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How to use a cordless angle grinder

Updated: 22 October 2026

You have a bare 18 V body, a disc, and a Makita pack on the bench. This is how to use a cordless angle grinder for a short cut in material you can name: battery off, the right disc, the guard on, both hands, then the spinning wheel meets the work. The [Makita cordless angle grinder comparison](/hub/tools/makita-cordless-angle-grinder) is the table of bodies. Products Compared did not run these tools. The steps follow HSE's HSG17, the FEPA bonded-abrasives leaflet, and the limits on the listings, as at 21 October 2026. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You have a bare 18 V body, a disc, and a Makita pack on the bench.

Our top picks

Makita Makita DGA454Z

Best overall

Makita Makita DGA454Z
9.1/10about £179.06
View offer
Makita Makita XAG25Z

Alternative

Makita Makita XAG25Z
9.0/10about £124.27
View offer
Laloohome Laloohome 125 mm

Best value

Laloohome Laloohome 125 mm
6.2/10about £29.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Take the battery off before you touch the disc
  2. 2.Match the disc to the tool
  3. 3.Guard, side handle, and both hands
  4. 4.Run up clear of the work, then cut
  5. 5.If it will not start, or you should stop

Take the battery off before you touch the disc

On these tools you take the pack off and leave it off until the guard, the disc and the side handle are fitted. Every body in the comparison is sold without a battery. A locked-on switch plus a fresh pack is how a wheel starts in your hand. Read the plate, not a conflicting attribute: Gautesy prints 9,000 rpm and 90,000 rpm, and the 76 mm laloohome is listed at 20,000 rpm. If the guard is cracked, stop.

Match the disc to the tool

The disc has to match the guard. A 125 mm wheel does not go on the 115 mm DGA454Z. A 22.23 mm hole is not an M14 spindle and not the 5/8 inch spindle UK reviews describe on the DGA454Z. X-LOCK wheels are the only wheels the XAG25Z allows. The marked speed must be at least the tool speed. HSG17 says wheels over 80 mm carry a maximum speed, and FEPA says the machine must not exceed the wheel. Do not grind with a cut-off wheel. Discard a dropped disc. A wheel that arrived in a JOJOCY or Synxiter box still needs its rpm mark read.
Makita Makita DGA454Z

Testsieger

Makita Makita DGA454Z
9.1/10about £179.06
View offer

Guard, side handle, and both hands

The guard stays on, opening toward the work, closed part between the wheel and you. If it will not lock, stop. A bullet that claims a tool-free guard on a JOJOCY is still a claim until you check the lock. Fit the side handle and use both hands. HSG17 names BS EN 166 for eye protection when you dry-grind. Thin cotton gloves in the 76 mm box are not that protection. Clear cuffs, rags and solvent tins before the wheel turns.

Run up clear of the work, then cut

Clamp the piece. Fit the pack only when the guard, disc and handle are on. Start clear of the metal, let the wheel reach speed, then meet the work. Do not lean on a thin cutting disc. DGA454Z reviews say a cordless body is not a mains grinder you can weight. Synxiter wants at least a 4.0 Ah pack. If a genuine Makita will not start, the switch may have been locked on when the pack went in. A laloohome that cuts out for about 15 minutes is a different fault.

If it will not start, or you should stop

Switch off, reseat the pack, and start again with the wheel clear. If a genuine Makita stays dead, anti-restart may be doing what Makita publishes. Do not bypass the switch, and do not assume a third-party body has that feature unless the listing says so. Gautesy mentions overload protection. Synxiter mentions shutdown below 4.0 Ah. Stop for structural steel, material you cannot name, suspected asbestos, a damaged guard, and overhead work with a large wheel. At work, PUWER 1998 regulation 9 requires training. If the guard will not cover the disc, use the 115 mm or 125 mm page before you try again.

Common questions

In what order do I fit a disc?
Take the battery off first. Read the disc diameter, the rpm mark and whether it is a cut-off wheel or a grinding wheel. Fit the guard so it locks, fit the disc with the flanges and the wrench or spindle lock the tool provides, then fit the side handle. Only then click the pack on, and start with the wheel clear of the work. A dropped disc goes in the bin, not back on the spindle.
Can I grind with the cutting disc?
No. A cut-off wheel is for cutting. Grinding on it loads the side of a disc that is not built for that load, which is the warning in the FEPA leaflet and in workplace talks on hand grinders. Use a grinding wheel, rated at or above the tool's rpm, when you need to grind. A wheel that came in the box still has to say so on its label.
Why does the tool stay dead after I insert the pack?
On a genuine Makita, anti-restart leaves the tool off if the switch was locked on when the pack went in. Move the switch off and start again with the wheel clear. That is a feature, not automatically a broken switch. A third-party body that cuts out and stays off for about 15 minutes, as one laloohome review describes, is a different fault and belongs on the comparison table, not in this restart check.
What eye protection does HSG17 name?
HSG17 names BS EN 166 for eye protection when you dry-grind. Wear that class of protection, and keep loose clothing and solvents out of the spark line. Thin cotton gloves in a 76 mm kit are not a substitute, and a review of that listing notes that goggles were not in the box. We are naming the identifier HSE uses, not reproducing the standard.
When do I stop and get a trained person?
Stop for structural steel, unknown material, suspected asbestos, a guard that will not lock, and overhead work with a large wheel. On a site, PUWER regulation 9 means users of work equipment are trained, and that is not optional because the body was cheap. A householder doing a few bolts still uses the guard, the right disc and eye protection, and still stops when the material is not what they thought.

Related pages

Makita cordless angle grinder buying guide

Genuine or compatible Makita grinder

Best Makita cordless angle grinder

Makita cordless angle grinder

115 mm versus 125 mm Makita cordless angle grinder

Sources

Public sources from the research digest, used for this page in October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are from the seven amazon.co.uk listings captured on 21 October 2026. PUWER and HSG17 apply at work. They are not a certificate for a domestic grinder. There is no laboratory cut.

  1. Makita UK, DGA504Z (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  2. Makita UK, DGA513Z (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  3. Makita USA, XAG25Z (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  4. Makita Canada, DGA454Z (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  5. HSE, HSG17 abrasive wheels (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  6. HSE, training and competence (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  7. FEPA, bonded abrasives safety leaflet (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  8. GOV.UK, Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 (retrieved 21 October 2026)