I canceled my order for Makita’s new LC09 cordless car-cleaning vacuum. It was a great price, and it looks like a very well-suited kit for what it’s designed for.
But do I need another cordless vacuum?
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I convinced myself that the attachments were spot-on for what I need and could use, and I saw ways I could use the tool in ways outside of a car’s interior.
The blower attachment and nozzle looks useful, perhaps even for cleaning computer fans and heatsinks. The brush attachment also looks especially useful. But, once the vac is released, perhaps I can buy just the brush attachment, and find an adapter to mate it with my other vacs.
When the first comments came in, asking how powerful and long-running a 12V-class cordless vacuum could be, that’s when I started to doubt its suitability for my needs. But, maybe that’s all the more reason to buy it, for review purposes.
I think that Makita’s new cordless vac looks expertly designed and well configured for its targeted applications. But, it’s not for me, someone who has great shop vacuums, a car-cleaning hose and accessory kit, and a fairly portable 18V-class cordless vacuum.
I like the throw-away filter/bag nature of this vac, and replacements are fairly inexpensive. Most other cordless vacs need to be emptied, which can be quicker and easier, but also a hassle, depending on the types of material it has collected.
Ultimately, and still sight-unseen, I think this is a compelling cordless vac.
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But, I’ve convinced myself that it’s not for me.
Maybe I’ll change my mind again.
My hesitations have nothing to do with the design, its accessories, or the overall package, which I quite frankly think is very well done. It’s the fact that I let myself fall into the trap of wanting a new tool to solve some of the obstacles and frustrations of cleaning out the dirt, debris, sand, and drywall dust.
For me, it probably would have ended up being a uni-tasker, and a solution to a problem I already have other decent solutions to.
I might have allowed myself to get a little lazy, seeking out ideal solutions rather than ways to improve my current ones. Maybe I’ll buy the attachments once they’re available. Maybe I’ll find 3rd party attachments to fit my Milwaukee cordless vac. Or maybe I’ll start cleaning out the car more regularly (I really should) and eventually buy this Makita model next year to make my life a little easier.
In writing up my preview post of the new vac, I discussed why I ordered/pre-ordered one, and the appeal I saw in the design.
I had hesitations about the order, and have been wondering whether increasing review-considerations reasons were strong enough to keep my order, despite waning personal justifications. The final straw came this morning. I looked at how much work I still needed to put into cleaning my workshop and storage areas, and asked myself: “Where am I going to put it?”
Given that my discussion about the vacuum focused on the reasons behind my preordering it, I thought it would be wise to talk about why I canceled that preorder.
The challenge here is how to convey the reasons I don’t want to buy it, while making it clear that I still think it’s a good design and kit configuration.
Frankly, I’m not worried about runtime. If the compact battery isn’t enough, Makita does have higher capacity 12V CXT 4.0Ah battery.
I’m not much worried about power either. Something like this is more meant for maintaining a clean car. Maybe it can handle deep cleaning sessions on a freshly charged battery. But I more get the sense that it’s for once-a-month clean-outs, rather than 6-month seasonal sessions that can take a while.
Sometimes I get hung up on my “right tool for the job” and “best tool for the job” fixations.
But you know what? I should not have preordered this in the first place. I was not looking for a new car-cleaning vacuum. Too often, especially these days, we get wooed by new tools, equipment, and consumer products. We see something and “I gotta have that” emotions take over.
In this case, the added $20 off $100+ promo helped push me from an “I could totally benefit from this” mentality towards “I need this.”
On top of that, there’s a ToolGuyd voice that whispers “do it, there’s a review opportunity here.”
I maintain my hands-off opinion that the vacuum, its accessories, and kit are compelling. But they’re not for me, at least not right now.
NoDeuces
Good for you. Makita, more than other companies, seem to be nakedly reaching into our wallets with their 12v line. I say that because of 12v only tools they produce. I have a ton of 18v Makita tools, that I love. I have some m12 for portability that I like.
“Get your finger out of my ass wallet!”
Stuart
The problem wasn’t with the tool, it was with my over-justifying it to myself when I shouldn’t have.
Altan
Makita 12V tile cutter is good, I wish DeWALT would make one like this, I like 12V Screwdrivers and Lasers, but for other tools I go minimum for 20V tools. 12V Soldering Iron also is good for this range, but Vacs should be minimum 60V or Cordless 120V. Forget about 12V Vacs, I would not buy 20V Vacs even, I had one and I sold it after a few use. Battery dies in 10 min, extremely noisy and not powerful enough, until DeWALT comes up with a 60V Toughsystem compatible Vac or cordless 120V Vac I will use my Henry and Miele corded Vacs. No more money for junks…
Matt
You know, I was going to buy the V20 Craftsman vac for my wife to use around the house and for her car. I’ve kinda talked myself out of it though for the same reasons. I just don’t think we’d be happy and am probably better off dealing with the cord. It was the same thing with the weed wacker. They had a V20 one for somewhere around 100 bucks at Lowe’s and since I bought into the platform, I thought that would be what I’d probably get. For the same reason though, I couldn’t do it. I was too concerned about the lack of power and thought I’d have buyers remorse. So I spent the extra 100 bucks for something I knew I’d be happy with and got the V60 weed wacker.
Like you (and probably many others), I’d love a 60V/V60 vac. Now that I have that platform too, I’d jump on it in a heartbeat.
Altan
Good, it is going to be another lesson to SBD that they should make a better Vac if they don’t want to lose more customers, DeWALT or Craftsman are almost the same for me, they almost have identical tools. two brothers which SBD got Craftsman from its Cherokee wife and the DeWALT from its Japanese wife.
Perry
I’m sure I’m not the only one, in saying that one of the major reasons I’m a regular here is because of the tool reviews. Have you thought about buying, reviewing and selling? I don’t know how much you make off of this site, but it might be enough to lose $20 on a tool if readers are willing to pay the same price to you if you include the shipping. Just a thought, I dont know how reasonable that is with your time.
Stuart
I try to only purchase review samples that I am willing and interested in using and testing long-term.
Reselling purchased review samples is not something I am willing to do. If I part with a purchased tool, it’s given away or donated.
Lance
If this tool was on their 18v platform I would have ordered one already. I have the M12 Milwaukee stick vacuum and it’s OK, but just OK. It replaced our bathroom dustbuster but compared to my 18v Makita stick vac it’s less powerful and has short run times. I doubt this new 12v Makita is much better than the M12.
Makita should release every single one of their new 12v tools as an 18v compact model as well (and in black!). This would grow their huge 18v lineup as well as keep customers from straying to M12. I really like my M12 tools, but I LOVE my 18v Makita tools.
KenZ
Agreed. I had their M18 small vacuum, but it died. So I considered this…. but didn’t want to buy into another platform, so I just bought another M18 one last week.
The What?
Good call on canceling the pre-order. And I think it’s real cool that you’re willing to drop your own bread so you can give us a review and something to read about. Not everyone would do that. Storage space – I think that’s a problem that most of us have. I’ve bought things that were a heck of a deal at the time that I ended up not having the space to store it. So I’ve had to sacrifice my side of the garage to store all of the stuff I keep buying. I’ve refrained from buying things that I don’t have anywhere to put which was one of my new years resolutions. But I generally try not to buy things that I don’t really have a need for and especially if I already have a better one. In your case you already have a shopvac which is probably more than capable of cleaning your vehicle so why spend money when you can’t justify the need? That’s how I try to look at things and it’s hard to exercise that discipline when you want something, but in the long run you’ll appreciate what you already have and you’ll begin to make better use of those things when you realize that you didn’t need what you wanted. Car cleaning accessories come a dime a dozen and although this makita is conveniently sized for what it’s made to do, you made the right call by asking yourself do I really need this.
Stuart
Thank you! I try to keep things strict. If there is something I need or want for personal/ToolGuyd/workshop use, and there’s editorial value, we buy it.
For instance, if I *need* a miter saw for long-term project use, I *must* buy it, even if it’s something I plan to review. If I know I will have some miter saw work coming up, I might have Brand A on my shopping list, but if Brand B came out with a new model of especially strong editorial interest, I might request or accept a review sample under the expectation that it will be given away or donated. But, I will still look to buy Brand A’s for personal use. If Brand B’s sample proves to be perfect, and I want to keep it, I’d have to balance the scale by buying one or something similar for a reader giveaway. If the situation surrounding a tool is different, full disclosure and transparency must be made. Finances don’t allow for us to buy everything that is reviewed or tested for review, but if I/we want to own it or use it in such a manner, I/we have to buy it. The goal is to avoid, minimize, and hopefully eliminate any potential compromises to our objectivity.
Charles
If you receive a sample for free does your review note it ? Sorry if I haven’t noticed
Stuart
Always, as per our policy.
There will usually be a contextual “x-brand sent us a [tool]” somewhere in the introduction if it’s a long post, and there will be a disclosure/acknowledgement at the end, usually “thank you to [brand] for supplying us with a review sample.” I’m not as strict about purchased tools, but if I remember the origin, there will be a “this item was purchased at retail from [retailer].”
Although we go to great lengths to be thorough and transparent in disclosures, if you’re ever unclear as to whether a tool was purchased or provided as a sample, we’re always happy to answer questions.
Things sometimes get a little blurry. I bought a couple of Husky screwdriver sets, and I also have samples sent from Home Depot, and if mixed I won’t be able to tell them apart.
RCWARD
Sounds like you just wised up. Good decision dude.
Tim E.
I kept my preorder of it, for different reasons. The CFM rating is very good, especially for 12V, but that’s probably on the high setting, so likely much less than the 33 minute runtime claims. I’m really hoping the low vs hi is a good spread.
The main reason I kept the order is the bag. For whatever reason, I’ve been getting more and more annoyed recently by bagless vacuums, especially for ones intended for dry only operation, and not just sawdust type stuff. Shop vacs are fine because sawdust takes up a lot of volume but is easy to dump, as is drywall dust and similar (other than caking the filter). For hair and crumbs and mixed diet like a car or around the house, I really prefer a bag. I’m strongly considering using the same promotion to get a makita XLC01 stick vacuum to replace or augment my xlc02, which I use a lot around the house to pick up dried cat food, litter and other such randomness when I don’t want to get out the regular vacuum.
The second reason, which is also a huge factor in my decision, is size and convenience. The M18 toolbox vac is sometimes a bit big, and a bit loud, for quick one off usage. The M18 teapot vac is better, but still a bit bulky with a 5Ah battery, and a bit more oddly shaped. It’s also sometimes just more than I need for a quick cleanup, if this one is smaller, quieter, even if not as powerful, that’s still hugely useful. I’ll be very curious to get this in hand and get a better gauge of the size of it.
The dual functionality is also a big point. Sometimes I need the compressor to really blast dust out of something, but I’m hopeful that this with the concentrator nozzle will work well for many of the lighter situations. Having a separate blower hose may mean I can vacuum and blow at the same time with the one unit, useful since I usually try to vacuum up whatever debris I’m blowing out, rather than unplug stuff to take outside to blow out or similar.
I envision mostly using this for quick jobs where convenience is the primary factor. I usually bust out the M12 vac since I have it out and convenient if I’m drilling a hole or two in drywall, to catch the dust. With a hose rather than as a Dustbuster, this will likely be more convenient for that (plus the bag for that is better than the filter IMO). An added bonus is being able to use this with my robotics team for a similar purpose. We drill a lot of holes in the aluminum frame after the bot is started being put together, whether for prototyping or adding some reinforcement or what have you. Our number one abmonishment to the students is to get a vacuum to collect the aluminum chips as they drill, so they don’t get all over the robot and have to be cleaned up later. Even more so if we’re fixing it modifying a finished bot, we don’t want chips in the electronics or in the gearbox grease or similar, so we really want to vacuum them up as the hole is being drilled, at the source. Corded vacs are inconvenient, they almost never use them. The Toolbox style vacs are better, but sometimes just too big for quick jobs, especially if they’re off being used on a machine or similar for cleanup (kids hate plugging anything in apparently to use the corded vacs for that either). The M12 vac doesn’t work because it doesn’t have a hose and doesn’t always fit wherever and have good sight and all. The M18 teapot was probably one of the better ones for this purpose, though it’s shape made it awkward sometimes to try to set somewhere and not have tip. They currently have my Bosch 18V wet/dry vac, since they can put it on the floor and it’s stable, and the hose is usually just long enough to get up to where they need and is easy to maneuver since it isn’t a collapsible hose like the M18 teapot. I feel like this vac might be even better suited because of the small size and convenience, and the bags for not-hot aluminum chips may make them actually check the bag and change it if it’s full, rather than the bagless vacs that no one wants to deal with emptying, especially if they’re also using tap magic like they should so the shavings are a bit oily / sticky. The blower would also be nice for cleaning off some of the tools and machines outside, or blowing chips out of the crevices of the robot when needed, rather than trying to wipe them out with a paper towel since grabbing the air hose is also too much work apparently.
I’ll try to post a review of my own once I get it, look at is as an auto vacuum, or for more general usage.
Adam
A guy at a vacuum repair place that has been around FOREVER, said bagged vacuums do a better job than bagless. He swore by it, and had a great argument for them. While I believe him, the reoccurring cost of bags is what keeps me from them.
TonyT
Using quality 3rd part vacuum bags help.
My main house vacuum is a 13 year old Bosch canister vac. The Bosch bags probably aren’t even available now, but I’ve been very happy with reasonably priced (but not cheap, for sure!) 3rd party bags. BTW, the vac is still going strong, and I like its (relative) quietness, adjustable vacuum, and the ability to get the beater brush under furniture.
Tim E.
Miele vacuum bags border on horrendously expensive as well. I’ve tried a few third party ones, but the only ones that were marginally on par weren’t all that less expensive than the real ones. I get mine subscribe and save on amazon which makes them a bit cheaper, though I also used to get them from bed bath and beyond with the coupons (even though they say they don’t apply to Miele). Some of the cheaper third party ones didn’t filter as well (a lot faster buildup on the HEPA filter, and even the premotor filter that was enough to see), some reduced the suction a lot. It just wasn’t worth it to save a few dollars a box for the slightly cheaper 3rd party that still performed versus the name brand ones, especially on a thousand dollar vacuum.
Altan
I have used non original Miele bag once and it did burst inside the Vac and made a three hours job for me to clean everything…
TonyT
I’m pretty sure I’ve been using bags from EnviroCare such as these (I’d have to check at home to make sure):
https://www.amazon.com/Type-Bosch-Vacuum-Cleaner-Replacement/dp/B00158QSYI
and haven’t had any problems but I bought so many last time I haven’t bought any in a few years. My recollection is that they were more expensive then, and I had a choice of super cheap but cheesy or more expensive and decent (which I bought; they do have a good feel to them, and I love how I can pull the cardboard tab up and close them).
Altan
I agree also, bagged ones are better. I don’t mind if I have to pay for bags, at the end clients would pay it back. Also some companies like Festool have reusable bags.
Nathan
my biggest problem with bagless – or whatever you want to call it. Is I often have to touch the dirt to empty them completely.
Take the dyson cordless stick thing (they come if 5 versions of the same) – it’s handy – sure. But for some reason to empty it completely and to get the static clings off the bin – I have to stick my hand in there and sweep it.
Good thing I’m not alergic to much – hepa filtering be damned then. So I love my old electrolux – bags and all. I pick it up – throw it away and don’t touch a thing.
Altan
It is not easy to get spare parts and attachments always, I have tried to get some but they don’t provide. The attachments are good I would say.
Dee
Does this mean you’re going to locate a good attachment kit, possibly 3rd party, to fit your 18V kit for the detail cleaning and stuff?
Stuart
I’ll try. The biggest thing I hate cleaning are vent grates, such as in front of air filters and what-not. So many nooks and crannies, and no brush or detail brush I’ve used yet can handle it well, leading me down the eventual path of going line by line with a paper towel or clean rag. That’s partially when wooed me about the Makita.
Nathan
my electrolux with soft brush seems to go a good job – biggest thing I think is the need for more suction pressure (vacuum if you will). If it doesn’t pull hard enough to get it up and through the brush all you do is move the dirt with the brush.
Issue I have using out dyson widget.
Chris
You should 3D print your vacuum attachments.
You could even have one with bristles.
Plus, there are hundreds of different designs that others have done on thingiverse.
Noah
I have the newer Makita vacuum xcv11z which I like so far and is practical for a lot of small punch list jobs in clients homes. I do wish it had an option for a bag though. I assumed it diminishes the CFM and that’s why they left it out but other cordless vacs have the option
Frank D
It could be a practical little machine, but after home vacuums, 12 gall shop vac, 4 gallon shop vac, 2 gallon shop vac … spending even more for a tiny niche thing, just did not make sense to me.
Ridgid had their 4 gallon unit for $59 now and it is on wheels! (wish mine had that) and it is great for car cleaning. Just get a hold of a longer hose if needed and attachments from old home vac work just fine for car detailing … even if you have to use a little tape, a piece of pvc to go between or maybe 3D print an adapter ring. Couple paint brushes, maybe a small bottle cleaner brush, … and bob’s your uncle.
MichaelHammer
Listen to me and hear me later. 10.8V vacs, or 12V as you all call them, suck because they do not suck. There’s no magic. You can’t get 10.8V to produce enough power for a vacuum to work anywhere even approximating what you are accustomed to. I think you made the right decision. You want a vac only good enough to suck up stray Cheerios, have at it.
Robert
My recommendation (to anyone) if you want to keep your shop/trailer uncluttered, and not spend a fortune, is to only buy a tool you have an IMMEDIATE need for.
If you have doubts, you don’t need it and can afford to wait.
I’ve waited over a year for a tool I thought I needed. It builds patience and self-control. Both of which are much more important than tools.
Thanks for this review Stuart.
Stuart
That’s a very good point, and I generally do have good self-control. Or rather, I research, research, research, and then I will make a purchasing decision once I’m fully confident about my choice. Sometimes that can take a very long time.
BUT, when it comes to tools, I will sometimes be impulsive because we strive to help provide readers with information to aid their own purchasing decisions.
Robert
Yes, I utilize your reviews and what other commenters say to gain more knowledge about specialty tools if I’m unsure of their actual benefits. The battery powered caulking gun would be one tool that I waited to buy because I was uncertain (It’s made the job enjoyable a few times when I had to go through a few dozen tubes of a viscous caulking). ?
Altan
I partially agree with you Robert, But if you want to buy a tool that you have an immediate need for and you keep waiting to not buy it before an immediate need sometimes you end up with that tool being discontinued, so you better keep an eye on it on regular basis to see if it is going to be discontinued or not. Another thing I would like to mention is that some tools are absolute necessity for everyone in this sector and the number one is a good Vac, you need to clean after yourself and also not breath dust during the work, so a good Vac does not need to be in waiting list. And about tool accessories I am completely against this idea, the quality in tool accessories is going down slowly slowly, and also I did find out in 2000 or 2005 I could find more different types of screwdriver bits which made me dig google for days to see if I can find some sellers in the middle of nowhere which might have some old stock screwdriver bits… I can still get them but it will be special order and extremely expensive. Sometimes I do find Some 50mm long C6.3 screwdriver bits and pay £5 for each bit to someone who has CNC machine to turn them to E6.3 1/4″ hex shank bits. Even non discontinued items are not easily available.
Altan
I had the Makita Cordless Caulking Gun and it was amazing, It was made in Japan and was very well built, I could see a huge quality difference between Japanese made Makita tools and the Makita tools which are made in other countries. I sold it when DeWALT came up with 20V Caulking Gun as I want my tools to be in one battery platform, I use this tool to install covings as I need to squeeze a lot of “no more nail” adhesive a day and manual gun is just headache.
Theo Van Niekerk
Not a very good review. Tool reviews should be about the tools. Not about your patience and self control. Try writing about the tools. Not yourself.
Stuart
I’m sorry I didn’t review the unreleased tool that I decided against purchasing via preorder?
Quite frankly, I don’t know what you’re looking for me to say. The title was pretty clear, I can’t imagine why or how you might think this was a review.
Seeing as how my preview post included commentary about why I preordered the vac, I felt the need to post an update about why I changed my mind.
Altan
OK boss!
I would like to see you having a blog and then we would see how many people criticize you. Try to be a bit positive and I don’t think there was a problem with the post at all, commenters including me always change the path of the post a bit as I am also going to do now and Stuart does not like to be so strict about this to not make it boring, he lets us to be a bit free and he very well knows where to give warning, it has a good balance.
Anyway I have found a very nice tool from Rothenberger similar to Antex electric soldering tool but much professional comparably, it comes in 110V and 230V versions also. Rothenberger is a serious German brand, making very reliable plumbing tools, Before for their power tools they were using Makita batteries, then they switched to their own batteries and now to Metabo batteries. This tool is quite big and I am looking for a cordless version of it begging uncle DeWALT to make it for me, something similar to their plumbing power tools’ design…
Altan
Here is the link
https://www.tradecounterdirect.com/product/rotherm-2000-soldering-unit_110-volt.html
DC
Pass on this vacuum. I have 2- Makita 18 V LXT, one for each floor of the house and a M18 Fuel fishing tackle box style vacuum which I use in the garage and cars. My guess the 18 v LXTs are better than the 12v version. If I need more power, then I break out my Ridgid 14 gallon “Big Oaf” shop vac that does the job.
JoeM
I’m still kinda confused as to why people pre-order things in the digital era. I’m not limiting this to tools, I’m talking EVERYTHING. Movies, Music, Tickets, Thingmabobs… No clue why the practice of Pre-Ordering has survived. The only people it benefits are the same people who continually neglect to make enough to fill the orders that were reserved. Yeah, some companies are better at it than others, but as a whole, the practice of getting people excited about a tool, taking their money, then making them wait all this time? It really doesn’t mix well when we can have direct digital communications with them, track our orders by the hour, or by the incidents that happen along the way, and still not get what we ordered at the end.
Back in the Catalog Order days, sure… that could make some sense… How many wrench sets DOES good OLD Sears have to order for Craftsman owners? That’s easy, count the orders! There used to be a processing time of a week at one point, long before I was born, but still. Pre-Orders made sense when there were huge processing delays.
What sense does it make now that the User/Consumer has near instant access to all the information involved, including the physical measurements of every curve and line on the company’s latest Booth Babe Model? Or, if they’re so inclined, the physical address of the corporate headquarters, their direct phone numbers, and pictures attached to the company’s employees, given enough snooping around the giant Interweb Monstrosity we’re on? There are those who could easily hack into security cameras and watch these pre-ordered tools be built in real time, and get that much more angry when they push back release dates, if they attach release dates to the pre-order AT ALL anymore. I’ve never been burned by a pre-order before, I’m just…Really confused as to why we still do this outdated practice at all.
Unlike the metaphor of Using Leeches in Medicine, at least Leeches can help heal skin graft cases these days, and maintain their usefulness. Using Pre-Orders is a bit like checking the Medieval and Renaissance era “Humors” for their balance levels before purchasing. We’ve researched such advanced things that we’ve proved those practices to be useless. Pre-Orders are smack in the middle of that “Time to Phase it Out” pile of things we’ve moved past.
And, before I’m chided by fred for not appreciating “The Old Ways” I’m not talking the MASSIVE importance of listening to experienced users like you, fred. There’s a difference between keeping extremely important knowledge, and holding onto antiquated or arcane practices that we’ve invented our way around by now. Going back to your personal Plane collection? That’s a Museum-Quality collection, and if you ever documented it into a book, I bet every Craftsman who ever took on an apprentice, would hand them that book and say “Here, this will give you some idea why we can only get results we want from THESE old tools.” Whereas the practice of “Pre-Ordering” doesn’t have book-worthy lessons to it to pass on. It’s just an extremely questionable practice in the face of all the things we have integrated at our fingertips, from financing records, to delivery and logistic tracking solutions. The Pre-Order just… Doesn’t make any sense.
I am VERY confused as to why it still exists. Is it the equivalent of someone’s pet Dodo Bird? I just don’t understand.
Stuart
Why do brands and retailers do preordering? That’s a very long and complex answer full of presumptions.
Why did I preorder it? Because I wanted to take advantage of the $20 off $100 promo that is unlikely to still be available when the tool starts shipping. As a secondary reason, preordering can sometimes get a tool in your hand sooner.
JoeM
Let’s be fair to you on this, Stuart… You pre-ordered it to get it at a Promo Price, yes… but as you have noted in your article, the device itself was too much of a grand justification for the tool. So your Pre-Order status kinda cancels itself out. It’s not really a valid case for pre-ordering anymore, now that it has been cancelled.
We can’t hang the entirety of Pre-Ordering on your case here, and you shouldn’t have to state your reasoning anymore. You already wrote the article in detail, and you don’t have to defend YOUR reasoning anymore.
More and more, I’m seeing people reporting failures in the Pre-Order and Backorder processes. Was there a time when it worked as advertised? Certainly. But, it has become so broken, and so hit-or-miss, that every Pre-Order results in total consumer limbo. There’s so much uncertainty and variation on the practice, it simply doesn’t make sense anymore.
Many companies OFFER certain benefits to Pre-Ordering, but their actual follow-through on their deliveries appears to have dropped down to about 20% across the board. Could you get it with a discount? 20% chance of Yes. Could you get it sooner? 20% chance of Yes. Go down the list of benefits, take away the company names, and the practice itself only works 20% of the time.
So, we’re betting on 20% chance of “YAY!” when the odds say it’ll be 80% LIKELY to be “Are you (Expletive Deleted) Kidding Me with this garbage??” It’s very hard to hold onto the optimism when the Reality is statistically against your favour like this. I’m not so jaded that I see a conspiracy going on here, I’m just seeing a product that doesn’t work anymore. Name a benefit, any benefit, and it’s scarred by the total likelihood being down at 20% you’ll actually get the thing as expected.
Stuart
I ordered a Stabila level set. https://toolguyd.com/stabila-4pc-level-set-promo-032019/
I thought it would be shipping soon. Now, the ETA has been pushed back to July 2019 due to delays and high demand. That has technically become a preorder.
Avengers Engame is available for preorder on Blu-Ray. I can’t think of any benefit to preordering it.
However, there are times when you lose out if you don’t preorder. Sony had a limited edition Spiderman PS4. It sold out. If you didn’t preorder, you couldn’t buy one.
Some movies are released in special collectable Steelcase boxes. If you don’t preorder, you might not be able to buy one.
With tools, you can still get what you want to if you don’t preorder it, but you might have to wait longer, or you might not get the best promo.
Once a tool starts shipping, it’s no longer a preorder item, but backorder, and the user experience is relatively unchanged.
With books, preordering the latest in a series can help ensure that you won’t miss it and forget to order it when it does start to ship.
I preordered the Wood Whisperer’s latest book. https://toolguyd.com/essential-joinery-by-marc-spagnuolo/
If you don’t like the idea of preordering, that’s fine. I can explain why I preordered or might have preordered something, or why I might recommend it on a case by case basis.
The great thing about opinions is that there’s no right answer or preference.
I’m not trying to convince you that preordering is good, or oppose the argument that it is bad, I’m just explaining my experiences and reasoning. I will clear up inaccuracies, however, such as the often repeated statement that preorders are interest-free loans to retailers or brands.
I have experienced the inability to buy what I wanted because I waited too long, and this sometimes steers my purchasing decisions.
Sometimes it’s about getting an item faster, other times it’s about getting something cheaper. With small items, like books, it’s “buy and forget.”
THEN, there IS the discussion of “group buys,” such as via MassDrop. There, you do pay ahead of time for future delivery. I’ve done that a few times, and saved quite a bit of money.
Some other retailers require a “reservation” or deposit for preordering, but that’s usually for items that are in very high demand, presumably where there would otherwise be a high cancellation rate.
Altan
Pre-order means “We don’t have money to invest and make tools, you give the money first, with that money we buy the material and make the tool and after 6 months you can get your tools.” You can translate it that way also, Joe.
It is like you give your money with no interest to someone to make something for you and then make money on you with your own money. I would not do it….
Stuart
No, it doesn’t.
Most if not all retailers will not charge you for a preorder until it ships. The only differences I’ve seen is when you use PayPal instead of a credit card.
I have seen some refer to preordering as an interest-free loan, and that is simply inaccurate.
The same is usually true for backorders. The transaction is not processed until the tool is received by the retailer and shipped to the customer.
Altan
I have bought a lot of things online and sometimes I have noticed the item does not come from the seller itself, it actually comes directly from the brand or a supplier, but not the seller, the sellers were some proper retailers sometimes, even in ikea they charge you first and then after 4-8 weeks they give your kitchen even though those kitchens are some regular kitchens which always sell quickly if they have them on the shelves, it might be different in the UK though, I can not talk for the US.
The What?
I’ve always used air to clean out the vents and interior panel lines. 150 psi will get rid of any dust that you have in your car. A vacuum ain’t gonna work if you want to get rid of the dust in between your windshield and dash or if you want to get the dust out of your seats. You got to put on a mask and blow it out. Vacuuming is for the carpeting. Everywhere else should be hit with air. You’d be surprised how well it works opposed to a vacuum. Give it a try.
Paul
I have the M18 toolbox vacuum. We use it all the time for cleaning out electrical panels, cleaning dirt off a concrete pad before setting a panel, cleaning coal dust, cleaning the truck and cars. Works much better than the old Dirt Devil car vacs. Ibut it is limited. It won’t pick up leftover 500 MCM wire strands for instanc4. I can get a lot more power out of a corded shop vac. But it fits neatly on my truck and no cords to mess with. The M12 Dirt Devil style vac is junk in comparison. Not sure what it could be used for. Multiple customers have tried to swipe the M18. Only gripe I have is it’s a wet-dry vac but you can’t let it get wet i lost the first one in a monsoon in South Carolina.
Douglas Harris
I’d rather take my truck in once every 4 months , spend 100 and have the whole thing detailed.