Makita has come out with a new 12V cordless multi-cutter, model PC01R3. The new cutting tool, available in a kit with a charger, carrying bag, and 2.0Ah battery pack, can cut many different kinds of soft sheet materials, such as cardboard, carpet, leather, rubber, and vinyl.
This isn’t the first tool of its kind. There have been Bosch versions of this tool – available overseas but not in North America – and there’s an updated Skil iXO version currently on the market, for $40.
The Makita cordless multi-cutter is said to weigh just 1.6 lbs, with battery, making it pretty darned light. Shown here, it’s being used to make clean and straight cuts in cardboard.
It’s 10-3/4″ long, and has an angled handle for ergonomic use. There’s a “built-in sight line,” for more precise cutting.
It can cut softish materials up to 1/4″ thick.
The cutting had has a shelf=sharpening blade, for maximum cutting efficiency, not to mention the freedom of fewer maintenance concerns.
It operates at 300 RPM, which tells us… nothing. This type of cutter is less about speed than it is about user convenience, comfort, and improved cutting accuracy.
Price: $130-137 for the kit
Buy Now(via Amazon)
See Also(Skil iXO with Cutter Attachment)
First Thoughts
If you need to make a lot of straight cuts in thin soft materials, and I say “soft” so that there’s no mistaking this as a plastics or sheet metal cutter, than this should be very suitable.
It’s not a new design, at least not the cutter head, but it seems to be new to Makita. I would swear that I wrote about a tool like this in the past year or so, but I can’t find anything in ToolGuyd’s archives.
Bosch’s 12V Max version was shown in product photos to be capable of angled cuts. Perhaps this Makita can do the same. For some reason, Bosch never released that tool in the USA. Then again, the same can be said about plenty of Bosch 12V Max cordless power tools.
It’s good to see Makita pushing forward with their new 12V Max CXT cordless power tool platform. Hopefully they keep it up!