Review on Makita BO5041 4000 12000 D Handle Random by David Bott

"Grinding is my favorite job" – nobody has ever said that. But let me tell you that grinding this bad boy is almost a pleasure. I've owned several Makita tools over the years but not a single one recently until this beauty showed up. I'm glad to see that Makita still makes quality tools. The first thing that catches your eye is that the case in which it is delivered is likely to be able to withstand a nuclear attack. Even good instruments often come in cheap cases - not here. I won't go into the controls - this is a grinder, you'll probably find out. I will say that the vibration transmitted from the grinder to my hand is noticeably less than any other grinder I have used, including the DeWalt. I've never considered vibration a problem per se - I mean it's a grinder. That's what they have to do - they vibrate. But somehow Makita figured out how to focus that vibration on the workpiece and not the hands. This saves you from getting tired when sanding large quantities. And did I mention "quiet"? My god, this thing is *quiet* for a grinder. Seems quieter than anything I've ever used. This only adds to the overall ease of use and makes this grinder an excellent value for twice the price. Unfortunately, my favorite feature of this grinder is also its only downside. It has a variable speed knob (a feature I LOVE and didn't know I needed until I got it), almost like a variac, on top of the knob. Despite being printed with the numbers 1-5, there are no latches and the knob itself turns fairly easily. If you're on top of the handle, you can probably accidentally change the motor speed while grinding if you're not very careful. It's not a big deal, but it's really the only thing that detracts from what is otherwise the best random orbit sander I've ever used. Makita can fix this little bug by adding detents to this speed controller.