Growing up, my dad – the son of a union carpenter – turned me into a power tools fan at a young age. As I got older and got more into doing my own automotive work, I developed the notion that air tools were almost always superior to their electric power tool counterparts.
But a recent stumble upon a power tool that I’d thought was exclusively an air tool – and realizing it offered the same level of performance as the air-powered version – got me thinking about which type – on the average – provides superior performance.
To figure out that answer, I embarked on an internet research project to collect data on both types of tools and compare them. I had little idea how much data I would end up collecting. What I thought would take a week or two ended up taking months. Going through the pages for the numerous power tools for sale on Harbor Freight, Home Depot and Lowe’s websites to glean data on torque, maximum RPMs and the like got mind-numbing at times. But, in the end, the project was more than worth it.
The initial question that got this project started was sparked by my search for a new cut-off tool. I’d used an angle grinder or Dremel to cut the flared heads off of rivet-type motorcycle chain master links, but realized using a cut-off tool – with its vertical, thin cutting angle and larger wheel than a tiny Dremel one – would probably be the best option.
With cut-off tools being known as high-RPM tools, I figured it was a no-brainer to buy an air-powered one. There’s no way an electric motor could deliver 20,000 RPM or so of performance, right? A quick web search showed me I was wrong, as electric cut-off tools on Harbor Freight and Home Depot’s websites advertised the same or close to the same maximum RPM rating as their air-powered counterparts. I was floored by the discovery, which got me questioning the pedestal I’d placed air tools on on a larger scale.
To make this series of stories a little easier to write, I will just be looking at performance metrics for each tool category – not price. I considered adding a performance-per-dollar aspect, but with all of the varying features of many power tools – especially with some of them coming with accessories and carrying cases or being slight variations of the same tool – I decided it would be difficult to accurately wade into that type of analysis.
The analyses in the upcoming stories don’t take away from the inherent strengths and weaknesses of each type of tool power supply. Air tools still usually cost less than electric-powered tools and are more capable of being repaired while also requiring regular maintenance and an often expensive compressor to power them. Corded electrical tools can be powered from most standard outlets and don’t run out of charge, but their cords can make working with them cumbersome. Cordless electrical tools can be used anywhere without plugging into a power supply and have grown in terms of power and the range of tools available within a battery system. But the batteries don’t last forever, and if a company stops making your battery model it can be hard to find new ones – rendering your armada of tools useless.
There are some tools that – to my knowledge – are only made for one type of power source, such as air hammers, Dremels, blow guns, oscillating multi-function tools and impact drivers. Those categories and others like them won’t be covered in this series.
Some other types of tools I’m not planning to analyze – at least for now – are die grinders and paint guns. I only recently learned about the existence of electric die grinders and will wait to do a story about those until they become more popular (if they ever do) and their average price gets much closer to air-powered die grinders. There’s such a variety of air-powered and airless spray guns on the market for a wide variety of applications that – in my judgment – it’d be very labor intensive research-wise to develop an apples-to-apples analysis of them.
The first series of stories is to include analyses of impact wrenches, powered ratchets, cut-off tools, orbital sanders, dual-action sanders, drills and angle grinders.
