M18 Fuel excessive for home/farm use?

[JD3020]

Looking at getting a nice set of power tools for personal use. On my service truck and in the shop i've got all M12 and M18 Fuel tools, but those were work tools so cost wasn't a factor. Dragging tools back and forth is getting old, and you can never really have too many so i might as well do some shopping for myself.

Primary use will be fixing things around the house and on the farm. I am by no means a carpenter and don't plan on being one, much rather turn wrenches or run equipment, so i won't be using the stuff everyday. I've got some fence to build and other odds and ends to do this winter so it will be used some. Wanting to get a circular saw, sawzall, hammer drill/driver, impact driver, and a grinder. Looks like going Fuel would be an extra $150-200ish. My question is, is it worth it? Honestly i haven't used any newer Milwaukee tools that aren't fuel so i've not no real experience with the regular versions, but i have 0 complaints or issues with my Fuel tools. My non-mechanic tools get ran in the mud/rain/dust all summer long and have been flawless, think most of them are going on their 3rd if not 4th season now. But if the basic versions are still pretty good then i'll put that money towards more tools or lights.

 

[sparky 1971]

I would get a Fuel drill and impact for sure, I have both styles. The drill is better, but the impact is a night and day difference. I also have regular and Fuel sawzalls. I don't really notice a difference in cutting ability between them. As far as the circular saw and grinder, I have the old version. I can't compare them to Fuel, but they are more than adequate.

 

[Retroman]

Buy the best you can afford and cry once. That being said I won a set of Milwaukee non fuel 18 Volt tools at our company Christmas party 3 years ago and have been more than enough tool for my home repairs. But I live in a track house on a 80' x 110' lot so just your basic run of the mill Plumbing, Electrical and miscellaneous repairs.

 

[jeepinerdeep]

All of the things you listed you want, I would pick the fuel version, over the non-fuel. ESPECIALLY if you are starting with nothing.

 

[MushCreek]

Fuel is the way to go, although I built my entire house with non-Fuel tools. I still use the non-Fuel tools all the time- a 1/4" driver, a circular saw, and a SawZall. When/if they ever die, I will replace them with Fuel models.

 

[SkinnyG]

You're asking if a power tool has excessive power? On this forum? Come on man, you know the answer.

Seriously, I would lean towards the Fuel for the impact & drill at least. That said, since I bought my M12 Fuel impact, I haven't touched my M18 Fuel impact at home.

 

[seber]

I have both fuel and non fuel drills and impacts. If there is a difference I can't detect it. There probably is a difference in battery life, but I always have extra batteries at hand so I haven't paid much attention. I can't address other tools as I only have one of each.

 

[ddurrett896]

Fuel for tools you are really using.

I did the fuel Impact, Drill, Circular saw. Non fuel Sawzaw, Grinder, Multitool, 1/2 Impact

 

[M635_Guy]

Looking at getting a nice set of power tools for personal use. On my service truck and in the shop i've got all M12 and M18 Fuel tools, but those were work tools so cost wasn't a factor. Dragging tools back and forth is getting old, and you can never really have too many so i might as well do some shopping for myself.

Primary use will be fixing things around the house and on the farm. I am by no means a carpenter and don't plan on being one, much rather turn wrenches or run equipment, so i won't be using the stuff everyday. I've got some fence to build and other odds and ends to do this winter so it will be used some. Wanting to get a circular saw, sawzall, hammer drill/driver, impact driver, and a grinder. Looks like going Fuel would be an extra $150-200ish. My question is, is it worth it? Honestly i haven't used any newer Milwaukee tools that aren't fuel so i've not no real experience with the regular versions, but i have 0 complaints or issues with my Fuel tools. My non-mechanic tools get ran in the mud/rain/dust all summer long and have been flawless, think most of them are going on their 3rd if not 4th season now. But if the basic versions are still pretty good then i'll put that money towards more tools or lights.

Across that many tools and for tools that will work reasonably hard, I'd go with Brushless/FUEL all around (which is what I've done). The circ saw and grinder will especially benefit from brushless, and honestly I get so much use out of my drill and impact driver that moving to the FUEL line is one of the better tool investments I've made. They're so much better than my old C3 Craftsman stuff in every way. The M12 SURGE impact driver is probably my favorite tool I own. The power, low-vibration and quiet operation has spoiled me for good against anything else - the only improvement I can imagine is the triple-light like Dewalt has and the new M18 Impact wrenches have.

Especially if you have M18 Fuel tools at work you can bring home if necessary, I don't think it's a bad idea to look at M12 FUEL tools. Their weight/performance ratio is excellent, and they're less expensive than their M18 counterparts. (in the case of the SURGE, there's no performance difference other than runtime, and the M12 has outstanding runtime, especially with 4.0/6.0 batteries.)

The only question-mark for FUEL vs. not is probably the sawszall. I wound up getting the M12 Fuel Hackzall - a good tradeoff of a bit of power/etc. for weight, but not sure how they'd all stack up. Seems like a tool like that would work relatively often on a farm.

 

[Jeffh40]

Wanting to get a circular saw, sawzall, hammer drill/driver, impact driver, and a grinder. Looks like going Fuel would be an extra $150-200ish.

Is the question whether to invest in battery tools vs. plug in tools?

Personally, for a homeowner, I'd get a battery drill and impact. Everything else would be corded. My Sawsall and power saw bought in the early 90s still work perfectly and have decades of life still in them for residential and farm use. Battery tools and the technology won't last that long.

Oh, and get a SDS rotary hammer, not a hammer drill if you ever want to drill into concrete.

 

[jshillin]

I have MANY Fuel and NON-FUEL M12 and M18 tools for personal/home use. If they make a Fuel version of the tool, that's what I buy. It's really a worthwhile difference.

 

[mobiledynamics]

The 1st time I used by cordless angle grinder, it completely changed my perception on corded vs. cordless. My trusty Metabo's rarely get used compared to cordless.......

Power aside, not having a cord to -manage- has allowed me to use the tool/tools differently that is I was married to a cord. It has become that more - efficient-. Sure, batteries do get hot and you may have to cycle through 8+ in a given session depending on what you are doing.....

I have primarily all Fuel. However, I will say this. Non fuel, brushes go bad. With brushless, the circuit board can go bad and that may not be a -inexpensive repair- , relatively speaking.

 

[theoldwizard1]

FUEL (brushless) will give you more power, longer tool life (not an issue for DIY) and the battery will last longer. Make sure you have extra batteries and if you are at a remote job site, a way to charge them in your vehicle.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Power aside, not having a cord to -manage- has allowed me to use the tool/tools differently that is I was married to a cord. It has become that more - efficient-. Sure, batteries do get hot and you may have to cycle through 8+ in a given session depending on what you are doing.....

So how many spare batteries do you have close to your work site ? Do you have one or more chargers close by ?

Run time is usually the biggest issue, even with brushless tools.

 

[mobiledynamics]

No a pro. Just a joe....got at least 25+ 5ah, and a few 9's and two 12's..More than sufficient for a days task

I've yet to experience circuit board failure in any of my Red tools, but it we say a decade+ back, Panasonic Made in Japan cordless, even before -brushless- became a tool fad name, I was running brushless for at least 6-7 years. I had at least a drill and a driver go dead due to board failure...

 

[u2slow]

If it was my own company, you bet I'd keep the home tools the same as the work tools. Work tools and batteries would routinely 'retire out' at home

There's also a few grades of tool within a brand. You may not need the super lightweight brushless at home, yet you still get into a good level of battery.

Buy the best you can afford and cry once.

Never had much of a budget, so has thankfully kept my tastes modest. It ***** to have bought-in well beyond your needs, and then have it lost or destroyed. I'm glad it was a $30 grinder I drove over by accident.

 

[finn]

It’s kind of a silly question to ask on a board populated by tool addicts, where money isn’t a part of any equation..

Wonder how homeowner and diy brands like Kobalt, Ryobi, Craftsman, Skill, Ridgid, Metabo HTC, Masterforce, and a half dozen other brands survive, let alone flourish in the marketplace.

Brushless is a nice to have feature, but not required for non professional, eight hour per day use.

Same for the Milwaukee brand... nice to have, but if it doesn’t fit your budget, there are plenty of other brands that you will probably never wear out before the technology we see in the stores today is superseded.by something better.

Like I said, asking the question a tool aficionados board is silly.

 

[larry_g]

Looking at your picture and your list I would suggest that you add a grease gun to your list.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[Bert_]

The only thing cordless I have at home is a drill and impact. I keep two batteries. Anything else is corded. It doesn't get used enough to justify a bunch of tools and batteries that will be worthless in 10 years or less when they roll out a new battery platform.

 

[u2slow]

The only thing cordless I have at home is a drill and impact. I keep two batteries. Anything else is corded. It doesn't get used enough to justify a bunch of tools and batteries that will be worthless in 10 years or less when they roll out a new battery platform.

I'll add flashlight to that... but otherwise spot-on.

 

[1Garageman]

I would definitely go with FUEL! Join the GJ "Milwaukee Power Tools Deal Permathread" and look for some deals.

 

[ThatSickRip]

It’s kind of a silly question to ask on a board populated by tool addicts, where money isn’t a part of any equation..

Wonder how homeowner and diy brands like Kobalt, Ryobi, Craftsman, Skill, Ridgid, Metabo HTC, Masterforce, and a half dozen other brands survive, let alone flourish in the marketplace.

Brushless is a nice to have feature, but not required for non professional, eight hour per day use.

Same for the Milwaukee brand... nice to have, but if it doesn’t fit your budget, there are plenty of other brands that you will probably never wear out before the technology we see in the stores today is superseded.by something better.

Like I said, asking the question a tool aficionados board is silly.

This. Im vested in Milwaukee, but as one-off projects, or projects that I wont use the tool much, Ive recently ventured into Ryobi. Specifically their cordless nailers and chainsaw. There were some deals at DT that I couldnt pass up, plus the fact they wont be heavily used tools vs the Red drills/impacts, it was a no brainer. Sure Ill have more batteries to keep up with, but the savings were well worth it. I got a Ryobi 18g brad, 23g pin and their 3/8 stapler for less than just the Milwaukee 18g brad. I couldnt pass that deal for MY usage

 

[soloz2]

I have the M18 brushless (non-fuel) drill and impact driver and they both work very well for me. I also have a regular M18hackzall, and a fuel string trimmer, 3/8" impact wrench and hammer drill. The fuel tools are a bit heavier duty, but for homeowner use the regular and the mid-tier brushless are perfectly fine as well.
I'm a homeowner too, but I grew up using pro tools and have previously been disappointed with low or mid-grade tools. I'm happy with all my M18 tools. I would like to expand and get a few other tools, but I think fuel or non-fuel would depend on the specific tool and how often I would use it. I know many say to get the fuel hackzall over the regular one, but I've cut lots of angle iron for installing my garage doors and other projects as well as used a pruning blade on mine without issue. If you have the extra get fuel and then you know you got the best. If that extra $200 would really be better in your pocket or elsewhere get the lower level and use the **** out of them. Either will work just fine for you IMHO.