[Alex Wingrove]

i bought one because of your thread, was looking for a decent reel that wouldnt fall to pieces after a year or so

anyways when i got it, i was impressed very sterdy, larger and heavier than i was thinking,

I do like the large circumference of the reel thought, this means that reeling in is quicker and with less effort, i like how it doesnt leak, and you can use pro end fittings, and not rubbish hoselock.

all in all, a very good reel, bit heavy, bit unstable sideways, but i would buy another

[Alex Gardiner]

Nice reels Slumpbuster 

I am not against electric reels, just I didn't feel that £850 for the currently available 'off-the-shelf' options were viable. I like the drive adpater that you have fitted to your reels.

The more I think about portable drills being used the more I think that it is a cost effective option. There are some very powerful flat professional drills on the market that would work very well and take up less space, perhaps even able to be attached to one of the support legs of the reel.

How long does a charge on the drill last?

I think the perfect combo would be your electric reel and Tim's roller set-up on the other thread.

With regards to the ROBO-VAC it looks far too expensive and Mrs.A would miss the fun of hoovering!!

[Alex Wingrove]

With regards to the ROBO-VAC it looks far too expensive and Mrs.A would miss the fun of hoovering!!

Well i might get my Mrs A one, its only a flat but gets so dirty all the time

alternatively a monkey with skills

[Clive McDonald]

The roomba can be gotten on the internet for £220 delivered. I have convinced several people to get one since having mine and they are all glad i did.

I work very hard, as does my wife, this is an excellent option if you have a large house that is relatively clean.You are very lucky mr's a is so supportive, in biz, on the forum, and otherwise.

The electric drive works very well, my helper had no trouble at all learning to use it, and when my reel broke he hated the few days when he had to hand crank it.

Screw fix send me email offers and i bought a makita drill with three 1.3 ah batteries for £84(two speed and it has to be on the slower speed for the correct torque).They take about 20min to recharge and mostly i would use two batteries in a day.

When i got my helper and we had two electric reels in use off one drill i was borderline using all three. I wanted to buy another but screwfix no longer sell them.However, i had bought my dad one, so i purloined two of his batteries (giving me five).
I have now bought an hitachi £79.99 from screwfix with three 1.4ah batteries and a torch.Dad will have that and i will have a second makita and six batteries.

In everyday use i would expect me and my helper to get through one and a half batteries each, but it's nice to have a safety margin.

The bits took my dad a long time to machine, but it's possible that an engineering company could do the same thing in a simpler and more cost effective way.

The reel that broke has now been fixed by replacing the insides with metal parts.

[macmac]

1.3 & 1.4ah batteries are not very long lasting, a bit old hat, that's why they're thrown in with the offers.

Erbuer (screwfix's own brand) 18v come with 2.0ah as standard, or even better, fork out for a Lion power pack.

[Clive McDonald]

It's a bit confusing for someone like me who doesn't know. Many drills are £250, so £80 always seems a cheaper option.Often these dearer ones only have one battery.

The makita has been hammered every day for over a year and is still good.

[macmac]

It's a bit confusing for someone like me who doesn't know. Many drills are £250, so £80 always seems a cheaper option.Often these dearer ones only have one battery.

The makita has been hammered every day for over a year and is still good.

Very good drills don't get me wrong but it wouldn't be 80 quid with a better battery either.

[matt]

the more expensive drills will have the newer type of battery which will last much longer

then again slumpy, i have told you how to get over the battery issue, you can then get a 85 aph battery that will last you ages till you have to charge again