I've been using recycled lithium batteries for the past couple years in those bright chinese LED flashlights (salvaged from dead laptop battery packs) and the chargers all seem to take anywhere from 3 to even 8hrs to go through a complete charge to 4.02 volts(seldom drawn down past 3.5v). How the heck do the current crop of manufacturers get a battery completely charged in 1/2 hr? I'm guessing you are trading # of cycles for the rapid recharge.. Do any of the chargers supplied with a typical drill have a slow charge function that might extend the # of cycles b4 the battery shows as defective to an intelligent charger?
Regarding the danger of fire- the radio control guys learned the hard way to make a fire resistant charging station such that if the battery (lithium ion at that time) attempted suicide, the damage would be contained.
I'll probably spring for one of the off brand 18v batteries to allow me to keep using the drill.
Btw- I noticed that dewalt and milwaukee seem to have optional batteries that have a higher amp/hr rating. Does the bosch and the makita offer the same thing?
In the meantime, I'll keep looking for a drill and an impact at a decent price. Thanks in advance, Pat