BEST cordless tool lineup?

[kunkernator]

Alright, here is my dilemma. I want a cordless impact gun, I love the look of the IR W7150, but in the future I would like to expand my cordless tools to include angle grinders, drills, cordless ratchets, etc... So I want to get like-battery tools. Main tool I want is an impact driver, so they must offer a high-torque driver. Nothing can compare to the IR W7150 from what I understand, but how often do you really NEED over 1000 ft/lbs of break-loose torque? I like Bosch's lineup, would 600 ft/lb be more than enough? So, for lack of having 10 different brands with 10 different types of batteries, what brand has the best lineup?

As always, thank you all in advance.

(keep the price reasonable, not above the IR's price point)

EDIT: Forgot to mention, BEST as in most expansive and compatible lineup, reliability, durability, power, reputation, etc... I don't want any Harbor Freight ****.

 

[dodge610]

I will probably get flaed for this but I have the C3 craftsman line up. They have handled everything ive thrown t it I even have a few of the C3 yard tools there pretty nice too like the hedge trimmer throw a battery in them do the hedges bingo your done no ext. cord ice and easy.

 

[kunkernator]

I will probably get flaed for this but I have the C3 craftsman line up. They have handled everything ive thrown t it I even have a few of the C3 yard tools there pretty nice too like the hedge trimmer throw a battery in them do the hedges bingo your done no ext. cord ice and easy.

I did look at the Craftsman lineup, but I am more interested in the power and reliability than the user-friendliness. Also, I mostly need shop tools, I have no need for hedge-trimmers, chainsaws, or what not. I appreciate the opinion though, I have given Craftsman some thought because of the price point. But my understanding is that the impact gun is fairly weak. Anybody else have an opinion on Craftsman?

 

[padronanniversary]

How about the HF line up ?

 

[marcusicp]

Bosch makes really nice cordless tools. I think most people would be very happy with them. I personally prefer Milwaukee simply because of the vast selection of tools they offer.

 

[dodge610]

I did look at the Craftsman lineup, but I am more interested in the power and reliability than the user-friendliness. Also, I mostly need shop tools, I have no need for hedge-trimmers, chainsaws, or what not. I appreciate the opinion though, I have given Craftsman some thought because of the price point. But my understanding is that the impact gun is fairly weak. Anybody else have an opinion on Craftsman?

I have the impact gun also it has handled everything ive thrown at it does not seem to be weak at all.

 

[jagleaso]

I say bosch but I can't deny how awesome the Hitachi 18v Lithium lineup is for the price.

 

[kunkernator]

Bosch makes really nice cordless tools. I think most people would be very happy with them. I personally prefer Milwaukee simply because of the vast selection of tools they offer.

The impact driver being a big thing; is Milwaukee's powerful and reliable?

I have the impact gun also it has handled everything ive thrown at it does not seem to be weak at all.

Hmmmm, I will look more into it. Do you use NiCad batteries?

I say bosch but I can't deny how awesome the Hitachi 18v Lithium lineup is for the price.

Even though Hitachi is a good price, how is the tool quality? And again, power/performance?


Thanks all!

 

[dodge610]

The impact driver being a big thing; is Milwaukee's powerful and reliable?



Hmmmm, I will look more into it. Do you use NiCad batteries?



Even though Hitachi is a good price, how is the tool quality? And again, power/performance?


Thanks all!

No just the 19.2 die hard batteries that usually comes with the kits. I have the quad charger so that I always have 4 freshly charged batteries ready to go.

 

[shampoop]

From what I've gathered Milwaukee and Makita are at the top of the heap in both quality and reliability. But I don't think anyone can compete with IR's 1/2" electric impact gun, although it might not matter if you don't need that extra power. Both milwaukee and makita have tons of different tools, but milwaukee definitely seemed to have a wider variety. When looking for an impact driver I ended up buying a makita for some minor reason that I can't remember. Was probably cheaper at the time. I've been very happy with it.

 

[kunkernator]

No just the 19.2 die hard batteries that usually comes with the kits. I have the quad charger so that I always have 4 freshly charged batteries ready to go.

How long do the batteries last per charge? Have they lost overall charge at all since you bought them?

 

[kunkernator]

I was just looking at Milwaukee's website....Holy **** they have a TON of tools.

 

[dodge610]

How long do the batteries last per charge? Have they lost overall charge at all since you bought them?

I get 3 to 5 hrs out of the battery before it starts to weaken. no overall charge loss at all that I can tell. One thing I did find out from a sears employee that seemed pretty knowledgable about the c3 was the chargers that come with the kits have been known to burn up the batteries but the quad charger will not over charge. That was pretty much the reason I bought mine. I have had my C3 system for 3 to 4 yrs still using the batteries that came with them in the kit.

 

[03protege]

The impact driver being a big thing; is Milwaukee's powerful and reliable?

Impact driver or wrench?

The m18 series is about 450 ft-lb for the wrench and I wanna say around 2000 in-lb for the driver.

I have the Craftsman c3 system currently and I am about to dump it for the Milwaukee, don't get me wrong they are nice tools but the technology is pretty dated at this point. The Ni-cads are just inferior to the Milwaukee lithium batteries and pretty pricey.

The only thing I REALLY want from the m18 line at this time is the impact wrench. The m12 line has all kinds of goodies that interest me.

 

[DodgeMech]

I use a cman impact driver at work and it's able to break loose 80% of the bolts/nuts I put it on...for the ones I can't, my boss's dewalt gets the job done...that said, once I part off the truck a lil more my next investment will be in a dewalt set...

 

[GSteg]

I have a set of Craftsman C3 tools (use to have impact gun, but was stolen). They're not bad, but definitely opt for lithium-ion if you can. Craftsman just released a 4AH battery (XCP) for their C3 lineup so run-time should be excellent.


But when taken everything into consideration, it's hard to beat the Milwaukee M18.

 

[kunkernator]

Impact driver or wrench?

The m18 series is about 450 ft-lb for the wrench and I wanna say around 2000 in-lb for the driver.

I have the Craftsman c3 system currently and I am about to dump it for the Milwaukee, don't get me wrong they are nice tools but the technology is pretty dated at this point. The Ni-cads are just inferior to the Milwaukee lithium batteries and pretty pricey.

The only thing I REALLY want from the m18 line at this time is the impact wrench. The m12 line has all kinds of goodies that interest me.

Sorry, I miss spoke, impact wrench... At 450 ft/lbs, is that PLENTY? I watched some of their videos (checking out their website now) and they show the tool doing quite a lot.

 

[03protege]

How long do the batteries last per charge? Have they lost overall charge at all since you bought them?

Since I also have the c3...

My batteries are about 5-6 years old and still work great on my drills (i use the impact driver all the time), but they defiantly are showing their age. I picked up the c3 circular saw and it gets about 5 minutes if I am lucky.

Ni-cad batteries can develop a memory and can **** out in short order if not maintained properly. I am surprised that other poster is not having trouble from keeping his on the charger all the time.

I bought about 8 c3 tools from a guy who was tired of buying batteries for them because he always left his batteries on the charger and it would kill them.

 

[03protege]

Sorry, I miss spoke, impact wrench... At 450 ft/lbs, is that PLENTY? I watched some of their videos (checking out their website now) and they show the tool doing quite a lot.

I'll let others chime in on that as I am no professional mechanic, but from the research I have been doing the last few weeks I have decided it is plenty.

I seemed to miss one of the main reasons I want to switch, Ni-cads are heavy. Generally it does not bother me but when I had to do some work under my car hold the driver at weird angles over my head for 30-45 min it wore my *** out, well my arm more specifically.

 

[JASTECH]

Hitachi is very nice for the price, also that warranty is a plus to boot. I do like the colour as it's easier to spot then C'mans. I have Milky's M12 system. The start was ok until batteries lost power and then would go dead sitting after a week or so. HD said they never heard of it but Milky corrected the battery issue and now more power and batts last longer just sitting. Between the two, hmmmm.

 

[MattPersman]

the IR and snap on impacts are the top shelf. snap on has a sawzall and drill as far as I know too

 

[smothers33]

i have the makita driver and a drill and both are really awesome. the driver is what i bought it for and I am more than satified with it. Im a mechanic and use it everyday. holds up great with grease oil and batteries are superb also has alot of power for its size. Ive only had to charge it a handful of times in the year ive had it. im planning on buying a milwaukee kit that comes with a 18v 1/2 impact wrench, and 12 v impact ratchet. i like the kit comes with both 12 and 18v tools so you get both batteries and a universal charger so you can expand both lines . but i would still highly recommend the makita set though.

 

[Hammell]

milwaukee. and their impact wrench 1/2inch is great, good battery life, good power. No breakdowns yet.

 

[cide1]

I have dewalt 18v for almost all my cordless. The impact is good, but I also have an ir 2135 to fall back on. I would have no regrets buying it again.

 

[kunkernator]

i have the makita driver and a drill and both are really awesome. the driver is what i bought it for and I am more than satified with it. Im a mechanic and use it everyday. holds up great with grease oil and batteries are superb also has alot of power for its size. Ive only had to charge it a handful of times in the year ive had it. im planning on buying a milwaukee kit that comes with a 18v 1/2 impact wrench, and 12 v impact ratchet. i like the kit comes with both 12 and 18v tools so you get both batteries and a universal charger so you can expand both lines . but i would still highly recommend the makita set though.

Do you own any other Makita tools? Again, I am still in the open with this, so I am considering other brands.....

I really wish IR had a full tool lineup with their impact wrench....

 

[Inkncraig]

I bought a dewalt 18v cordless impact 3/8. It has enough power to get all the quick easy things done. I know what it will take off and not. I mainly bought it for the versatility.

 

[dodge610]

Since I also have the c3...

My batteries are about 5-6 years old and still work great on my drills (i use the impact driver all the time), but they defiantly are showing their age. I picked up the c3 circular saw and it gets about 5 minutes if I am lucky.

Ni-cad batteries can develop a memory and can **** out in short order if not maintained properly. I am surprised that other poster is not having trouble from keeping his on the charger all the time.

I bought about 8 c3 tools from a guy who was tired of buying batteries for them because he always left his batteries on the charger and it would kill them.

The other poster that might be me but not having any problem keeping my batteries going. The quad charger takes them to full charge then quits charging them. It flashes red when there charging and turns to a green light when there done and shuts that battery down until it drops in voltage then comes back on neat little set up that quad charger. Was a little pricey when I bought it but well worth the money. May switch to lithium when these finally **** out.but so far so good.

 

[chris6278]

I have milwaukee m18 1/2" impact and ir w7150 an while the ir gun is stronger the milwaukee gun has handled everything ive thrown at it with no problems so 450 ft lbs is plenty, plus their m12 an m18 line is as good as it gets in my opinion

 

[bimmerZ5]

I have 3 battery systems and tools:

1. Dewalt 18V XRP stuff.... the 1/2" impact wrench was my 1st cordless impact and I was really impressed by it. it's not like it took everything off in 0.5 seconds, but it did a good job on most and if I was willing to wear ear protection and let it impact away for 15 minutes, even the most stubborn stuff will either come off or get broken off. I have a ton of other 18V XRP system tools from Dewalt and absolutely love all of them... impact driver, circular saw, jigsaw, angle grinder, flashlight (the best of all designs to this day), rotary tool, hammer drill, mini shopvac, and probably something else i'm missing. most of those tools i use for home renovation projects, but the impact wrench and impact driver i use frequently on car work. One other thing I like about this system is that you can get both XRP Ni-Cd batteries or the XRP Li-Ion... both are actually really good and last a long time and after 3 yrs I haven't had any of those Ni-Cd die on me yet. The XRP Ni-Cd are cheap too and easy to find, but if you're willing to spend $60-$70 you can get the XRP Li-Ion. On a single fully charged battery I can pretty much complete about 3-4 all 4-wheel brake jobs and have some left. The impact isn't the most powerful on the market, but it does about 75% of what I've needed.

2. I also have the 12V NexTec system from Craftsman. Mainly got it for the right angle impact drill which i use as an impact ratchet with socket adapters. I wanted something that could fit into tighter spaces, that could still impact, but didn't have to be super powerful. most 1/4" and 3/8" drive sockets I need to remove on a car, I use this tool. this fit the bill. i also ended up getting the auto-hammer and rotary tool that is part of this system, but i don't use those as much. I like the boost charger that can basically get you a working battery in 5 minutes so you can use that while you have another one on the charger getting fully charged.

3. recently got the W7150 too.... so that's my 3rd system. not much to say about this since it's been discussed many times here.

Of the 3 systems, if I'm working on car stuff, I'll often use the IR and Nextec stuff with occasional use of the Dewalt 18v stuff. Before i got the other systems, I used the Dewalt 18v stuff a lot more on car stuff. If i'm working on home repairs, I find myself using the Dewalt 18v stuff A LOT, and some of the Nextec tools.

 

[smothers33]

Do you own any other Makita tools? Again, I am still in the open with this, so I am considering other brands.....

I really wish IR had a full tool lineup with their impact wrench....

no i dont. all i can speak for is the drill and driver but i think for automotive purposes the makita set is probably the best bet. the downside to the makita is the impact ratchet they have is a little beefier than the milwaukee especially because of the battery(buts its more powerful than the 12v milwaukee). and the milwaukee has a grease gun i want and the impacts are rated at slightly more power than the makita. but the makita is alot lighter and comfortable. also the 3.0 amp hr batteries for the makita charge in 30 mins vs 1 hr for milwaukee. milwaukee has a bigger selection of tools but if your a mechanic few of them would benifit you considering most of them are carpenter tools. 1 more thing is the makita is less expensive than the milwaukee

 

[Conductor562]

Go Milwaukee! They offer a ton of tools (around 500 I believe), the Red Lithium platform is great, and they have the longest warranty. I like Makita stuff, but they just don't offer the number of tools Milwaukee does, well, not outside of Japan anyway. The M12 line is pretty killer as well. They've really put a lot of effort into low voltage specialty tools. I've got 17 Milwaukee power tools (12 cordless) and I'd recommend them to anyone.

 

[kunkernator]

I'm loving the look of Milwaukee, mostly because of the brushless drills, various impact wrenches (compact, 12v, 18v, 28v, and even 3/4'' drive cordless!), and cordless angle grinder (which is also a deciding factor). What I really need though, is someone to play devil's advocate and convince me I don't need the IR W7150.

 

[dodge610]

I'm loving the look of Milwaukee, mostly because of the brushless drills, various impact wrenches (compact, 12v, 18v, 28v, and even 3/4'' drive cordless!), and cordless angle grinder (which is also a deciding factor). What I really need though, is someone to play devil's advocate and convince me I don't need the IR W7150.

Sure you do whats an extra charger on the work bench go ahead get both you know you want too lol

 

[kunkernator]

Sure you do whats an extra charger on the work bench go ahead get both you know you want too lol

Lol, I kinda meant get the Milwaukee INSTEAD of the IR....Think of something for that

 

[6-Speed]

If you're looking for a lineup of tools that use a common battery as your opening post suggests, it's hard to beat the Milwaukee M18 stuff, but if you're just looking for the biggest and baddest 1/2" cordless impact, the IR is it.

Personally I use the CM C3 lineup and some M12 tools for DIY work.

 

[Conductor562]

The Milwaukee is a great impact. It's not 1100 ft./lbs. great, but still a fine impact none the less. The selection you get with Milwaukee is hard to beat though.

 

[dodge610]

Lol, I kinda meant get the Milwaukee INSTEAD of the IR....Think of something for that

Well you got me but I might be checkin out the M12 myself after all this talk. Just to see what kinda attachments they have then I will have the best of both worlds how about you get both go ahead the says its allright. Dont pay any attention to that little guy on your shoulder that says dont do it.

 

[dodge610]

Lol, I kinda meant get the Milwaukee INSTEAD of the IR....Think of something for that

PLus think about it if you get both brands M12 and IR you will be keepin 2 guys workin at both places that assemble them. You know i am right trust me lol.

 

[firebox40dash5]

Lol, I kinda meant get the Milwaukee INSTEAD of the IR....Think of something for that

I'd rather have a maybe weaker 1/2" cordless impact that I can add on to, than a stronger one that's got proprietary batteries. Not like any cordless impact is going to do everything your air gun can do.

I couldn't justify buying both a decent air gun, AND the IR cordless. It may be awesome, but it's still overpriced IMO.

 

[dodge610]

I'd rather have a maybe weaker 1/2" cordless impact that I can add on to, than a stronger one that's got proprietary batteries. Not like any cordless impact is going to do everything your air gun can do.

I couldn't justify buying both a decent air gun, AND the IR cordless. It may be awesome, but it's still overpriced IMO.

There this fine gentleman did it for you and shot my right out of the air. In all seriousness he is 100% correct.