Milwaukee vs. Ridgid vs. Craftsman Brushless Drill / Driver

[kctyphoon]

Sure, except when it comes to proprietary technologies it can make a difference. And when it comes to leading edge brushless technology and batteries it's good to know that Milwaukee's motors & red lithium cells may find their way into lower lines.

that will NEVER happen. their entire product line revolves around those 2 things. if you could get the same motors, and same batteries in a cheaper line - then why spend the money on the premium one?

people seem to forget that just because different brands share the same parent company - they are still separate companies. all they did was acquire the competition so they make money in both markets. why dumb down a premium brand name like Milwaukee to go after the people that just want to spend less and get Ryobi instead. Better you keep the premium brand intact and just acquire the company thats already doing well in that area. its like expecting a v12 Lamborghini engine to find a home into a Taurus because Ford owns both companies.

Ridgid has definitely moved up a few notches as far as i can see, but they have alot of making up to do in ALOT of people's eyes. That - and the fact that brand just isnt marketed well AT ALL.. Most people don't even know that Ridgid makes heated jackets, and you could never know that walking around the store. same with their jigsaw and impact wrench - why they aren't sold in ANY home depots is beyond me. also - between the tool lines offered by Milwaukee and Makita - its hard to get someone to pick Ridgid when there are just so may tools they dont offer.. if you dont need anything special, they the other obvious choice is Dewalt, so you have 3 iconic brands to compete against.. combine all that and you have to start making some pretty decent tools that can be sold at a lower price to help invite people over.. seems like this is what they have started to do.

 

[anndel]

Mechanics illustrated magazine tested the brushless drills this month.

Mechanics Illustrated folded in 2001. Do you mean Popular Mechanics?

 

[f575gtc]

I have no complaints about the Ridgid, but homedepot has me tempted in picking up the Milwaukee impact/hammer combo and the Milwaukee 1100ftlb impact wrench which is on sale..

The hammer drill/impact combo would cost me $260 and the impact wrench $160.

Homedepot is probably going to ban me from returning things after doing this.

 

[lightning02]

I have no complaints about the Ridgid, but homedepot has me tempted in picking up the Milwaukee impact/hammer combo and the Milwaukee 1100ftlb impact wrench which is on sale..

The hammer drill/impact combo would cost me $260 and the impact wrench $160.

Homedepot is probably going to ban me from returning things after doing this.

How you getting those prices?

 

[winlinmac]

I would like to know this too. Thanks

How you getting those prices?

 

[f575gtc]

I decided not to go through the trouble of doing so many returns so I paid the $448, but this is how you get those prices.

Buy the Hammer drill/Impact combo for $399 and throw the cheapest thing in there you can find that qualifies which is now this Ryobi 18-Volt ONE+ Compact Lithium-Ion Battery (2-Pack) Model # P170 prices at $49.97 bring everything to $298, or $265 for the combo once you return the batteries.

then

put together a Dewalt combo for $369 and add the Milwaukee 1/2 inch impact which is on sale right now for the bare tool for $199, that brings the impact down to $147. Then return the dewalt combo.

So it would be $265 for the hammer/impact driver combo and $147 for the 1/2 inch impact wrench.

Once again these are all pre-tax because not everyone has the same tax.

You are looking at $448 if you just buy the Impact/hammer and impact wrench combos together flat out, which is only about $30 less. My time, fuel, and patience to return everything is worth more than $30.

On a side note, the impact wrench does make impressive power, but it sure as hell doesn't beat many pneumatic tools when you consider its side, a pneumatic tool makes 700ftlb and its 1/3 the size of this thing.

 

[oldldh]

Me thinks...

Da boy...

Gots a system!!!

 

[f575gtc]

Even if you don't go for the extra $30 off, the normal price of the Hammer/Impact combo is $399, and the normal price of the Impact wrench is $219 so that is $618 vs $448.

Ok everyone is going to hate me, but after holding both systems in my hands, the Ridgid X5 Gen feels leaps and bounds better, it is lighter, more balanced, the impact has better specs than the Milwaukee's, Ridgid's Impact had the tri light around the chuck which is amazing, well lit, no dark spots, and I also believe the speed selection on the Ridgid is better thought out. The hammer drill for the Milwaukee kills the Ridgid Hammer drill's performance, but also feels a TON heavier. The plastic on the Ridgids feel better and are better protected than the Milwaukee, there is more soft stuff covering up the plastic on the Ridgid's and the Milwaukee's plastic looks cheap.

Obviously I can't comment on the insides on who is better built, but I so far I don't see anything special with Milwaukee's M18 Gen 2 vs Gen X5 on Ridgid.

I will stick with Milwaukee though because I am getting exhausted of returning things, and Ridgid has no info of any new brushless impact wrench coming out putting out 1,100 ftlbs.

One other thing to consider, the Ridgid X5 comes with 4ah batteries where as the M18 FUEL has 5ah in the box, now you can really compare the 2 because if you upgraded to 5ah from Ridgid you would have 4 batteries not 2, but it is an extra $200 to buy 2 5ah batteries to make the package more equal.

 

[exmaxima1]

that will NEVER happen. their entire product line revolves around those 2 things. if you could get the same motors, and same batteries in a cheaper line - then why spend the money on the premium one?

people seem to forget that just because different brands share the same parent company - they are still separate companies. all they did was acquire the competition so they make money in both markets. why dumb down a premium brand name like Milwaukee to go after the people that just want to spend less and get Ryobi instead. Better you keep the premium brand intact and just acquire the company thats already doing well in that area. its like expecting a v12 Lamborghini engine to find a home into a Taurus because Ford owns both companies.

No offense, but I wouldn't bet on that. If they are built in the same plant, they will share machinery, tooling, engineers, IC's, patents, etc. There may be unique housings and parts for their various lines, but lots of technology will trickle down as new generations are developed. Having sourced products throughout the world, I see that happening all the time. And I wouldn't say the spread in quality between Milwaukee and Ridgid is the same as Lamborghini/Ford, as the latter is built by distinctly different factories and technology pools.

 

[f575gtc]

So after using the 1/4 inch impact for a bit, I can say that I haven't come across a bolt that it couldn't remove without asking too much, obviously this thing isnt built for seized on 19mm bolts, but it either is unrated at 1,800 inch lbs or all the bolts I removed with the Ridgid were no were near needing even 1,800 to break free