Aldi, Ferrex Cordless tools

[northwest]

I, as many of you, saw the link to the Ali (Ferrex) cordless tool promotion, as I knew where there was a battery and a charger £9.95 for a 125mm angle grinder was a bit of a no brainer, I bought two.
Now, we have all seen and tried to use these bargain cordless pieces of landfill, "scepticism is us" in this house! At less than a tenner each it wouldn't be the end of the world if they were destroyed, so I took them down to the fab shop, then Gareth got a grip of one and put it to the test He chose something lightweight:




To say I was impressed is an understatement, it went through the railtrack, not like butter, not at all, but it did cut through. Snag was the duty cycle which saw the grinder cut out and get quite hot after a while. I used to mock the idea of supermarket power tools and to be honest I have had a few Parkside duds but this is something else and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend one to the occasional user or get one just for a wire wheel or flap disk.

Now £24.99: https://www.aldi.co.uk/ferrex-40v-cordless-angle-grinder/p/813931621324200

 

[Migmac]

I’ve got three. One stays in the work pickup, to be used as a gate key when A holes vandalise the locks. The other two are in the shed

 

[Rrobson]

I normally pick up a corded 5” grinder when they have them in. At £20 they are a true bargain, especially as they have variable speed. I haven’t actually broken one yet, although the bearings are about to collapse on my very first purchased one it does still work (was used to cut a lot of concrete last year which resulted in its demise)

I have a few cordless tools, my little impact driver is brilliant and still performs well after many years of service, plus I have an early grinder which is ok but not variable speed and brushed so old tech now. Great for cutting, polishing and light grinding when I don’t want to run an extension. For diy use I’d highly recommend.

 

[addjunkie]

I, as many of you, saw the link to the Ali (Ferrex) cordless tool promotion, as I knew where there was a battery and a charger £9.95 for a 125mm angle grinder was a bit of a no brainer, I bought two.
Now, we have all seen and tried to use these bargain cordless pieces of landfill, "scepticism is us" in this house! At less than a tenner each it wouldn't be the end of the world if they were destroyed, so I took them down to the fab shop, then Gareth got a grip of one and put it to the test He chose something lightweight:

View attachment 384774
View attachment 384775

To say I was impressed is an understatement, it went through the railtrack, not like butter, not at all, but it did cut through. Snag was the duty cycle which saw the grinder cut out and get quite hot after a while. I used to mock the idea of supermarket power tools and to be honest I have had a few Parkside duds but this is something else and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend one to the occasional user or get one just for a wire wheel or flap disk.

Now £24.99: https://www.aldi.co.uk/ferrex-40v-cordless-angle-grinder/p/813931621324200

Didnt realise you had a man to do the dirty work for you. How posh!

 

[frank horton]

just bought a corded 125mm grinder with variable speed for €29 euro's...
this will just be used for sanding wooden turning on slow speed......
would like cordless but bat life and the cost of em prohibits...
the 4AH batts are the same as the grinder....
we'll see......

 

[Kayos]

Things must have changed on the newer versions. I bought a full kit to keep in the small van. Impact, combi drill, grinder, recip (I think), maybe a multitool? a load of batteries and 2 chargers

Massive disappointment, drill was rubbish, grinder was weak and the impact was a joke.
Gave it all to a pal for light DIY use, as that was it's limit

 

[northwest]

Didnt realise you had a man to do the dirty work for you. How posh!

I know.... I now have two Minions and a part time one as a gunbearer if you count @Tinbasherdan AND I have a driver. Perhaps I should now grasp the opportunity and retire?






Nah, get bored too easily!

 

[northwest]

Massive disappointment, drill was rubbish, grinder was weak and the impact was a joke.
Gave it all to a pal for light DIY use, as that was it's limit

Exactly my past experience of such "cheap foodstore tools" which is why I was motivated to write the post. I figured at £9.95 it was worth a punt and if you already have batteries a no brainer. However I will temper this with saying my Flexvolt 125mm DeWalt grinder is a monster and it's duty cycle is All Day. It is almost impossible to stall.

 

[Kayos]

Exactly my past experience of such "cheap foodstore tools" which is why I was motivated to write the post. I figured at £9.95 it was worth a punt and if you already have batteries a no brainer. However I will temper this with saying my Flexvolt 125mm DeWalt grinder is a monster and it's duty cycle is All Day. It is almost impossible to stall.

I had just replaced all my main kit with Makita, all carefully chosen. Top spec sds, most powerful impact and combi drill, mid range grinder and basic circular saw (mostly for floorboard butchery) plus the rest of the kit
The Ferrex did not compare to any of it, was bought to save swapping between vans. I ended up selling the small van as well

 

[MattF]

I had just replaced all my main kit with Makita, all carefully chosen. Top spec sds, most powerful impact and combi drill, mid range grinder and basic circular saw (mostly for floorboard butchery) plus the rest of the kit
The Ferrex did not compare to any of it, was bought to save swapping between vans. I ended up selling the small van as well

It obviously won't compare to top end kit. That's why the price tags are worlds apart. Tradesman stick with the main brand tools as their primary kit for good reason. The cheaper stuff has its place & uses, however.

 

[Kayos]

It obviously won't compare to top end kit. That's why the price tags are worlds apart. Tradesman stick with the main brand tools as their primary kit for good reason. The cheaper stuff has its place & uses, however.

Not only did it not compare, it failed to work in any reasonable capacity. 40mm hole saw on the combi drill, going through soft floorboards. Couldn't manage it. For comparison I use the Makita with 127mm hole saw on the same floor

At that point it was not worth keeping

 

[Onoff]

My brother was after a cordless nibbler for working copper sheet. I've just started him on the Makita journey and he's bought a drill and two 5Ah batteries.

He was thinking of the Makita nibbler until he saw the price! It's like £40 vs £400. Going with the Parkside one and a 3D printed adapter now to use it with the Makita batteries.

Occasional need vs professional use is where these cheap tools can be a bargain. I've a Parkside 240V drywall, collated screw gun. It's marvelous. The, again corded, Parkside multitool has been great save for an easy fix (sticky switch). On the other hand I've had two successive Parkside SDS mains drills fail. Not had much experience of Aldi Ferrex though the 140A inverter welder is ace. My BiL uses and abuses his fixing digger buckets and farm machinery.

 

[fractured]

To be fair I have the Parkside gear and for cost and convenience I cant fault it. Some of the gear isnt great - the grinder is a bit weak (but I have used it lots) and the drill is also weak (but then its only got a 10mm chuck). However, for £280 I have the following:
Impact wrench
Impact driver
Grinder
Drill
Recip saw
Circular saw
Soldering iron
3x 4ah batteries
1x 2ah battery
2x single chargers (misplaced one so had to get another)

I am not sure how much that lot would cost if it was branded, but would not be surprised if it was £1k+
I fully understand the branded gear in most cases will be much better, but at branded prices I couldn't afford them so would not have them in the first pace. My tools are generally DIY, though on occasion they are hammered, but that is only for a couple of weeks before again going weeks without use. Some things only get very occasional use, but when I need them (often in the middle of a field) they are very handy and it makes the difference between being able to do the job and not!

If we ever get the Pro versions in the UK I will try my best to get the drill and the grinder for their added strength.

 

[Nick67GT]

Do they come with a 3-year warranty like similar kit from Aldi?

 

[MattF]

Yes.

 

[Migmac]

My ferrex drill packed in. I may or may not of helped it die The chuck was the issue plus I wanted a Red one ! The driver has been faultless

 

[northwest]

I have mostly Yellow, which has served me well, a couple of Red ones and now a couple of Grey ones.

 

[Onoff]

What grease would I use for the gearbox on the 20V Parkside Nibbler?

I suspect they haven't gone overboard with it at the factory.

 

[GRW]

Occasional use tools I buy corded stuff. I have the Screwfix Erbaur battery grinder (it's OK, but battery life is poor with a 5AH - great for getting you out of a hole on site tho), the battery drill (it's OK, not super-powerful & struggles a bit with a step/cone drill bit, but ok) & the Impact Driver (which I use loads, even with a 1/2" socket adaptor to connect/remove M12 cable lugs) which is brill & I wish I'd got one years ago.

 

[marlinspike]

My experience of Aldi and Lidl stuff is that the tools are really good value but the accessories are pants. The knock off Dremel discs and grinding burrs don't last, in fact the discs shatter almost straight away. Same experience with the grinder discs.