Help! My cordless pliers making weird grinding noise and battery won't charge

Hey folks, having a weird issue with my cordless pliers (brand X, about 2 years old). The battery stopped charging properly - light blinks red/green randomly. Also, when I do get it to work, there's this grinding noise from the motor area, like metal on metal. Tried cleaning the contacts, no luck. Anyone seen this before? Need these for a retaining wall project next week!

DemoDave52 - First, what's the exact model number? The charging behavior suggests either a faulty BMS or cell imbalance. The grinding noise could be planetary gear wear or a bearing failure. Have you checked for debris in the gear housing? For charging: try a different charger if available, measure battery voltage with a multimeter (should be ~18V for most cordless). If voltage reads below 10V, cells might be dead.

MakitaMike407 is on point with the diagnostics. I'll add: that specific grinding noise pattern often indicates the pinion gear isn't meshing properly with the ring gear. Had similar on my Knipex cordless last year. For the battery - blinking red/green usually means communication error between battery and charger. Try cleaning the small data pins (not just power contacts) with isopropyl alcohol. If that doesn't work, might need a battery PCB replacement.

On job sites I see this all the time. 90% chance it's two separate issues. Grinding noise = internal damage, probably from dropping or forcing the tool. Battery issue = either bad cells or water damage in the battery pack. Real talk: if it's 2 years old and you use it regularly, might be more cost-effective to replace than repair. What's your budget? I can recommend some contractor-grade replacements that'll last.

Thanks all! Model is XT-1875. Don't have a multimeter handy but will borrow one. No visible debris in housing. Mike778 - you're probably right about dropping it... might have taken a tumble off the truck bed last month. Budget is tight but need reliability. If I get the battery working temporarily, can I still use it with the noise or will that cause more damage?