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cordless tools, what's your favorite ?

thetool

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seatac wa.
Been looking at makitas, just was wondering what brand everyone likes. Thanks

Am looking at a drill and impact.
 
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fordgasm

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Feb 26, 2012
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Huntington Beach, Ca
Bang for the buck its hard to beat the newer Craftsman C3 stuff with li-ion batteries. They seem to have sales at Sears once a week on the stuff.
 

kctyphoon

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the answer - it depends.. makita has the biggest line up, and offers alot of cordless stuff other companies dont.. milwaukee pretty much dominates the brushless market and claims the highest torque ratings on almost anything they make.. many people here follow milwaukee very closely - myself included.. dewalt is good if you just need or want basic cordless tools, not much speciality, good performace for a good price, but i personally cant get past the huge "CLACKING" in all their drills when you release the trigger at full speed. regardless - they make some good stuff.. bosch is kinda in the same boat, just with less availability. these are all proessional grade brands, and ANY one of them will make you happy.. you should decide what kind of tools you need, want, and might like in the future and take it from there... its more cost effective to remain loyal to one brand so you can interchange batteries and buy different sizes..
 

Wanna Ride

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just was wondering what brand everyone likes

One, small hint...

photo5Medium_zpsbdd91bab.jpg
 

RedRabbit

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I'm blue blooded Makita. They have a great lineup. Fast chargers and batteries that last. They don't have the greatest specs for things like impact wrenches but still work.
 
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stikman56

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Jun 12, 2014
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I like the expensive, powerful ones. Haven't used enough brands to really have a favorite. The IR W7150 is crazy strong. I have Snap-On CT4410A, CT6850 and CDR6850 tools, and like them, have used them for a few years. I don't care for Li-Ion batteries, so I'll stay where I'm at as long as it's feasible.
 
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steed andersen

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Jun 10, 2014
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Edmore.Mi
I love my Snap On 3/8" drive 14.4 lithium ion ratchet and my Craftsman (Nextec) 12v 1/4" impact driver. One was $359 the other was $55. Big price difference but you can't tell by the performance.
 

aaronrkelly

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Feb 25, 2014
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southern Iowa
I looked at all of them and also factored in cost of batteries and track record for availability of replacement batteries.

Went Ryobi. They have used the same battery system forever....I can pickup a Ryobi tool made in 2000 and put a new battery off the shelf in it.

.....I bought a pair of the large 4ah batteries for $99.

The tools are super reasonable.....and so far I havent had them let me down.
 

AndeiH

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texas
i chose milwaukee because of the fuel bandsaw :D. oh and the warranty is pretty good too.
 

kctyphoon

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right now - makita has the most powerful brushless hammer drill and i think the impact driver might also be. (they are both "kinda" new) they sell in home depot for like $379... the milwaukee fuel m18 line (their 18v brushless line) has a big cult following because their cordless tools perform or cut as fast as some corded tools.. the cordless fuel circular saws are amazing - forget anything you remember about the old nicad stuff.. its a whole new ball game these days..
i use to be a devout Dewalt follower, until i finally dedided to upgrade to lithium.. side by side, you cant argue Milwaukee's quality and their options of tools have the best line with brushless technology in both their m12 fuel, and m18 fuel lines.
if i had to choose - i would pick Milwaukee, Makita, Dewalt, Bosch - in that order... unless i wanted a something cordless that only Makita made (chainsaw, weed wacker), then i wouldnt hesistate to go with them..
i will say this - i belive milwaukee's heated jacket is the best one out there, which in my opinion, is something to consider if you work outside.. 12 degrees outside today with just a long sleeve shirt and my Milwaukee M12 Jacket..
 

Mohawk Dave

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I wish Milwaukee made all the homeowner stuff like Makita....i.e., hedge trimmer, chainsaw, etc.

I use a hedge trimmer once a year. Cords ****, so I have a Stihl gas...dope, but one more motor to keep running and maintained, more Stabil additive etc.
 

rice rocket

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I wish Milwaukee made all the homeowner stuff like Makita....i.e., hedge trimmer, chainsaw, etc.

I use a hedge trimmer once a year. Cords ****, so I have a Stihl gas...dope, but one more motor to keep running and maintained, more Stabil additive etc.

Makita's homeowner stuff is really pricey though. I thought about getting into it because of that X2 saw, but pricing out the hedgetrimmer puts it in Still/Husky/Echo territory, and doesn't even include batteries.
 

1nterceptor

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New York City
Was happy with my old Snapon CT/CD series tools. But I sold them when I lost my garage space. Also like my wife's old Makita drill. But I'm getting rid of that too before the nmh battery says bye, bye. Might try Ridgid tools in the future because of the warranty.
 

Illini Pete

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Illinois Flatlands
Bang for the buck its hard to beat the newer Craftsman C3 stuff with li-ion batteries. They seem to have sales at Sears once a week on the stuff.

I've had good experience with the Craftsman 19.2V drill. Surprised at the power/torque available when i got it 10 years or so ago. After 10 years the battery pack finally gave out or I should say wouldn't hold a charge for more than a few hours so bought a twin pack replacement on sale off Amazon and now I'm back in business.
 

lars

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PA
Rigid solely for the battery warranty. If I used my cordless tools more I could maybe justify another brand.
 

J Persons

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Jul 27, 2010
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Louisiana
I prefer Makita, especially since I've replaced the 1.5 amp hr batteries with the 3.0 batteries, it will take quite a while to run them down. I just got a 1/2" Makita impact that takes the 3.0 battery, and it will remove wheel lug nuts faster than my 1/2" Craftsman air powered impact.
 

CatSplat

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Aug 4, 2014
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Alberta
Rigid solely for the battery warranty. If I used my cordless tools more I could maybe justify another brand.

Same here, I use Ridgid for the lifetime warranty and their backwards-compatible batteries. All of my new lithium batteries work perfectly on my old NiCd X2 drills. Plus, in ten years of homeowner use I've never even needed to use the warranty.
 

rice rocket

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Same here, I use Ridgid for the lifetime warranty and their backwards-compatible batteries. All of my new lithium batteries work perfectly on my old NiCd X2 drills. Plus, in ten years of homeowner use I've never even needed to use the warranty.

lol.

Sooo, why base all your decisions on the warranty?
 

mrvm

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Been looking at makitas, just was wondering what brand everyone likes.

Had the blue green 18V Makita XLT 3.0 hammer drill,impact, grinder, recip, circ saw, etc for several years and they have performed well over the years doing a few home remodeling jobs, decks and additions. Well built, reliable, light-weight and durable power tools. Picked up a few Makita promo LED worklights+3.0 battery kits to rejuvenate the "old" Makita set for another round of work. Out of the 6 old and worn batteries, 2 are dead so this recent HD promo has made the batteries super affordable plus I get a great articulating LED worklight. Bought a M18 Fuel combo to keep at another property and to sample the latest buzz on brushless power tools. Recent HD promo price was excellent for the 2-tool impact/hammer drill which is what the M18 impact kit would have cost alone. Milwaukee has really stepped up their game, innovation and marketing has made them the front leader in the eyes of consumers. IMO the quality of the new competing Makita 4.0 brushless impact/hammer drill stands out compared to the competition. I had to exchange the M18 Fuel combo for another set because the full charge indicator never worked on the charger and the impact had a rough sounding grinding noise. The replacements are great but I hope the quality control is there. I ordered a Makita 4.0 brushless set before the HD promo ended and I will give them a good work out and I got a strong feeling that the QUALITY of this Makita 4.0 set might outshine all the Milwaukee marketing and higher torque claims. Reliability, durability, reputation mean a lot more than higher torque claims .
 
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Ign

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Butte Peak ND

I actually like it 'cause it's got integrated bit holders. I so miss that from the V28's. I know you can buy 'em for the M18's but it's not the same; for one thing the bit holder doesn't "dead end" and the bit can slide out forward or backward.
 

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thetool

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Mar 5, 2014
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seatac wa.
anyone having problems with the loose chucks on Makita drills ??, the whole chuck rattles up and down and side to side about a 1/16", what idiots for using a plastic bushing
 

Rickster

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Jun 26, 2005
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SE PA
I went with the IR IQ series with the Li Ion batteries. Have several for home use; 3/8dr Impact, 3/8dr ratchet, drill & latest buy was a cut-off tool. Plenty of power, last long and recharge fast. I'm happy with them and would recommend them to others.
 
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