Looking at buying a Makita 18v li-ion cordless drill from the US through eBay.

Problem is the charger runs on 110v at 100w max. There are convertors on ebay, but I've heard you have to be careful charging Li-Ion batteries as they can explode. Will it be safe running through the converter as long as im using the proper charger.

wait untill it arrives as many of them are 110 to 230v so you might not need it

I would say no. The converter is probably an electronic switch that gives only an approximation to 110 V sinewave. The charger too is probably an electronic switch to give the correct charging current.

I've found in the past that two such devices will not work correctly together. Your best bet would be a proper wound 240 - 110V transformer and even then, that will give out 50 Hz instead of the 60Hz that the charger may be expecting although this may not be significant.

When we moved back to Aus from 5 years in the USA, I spent a lot of time looking at the electronic devices to see if they would work here.
Basically it's a 50-50 deal on whether it'll take 240V or not, the more expensive the device the more the chances are that it'll take both voltages.

However the supplied charger doesn't work you could probably use something out of RS Components etc if the battery is charged in place on the tool.

Also people in the USA expect to be able to look all this stuff up on the web, I found this for example:

http://www.makita.com/assets_product/DC18SC/owners_manuals/DC18SC_OM.pdf

And if that the charger in question you're knackered

[Edited on 7/5/07 by Doug68]

When I moved from the US I brought a rechargable Milwaukee brand drill with me and used a professional 110v converter for about 5 months before the charger stopped working. I dont know for sure if it was the converter which caused the problem but I wouldnt risk it again.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I know what you mean about alot of products working within the 110v to 230v range. But this charger doesnt apparently.

I've bought the drill without the charger and will just buy a 230v one from this country. Works out a bit more expensive, but alot safer.

Looking forward to getting my nice white(!) makita li-ion drill now.