Cordless Tool Kit

[RCW]

My old 18v Porter Cable cordless kit batteries are giving up. Batteries are pricey. Have 2 drill/drivers, reciprocating saw, 6 1/2" circular saw, and oscillating saw. Oh, and a light, of course!

Went to my local welding supply today for 0.030 tips for my Lincoln 210MP.
They also carry Milwaukee tools.

Long story short, came home with a 6-tool Milwaukee 18v brushless tool kit. Hammer drill/driver, 1/4" impact driver, 6 1/2" circular, recip saw, angle grinder - oh, and a light of course!

Paid more for it than my first car, but have heard good things about their cordless tools lately. Only Milwaukee I've ever had was a sheetrock screw gun, and it was/is great.

Haven't used it yet, batteries still charging.

Recently got a compound miter w/ laser for the garage, too. Saves a trip down cellar to the table saw.

 

[Daren Todd]

Nice kit!!!!! Had a coworker that bought the same kit and was really happy with it. I ended up buying the kobalt kit from lowes. Kit came with a 5 year bumper to bumper warranty.

 

[RCW]

Thanks, Daren - I hope it works. This one has 5 years on the tools and 3 on the batteries.

The recip saw is real stout. Like the hammer drill option on the driver. The little impact will take the place of my second drill on the old kit.

I have 2 corded angle grinders already. Usually run 1 with a cut-off wheel, and another with grinding wheel. Not sure if I need a cordless.

The batteries on this are 5.0 amp-hour. Some I saw that were 1.5, 2, 3, or 4. This was the only one I saw at 5.

Oh, and I have a light!!

I looked at Kobalt, Porter Cable again, and Dewalt. At Lowes, I really liked the cordless 16 and 18 gauge finish nailers that PC have in 20v to match the kits, but thought I should have gotten more time outta the 18v PC batteries......just guessing its about 8 years old - but guessing - could be 10.

Batteries are almost charged, so now gotta find something to screw.....

 

[Daren Todd]

The cordless grinder will eat the battery pretty quick. I used my coworkers a couple of times. It's really handy and convenient for quick stuff where it takes longer to drag out a cord But, if you have quite a bit of grinding to do, then it's better to get your corded one.

 

[RCW]

Yeah - grinder was one I didn't think I needed.

On the good side, I ran everything, and really like the little impact driver, and hammer drill option for the drill/driver. The Sawzall seems AWESOME!

So far, very pleased!

 

[CaveCreekRay]

Guys!

I have a couple old DeWalt drills that were like new I picked up for cheap. The batteries were pretty toasted so I went on CORRECTION :Amazon and ordered some Chinese replacement NiMh batteries with a higher capacity than the old original batteries. THEY ROCK! I am very happy with the result and I think the batteries ran me $15 each a year or so ago. I betcha they have replacement batteries for nearly every brand out there now. The fit and finish of these batteries is identical to my OEM battery except they are all black plastic. And its good to get ratings by people who have used them.

I was bummed that my 3 year old 18v DeWalt batteries are starting to not hold much of a charge but I now know I can order some good aftermarket batteries when these finally go toast.

I bought killer 9.6v NiMh replacements for my Makita variable speed drills and they are equally awesome.

Hey, and don't forget to get a light!

Ray

 

[JohnnyFbomb]

Thanks, Daren - I hope it works. This one has 5 years on the tools and 3 on the batteries.

The recip saw is real stout. Like the hammer drill option on the driver. The little impact will take the place of my second drill on the old kit.

I have 2 corded angle grinders already. Usually run 1 with a cut-off wheel, and another with grinding wheel. Not sure if I need a cordless.

The batteries on this are 5.0 amp-hour. Some I saw that were 1.5, 2, 3, or 4. This was the only one I saw at 5.

Oh, and I have a light!!

I looked at Kobalt, Porter Cable again, and Dewalt. At Lowes, I really liked the cordless 16 and 18 gauge finish nailers that PC have in 20v to match the kits, but thought I should have gotten more time outta the 18v PC batteries......just guessing its about 8 years old - but guessing - could be 10.

Batteries are almost charged, so now gotta find something to screw.....

Milwaukee fuel is the best out there at the moment. I have like 12 tools and like 14 batteries.

Here is the milwaukee addiction thread at the garage journal for anyone who wants to keep up to date.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=244666

 

[CaveCreekRay]

Johnny,

I am the same way with my Bosch drills. Once you find something that works so well, you don't switch. My renovation saw my two Bosch drills working charge after charge, all day long, often in the hands of a sub who forgot his drill or his charger. And both of those drills were re-conditioned with new batteries when I bought them. I caught a special at Christmas on the DeWalt 18v NiMhs but they were heavy and clunky but, for $95, I couldn't go bad. The NiMh charge life was half what the Bosch units were.

Later, I bought two more Bosch units and they all use the same Li-ion 18v batteries. And the Bosch belt clip is absolutely the best, most secure clip I have ever used. I have been ten feet up in the ceiling with two of these drills hanging off my ass as I climbed up a ladder. Never lost one. Amazing...

The Porter and Bosch drills look very similar.

Go with what works for you. You cannot beat a quality tool.

Ray

 

[Diydave]

I'm partial to the ryobi stuff, old and new batteries are cheap, available, and interchangeable, they make tons of tools, and like me, they're cheap. The handheld grinder is one of my favorites, a battery will sharpen 2 BH blades, still on the machine, put a cutting disc on it, and you can cut a slot down the side of damaged male thread, to clean up a buggered up thread. also can use to cut off nuts, that are jammed, or just to tight to f with...

 

[Tooljunkie]

If the circular saw is anything like the makita, you will love it. Buddy has a makita and he pretty much gave up on his corded one.

I have my dewalt cordless 18 volt and its standing up suprisinly well. Very durable and battery life is still decent. After about 4 years i couldnt ask fir much more.

 

[JohnnyFbomb]

Johnny,

I am the same way with my Bosch drills. Once you find something that works so well, you don't switch. My renovation saw my two Bosch drills working charge after charge, all day long, often in the hands of a sub who forgot his drill or his charger. And both of those drills were re-conditioned with new batteries when I bought them. I caught a special at Christmas on the DeWalt 18v NiMhs but they were heavy and clunky but, for $95, I couldn't go bad. The NiMh charge life was half what the Bosch units were.

Later, I bought two more Bosch units and they all use the same Li-ion 18v batteries. And the Bosch belt clip is absolutely the best, most secure clip I have ever used. I have been ten feet up in the ceiling with two of these drills hanging off my ass as I climbed up a ladder. Never lost one. Amazing...

The Porter and Bosch drills look very similar.

Go with what works for you. You cannot beat a quality tool.

Ray

Bosch makes some nice ergonomic tools. They feel really good in the hands. Being a carpenter, I opted for the brushless tools for the runtime. I had both dewalt 36 volt and 18 volt sets, but made the jump to milwaukee after dewalt started to play battery and torque number games. They were the only company to rate the power of their tools in a way only they could understand. Their 20v battery system is only 18 volt. In europe, they got caught and they had to call it 18 volt. In north America, it's still called 20.

 

[JohnnyFbomb]

I'm partial to the ryobi stuff, old and new batteries are cheap, available, and interchangeable, they make tons of tools, and like me, they're cheap. The handheld grinder is one of my favorites, a battery will sharpen 2 BH blades, still on the machine, put a cutting disc on it, and you can cut a slot down the side of damaged male thread, to clean up a buggered up thread. also can use to cut off nuts, that are jammed, or just to tight to f with...

Ryobi is pretty good quality. TTI owns Milwaukee, Ridgid and Ryobi.

http://www.ttigroup.com/en/our_brands/by_division/power_tools_and_accessories

 

[olthumpa]

Ray, do you remember the seller on Amazon that you bot the batteries from? I meed to get some new one's

 

[Howling]

The batteries on this are 5.0 amp-hour. Some I saw that were 1.5, 2, 3, or 4. This was the only one I saw at 5.
...

Batteries are almost charged, so now gotta find something to screw.....

Nice to have a few extra batteries. I have found when drilling and tapping a bunch of holes the small batteries (1.5 and 2) are nice. Less weight hanging off the drill.

With the common batteries I find my collection of Milwaukee tools magically growing.

 

[CaveCreekRay]

Olthumpa,

Here's the link to the Dewalt Batteries I bought.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D9HWFEU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The Makita 9.6v batteries I bought were PowerMall brand rated at 3000 mAh.

https://smile.amazon.com/Powermall-...1257&sr=8-1&keywords=PowerMall+9.6v+batteries

I haven't charged these in 6 mos and I cannot stop the drill chuck by hand in either drill! They hold a charge!

Ray

 

[OldeEnglish]

Keep an eye on Hilti, once and a while they hold some really good deals and can be purchased for less than home dumpster sales. Their tools last a long time getting used hard in the commercial world so for a homeowner they would last a lifetime.

 

[CaveCreekRay]

OE is right!

I have been using Hilti gas concrete saws for the past couple of years on this house. I needed a saw for my stone guy to cut more flagstone next year for the front yard.

Most Home Depot Rentals sell their tools for a pretty good price and, most of the time, they are in really good shape. I bought a 10" MK tile saw that looked brand new after I cleaned it up. I have used it a bunch, tiling my workshop, office, and now my house garage.

I was down at the Rental section two weeks ago and they had a Hilti DCH 300 12" saw for $395! It retails for $1300 new! Gas saws are about $100 a day for all-day rental so in three days I pay for my electric saw. I'll run it off my huge generator, which needs some exercise. It cleaned up nearly new and after using it, I can sell it.

Check out Homey 'Po if you have one with a rental section. They will even notify you when a tool goes up for sale. They are great to work with.

And, regarding Hilti, the Rental guys told me that Hilti will take a tool in and, for a very reasonable price, completely overhaul it and return it to you, which makes it more valuable if you are going to sell it on later -or will it to your kids if they are deserving!

Ray

 

[Lil Foot]

I am amazed no one mentioned Home Depot's Rigid line- Lifetime service & battery replacement.

 

[JohnnyFbomb]

I am amazed no one mentioned Home Depot's Rigid line- Lifetime service & battery replacement.

It's a scam. There's a thread on garage journal a hundred pages long about it. They should be thrown in jail for it.

 

[gliderjet2015]

Rigid/Home Depot has been great for me. Just bring the whole kit in and walk back out with a new one.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk