Brushless tools

[Turbo]

A lot of brushed motors have magnets in too; they're just on the rotor (rotating part) rather than on the stator (stationary part). Some brushed motors use a wound field (especially mains ones which put the field in series or parallel with the armature such that they'll run on AC current), but the power density from permanent magnet brushed DC motors is higher so they're probably more common in cordless tools, especially those with reversing switches.

Every brushed cordless tool I have repaired have had a pair of strong permanent magnets glued into the outer casing of the motor, never seen them on the rotor. I think they are called a universal dc brushed motor.
Dewalts mostly use these universal motors, a similar motor is fitted to Ryobi, Bosch & most cordless tools but they all have a different drive gear on the shaft that makes swapping them impossible!
Makitas use a unique motor with the stator & rotor separate, meaning you can replace them separately without needing a whole motor. IMHO a much better design because you can clean the stator properly without dismantling the motor, plus they run on proper roller bearings, not bushings.

 

[Dr.Al]

Every brushed cordless tool I have repaired have had a pair of strong permanent magnets glued into the outer casing of the motor, never seen them on the rotor. I think they are called a universal dc brushed motor.
Dewalts mostly use these universal motors, a similar motor is fitted to Ryobi, Bosch & most cordless tools but they all have a different drive gear on the shaft that makes swapping them impossible!
Makitas use a unique motor with the stator & rotor separate, meaning you can replace them separately without needing a whole motor. IMHO a much better design because you can clean the stator properly without dismantling the motor, plus they run on proper roller bearings, not bushings.

Sorry yes, I was being a moron. "A lot of brushed motors have magnets in too; they're just on the stator (stationary part) rather than on the rotor (rotating part) - for brushless PM motors it's the other way round. Some brushed motors use a wound field (especially mains ones which put the field in series or parallel with the armature such that they'll run on AC current), but the power density from permanent magnet brushed DC motors is higher so they're probably more common in cordless tools, especially those with reversing switches."

 

[Maker]

i can attest to brushed being tougher, dropped a makita 18v impact into a bucket of water once.

grabbed it out, shook the water out and carried on using it. no problems.

Brushless would probably have survived too, if anything brushless is probably more water resistant, the PCBs can be conformally coated or potted and make the tool essentially waterproof, you can't coat the commutator in a brushed motor.

 

[Agrismith]

Brushless would probably have survived too, if anything brushless is probably more water resistant, the PCBs can be conformally coated or potted and make the tool essentially waterproof, you can't coat the commutator in a brushed motor.

They don't last as well though can't tell you why but brushless gear does not like repeatedly being covered in mud and water
Whereas brushed will tolerate it better