• RME Gear & Apparel

Power Tool Preference?

SAMI

SAMI

Formerly Beardy McGee
Location
SLC, UT
Milwuakee? Makita? Ridgid? Ryobi? Dewalt?

What do you guys prefer?

I'm looking into a combo kit, and have around $250 to spend. It seems a kit of 4-5 tools from the big names (Makita & Dewalt) are $500+, and a 2 tool kit of say a drill/sawzall of a big name is closer to $250.

Or I see a 'no brand' 4 piece kit (though the picture says Ryobi) for $159 and 2 year warranty.

I hear Ryobi is OK, but not superior... There is a 4 piece Ryobi kit w/ Lithium batteries for $259.

Should I go quantity (Ryobi, Ridgid) or quality (Dewalt, Milwaukee, Makita) with my budget?
 
Last edited:
Kevin B.

Kevin B.

Not often wrong. Never quite right.
Moderator
Location
Stinkwater
I have a garage full of Ryobi, some of it getting up on 10 years old, and nothing has let me down yet.

If you're a casual user, I'd go with the Ryobi.
 
Kiel

Kiel

Formerly WJ ZUK
I love my Milwuakee stuff. I also have a big 7 inch makida grinder, since Milwuakee doesn't make one that big
 
DOSS

DOSS

Poker of the Hornets Nest
Location
Suncrest
I have a Ryobi 14V that is at least 8 years old.. it has seen some harsh abuse (drilled 9/16ths holes in 1 inch plate for example) and hasn't let up on me yet.. I had to replace the batteries this year but it is still trucking along. For a weekend warrior I think they get the job done just fine.. Don't know about their Sawzall I like my Porter Cable that is for sure :)
 
Badger

Badger

I am the Brute squad
Location
South Salt Lake
Why do you think Rigid is not quality. You might want to do some research on how long they have been around. I would put Rigid's quality over Dewalt any day. I hate yellow with a passion. As for Ryobi that's all I ever buy anymore. They are cheap and not the best thing out there when it comes to quality but they run and run and run. The batteries give out before the drill does. Which really is the problem with most battery powered tools. You can either get another set of batteries or spend a couple of extra bucks and get a new drill with new batteries. This leaves you with two perfectly working drills and new batteries to use in both.
 
SAMI

SAMI

Formerly Beardy McGee
Location
SLC, UT
I'll be honest, I'm just assuming Ridgid wasn't in the same class as Dewalt.. It all comes down to personal preference really. I'm liking what i'm hearing about the Ryobi though.. Affordable decent workhorse. I may go that route, as I can't imagine that i'm going to be super demanding out of the gear.
 
4

4x4_Welder

Well-Known Member
Location
Twin Falls, ID
Ryobi reciprocating saws have soft gears, they can't handle cutting metal. The ring gear is only $35, but the pinion is part of the armature and that's about $70, and if you need one you need the other. Their batteries tend to be pretty small, and it takes longer to charge than to drain so you're always waiting on batteries when drilling.
I have lit DeWalt grinders on fire before, they can't handle heavy use. I did get about 6years out of a Makita with some pretty intense use, and have gotten three years so far from an off-brand variable speed grinder badged for global machinery company.
 
Greg

Greg

I run a tight ship... wreck
Admin
Location
Grand Junction, CO
We have a handful of Dewalt powertools and I've been quite happy with them. My 14.4v drill was bought new in '94 and has served me well when I was working doing siding, soffit & gutter. I have a refurb Dewalt sawzall that I bought in '96 and it's been used regularly, abused constantly and works like new. I used it last weekend, matter of fact.

My latest Dewalt purchase was a 18v 1/2 drive impact and I love it. I honestly wonder how I got along without one. It's not as strong as my Ingersoll Rand air impact, but the Dewalt will do 90% of the jobs with less hassle.
 
spencevans

spencevans

Overlander
Location
Farmington
The best cordless drill on the market is definately the Panasonic. I have tried them all and my 18V Panasonic will out perform my 24V Dewalt all day long.
 
Caleb

Caleb

Well-Known Member
Location
Riverton
Rigid is no where in the realm of quality as what they used to be. Yes, they have been around a long time, but as with most of the mfg, their quality has dropped considerably.

I prefer Hitachi powertools over most the others. They are a bit more but they seem to last. I bought a Ryobi kit when I was shrimping and they didn't even last a single season, everything but the flash light no longer worked. So I had two batteries for a single flashlight...which was kind of nice :D
 
L

LT.

Well-Known Member
Location
Los Alamos, New Mexico
Depends on the tool. My cordless drill preference is DeWalt 18V XRP. For circular saws you cannot kill a Skill worm drive. Sawzall is Milwaukee as are my corded drills. I have worked construction for a little over 10 years and have had these tools with me from day one.

LT.
 
mesha

mesha

By endurance we conquer
Location
A.F.
I like Rigid tools, but not the battery ones. For battery tools I think dewalt is the way to go. I did construction for a few years and the dewalts never broke. We wore out pretty much every other kind of tool.

That being said my wife bought me a huge pack of sears 19.2 tools and They work well. I don't use them everyday like I used to. I don't think they would hold up to that. I am going on over 2 years and am happy. Not the most powerful pack, but good for the budget. You are welcome to come and check them out if you would like.
 
Tacoma

Tacoma

Et incurventur ante non
Location
far enough away
We used three brands in Afghanistan, pretty much constant use putting those buildings together: Dewalt, Ryobi, and Makita. The Dewalt stuff (cordless and corded drivers, impacts, and sawzalls) crapped out within 2wks. The Ryobi stuff made it about a month. The Makita stuff kept going, and the battery life on the cordless stuff was awesome to boot.

Older Rockwell/Porter Cable (like 70's stuff), is great! but harder to find these days. And fullsize, usually-- worm-drive saws, table saws, drill presses, that kind of thing.

For what you asked, I'd get the Makita setup. *shrug
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top