Mid-winter. It’s still a frozen wasteland out there, especially if you live in the northern half of the country. If you live in the Pacific Northwest, it’s milder, but also really wet. This is the “mud season” – and also the reason it’s so green the rest of the year. The last thing many of us want to do at this point is to work outside. However, it’ll be spring soon. Time to dig gardens, plant trees, and build fences. Talking about building fences..you’ll likely need to dig a few holes in which to set the uprights. The new Makita Brushless Earth Auger can help you do this, and we’re going to learn all about it in this installment of Tool News Nirvana.
Digging Deep with the Makita Brushless Earth Auger
Makita keeps investing strongly into its 18V LXT® battery platform, which is a great thing for all of us. With more than 275 available products on this platform, you’re able to complete almost any task around the house – cordlessly. This is doubly true (get it?) for the X2 tools, which use 2 18V batteries to deliver 36V of power for big jobs. The new 18V X2 (36V) LXT® Brushless Cordless Earth Auger (Model XDG01) is one of these tools meant for big, tough tasks. Makita claims that its brushless motor actually delivers enough power to replace a 36cc gas earth auger.
Ideal for landscaping, construction, and soil sampling, the Makita Brushless Earth Auger has the capacity to dig holes up to 8” wide and 41” deep. It has three speeds – 0 to 350 RPM, 0 to 1400 RPM, and something called “bore clear through the center of the earth” which for most of us would mean we’d emerge in the Indian Ocean somewhere. Alright – just kidding about that last speed setting. The XDG01 does have Automatic Speed Change™ technology, though, which adjusts the drill speed and torque during drilling. It’s also got a reverse switch, a torque limiter, and an LED work light.
Makita’s XPT (Extreme Protection Technology) helps to keep dust and water out, which seems ideal for a “dirtwork” tool. It’ll come either bare or as part of a kit. The kit includes 2 18V x 5.0 Ah batteries, a charger, 2 types of earth auger bit adapters, and a chuck key. It’s available now.
