Makita GA050G Review: Makita's New 40V Max XGT Angle Grinder

Introduction

Makita’s 40V Max XGT angle grinder line has a new headliner: the GA050G, a 5-inch (125mm) cordless angle grinder that Makita has heavily promoted alongside its new 40V high-output battery. The pitch is straightforward: considerably more power than the previous 40V grinder, with claimed performance up there with a small AC grinder. After putting it through cutting and stall tests against the older 40V model and an 18V grinder, the picture is interesting. It cuts noticeably faster, but there is one trade-off you should know about before buying.

What’s in the Box

In this region the GA050G ships with a grinding wheel, a side handle with TPE overmolding and a solid core that feels genuinely sturdy, a pin spanner for the flange nut, and a grinding guard. One welcome addition is a two-piece guard setup: a removable spark-catching section clips over the standard guard for cutting work, helping contain sparks and debris if a disc disintegrates. It clicks back on just as easily, though we suspect most of these attachments will end up lost in a drawer.

Design and Handling

At first glance the GA050G looks slightly shorter than the previous 40V 5-inch grinder, and it is, by roughly 15 to 20mm. The Makita branding has also moved down to the handle region, and there is a new black rubbery groove around the head area.

The head itself can be rotated: undo the four screws, spin it 90 degrees, tighten it back up, and you can orient the handle and disc for whatever suits your wrists best. That said, this is not a quick-release rotation system, and the paddle switch runs across the rotating section, so you cannot rotate it without disassembly.

The GA050G uses a paddle switch with a lock-off lever rather than a slide switch. There is no variable speed and no AWS here. The lock-off lever sits in a reasonably unobtrusive spot and is not too annoying in use, though the edge could be a little smoother.

The guard on 5-inch Makita grinders these days is toolless: a small lever locks and unlocks into detent holes on the guard ring, so you can rotate it to the position you want and lock it without any tools. It is a big quality-of-life improvement, and it works exactly as you would hope. The flange nut, however, is old school, with the standard four pin holes and the pin spanner. It is reliable and will wind on and off by hand once broken in, but if you prefer ratcheting or lever-style flange nuts, this is not that.

Claimed Specs vs Measured Speed

Makita rates the GA050G at 11,000 RPM, a big jump from the roughly 8,500 RPM of the previous 40V model. On the bench, though, our tachometer consistently read around 9,770 RPM, no matter what we did: marked flange nut, bare spindle, or different discs. Notably, the reading was identical across three batteries: the standard 4Ah 40V pack, the new 40V high-output pack, and an even more powerful pack. Battery made no difference to no-load speed at all.

The older 40V grinder, rated at 8,500 RPM, also measured just under 8,000, and an 18V model rated at 8,500 came in well over 1,000 RPM short too. Whatever is going on with Makita’s claimed numbers, the real-world takeaway is simpler: the GA050G still spins meaningfully faster than the old model, and battery choice does not change no-load speed.

Cutting Performance: Faster Than the Old 40V

In back-to-back cutting tests with fresh discs on each grinder, the results were clear. The GA050G was around 20 to 25% faster than the previous 40V model, completing roughly five cuts for every four of the older grinder. Against an 18V grinder, it was roughly twice as fast.

The disc wear told the same story. The GA050G’s disc wore less per cut than the 18V’s, which means more cuts per disc and lower running costs if you cut a lot. The 40V’s extra power also keeps the disc spinning through the material instead of catching and pulling the tool back and forward, which makes for a smoother, nicer cut.

Interestingly, the new high-output battery added roughly another 20% cutting speed over the standard battery on this grinder, even though it changed nothing at no-load speed. Under load is where the better battery earns its keep.

Stall Test: A Trade-Off Worth Knowing

This is where the GA050G surprised us. The 18V grinder stalls fairly easily, and the original 40V grinder was genuinely hard to stall, a great trait for heavy grinding. The new GA050G, despite being faster, was easier to stall than the old model, in our experience noticeably less torquey.

That is the classic speed-versus-torque trade-off: the gearing favors high speed here. In practice it matters less than it sounds, because with the higher cutting speed you do not need to press as hard, so most users should not be stalling it anyway. But if you grind aggressively with heavy downward pressure, the older 40V grinder may still be the better fit for you.

Buying Advice

If you cut a lot of steel, the GA050G is an easy recommendation over 18V. It cuts roughly twice as fast, wears discs roughly half as quickly, and delivers a smoother, more controlled cut. Once you have used a 40V grinder over an 18V one, going back is hard. Between the GA050G and the previous 40V model, the choice comes down to your style: faster cutting and better productivity with the new one, more raw grinding torque with the old one. Pairing the GA050G with the new 40V high-output battery makes the most of its speed under load.

Conclusion

The Makita GA050G is an impressive grinder: faster cutting, lower disc wear, and a well-thought-out kit with a toolless guard and spark-catching attachment. The disappointment is the easier stalling compared to the previous 40V model, and the gap between the claimed 11,000 RPM and what we measured. As an all-round cutting tool for anyone already in, or considering, the 40V Max XGT platform, it is easy to recommend.