So, best brand of cordless power tools to get (re)started with today? (1 Viewer)
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ntsqd
technerd
Ages ago in the RC world the predominate thought was to store Ni-Cd batteries dead flat. We all had "battery bugs" designed to do that. Turned out to be wrong.....
A local Lumber supplier picked up a pallet of "old stock" from Milwaukee during 2020 black friday weekend. So previous generation tools that had not sold I guess. I think the sample I bought was out of the factory for at least a year before I bought it. I dropped the batteries and a receipt off last week. Waiting on judgement.
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- #124
well, I bit the bullet and am now back into Makita as well, this time the 18V line. I would have considered Milwaukee seriously as well otherwise, especially given the very positive comments here, but they just don't have the chainsaws I wanted. So, blue it is, for a while at least!
Nice! I noticed there were a bunch of kits on sale at the Depot.
I bought a 1/2” Milwaukee impact gun because, at the time, it had the most torque. I’ve since bought a Milwaukee 3/8” impact and a ratchet. They’re all excellent. I still have a Makita drill from the 1970’s. I’ve replaced the NiCad batteries a bunch of times but the drill refuses to die.
Dunno if you picked out a hammer drill yet...
My Makita hammer drill that I've had since 2006 finally broke something internally last fall. I was kinda abusing it, drilling 1" holes through 3" of framing with a paddle bit, but I kept hitting nails from the sheathing. Finally it had enough and now it just makes an awful chattering noise like I stripped a gear or something. It owes me nothing, I got a lot of use from it in 15 years.
Picked up this guy the other day, wow it is a beast. Model XPH14. That big handle is no joke, this thing has gobs of torque. Need to do some concrete anchors for a project, so it will get the test.
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- #128
Yes, I have nothing but good things to say about Makita tools, have had a number of them over the years. Although now that they came out with their 40V line it makes it more difficult to decide what to get. And the few review vids I watched suggested that the 40V tools are good/better. I think it's a mistake they did not come out with dual 18/40V batteries, unfortunately. But nitpicking aside, all in all, they are great.
Yup, it's gotten to where we have to be careful not to get smacked hard with some of those tools. But as to the concrete work, though, if you have a lot to do, I would consider using a true hammer tool, like a SDSetc. The design is just much better for that kind of work.
Yup, it's gotten to where we have to be careful not to get smacked hard with some of those tools. But as to the concrete work, though, if you have a lot to do, I would consider using a true hammer tool, like a SDSetc. The design is just much better for that kind of work.
ntsqd
technerd
I went with a corded Bosch for that tool. I don't have enough use to justify a cordless or a truly industrial/commercial tool.
fjwagon
SILVER Star
I have used Dewalts, Milwauke, Makita, and Hitachi at different job sites with no issues. I broke a porter Cable drill. That being said, I'm huge fan of Milwaukee cordless tools. I only buy the Milwaukee brand, I've had good luck with and have yet to break any of them. Batteries are the bread and butter for a lot this companies. I have replaced the bad cells but they never seem to work the same. So I just buy the Milwaukiee ones and be done. I put dates on all my batteries and store in one of closets in the house. I think Dewalts makes a really good cordless drill for the money, like said I have used them but don't own one.
My Dewalt was never quite the same after doing this with a 4" hole saw:
It did finish the job. And it does still work, more or less, I think the clutch doesn't slip anymore, and it got kinda smelly..
It did finish the job. And it does still work, more or less, I think the clutch doesn't slip anymore, and it got kinda smelly..
fjwagon
SILVER Star
I feel on the Dewalt, they not as good as the Milwaukee or at that has been my experience, but like I said for money not a bad deal.....until you have problems is what I should said. 
Like Ryobi...obviously people are buying them.... if they keep selling them they must be good enough for the user.
Like Ryobi...obviously people are buying them.... if they keep selling them they must be good enough for the user.
I’m also on the Milwaukee band wagon. Holiday weekends I usually treat myself to a special buy deal. Started with the M18 platform but recently got a m12 stubby impact and it’s by far my favorite tool. Hard to imagine 250lb of torque can come from this lil guy:
4-1/4" hole saws are what kill almost everything for me. I never have the true "Hole Hawg" with me on those days. (running bath fans, dryer vents, etc). I will say, my Milwaukee M18 multi-tool (Fein), may be trying to die after a lot of hours. It's the older non-fuel version, and I think the vibrations have finally made it further into the guts of the tool than they are meant to. I get a lot of fluctuations in the "power" of the tool that happen regardless of battery charge status. It has lasted longer than my corded Fein saw though and cost a 1/3rd roughly.
lp2k
Had a couple of drinks.. saw a couple of things
removed 2 whole axles with that gun and the 6.0 battery
I wont call myself a fan of Dewalt but they are adequate. The new XR tools are pretty nice. I just took delivery of a variable speed grinder and cordless die grinder which I have yet to use. The tools seem solid and higher quality. I’m a GC so have just used Dewalt for years for the ease and range of tools. I have everything between a standard drill up to a pole saw. Of late what has impressed me most is the cordless SDS hammer drill. There was a day when Hilti was the goto for hammer drills (They just hammered quickly). But this 20V DeWalt SDS keeps up just as well. The hammer-only function is nice for the small demo jobs. The tools have gotten so good that Ive pretty much mothballed my corded stuff since my battery stuff will get me through about any task on a daily basis. When something larger comes into play then I get the corded stuff out of the shop. My electricians have always used Milwaukee and I would agree that the tool quality is the highest in the industry. Very solid. One of the guys went to Metabo for alot of his gear and thier cordless stuff is nowhere near what Metabo used to be. My cordless Dewalt grinder is better in every way than the Metabo. Metabo has this rotating battery set up that I see as rarely useful and his has stopped working on occasion. Anyways, I’d vote for DeWalt as the all around set up if you use a wide variety of tools. I’d also say the hedge trimmer goes a very long time on a battery. Its incredible how far cordless technology has come.
I bought into the 20V Dewalt stuff and it's OK. Only real problem I have had with them is they just won't work or charge if they are cold, like below 35 degrees. I don't know if other brands are better in this regard.
Last summer some friends and I took down (carefully) 3 4000 bushel grain bins. Two friends had Milwaukee cordless impacts and I brought my 20V Dewalt and 6 batteries.
I went through 2 batteries an hour until the charger wouldn't keep up. The Milwaukee tools did the same (or more) work and for an 8 hour day of going almost non stop they each used one battery and had plenty of life left on the second battery.
I will not be buying any more Dewalt tools after that experience. Next cordless tools I buy will be Milwaukee.
Last summer some friends and I took down (carefully) 3 4000 bushel grain bins. Two friends had Milwaukee cordless impacts and I brought my 20V Dewalt and 6 batteries.
I went through 2 batteries an hour until the charger wouldn't keep up. The Milwaukee tools did the same (or more) work and for an 8 hour day of going almost non stop they each used one battery and had plenty of life left on the second battery.
I will not be buying any more Dewalt tools after that experience. Next cordless tools I buy will be Milwaukee.
@PIP Do you happen to remember if the amp hour rating on the various batteries that day was similar? I will say that I usually get a good run out of my Milwaukee 18v XC5.0 batteries. I do have a battery that is "dead" right now. I need to run it down to the service center and see how many years it's been going. One advantage to living in the big city I guess. 
@PIP Do you happen to remember if the amp hour rating on the various batteries that day was similar? I will say that I usually get a good run out of my Milwaukee 18v XC5.0 batteries. I do have a battery that is "dead" right now. I need to run it down to the service center and see how many years it's been going. One advantage to living in the big city I guess.
I just looked and all the Dewalt batteries I have are 2.0 AH. Two of the batteries I had that day were borrowed from my FIL and they were larger, but I don't know the capacity. They did not seem to last any longer than the little ones though.
