# Who makes the best power tools?



## Arsinek (Aug 13, 2012)

Title says it all. Who do you think makes the best power tools, drills, saws, etc.


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## toolaholic (Jul 31, 2011)

Bosch. I have their Swiss made drills, hand power plane, Their Asian made cordless 10.8(8)12max) right angle screwdriver, pocket driver and multi tool. I have their older USA 1617 fixed base router/ plunge router kit and the 1618 d handle. Their1773AK concrete grinder has great dust collection.There fine cut saw is kool. ALL are great tools.


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## toolaholic (Jul 31, 2011)

Milwaukee spade handle drills are tough as nails. I have their 1663-20 115rpm-450rpm drill. I have mixed driveway sealer,mixed concrete, drilled out tree stumps w/ self feed and auger bits, znd drilled holes in the ground for posts w/ earth augers. I use the milwaukee 5625 router in my bench dog router table. 15amp fixed base beast!I use the corded 9072 variable speed impact and v18 0883 cordless impact wrench as well. Oh and the corded super sawzall and 18 volt hatchet are awesome.


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## Arsinek (Aug 13, 2012)

Im thinking about buying a cordless reciprocating saw. It seems once you buy one cordless tool youre tied to that brand since batteries are brand specific. And since tools arnt cheap its a pretty serious decision.


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## toolaholic (Jul 31, 2011)

Arsinek said:


> Im thinking about buying a cordless reciprocating saw. It seems once you buy one cordless tool youre tied to that brand since batteries are brand specific. And since tools arnt cheap its a pretty serious decision.


Makita makes the best cordless hands down I use the older 14.4 stuff. The blower,impact driver,drill etc. batteries lasted a good 5 years.. I have really used the tar out of my Milwsukee 18 volt nicad/ v18 hatchet. Great tough performing tool BUT Milwaukee ni cad 18 volt batteries really sucked. So I got the v18 batteries. Even got a v18 rotary hammer for only $155 from heavydutytools.net just for the batteries. Great buy! But 2 of the 4 v18 batteries i have are not performing well.i use the milwaukees for the heavy work and the Makita's for the lighter duty stuff. Instead if having both makita and milwaukee cordless I shoulda went with 18 volt makita.


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## toolaholic (Jul 31, 2011)

toolaholic said:


> Bosch. I have their Swiss made drills, hand power plane, Their Asian made cordless 10.8(8)12max) right angle screwdriver, pocket driver and multi tool. I have their older USA 1617 fixed base router/ plunge router kit and the 1618 d handle. Their1773AK concrete grinder has great dust collection.There fine cut saw is kool. ALL are great tools.


Oh almost forgot my German made older bulldog 1224vsr bosch d handle rotary. These are the bomb! New ones are made in Mexico.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

honestly theres no one company that makes the best tools period. several of hte companies have specific tools that are hands down best for that tool type

bosch makes the top stationary jobsite table saws and mitre saws, along with their routers along with their jigsaw

makita- cordless tools hands down. they have the best track record for battery life and tool life. not to mention they currently have 50 tools that run off the 18v lxt batteries. they also make the nicest circ saws and recips 

milwaukee- 12" dual compound mitre saw,, its pretty much tied with bosch's axial glide the one advantage it has over the bosch is higher rpms.. every thing else milwaukee went down hill the minute they were bought out by TTI

Rigid- shop vacs

dewalt- best tools to lend yer neighbor or to give to crews that are hard on gear.. dewalt knows their tools cant handle serious work so the put a service centre in every city so they can be fixed... 

hilti- best heavy duty gear for commercial work and concrete drilling or breaking up


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## Arsinek (Aug 13, 2012)

woodworkbykirk said:


> honestly theres no one company that makes the best tools period. several of hte companies have specific tools that are hands down best for that tool type
> 
> bosch makes the top stationary jobsite table saws and mitre saws, along with their routers along with their jigsaw
> 
> ...


Thanks for sharing your opinion, I will take it into consideration.


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## toolaholic (Jul 31, 2011)

Let us know what you get!


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## princelake (Feb 19, 2012)

this is like asking what brand of vehicle is the best. some will say ford, some say chevy, etc etc. 
if you have a certain tool in mind research it and check reviews find what will work best for you.


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## Dorado (Feb 7, 2013)

I thought Dewalt cordless tools were among the best. Their batteries sure are priced that way and I've heard good things until now.

I don't like any brand or tool that has a proposition 64 warning or a warning to wash your hands after handling because of lead. I don't want to worry about what I could touch after handling a tool. I saw those warnings on a Ridgid hammer drill.


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## Arsinek (Aug 13, 2012)

toolaholic said:


> Let us know what you get!



Well it looks like I wont be buying anything because someone said my plan for the recip saw wouldnt work. Looks like Im going to have to rent something a little more heavy duty. But going off this thread I guess I would go with Makita. My moms exboyfriend who was basically like a stepdad to me was a carpenter and he always used Makita.


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## mknasa dad (Dec 1, 2012)

woodworkbykirk said:


> honestly theres no one company that makes the best tools period. several of hte companies have specific tools that are hands down best for that tool type
> 
> bosch makes the top stationary jobsite table saws and mitre saws, along with their routers along with their jigsaw
> 
> ...


 I think TBF would disagree with you about Bosch

And you forgot about the Kool-Aid


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## spaceman spif (Jul 28, 2009)

I find this thread fun to read in light of the fact I've been working in my basement using my Grandfather's 50+ year old Craftsman power tools that still work as well as they did day one.

Of course that doesn't help this thread, since it's pretty obvious they don't make them like they used to! :no:


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

i know all about the koolaid.. but were not talking bank account breaking tools. were talking about ones you can get at any bigbox store


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## Arsinek (Aug 13, 2012)

spaceman spif said:


> I find this thread fun to read in light of the fact I've been working in my basement using my Grandfather's 50+ year old Craftsman power tools that still work as well as they did day one.
> 
> Of course that doesn't help this thread, since it's pretty obvious they don't make them like they used to! :no:


You do have to take "they dont make them like they used to into account". Companies get bought and sold and their products change accordingly.


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## paintdrying (Jul 13, 2012)

No mention of the bosch corded jig saw. I only have a black an decker to compare it to, but what a beautiful tool. I recently bought two of those Milwaukee cordless 12 volt drills. One is already in the shop under warranty. The second one the trigger is jambing up and will go in after i get my first one back. In all fairness I am abusing the heck of of them. In terms of cordless, the lighter the better, no brand loyalty.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

paintdrying said:


> No mention of the bosch corded jig saw. I only have a black an decker to compare it to, but what a beautiful tool. I recently bought two of those Milwaukee cordless 12 volt drills. One is already in the shop under warranty. The second one the trigger is jambing up and will go in after i get my first one back. In all fairness I am abusing the heck of of them. In terms of cordless, the lighter the better, no brand loyalty.



read my first post.. already mentioned the jigsaw


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## spaceman spif (Jul 28, 2009)

Arsinek said:


> You do have to take "they dont make them like they used to into account". Companies get bought and sold and their products change accordingly.


That's true, but the difference in these old tools is amazing. Solid metal bodies, powerful motors, and after 50+ years of use and abuse they still work just fine. The only plastic on them is the belt sander has a huge plastic knob for a front handle, and it's the size of a door knob.

Only thing I had to replace were the power cords, which were dry rotted and did not have a ground wire (which I attached to the metal bodies).

But what's really cool for me is when I use these tools, I can smell a faint, "woodsy" smell which is how my Grandfather's workshop used to smell. Brings back a lot of memories.


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## dudeman (Nov 14, 2011)

what are the opinions here about the ryobi series of tools?
i have a circular saw, ad miter saw, and a drill from them for about 5 years and the only thing that has died on me is the batteries and eventually the charger.
the drill bits however seem really cheaply made. break almost instantly for something as simply drilling thru a 2x4


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## 747 (Feb 11, 2005)

I always go with Milwaukee.


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## princelake (Feb 19, 2012)

i've run ridgid everything and everything for the past 2 years and has worked flawlessly. i have a 5pc cordless, table saw, cordless nailer, shop vacs, etc etc and i plan to buy more


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## r0ckstarr (Jan 8, 2013)

My preference:

Corded : Milwaukee or Makita
Cordless: Dewalt or Ridgid


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## MushCreek (Aug 10, 2012)

I'm pretty much building an entire house with my Milwaukee Li-Ion tools. The little driver has it rough, having fallen several times from 10' up, onto everything from soft dirt to concrete. It's also been rained on a couple times. I use the circular saw all the time, and the drill and reciprocating saw less often. I have 5 of the very expensive batteries, and have never used them all in one day.

I have several old corded Milwaukee drills that won't quit. I also have a Bosch jig saw that is great. My very old Makita belt sander has been on the job for 35 years now. More recently, I bought a Ridgid table saw, and a Ridgid 12" sliding miter saw. Both are performing very well. I like the rolling stand that Ridgid makes for the miter saw. Mine is an older model I got on craigslist cheap. Easy to set up, and big wheels for rough ground.

I have a number of nailers, too. My big Hitachi is a great framer. I have a Freeman strap nailer for metal connectors. If you ever build a house, these are a must if there are a lot of metal connectors. I also have a Freeman siding nailer and a Hitachi finish nailer, but haven't used them much yet.

I generally only buy pro-level tools; working with underpowered junk is just too frustrating.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

your right mush.. theirs nothing more frustrtaing than fighting with a tool trying to complete a task .. clearing a jamb in a nailer once a day ok.. if its more than 3 x then it goes in for service or replaced


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## BRWhelan (Oct 31, 2012)

As noted above, there are many puts and takes from each of the different brands and because of that I went with the product selection of Ryobi.

They have the most products that can run off their 18v lithium battery and I haven't had any complaints thus far. Well...besides the fact that I have to drive two towns over to HomeDepot because Lowe's doesn't carry Ryobi.

I have quite a few of their 18v products and for a "weekend warrior" they work great! (with a battery rotation)

Good luck with your decision - let us know what you choose!


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## Arsinek (Aug 13, 2012)

BRWhelan said:


> As noted above, there are many puts and takes from each of the different brands and because of that I went with the product selection of Ryobi.
> 
> They have the most products that can run off their 18v lithium battery and I haven't had any complaints thus far. Well...besides the fact that I have to drive two towns over to HomeDepot because Lowe's doesn't carry Ryobi.
> 
> ...


I realized I need to try to refrain from buying tools. I thought maybe I could use a recip saw for something but was told it wouldnt work so I didnt buy anything. I dont have the money to be dropping on tools that I might not need that much.

My last thought was Ryobi actually. I dont make my money doing construction and dont have to work on stuff that often, so why spend a bunch of money on tools? Ryobi would probably get me through what I need to do so why not save money.


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## BRWhelan (Oct 31, 2012)

Personally, I think the Ryobi set it perfect. I would recommend pushing 1-2 spare batteries so if you do find yourself in the middle of a big project, you can have a battery cycle setup.

The other great thing is that the batteries are the only expensive part of the tools, therefore you can buy yourself one of the 50+ tools much cheaper than if you were to buy a "plug-in" version of it.

I personally have the following Ryobi tools and have very little to complain about.
Drill - I've had absolutely no issues with this at all
Circular Saw w/ Laser - Only used this for small jobs, but would imagine it could suck down the battery quickly
Corner-Cat Finish Sander - This sander is perfect for small jobs, but don't expect it to be able to refinish anything beyond a chair or end table.

There are a few additional tools that I anticipate buying within the next few years, like the paint sprayer, random orbital sander and hand vac.

If you want to see all the options, you can visit this site.
http://www.ryobitools.com/catalog/18v_oneplus

(I don't work for Ryobi and have no affiliation with them, I just enjoy their products)


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

after looking at the list of ryobi tools.. i wouldnt exactly consider they have 50 different tools.. 1/2 of what they show is nothig more than the older nicad version of their lithium lineup. and hardly compares to makitas 50 cordless tools..


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## Biarski (Feb 20, 2013)

I think your decision makes sense for your situation Arsinek. For thwe most part the difference in tools is durability. The best tools are worth repairing not only because of the investment, but because the rest of the tool will last and work well during lit's lifespan--typically a lot longer than cheaper tools which usually use lower grade components. Ryobi makes tools that work great for situations like yours. While I always have a tool I'm looking forward to getting, I realized a while back I really want the time to be using it for a project I want to build...


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## spaceman spif (Jul 28, 2009)

Of tools I've bought, I've had good luck with DeWalt, Milwaukee, Hitachi, and Porter Cable tools. Only brand I've run into issues with at times was Craftsman.


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## princelake (Feb 19, 2012)

for diyers and weekend warriors i would recommend ryobi for the quality and price. if we are talking tools for a contractor milwaukee, ridgid, bosch, and makita.


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