# Makita Colours?



## CanadianBeaver

I have noticed when looking for new Makita tools that there is a white series and it seems that there is also two different shades of teal. Is there a performance difference at all? Thanks!


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## chandler48

Not that I am aware of. They did go brushless, but I believe black and blue both have that feature. Now, for fear of bringing down the wrath of all women on the forum, the change in color was probably due to a woman designer entering the fray.


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## NotyeruncleBob

There doesn't seem to be a consistent reason in the color scheme, but in general the white ones are often slightly older designs (which doesn't mean they're bad. They're are some great tools in the 18v lineup that didn't really need redesigns) and the subcompacts are black, but some other tools that aren't subcompact are also black like the radio. Unless they were designed on a Tuesday, then they're teal.


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## 47_47

I've only seen the white color on cordless models with the 1.5 amp hour battery. I have a 24 year old circ saw and chop saw and both are teal.


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## BIG Johnson

I think the white line is geared to the HO diyer


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## Nik333

https://toolcraze.net/makita-teal-vs-white-18v-power-tools-whats-the-difference/


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## Mickey-Mantle

I've heard that Makita white is for US and Australia only and not for Europe, whereas blue is also for Europe.


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## Gymschu

Mickey-Mantle said:


> I've heard that Makita white is for US and Australia only and not for Europe, whereas blue is also for Europe.


Mickey, how are the ballfields on the other side?:smile:


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## Nealtw

Gymschu said:


> Mickey, how are the ballfields on the other side?:smile:


In the corner of the corn field.


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## woodworkbykirk

im in canada.. the white drills are the lower end brushed models... 

the green models are their lxt brushed models and teh lxt bx are the brushless line...

black is for their subcompact brushless models which are the size of 12v drills but have the power of the 18v lineup.


also the higher end kits will come bundled with either 4 or 5 amp batteries.. the low end kits typically have 2 amp or the older 1.5 amp


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## NotyeruncleBob

woodworkbykirk said:


> the white drills are the lower end brushed models...


Not exactly. They're a little less expensive, but the same as the teal version. The only thing different about them is that they come with a smaller battery. They're also typically discounted a bit in the big box store to entice people onto the platform so they'll buy more Makita later. <--Totally worked for me! I now have a crapton of Makita tools and batteries. 
The white ones are entry models, but since Makita also makes the identical ones as bare tools in teal, I don't know that we can really call them low end versions. Where you're right is that Makita also makes brushless versions and other versions of these tools with higher specs that cost more. The white ones are still good tools, and compare to the mid range of most other companies so I don't think its fair to call them "lower end".


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## woodworkbykirk

im very aware of makita tools ive been using them for 15 years, i am also very in tune with the tool industry as i am a product tester for 2 of the major brands. the white lineup may vary slightly in the us but up here in canada the white models are lower end models from makita but not in general regarding power tools such as ryobi, black and decker or kobalt
.. they do not have the same torque ratings as the bx or subcompact lineup.


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## NotyeruncleBob

Kirk, I think we're actually saying the same thing here...
White Makitas are good tools (especially compared to most), but you can only call them the lower end of the Makita spectrum since they make a lot of tools also and make some really heavy duty versions. I don't know about Canada, but in the US the full line of Makita tools also includes teal tools that are identical to the white ones but just come with larger batteries. The teal versions of the white ones have the same exact tool specs, just different batteries. 
https://www.makitatools.com/products/tools/cordless#c:impact-drivers;driver-drills&f:18v
You're right that Makita makes versions with higher torque or other features, but the color alone doesn't signal any real difference from the teal versions. So I guess they are the lower end of the Makita line, but there's also identical teal ones at the lower end too.
What I've heard is the reason that they made them white was because Makita wanted to differentiate where they were sold and to keep retailers from breaking up the discounted kits and selling them individually. The white tools are meant to be attractively priced to get people into the Makita platform.


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## woodworkbykirk

the other thing with the lower amperage batteries from makita is that in they dont deliver the same amount of power as the fat packs


a coworker has the makita white kit, before switching over to bosch and milwaukee brushless gear i had the green makita kit with 3 amp batteries... his impact struggles to sink 3 1/2" #10 screws where as with the green impact loaded with a 3 amp.. it had zero issues


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## NotyeruncleBob

woodworkbykirk said:


> the other thing with the lower amperage batteries from makita is that in they dont deliver the same amount of power as the fat packs


Yeah, This is the thing that I've wondered about too. I've used the impact with different sizes of battery and have felt the same thing, but...it doesn't make sense because it just shouldn't work that way according to _science!_
So, the size of the battery can be equated to the size of the gas tank, as in how long it will last. It shouldn't have any effect on the amount of power coming out of it until it's nearly empty. Take any battery off when it's feeling the strain and replace it with a freshly charged one and you notice the difference. If you swap a fully charged 1.5 and a 5.0 though, they should draw exactly the same when fully charged. 
The best that I've figured is that they do perform the same fully charged, just that the 1.5s and 2.0s get to the discharged point a lot quicker giving the impression that they're weaker. The other effect is physics in that the bigger battery makes the tool heavier overall and is thus applying more pressure to the screw, giving the impression that it's delivering more power while it's really just delivering more pressure from the weight.
I'd love to hook up some kind of test kit and get readings to see if this is really true or not!


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## woodworkbykirk

the noticable power difference was more of an issue with teh 1.5 amp batteries compared to 3.0s amongst several brands.. i use to own a bosch lithium ion brushed impact which i had 1.5 amp batteries... it suffered as well .. and a coworker has a brushed lith ion milwaukee he notices it as well when using his 1.5 amp compared to the 4.0

i currently own the brushless bosch socket ready impact as well as the milwaukee one key impact... i have the 2.0 amp, 4.0 amp and the core 6.3 amp battery.. there is no difference in performance with the 2 and 4 however with the core battery there is a increase in torque but not speed.

in the milwaukee one key impact ive used the 2.0 and the 5.0 neither show any difference except in the run time.. 

point being i think its more to do with teh cells they had in the earlier tools... the smaller battery uses a smaller cell that cannot disperse as much energy which limits power from the tool


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## woodworkbykirk

but back to the color topic of makita... if you follow many makita tool fanboys on instagram.. you will find there is much more than just the white, green or black ones over in japan. 

over there they actually offer multiple colors in a few of the impact drivers.. they offer one version of their brushless impact in 5 colors here in north america.. it started with the neon green version which is dubbed "baby hulk" then they had the gold / white model dubbed "*********** ranger.. the all black " darth vader,, and the pink model.. in japan you can get metallic burgundy,, metalllic candy blue.. red, its pretty crazy 

there are quite a few new tools over in japan from them which we dont even see here such as various high pressure nailers.. running at 280 psi as opposed to the standard 90-110. laser levels etc


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## NotyeruncleBob

woodworkbykirk said:


> but back to the color topic of makita... if you follow many makita tool fanboys on instagram.. you will find there is much more than just the white, green or black ones over in japan.


Oh great. Now I've got some shopping to do on my next Japan trip. 
I'm over there often enough and thankfully didn't know this because I'd have even more tools than I really need.


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## Kjk83

What is the best way to charge makita lith-ion batteries? After using the nicad ones in the past I have a tendency to want to use them close to running out even though i know theres no memory on them. So i guess my question is - can i put these on the charger too soon? And possibly hurt run time or longevity in them? Whats the best way to charge for longest run time. Thanks for any input


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## chandler48

Li-ion batteries don't have memories as did older battery sets. You can't harm them by putting them on the charger with a partial charge. First thing in the morning, I charge all 6 Makita 1.5v batteries for the day, whether they need it or not. The newer "star" Makita batteries don't wear down, they just flat stop at a given point when they need a charge.


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## Kjk83

Well they are star batteries with star tools so since they didn't actually stop the tool iirc
Then i guess i hadn't used them up to point of any harm. Quite an investment so trying to get the most outta them thnks again


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## chandler48

Our HD had a 30% off sale buggy the other day. In it was a nice "lunch" box by Makita. It contained a brushless driver and drill, both star, along with a charger. Hey, I already have two drivers, two chargers, a drill and 6 batteries. I bought it any way. Pretty good deal at $118. I took my 2 star batteries and married it to these two tools exclusively. THAT's MINE. My guys can use the older ones.


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