i’ve carried a little inverter in my laptop bag for a number of years now — a little 75W job that plugs right into a power outlet in the car.  It’s really handy on trips and in situations where you might otherwise completely run out of juice.  Apparently Black & Decker makes a few as well, ranging from the 100W version pictured above up to 750W monsters.

Of course, larger versions are available as well.  The trick is that once you start drawing enough current to power those larger units, you’ve got to pull some pretty low-gauge wire directly to the battery.  Somehow they always forget to mention that in advertisements.  But these smaller units work fine for a laptop and require no such messy install.

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Stuart tipped us off to another Amazon promo code:

“Special Offer: Use promotional claim code SCREWGUN at the checkout to get a Black & Decker LI3000 cordless screwdriver with internal lithium battery worth $34.99 free when you purchase $150 or more of any of thousands of qualifying tools.”

We’re not sure exactly which tools qualify, but if you were already planning on picking up a tool from Amazon you might easily cross the $150 mark.  It’s certainly worth trying the code.

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Reader Sizod tipped us to the fact that Amazon’s selling Black & Decker’s StormStation all-in-one rechargeable power source/radio/light — which we wrote about back in June — for $60 with free shipping right now.  Froogle’s finding it for more like $75 to $100, so this looks like a pretty good deal.

If you’ve been considering one, now may be the time.

The StormStation [Black & Decker]
Street Pricing [Froogle]
Buy It Now from Amazon [What's this?]

Reader Sizod clued us in to the fact that Black & Decker’s 18V Hedge Trimmer is available for $80 from Amazon (which is a pretty decent deal), but by adding the coupon code “YARDSALE” you receive an additional $8 off, dripping the price to $72 — which seems to be near the bottom of the range in Froogle.  (We did see one place selling it for $69 this morning.)

We haven’t tried this tool out yet, mainly because neither Sean nor I have hedges big enough to require much trimming.  So if you’ve had any experience with it, drop a comment here for Toolmongers who might be considering going cordless this summer.

Street Pricing [Froogle]
Buy It Now from Amazon [What's this?]

Even if you’ve got a big-ass air compressor around the shop or house, it’s always handy to have a smaller unit around for crap like blowing up bicycle tires or pumping up a car tire when the car’s out of easy reach of your big compressor.  Enter Black & Decker’s latest version of the small, portable air pump — the Air Station.

The ‘Station’s big claim to fame is that it runs on either 12V DC or 120V AC power so you can use it in the garage or house by plugging it into the wall, then carry it out to the car and plug it in a cigarette lighter power port to air up that aforementioned flat.

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I can see the first comment already: “My pump-up garden sprayer’s already cordless.”  Maybe B&D shoud’ve call this the “pumpless garden sprayer.”  Marketing aside, if you hate manual labor of even the most simple kind, Black & Decker’s got your number this year.  Between the AutoWrench, the AutoClamp, a powered hand saw, and this, you’d better start working out to keep those hands and arms strong.

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We’re fans of Black & Decker’s Handisaw — but that’s not what we’re talking about here.  This is a powered version of a good ‘ole hand saw.  Admittedly, at first glance we wondered why there’s a need for this kind of tool, but then wondered if maybe it wouldn’t be useful for homeowners who’re cutting a few 2×4s.

What say you?  Cool tool or junk?  Check out the link below and let us know in comments what you think.

Firestorm 18V Cordless Powered Hand Saw [Black & Decker]

Related:

• Hands-On: Black & Decker’s HandiSaw
• Hands-On: The Worx Revolver Assault Reciprocating Saw
• Stanley’s Folding Pocket Saw

Remember when the selection of cordless drill/drivers consisted of just “big drills” and “cordless screwdrives?”  Those times are long gone.  Why am I telling you this?  Because it’s tricky to understand where this new drill fits into the market, and it’s not something I can describe in a few sentences.

Let’s start with the basics: B&D’s new SC1400 (which is easier to say than “Super Compact Drill w/Lithium Ion Technology) is an average-sized 14.4V unit delivering 210 in-lbs of torque.  It features an all-metal standard chuck and two speed settings: 0-350 RPM and 0-1400 RPM.  Its battery is built-in.  Read on past the jump for the low-down.

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Myself writes: “Sick of having a different charger for every gadget?  Big tools get their own 18-volt packs, sure.  But little stuff like power screwdrivers and Dremels should really run from rechargeable AAs rather than proprietary packs.  Enter Black & Decker’s ’alkaline screwdriver’ AS600.

“As a screwdriver, the AS600 is fairly unremarkable.  It’s reasonably ergonomic, has a spindle lock for manual use, and develops a useful amount of torque.  Where it excels is in simplifying your power strip.

“Black and Decker’s packaging is adamant about using ‘four AA alkaline batteries only’, but the Earth and I would suggest ignoring that and slapping four of your hot-rod 2700mAh NiMH rechargeables in here.  They have lower internal resistance than alkalines, which means more torque and longer runtime, and of course zero landfill impact.”

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According to Advertising Age, the AutoWrench was one of the most sought-after tools this Christmas, largely because of Black & Decker and Home Depot’s heavy TV and print advertising.  According to Ad Age:

“Black & Decker declined to disclose sales figures, but the wrench sold out quickly at Home Depot’s 2,127 stores.  ‘We sold everything we bought by Christmas,’ said Billy Bastek, a hardware merchant for Home Depot.  (Sales are ‘loco,’ a Spanish-speaking sales associate in a New Jersey store told a consumer unable to find the wrench at two Home Depots on Dec. 23.)

The article also mentions finding one of the wrenches for a buy-in-now price of $57.99 on eBay two days after christmas.

Besides the fact that we’ve had a bit of fun with the AutoWrench — and the inventor, who’s a very nice guy, by the way, reads and comments from time to time here — this article’s worth checking out because it gives you a glimpse behind the “magic curtain” at how tool companies promote their tools.

How Black & Decker’s Wrench Stole Christmas — And Other Hot Products [Ad Age]

I’ve seen a few variants of this, but couldn’t help posting Black & Decker’s latest.  The idea behind these kind of lights is that you can wrap them around whatever you’ve got at hand to hold them in place, or even bend them into shape to make their own stand like in the picture.

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This little device attaches to vertical and horizontal surfaces, adjusts via three screw-type feet, and then projects a beam to simplify the installation of items along the level line.  Sure, there are zillion-dollar units designed for professional cabinet installers, but at just $30, this one looks like it’d be great for hanging pictures and such.

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Winter does to batteries the same thing it does to you: it makes them tired and lethargic.  Black & Decker’s marketing the new Simple Start as a relatively painless solution for when your trusty-last-summer battery leaves you stranded this winter – just plug it into the cigarette lighter for a little pick-me-up, then head off to Starbucks for one of your own.

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Over the last few years Black & Decker has vastly expanded their line of Workmate folding work tables to include all sorts of specialty versions — like this model that has wheels and can serve as a hand truck.

Heck, we use our ancient plain Workmate a ton in the shop — you can see it in many of our testing photos — but the idea of wheels sounds even better.  My only complaint about the one we have is that sometimes it’s a bit heavy to lug around.

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We’re quite familiar with “combo kits” when it comes to power tools, but here’s a new one (for me anyway): lawn care combo kits.  Black & Decker’s offering a kit including three of their 18V lawn care tools — a string trimmer, hedge trimmer, and hard surface sweeper — complete with wallmount storage station and a charger that’ll charge all three batteries simultaneously.

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Here’s an interesting idea: a Dustbuster-style vac with a ten position pivoting nozzle to make it easier to fit into tight spaces and to improve accessibility in high and low places.  Even if you have a shop vacuum, sometimes these little vacs are just the thing to pick up small amounts of sawdust from a quick single cut. 

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With all the battery/charging systems out on the market today the shelf starts to look like a small electrical city of red and green blinking lights.  (And if you think your shop’s bad, you should see our test bench!)  Each tool with its own battery system and respective charger makes placing a new charger on the shelf the beginning of a load vs. structural stability calculation.  Black & Decker is among the first to at least try and address some of these issues with the FSMVC 9.6v - 18v Multi Voltage Fast Charger. 

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