# Guidance on Buying a MultiTool



## RichardZ (Dec 19, 2011)

It's been recommended that I get a multi-tool for a particular project I'm working on, so I'm breaking down and buying one.

I'll probably use it off and on to do various projects, so I want to get a decent one, but it doesn't have to be top-of-the-line.

I'm thinking corded, as I'll probably be near an electrical outlet whenever I use it, and I'd like the extra power. Anything else I should consider?

In terms of brands, someone said that they had a Craftsman, and it had worked well for them for a few years.

Another recommended Fein, which seems pricey but gets good reviews, and I think I can get a starter kit that will only cost an arm.

Others I'm looking at are Porter-Cable, Rigid, and Dremel. I'm a little leery of Dremel because of its hobbyist roots, but they seem to be moving to meet more robust demands and might be OK. Rigid has a lifetime guarantee, and a free attachment until 12/26, so that's attractive. And Porter-Cable seems to just make good tools.

Any feedback on any of the above? Anything else I should consider?

Your help is greatly appreciated!

Richard


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

Needs to be moved to tools.


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## jmd87 (Nov 5, 2012)

It seems like you have a "multi-tool" in mind... can you post a link or something? Saying "mulit-tool" isn't like saying "table-saw", it's like saying "cutting tool"... a little broad.

What project are you intending to work on? This would help with the feedback.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

I own two of the Rockwell Multi Crafters and love them.
If I was in the market for another on I might try the Ridgid. Reasons being as you stated, long warrenty, now offered with the ablity to just snap on differant heads for differant jobs.
My impact driver and ossilating tool are two of my main go to tools.
Take the Dremal right off of your list, your right it's little more then a toy.
Your going to find the blades for any of the ossilating tools way over priced.
I found a company on Amazon.com that sells the blades for about 1/3 if you buy 15 at a time.


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## ToolSeeker (Sep 19, 2012)

I have a rockwell and am not really crazy about it. I don't have one but I have been looking at the Ridgid just for the fact of the different heads (7 I think) that you can get to fit it. This I feel would make it An even more versatile tool.


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

Bought the Dermel one because I thought I needed it that day and that was the only quick choice at that moment. The thing is junk imo. Seems more like a toy than a tool.


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## beenthere (Oct 11, 2008)

Moved to tools forum.


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

I bought a Harbor Freight one--the better of the two that they sell----$40 on sale---

Darn tough tool--I recommend it---Blades ar cheaper than other brands,too.

I use it for---tile squeeze up---cutting hard old caulk--PVC pipe--undercutting trim--and more


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

the dremel is a toy for a reason.. plastic gears and thin low gauge wiring..
the porter cable is the exact same tool as the black and decker along with the stanley fatmax.. all made by the same company not to mention since pc quality went out the window 6 years ago when black and decker bought them out

i own the cordless ridgid and the corded bosch multix 2.5 the bosch is the only competition for the fein who originated the tool then the patent ran out so almost everyone makes them. my bosch is a beast it cuts faster than the new dewalt 12v recip saws. with the rigid ive had 3 batteries go stale in a short life span, i was expecting far more charge cycles before they died considering its lith ion.. though rigid tools are known for this along with milwuakee who are from teh same parent company.. also the rigids are really bad for the sawdor on the trigger going bad early on. .both the local home depots and the rigid repair centre have seen a ton of them come back with this problem

if i were to buy another one id be getting hte bosch again or the makita, two companies that are known for putting out quality not quantity of tools


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

woodworkbykirk said:


> the dremel is a toy for a reason.. plastic gears and thin low gauge wiring..


Plastic gears and thin wire mean "burn up fast" to me. Never got that far, for a hundred bucks I was hoping it would at least pretend to be a tool, for a little while anyway. :wink: 

I bought it because I thought it would be perfect for ultra fine tuning of exposed notches (after chain saw and Sawzall) on a log cabin I built last winter. What a joke, back to a sharp chisel.

I have ZERO patience for tools that don’t perform and will gladly pay twice the price (or more) to not deal with junk, just wasn't in the cards that day.

Just my experience with that one tool.


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## jeffsw6 (Oct 28, 2012)

I like my dremel tool but I don't use it for crazy things. I don't see it as a substitute for a drum sander or a cutting wheel like they seem to encourage on the TV commercials! It's a small tool for detail work.

Some people do not know that Dremel makes several different rotary tools. The one I own cost about $100 (with some accessories) and it is clearly a bit better than the $30 one. I'd guess if you had driven F350s and 3500HDs but the only Dodge you ever drove was a Dart, you probably wouldn't have a favorable opinion of Dodge, either!


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## itguy08 (Jan 11, 2011)

I've got the Milwaukee M12 Cordless one and it works very well but has short battery life. If you can live with that you should be good with it. For corded I've heard good things about the Harbor Freight units - can't beat the cost if you're not using it day in and day out.



> the dremel is a toy for a reason.. plastic gears and thin low gauge wiring..
> the porter cable is the exact same tool as the black and decker along with the stanley fatmax.. all made by the same company not to mention since pc quality went out the window 6 years ago when black and decker bought them out


Interesting - Dremel is owned by Bosch and B&D/PC/Stanley/Dewalt is Black and Decker so I'd have thought they would not source from the same factories...


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## msaeger (Mar 1, 2011)

I would check out what the blades cost and what ones they have where you are. 

I got a fein and it's great and the cheaper 3rd party blades I can get at menards fit it.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

kwik im the same way.. 99% of my tools are high quality.. the 1% of low grade tools are things that i might use once every two years.. i have a super cheapy rotary tool thats store brand. bought it solely for messing around with carving and for tuning up coped joints.. when im on commercial jobs ive used it for reaming out holes for peep holes in doors because the actual unit doesnt have a drill bit size that matches it so i have to use the closest bit size smaller then grind it out a touch for it to fit.. next bit size up is too big


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## bpm (Feb 8, 2011)

I have the Bosch corded and highly recommend it. The Fein seems to be the best out there, but is very pricey. I've also used the Dremel and probably would have it thrown it in the trash if it belonged to me. It was very hot to hold and I could still feel the vibration in my hand for an hour afterwards.


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## ratherbefishing (Jan 13, 2011)

I bought the Porter Cable because of the quick change blade and overall feel. Used for a dozen or so projects, including cutting square openings in Permabase. It worked great. Then I found a Fein kit for a price I couldn't resist. When I got home, I did an informal comparo, cutting thru a 2x4 and a few other tests. The Fein won, but not by as much as I expected. It was slightly more powerful, had slightly less vibration. Blades are easier to find. More accessories are available. So I sold the PC to a friend. 

I have no information or opinion on the durability of either tool, but am confident the Fein is built to last. But performance-wise, the PC worked great.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

i can pretty much guarentee though with the pc blades.. youll be burning through them in no time.. the dremel blades are availble everywhere but hardly quality


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## ratherbefishing (Jan 13, 2011)

And, last I checked, blades for the PC come from PC. The aftermarket hadn't started making them when I still owned the tool.

But it's hard to recommend the Fein to a homeowner who may use it twice a year.


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## toolaholic (Jul 31, 2011)

ratherbefishing said:


> I bought the Porter Cable because of the quick change blade and overall feel. Used for a dozen or so projects, including cutting square openings in Permabase. It worked great. Then I found a Fein kit for a price I couldn't resist. When I got home, I did an informal comparo, cutting thru a 2x4 and a few other tests. The Fein won, but not by as much as I expected. It was slightly more powerful, had slightly less vibration. Blades are easier to find. More accessories are available. So I sold the PC to a friend.
> 
> I have no information or opinion on the durability of either tool, but am confident the Fein is built to last. But performance-wise, the PC worked great.


Did you get your Fein at Home Depot? I got mine in aug on clearance for $149 plus I got a additional 10% off so it was about 140 sometimg w/ tax. I also have the 10.8(12 max) bosch .


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## itguy08 (Jan 11, 2011)

Don't they have adapters for your multitools? My Milwaukee has one - don't use it and I think it's Fein compatible. Use it one side and it's Dremel and flip it and it's someone else. Works really well and doesn't tie me to any specific blade manufacturer.


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## ToolSeeker (Sep 19, 2012)

They are saying on TV now that the new Rockwell will accept any blade. I guess I should have said "The new and improved Rockwell Sonic Crafter".
I have to ask do you guys really use this things that much? I have had mine about 2 years and I don't think I've used it 10 times.


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## PaliBob (Jun 11, 2008)

I have the Fein from when they came in a metal case. I really have not used it that much so if I was buying one now I would go with the HFT


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## ToolSeeker (Sep 19, 2012)

tulong428 said:


> xÃ¢y d?ng di?n dÃ*n lÃ*nh m?nh


Well I think that says it all.


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

Nice to have help from exotic locations.


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## Kapriel (May 25, 2012)

I first found out what a MultiTool was when I borrowed my friends Fein I think it was the a MultiMaster at around $450.

I used it for about 2 hours on and off and went thru a $30 blade cutting some wood and nails etc. doing remodeling work.
I saw the ones that Harbor Freight had and bought the Variable Speed model
a few years ago. I have to say I beat the snots out of this tool and have gone thru a number of blades cutting everything that's in the way. Steel, wood, tile, cast iron,
plaster, etc. It's very well made, I would pay several times what they are selling for if I had to.:whistling2:
I'm going to buy a second one just so I don't have to keep changing blade types.
I love the Fein it's a great tool but for the money.......


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## Carreiro (Dec 20, 2012)

*Multi-tool*



ratherbefishing said:


> And, last I checked, blades for the PC come from PC. The aftermarket hadn't started making them when I still owned the tool.
> 
> But it's hard to recommend the Fein to a homeowner who may use it twice a year.


 
I agree. I owned a Rockwell and put that through daily contractor use. After a while the nut on it became loose and it was difficult to use. I replaced the nut, but the tool kept giving me problems.

If you're going to go Bosch (very good choice) you may as well spring for Fein. You will not be disappointed. My only regret about getting a multi-tool was not getting the Fein right off of the bat.

For general home use once or twice a year (and not hard use) the Rockwell will do just fine.

By the way, I think the Harbour Freight model rebranded for Rockwell.

Hope this helps.


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## Lyman1234 (11 mo ago)

RichardZ said:


> It's been recommended that I get a multi-tool for a particular project I'm working on, so I'm breaking down and buying one.
> 
> I'll probably use it off and on to do various projects, so I want to get a decent one, but it doesn't have to be top-of-the-line.
> 
> ...


I’ve handed corded in the past and the cord seemed to always get in the way. I do have a Ryobi 18+ which I love. As powerful for what I need and way easier to maneuver and no corded mess.


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## ratherbefishing (Jan 13, 2011)

As long as this has gotten bumped, TEN YEARS LATER, my Fein Multimaster is still working as well as the day I brought it home. Most recently, I used it to cut the nails to replace about 20 feet of fascia board and sand under the railing of my deck, where the belt and RO sanders wouldn't fit.


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