Archived from the Tools In Action forum (Milwaukee). This thread is read-only.
I am a m12 user and have the m12 (only) vehicle charger model # 2510-20 .
I’m overall not happy with it especially for the price.
I’m wondering if the 48-59-1810 (m18 / m12 vehicle charger combo) is much better…
Any experiences with the combo vehicle charger? – especially in regards to the following shortcomings of the (m12 only) vehicle changer:
-Doesn’t charge all batteries, some oem large form factor batteries that work fine in multiple wall chargers give flashing error lights.
-Takes forever, not practical to charge 4.0 & 6.0 batteries for an hour and 15 min to an hour and a half.
I initially considered trying to use just a “compact power source” 48-59-1201 for m12 vehicle charging, like the type that is commonly used w/ heated jackets, but if my bulky 2510-20 isn’t up to snuff, I can’t imagine how slow one of those would be via USB cable. (2.5 hrs for a small battery).
My old Makita 18v li-ion vehicle chargers, 10-15 year old technology could do much better.
Any input greatly appreciated, thanks in advance
The 12v car battery chargers are very convenient but not fast charging. Im using the 12v system off a battery bank in an enclosed trailer, they work very well. My trailers are setup to run led lights and chargers independently from the truck off a deep cell battery bank that recharges off the truck when it is running. I have a larger inverter for running the rapid charger or 110v chopsaw.
I compared the 12v charger to the 110v charger power consumption. The inverter and 110v charger used a ton more power and would Darin the battery bank dead. The 12v chargers have a small draw if you leave batteries on them charging and a low voltage cutoff built in. Milwaukee was smart to install the low voltage cut off for a truck with always on cigarette lighters to would prevent a dead battery.
If you want fast charging batteries- get a truck with inverters built in or add an inverter to the truck but make sure the truck is running. You will also never get a cigarette lighter charger to move the power required to fast charging as they are usually on a 15 or 20 amp fuse.