For those of you who are thinking about buying a decapitated palace and renovating it, it is worth factoring the cost of tools and equipment required. (If you're in the building game, then you'll be exempt from this advise!)
I have seen over the years many renovation project fail, or take a very long time due to the lack of knowledge of what's fully required when renovating.
From a tool point of view, realistically I would recommend budgeting for a decent set of tool if you are thinking about buying an old ruin, especially if you are thinking about buying a Cottage in Brittany France.
Tools in France are very expensive, even the cheep DIY stuff like a common Black and Decker Drill. 5000Euros worth of tools (purchased in the UK) may seen excessive, but think about it this way; it will save you time in the long run when doing up your stone and slate cottage in the middle of the French country side. Also, if you buy a quality brand, like Makita, if they break, they are very easy to fix, and resell once you have finished your building project.
Just a note about some of my tools, in particular the cordless combi drills. My Makita BHP451 has technically died, (though I did manage to revive it back to life). In fairness the amount of abuse that baby has received in the last 4 years is quite astonishing. I now understand why Makita tools are coloured black and blue, it matches the colour of most things if you beat it hard enough!
Anyway, as I stated before, good quality tools can be fixed and spare part available online, for example, replacement parts for my combi drill can be found here - http://www.powertoolspares.com/tool/makita/spares-and-accessories-for-bga452/bga452/spares/, though my repair just required a loose wire to be replaced.
However, I have invested in a replacement; Makita DHP458 Body only, (I have loads of spare batteries.) I chose to get a replacement as my tools are my bread and butter. When something plays up, I can't afford to waste time.
There is a big difference between both the Makita BHP451 and the DHP458, though not obvious straight away. The main highlights are length, DHP458 is shorter, power; 10% more; has a better hook and has reduce the speed options from 3 to 2. (Having 3 speeds on the 451 required a larger gear box, thus making it longer and not really a usful feature!)
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| (Slate and Stone French Property) |
I have seen over the years many renovation project fail, or take a very long time due to the lack of knowledge of what's fully required when renovating.
From a tool point of view, realistically I would recommend budgeting for a decent set of tool if you are thinking about buying an old ruin, especially if you are thinking about buying a Cottage in Brittany France.
Tools in France are very expensive, even the cheep DIY stuff like a common Black and Decker Drill. 5000Euros worth of tools (purchased in the UK) may seen excessive, but think about it this way; it will save you time in the long run when doing up your stone and slate cottage in the middle of the French country side. Also, if you buy a quality brand, like Makita, if they break, they are very easy to fix, and resell once you have finished your building project.
Just a note about some of my tools, in particular the cordless combi drills. My Makita BHP451 has technically died, (though I did manage to revive it back to life). In fairness the amount of abuse that baby has received in the last 4 years is quite astonishing. I now understand why Makita tools are coloured black and blue, it matches the colour of most things if you beat it hard enough!
Anyway, as I stated before, good quality tools can be fixed and spare part available online, for example, replacement parts for my combi drill can be found here - http://www.powertoolspares.com/tool/makita/spares-and-accessories-for-bga452/bga452/spares/, though my repair just required a loose wire to be replaced.
 |
| (Makita combi drill BHP451 - stripped and serviced) |
However, I have invested in a replacement; Makita DHP458 Body only, (I have loads of spare batteries.) I chose to get a replacement as my tools are my bread and butter. When something plays up, I can't afford to waste time.
There is a big difference between both the Makita BHP451 and the DHP458, though not obvious straight away. The main highlights are length, DHP458 is shorter, power; 10% more; has a better hook and has reduce the speed options from 3 to 2. (Having 3 speeds on the 451 required a larger gear box, thus making it longer and not really a usful feature!)
 |
| (Comparing Cordless Drills - Makita BHP451 and DHP 458) |
