Cordless tool combo, what you like?

[Baz]

I'm happy you started this thread!

I'm in need of replacing one of my cordless drills and i think it's about time i start looking into a combo pack (using a mish mash of Dewalt tools right now but they are all pretty used up). I have just been drooling over the Milwaukee 6 tool combo pack. Pretty much has anything i would need. Don't forget that Black Friday and Christmas deals are just around the corner!

And Moze ..... A heated jacket in Texas?!?!? LMAO. :ROFLMAO:
Playing with you of course ... I have no idea how cold it can get in Texas.

 

[Moze]

When I first started doing my own stuff, I had all Makita. Cordless wasn't an option back then. I slowly changed over to DeWalt, with the introduction of cordless, also. I've been terribly upset with DeWalt's lousy batteries and cunning sales, that I've been going back to Makita, little by little. At a mixer, we had here some years back, some members here explained how to re-build and repair our own battery packs, but never got into it. I guess more work than I found necessary. Now that we have several generators on all the trucks, I'm going back to all corded tools again. So dependable.

I like a Milwaukee plug in hammer drill if I'm going to be drilling holes all day but for an ordinary cordless drill for I like the new ryobi's.

With the performance of cordless tools being almost the same (or better in some cases) as corded tools anymore, I can't imagine using corded tools, extension cords, generators, etc. If it's an expense issue, I would imaging the initial expense of going cordless would quickly be offset by the efficiency of using them.

I was a sales rep for an industrial supply company for 12 years before my sign venture. I sold Milwaukee, Makita, DeWalt, Porter Cable, Bosch, and some Chinese tools. I can say that I don't care for DeWalt (older tools were much better though) at all. If I'm going with a combo kit I would go Milwaukee for sure, but for overall quality Bosch is about the best tool manufacturer out there. However, all companies have their strengths. example: Sawzalls- Milwaukee, Angle Grinders- Makita, Accessories- DeWalt, Hammer Drills- Bosch.

You lost me on the "older (DeWalt) tools were much better"...I've used both and there's no comparison, especially with the batteries. Curious why you think the older tools are better. Not being argumentative - just curious.

And Moze ..... A heated jacket in Texas?!?!? LMAO. :ROFLMAO:
Playing with you of course ... I have no idea how cold it can get in Texas.

lol...The purchase was a mix of needing a new jacket anyway and being able to add another item to use with my DeWalt line-up. That being said, it can get pretty cold here with plenty of ice storms and a lot of my work is outside AND I'm not getting any younger lol. So I'll take the extra warmth.

 

[OldPaint]

RIGHT NOW...RYOBI has a drill with LITHIUM BATTERY $79.00. good start. i got 3 LITHIUM BATTERIES...and am never outa power...
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Ryobi-18-Volt-One-Lithium-Ion-Drill-Kit-P817/203406858#.Um1qG-W3fRg

 

[Speedsterbeast]

Moze, I'm referring to the quality of the tools compared to other brands, not compared to today's battery technology. DeWalt fell off a great deal in my opinion when they were acquired by Black and Decker a few years back.

 

[Moze]

Gotchya. I guess I haven't noticed any issues with quality. I use mine extensively and literally have had zero issues.

If I were starting over though, I would purchase the Milwaukee Fuel line. They definitely have their act together. Their new impact wrench is pretty amazing. 700 ft-lbs fastening, 1,100 ft-lbs removal.

 

[Drip Dry]

have you tried fixing your "dead" batteries? I have six "dead" 18v Ryobi batteries. I shock-charged them and five of them came back to life and have been holding a charge like new batteries for months now.

How do you shock charge them back to life ?

 

[Gino]

Moze, if it works for you fine, but I must have 7 or 8 dead DeWalt drills because to replace the batteries was a cunning sales pitch on their end. You could buy a whole new setup for $20 more. I have so many batteries laying around it ain't funny. I have no idea what went wrong with DeWalt, but I just decided to go cheap and started getting drills for like $39. a pop and they far outlasted and outworked any of the DeWalt crap I got in the last 10 years. We still use a great number of cordless tools, but only for the lightweight things where power and confidence isn't required. Having cords about, never really bothered me.

For the tools which outperformed corded tools, it seems to be short lived, in my opinion. Their power continually deteriorates over time and just gets worse as they get old[er].

I know your main gig is installation, so I'm sure you have better tools than the average person, but for the cordless stuff, I've given up.

More power to ya.............. pun intended :Big Laugh
​

 

[Moze]

Understood, Gino. I had the same problems with the old Ni-Cad batteries, but just assumed that was the case with all pre-lithium batteries. If you haven't tried lithium, you might want to.

And nice pun lol...

 

[Signsforwhile]

I'm in extreme minority here but our shop here runs on SEARS Craftsman tools.....

Any time I tell someone this they say :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:

When I started alone over 10 years ago I picked up a combo kit at sears from their c2 19.2v line. It consisted of a drill, flashlight, circular saw and sawzall. The drill and sawzall are still in service today. Flashlight and circular saw were lost during one of my moves. Since then we've added mutliple tools and I've been sticking with craftsman since I havent found a reson to reinvest in a new batttery system. Recently we upgraded all of the batteries to lithium as well and I couldn't be happier. I've put these tools through the ringer...they've been dropped, slammed, left outside, dropped in mud. Last summer we managed to actually set a 1/2" impact driver on fire....but we were driving 8" lag bolts directly into telephone poles without pilot holes while it was almost 100 degrees outside. but I took it back to sears and they replaced it no questions asked.

Our tool coral consists of:

4 impact drivers
3 drills
2 reciprocating saws
1 1/2" impact driver
1 vaccum
1 portable radio

to boot, all costing much less than the other major players. And I have tried out the other ones. I've grabbed other installers' dewalts and I don't like the balance in the tools at all. I bought a makita set for my home personal use and ended up returning it because after the first use I couldn't justify double the cost for the combo kit over craftsman.

 

[OldPaint]

just in case you want to know........ALL SEARS BATTERY OPERATED TOOLS....ARE RYOBI!!!! why do you think sears does not sell RYOBI? 19.2v is what sets sears from ryobi(it still is actually 18V)........construction, materials of tools.....all come from RYOBI.
anything you buy from sears with the CRAFTSMAN NAME......... is actually another product with CRAFTSMAN LABELS. for years all of CRAFTSMAN HAND TOOLS was made by NEW BRITIAN TOOLS CO. same company that makes STANLEY TOOLS, or NAPA hand tools. ECHO made their chain saws for years. and a few years POULAN made em.

 

[eahicks]

Man I had a set of Ryobi, those batteries didn't last for squat. Been quite a while so maybe they got better? All DeWalt here too....loving their new set of handdrills/drivers, one is the small little impact driver....that thing kicks butt!

 

[Letterbox Mike]

I've been a long time Milwaukee fan. Currently we have a few of their V28 combo kits. The V28 line is a few years old not and isn't made anymore, and the batteries are starting to fade a bit, so I'm probably going to go with their new M28 line. I've got an electrician buddy who swears by Dewalt, I've never been impressed with his tools though, they just seem flimsier than Milwaukee, but that's probably more me just being really used to Milwaukee more than anything.

I will say I'm really tempted to get a Festool cordless drill. I had a chance to play around with one and it was really nice and solid feeling, more so than Milwaukee. I've got one of their track saws and it's a really nice unit. And the This Old House guys seem to swear by Festool so that has to say something. I wish they had a broader cordless range, their offering is pretty limited unfortunately.

 

[Gino]

I know I said I'm kinda partial to Makita, but there for a while, Binford was the only way to go.......

 

[petepaz]

i have had a 19.2v craftsman set for about 8 years, hammer drill, circular saw, sawz-all and light. i don't have to use them too much so that's probably why they lasted so long. when i bought them that's what i could afford and it worked out ok. last year i had to buy two new batteries and a new charger because the new lithium batteries don't fit the old charger. that pissed me off, they fit the tools but not the charger. never had any other problems.