5 Makita Products That Are Perfect For Tailgating

Tailgating is a common practice for many avid sports game and concert attendees. It's a time to bring together friends and meet new ones while grilling up delicious food and having good conversations before or after the main event. However, with tailgating come products to help make the experience either more comfortable or noticeable, especially if you're trying to stand out among the crowd of other partiers.

Many tailgating products can be found on Amazon and other retailers. However, if you're considering Makita tools, or are already invested in the company's 18V battery line, then that opens you up to another range of products that are perfect for any tailgating party. Based on high ratings and positive feedback from avid Makita users, here are five Makita products that you may find useful for your next tailgating party. A more thorough explanation of our methodology can be found at the end of this article.

If you're taking photos and videos with your phone, the battery is going to start running down, which can be a bummer if you don't have some type of charger on you. If you're already running Makita batteries at your tailgating party, though, why not use one with the 18V LXT Power Source with USB Ports? For ratings, it received a 4.9 at Home Depot and a 4.8 on Amazon from a combined over 13,000 users. The teal power source costs $35 at Home Depot — however, if you would rather invest in Makita's Outdoor Adventure line, which consists of camo green products, you can find it at the list price of $45 on Amazon.

This power source simply slides on top of any 18V LXT battery and outputs 2.1 amps through the two USB ports, which allows a fairly quick charge. According to one reviewer, it was able to charge their phone up to 50% in 20 minutes from a dead battery. Furthermore, this power source comes with a clip and is small enough to hook onto a belt or holster easily — just remember, the bigger the battery you use, the heavier the charge will be for hanging. It also comes with rubber covers for the USB ports to protect it from dust or other debris.

Tailgating can consist of listening to local or sports stations about the upcoming event or simply hanging out with music playing. Either way, you'll need some form of speaker, and Makita sells the versatile 18V LXT / 12V CXT Bluetooth Job Site Speaker for $159 to get the job done. It also comes with a 4.9 out of five stars rating from many satisfied consumers.

It may seem like a steep price to pay for a speaker considering there are many budget-friendly speakers on the market, but this little guy can hold its own. Unlike some of Makita's other speakers and radios, this one is Bluetooth, so you have full control of the gadget without having to be directly in front of it — though, according to some reviewers, you'll still need to be within approximately 15 feet of it. Do be aware that this speaker plays solely off of any device connected by Bluetooth or through the auxiliary port. It does not have FM radio capabilities.

However, what is cool about this speaker is that you can use either Makita's 18V or 12V battery line to power it. It's also incredibly light weighing approximately 7.2 pounds with a battery. Additionally, it comes with a USB port to charge your phone while you use it.

Even though tailgating can sometimes be a colder activity, having a powerful yet portable fan nearby can prove useful, especially if you need more air around while cooking. The Makita's Outdoor Adventure 18V LXT 9-1/4 Inch Fan can be found on Amazon for $133 and comes with a 4.7 out of five stars rating from over 1,000 users. The teal version runs a bit cheaper at $119 if that color is more your style. These prices are for tool-only.

This fan has a couple of different features you may find useful. First, it has a three-speed setting (high/medium/low) which can perform as a standstill fan or as on a 45-degree left and right automatic oscillation. It can also manually tilt up 90 degrees and down 45 degrees for optimal wind direction. Additionally, according to Makita, this fan was designed to reduce wind noise levels, so you'll be able to talk over the fan to other tailgaters.

Furthermore, it has a timer selection option, so you can set it for one, two, or four hours and forget it, which means you won't accidentally drain your batteries if you walk away for a while. Speaking of which, using one 18V 5.0 battery and on the low settings, you can get up to 16 hours of continuous runtime. However, if you'd rather save your batteries for another Makita product, you can plug it in with an AC adaptor.

With the cold starting to set in, there are going to be people who will be looking for a hot drink to hold while waiting for their burgers and other tailgating foods. However, chances are that you're either using a grill on a camping trip or all the burners on your outdoor kitchen stove. Makita sells the innovative 18V (36V) LXT Hot Water Kettle for $229. The only catch with this tool is that you'll need two Makita 18V batteries — preferably higher amp hour ones because of how much power the machine requires

According to Makita, with two 5.0 Ah batteries, you can boil up to 27 ounces of water in nine minutes from 50 degrees Fahrenheit. That's approximately three cups of hot chocolate ready to go. It does come with a dual layer construction which allows the kettle to retain its heat, so if you don't need the water right away, it won't be a problem. Furthermore, it has safety features that will automatically turn the kettle off if there's not enough water inside. It also won't turn on if the kettle isn't properly placed in its base.

It comes with a 4.5 out of five stars rating on Amazon, and according to review videos on YouTube, it does the job well. One YouTuber even points out that the kettle is cool to touch even if the water is boiling side. Another YouTuber even used it to cook their hotdogs, so this kettle doesn't have to be used for only drinks.

Makita sells many flashlights that can come in handy for all types of work, projects, and events. However, for tailgating, you're going to want one that will allow you to see while you're cooking, cleaning, and walking, but you also don't want to disturb the vibe with a giant flood light. The 18V LXT LED Lantern/Flashlight is a viable option that allows you to use the light as both an all-around lantern and a pointed flashlight. It costs $63 at Home Depot and has a 4.8 out of five stars rating.

This light has three light modes that produce different lumens (or light brightness). Using the 360-degree lantern, it produces 710 lumens, while the 180-degree feature provides 340 lumens. If you want to use it as a standard flashlight, it illuminates 130 lumens. If you use the 360-degree feature with a 5.0 Ah battery, you'll get up to 11 hours of continuous light, which is plenty for a tailgating extravaganza.

The Makita products in this article were selected based on a couple of different measures. First, we wanted to showcase items that would be universally useful for a tailgating event. Though Makita has other products that some would find useful, like the electric coffee maker, not everyone drinks coffee, and a water kettle would be more beneficial for a tailgating group.

We also selected useful items that came with high ratings and positive written reviews. Each tool mentioned has at least a 4.4 out of five stars rating from an appropriate amount of users across multiple retail sites like Home Depot and Amazon. Furthermore, you'll want to keep in mind that many of these tools come in either Makita's teal or green color, but that doesn't make the tools any different from one another. Choose the color, and sometimes price option, that fits your preference.