Black and Decker Bulls Eye - On the Level, Laser-Brain
Written: Feb 11 '05
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Easy to use, works very well.
Cons: Might be a little wide for smaller hands.
The Bottom Line: If you have a lot of jobs that you need a laser level for, this is worth the money.
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| martytdx's Full Review: Black & Decker BullsEye Laser Line Generator With ... |
I'm a tech geek, always wanting to have the latest electronic gadgets - but I've never been what one calls 'handy'. My father passed on a recessive 'bent nail' gene to me, and household construction projects have until only recently been coupled with expectations of secondary repairs or hospital trips. I've gotten better, and my wife has stopped having the yellow pages open to 'Repair Guys - You Bust It, We Fix It' when I'm doing stuff around the house.
So, my technophilia tends to stay on the electronics side of things - my wife smiles and laughs at me when I drool over an iPod, but usually gives into my habit. But when they started advertising laser levels, I got excited - and even her eyes sparkled a bit. Visions of "Honey Do" lists flashed across her vision, while I savored the chance to combine tech with tool.
But without any pertinent projects to actually use it, we held off - but we visited it every time we went to Home Depot. Then Xmas came and we were the proud owners of a bunch of Home Depot gift cards burning a hole in our pockets (we chose to ignore the implications of people giving us home repair gifts). So away we went ... and then it was mine ... um, I mean ours.
[ • what is a LASER LEVEL • ]
If you've ever done projects where a level surface is required on a wall - say a shelf or a line of picture frames - you know your trusty level is key. For decades, the basic design hasn't really changed - a centered bubble of air in a liquid sealed in glass that tells you when your surface or line is level. One end too high or low, and your bubble moves. Simple.
The problem is that levels are limited in length and require you to hold onto them when trying to get things even. If you've ever tried to hang a 6' row of pictures, you know how difficult it can be. Also, although a level may not show a high variation over it's 2' length, at longer distances (say 8-10'), a 3-degree slant can become highly noticeable from one end to the other.
A laser level takes care of that by projecting a straight line a greater distance. By definition, lasers will always be straight (once they leave the lens, at least), until they are blocked, reflected or refracted. Technically, a laser would continue on forever, but air and other surfaces eventually refract and diffuse them sufficiently to deviate their focus. In our case, the laser creates a line for dozens of feet that is straight for its entire length, allowing users to have entire walls of shelves or pictures or even paint dead on.
[ • right on THE MARK • ]
The Black and Decker Bulls Eye laser level is a great tool for the home user. It's Black and Decker's mid-high range laser level, just below the Crosshair professional version. For our purposes, this was just fine because we won't need to go around corners or do intersected vertical and horizontal lines at the same time. The Bulls Eye DOES do the 3 things we wanted it to do - laser level, stud finder and circuit finder:
• Laser Level » This is the main function of the Bulls Eye. The laser is self-leveled (i.e. it floats to provide a level line regardless of whether the Bulls Eye is straight or not, within reason), and produces a light which extends up to 10' from the device on both sides when using the standard target cone (a second cone provided extends that to 15', if you need it). To activate the laser level, you move the function button on the side to level and the laser appears on both sides. When we first used it, we were a little skeptical of how well it was working - it seemed to be off from level, no matter what we did. Fortunately (or unfortunately), it wasn't the Bulls Eye - it turns out that our ceiling is terribly unlevel.
After that revelation, we went around and tried it on several walls with great success - our pictures are now level and look fantastic. And the laser even wraps around interior corners slightly (to about 6" past the corner). Even though the Bulls Eye itself wasn't perfectly vertical, the self-leveling beam gave us a perfect line because the floating laser allows the device to be up to about 10 degrees off of vertical and still work. If you are going for a vertical line, it can do this, as well.
One cool feature of the Bulls Eye is that it also includes a pin that allows you to attach it to your wall without leaving a large hole. This is handy when you need to install several things out of arm's length from the level. The Bulls Eye is light enough to make it stay on the wall easily (2 lb/0.9 kg), and I'm sure that we'll eventually use this on our longer walls.
• Stud Finder » We had bought a cheap stud finder a few weeks ago to hang a pot rack, and got what we paid for. Luckily, the Bulls Eye is much easier to use and more reliable. Press the stud finder button and press the Bulls Eye to the wall. After a few seconds (assuming that you aren't actually ON a stud), the tone goes off. Then move it across your wall until the proximity sensor reaches the max and the tone starts. Reach the other end of the stud and the tone goes off again. Bonus - this stud finder will detect both wood and steel studs. We found this stud finder to be super easy to use, if a bit loud. It helped us discover that our studs are uniformly innaccurate (17"), but at least we know that we'll be able to find them when we need to.
• A/C Wire Detector »
One feature we weren't completely sold on but liked as an extra feature was the AC wire detector. Instead of studs, you can use the Bulls Eye to find any wires in your walls - by knowing where they are, you can avoid nailing or screwing into one. We haven't really used this much. I tested it to find wires, but I didn't have any reason to determine if it was right or not. It seemed to pick a place that made sense for wires to be, so that's a good sign.
[ • a few CONCERNS • ]
Durability has long been one chief complaint of Black and Decker products. I haven't had any problems with the tools that I have bought, but I have heard horror stories from others. I think that Black and Decker has worked on their reputation a bit, and this tool seems durable enough. I wouldn't want to use it on a construction site, but it should hold up just fine for basic home use.
Also, this device does have a bit of girth to it. Although not huge, it might be a bit large for those with smaller grips to use comfortably. My best advice would be to try it out before you buy to decide if you will be able to hold this for the length of your projects, although most people should be okay, as my wife's small hands were sufficient.
[ • different from CROSSHAIR • ]
The major difference between this version and the Crosshair models is that the Crosshair can do both vertical and horizontal lines at the same time to give you a true plumb, and it costs about $30 more than the Bulls Eye.
[ • tech SPECS • ]
The Bulls Eye is a fairly simple device to use despite the laser. It's light-weight belies the multiple functions it houses. It uses 1 9-volt battery (provided) - we haven't used it nearly enough to wear that battery out, so I don't know how long it will last. As for the box specs, read until your heart's content:
Bulls Eye Model BDL110S
Weight » 2.056 lbs (0.9 kg)
power » 9.0V alkaline battery
Laser Length » line extends 12-15 feet (3.6 - 4.6m) (varies with lighting)
Detection Depth » 3/4" (19mm)
Maximum Output » <5mW@633-670nm
Warranty » 2 years
Includes » Protective storage case, 2 drywall pins, 2 target cones, 1 adapter cone and 1 9V battery.
[ • final THOUGHTS • ]
At almost $70, the Black and Decker Bulls Eye isn't a spur-of-the-moment purchase, running about 3 - 10 times what you would pay for a simple level and a stud finder. But it is more than an all-in-one substitute - it's a super useful tool that helps you find the perfect place to hang that bookshelf, knick knack or pictures.
[ • other FUN TOOLS • ]
HomeLite Leaf Bloser »
Every man should have one of these - and most women, too.
Black & Decker Planer »
One of the better B&D tools in my collection - a real time saver.
Black & Decker Firestorm Drill »
Underpowered drill that would be fine for the most basic jobs.
Black & Decker Sandstorm Sander »
Although it works well, it is not a very clean tool to use.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
martytdx
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Member: Marty
Location: New Jersey
Reviews written: 481
Trusted by: 180 members
About Me:
Doing what I can to try new places, restaurants, books and beers.
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