative points—but if you want to buy something “for life” or for heavy-duty use, Parkside is not the right choice. Even in expensive systems, batteries are always consumables, which should never be overlooked. Nevertheless, mobility is a real gain in convenience compared to corded devices, especially on a construction site with few working power outlets.

It should be noted that I would only purchase the system as new with a warranty, or as used only if it were practically free. There is a definite risk of irreplaceable failure.

Next, I have created a commented list of the devices we purchased, which makes our experiences much clearer.

Der Beitrag General thoughts on power tools, especially battery systems erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

The original plan was to simply screw the bench drill to the workbench and that would be it. However, the PBD 40 has openings in the aluminum base which dirt can and will inevitably fall into the hollow base.

Then another idea came to mind: similar to the bench grinder, build a base and integrate a drawer into it. Also mostly made from 40 mm multiplex scraps. No sooner said than done: this is what the result looks like now:

Except for the “front panel,” the drawer is simply made of leftover laminate without integrated impact sound insulation (MDF slides well!) and is fixed with 3D-printed brackets using M3 countersunk screws. After working with the machine, you can now simply sweep the dirt through the openings in the base and remove the drawer from time to time to empty it conveniently.

Der Beitrag A dirt trap drawer for the Bosch PBD 40 erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

I purchased a Bosch bench drill for our workshop – a PBD 40. The data sheet looks good, and I bought this tool second-hand, but I had some reservations before purchasing it:

You often read that the accuracy leaves something to be desired, especially when drilling small diameters in metal. It was clear to me from the outset that if I bought this model, I would immediately convert the internal bearings to something more precise.

That’s why buying second-hand made sense; I didn’t want to be restricted in my actions by a warranty period and preferred to invest the money I saved on the purchase in the conversion. Alternative bench drills, e.g., from Scheppach* or Parkside, don’t really offer much more, and I can’t imagine that they are any more accurate. That’s why I opted for Bosch, even if it’s “only” Bosch Green (for private use, not commercial).

Upgrade

First of all: There was a really interesting and useful thread in the official Bosch forums about which bearings are suitable and how to convert the whole thing.

Unfortunately, it seems to have been deleted in the meantime; at least, I can’t find it anymore. If I come across the content in the future, I will add it here, but unfortunately that seems unlikely. Things can disappear so quickly!

The precision bearings used were these two from Kugellager-Express.

Disassembly and reassembly is quite easy to do. Simply remove all visible screws until you have taken the gearbox apart. Be careful with the cables and plugs, as these are often quite short.

The most difficult part is removing the pressed-in bearing in the aluminum housing; even with an internal puller, it took me several attempts. Photos:

Conclusion

The observations made by the original posters of this conversion were not exaggerated: the concentricity and drilling precision have really improved considerably, even with the original drill chuck, which is often described as “poor”!

There is virtually no noticeable play anymore. Anyone who owns a PBD 40 and is dissatisfied with its precision should carry out this conversion; I am very satisfied.

Der Beitrag Bosch PBD 40 bench drill: Increase accuracy erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

For our workshop, I wanted a bench grinder* that, unlike most, was equipped with a wire brush on one side instead of another, coarser grinding wheel. This poses a problem: a significant imbalance, as the grinding wheel is much heavier and more round than the wire brush.

Regardless of this, a bench grinder is generally a vibrating machine. In my “old” makeshift workshop, there was an older bench grinder with two fairly well-aligned, smooth-running grinding wheels – also screwed to the worktop. Even when starting up, the entire worktop vibrated, let alone when you held something against the wheels with force to grind it.

In our “new” workshop, which is built into the house, I wanted to avoid the problem from the outset, or at least minimize it significantly.

How do you do that?

I had already had experience with so-called “rubber-metal buffers” in the past to decouple a two-cylinder air compressor. It worked so well that it was hard to believe:

The mount on which the compressor stood at full operation basically no longer vibrated, which made everything much quieter. So my first thought for this grinding block was similar – rubber-metal buffers.

Implementation

It’s actually quite simple: First of all, I should mention that I am relatively tall, so a “foot” that raises the bench grinder is very useful for me. This is how I did it:

• Two pieces of 40 mm multiplex cut to size and sanded
• Holes drilled and countersunk in the lower of the two panels so that they can be screwed to the worktop later
• Recesses drilled from the other side so that self-locking nuts can be pressed in to hold the upper panel in place
• Using a 25 mm Forstner bit, cylinders approx. 10 mm deep were drilled into the upper panel so that the buffers could be made to disappear almost completely
• Suitable through holes were drilled in both panels for all screws

I used 20 mm buffers with internal threads on both sides (Type C, Ø 20, Height 20 mm, IG/IG M6, NK 55 (20-20-C)*), with galvanized 8.8 M6 hexagon socket screws* and lock washers both from below (invisible) and from above to secure the grinding block.

Experiences

The decoupling is not 100% effective – slight vibrations can still be felt. This is particularly noticeable because we keep our storage systems for screws etc. on the same worktop – you can feel and hear even the slightest vibration.

Nevertheless, the result is really good: 99% less vibration.

Photos

You can clearly see the gap between the plate and the machine; light shines through the gap.

Der Beitrag Decoupling the bench grinder – Scheppach SM200LB erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

I had to make a decision for our workshop: new or used vise?
It had to be a solid design. If new, only something like Heuer* would be an option. I’ve had bad experiences with very cheap welded constructions.

In the end, I opted for a used gray cast iron vise and bought it cheaply (€50) from a private ad. It would have been possible to use it as it was, but since I tend to clean and overhaul everything I buy second-hand, I took it apart straight away:

Cleaning

Then it was time to remove the old paint with a wire brush attachment* and thinner*, producing a lot of dirt in the process. This gray cast iron vise is quite heavy, which makes it a little difficult to handle—in the truest sense of the word. Underneath, everything actually looked fine, with no cracks or similar damage:

Before painting, the surfaces were smoothed using a roughing disc* on an angle grinder, as were the sides. Gray cast iron is simply a rather coarse manufacturing process, which also needs to be machined coarsely. A Dremel*, sandpaper* and abrasive fleece* were then used for the finer details.

New paint

As a final step, I coated the vise twice with anthracite-colored, synthetic resin-based hammer finish paint*. The numbers on the side were highlighted with white acrylic paint*:

Findings and conclusion

The fact that the jaws appear to be made of hardened steel and are replaceable is a big plus. The fact that the “jaw screws” have M7 threads is not: replacements are difficult to find and, when you do find them, unnecessarily expensive.

I have since found and purchased some in China on AliExpress* and am now using homemade alternative jaws made of copper rails with 3D-printed protective attachments instead of the original ones (these additionally widen the clamping range to 150 mm).

The vise is in constant use and, as expected, has proven to be very robust and useful. However, it does have one disadvantage: it cannot be rotated or easily converted for rotation. I would have liked this feature, primarily to reduce the overhang above the workbench in case of doubt. And, of course, to be able to work better on some workpieces when rotated. However, I only realized this after everything had been installed as it is now.

From a technical point of view, this ZAG 125 vice, costing less than €100, is probably the best value for money you can get for such a solid tool.

Currently installed

Der Beitrag Overhaul a ZAG 125 vise erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.