Milwaukee dewalt or ryobi?

[captainweezy]

It's time to upgrade my cordless power tools. I will more than likely be purchasing from Home Depot online since I get commission at that store! I will be buying a new drill, 1/2" impact, sawzall, mini circular and maybe a light.
I saw that the ryobi's run cheaper.
I also want the smaller/lighter battery packs.

I currently have a crapsman set that has been ok but their drills never seem to hold up just like their ratchets. The crapsman set I have had for over 10 years and they are wore out. I am switching brands.

At this time I am leaning toward the Milwaukee but what do you guys think?

[El Camexican]

It's time to upgrade my cordless power tools. I will more than likely be purchasing from Home Depot online since I get commission at that store! I will be buying a new drill, 1/2" impact, sawzall, mini circular and maybe a light.
I saw that the ryobi's run cheaper.
I also want the smaller/lighter battery packs.

I currently have a crapsman set that has been ok but their drills never seem to hold up just like their ratchets. The crapsman set I have had for over 10 years and they are wore out. I am switching brands.

At this time I am leaning toward the Milwaukee but what do you guys think?

I like Milwaukee and have a few of their drills, chop saws and grinders as we were distributers for a couple years, but I don't have any cordless tools. Like everyone else they can be a little slow to send out replacement parts. Have you looked at Bosch?

[jays375]

The new Ryobi 1 tools are very nice.They have come a long way.A lot better than they used to be.I carry a Ryobi cordless chainsaw on rides.Works well for small trees and limbs.Way better than carrying a full size gas saw.

[atc007]

I know DC posted last year about someone with lifetime warranty on batteries or something? Bostitch maybe? I have dewalt,but would rather have Milwaukee. If you got 10 years out of your Craftsman,that sounds pretty damn good to me lol !

[RoscoW]

I personally run the DeWalt 18v tools with the XRP batteries and am happy with it. It's the older technology but you can always find the batteries on for $45 a pc as well as the bare tools around 100. The nice thing is DeWalt doesn't seem to phase out the batteries like other brands. Guys I work with run the 20v max system from DeWalt and seem to love them as well, much lighter than mine but I find that the Li-ion batteries don't really give an indication they are low, one second they have power the next trigger pull and nothing, always when you are in an awkward spot or furthest from the charger. For pure unstoppable power I have seen nothing like the Milwaukee Li-ion Fuel sets, You WILL break an arm if you don't let up on the trigger, it cannot be stopped in drill,on low. I used to be a Milwaukee guy but got pissed off when they kept changing battery styles every couple years.

Ross..

[Big Mike]

I would go dewalt or rigid IMO. I like those brands better than any others for cordless tools. and rigid has lifetime warranty's on a lot of their stuff

[King Trikester]

Mikita is my brand of choice, they kick trailprotrailprotrailprotrailprotrailpro. dewalts are ok but the batteries seem to become week very fast (you only get so many charges until they are toast)
I know around these parts mikita is every ones choice, the cost the most and last the longest in my opinion. dont forget you that you get what you pay for

[yaegerb]

Hey Captain,
I used to be a rough in carpenter and my father is an electrician, so we have a history of using and abusing all hand tools made and I can tell you that its not a one-stop shop. I have taken your wish list and itemized by my favorite mfg.

Drill's/Impacts: Dewalt, is still hands down my favorite drill/impact mfg. I have beat the ever-living crap out of my 18V XRP and it runs like the day I bought it. Its a bit heavier than most drills, but its because of the hammer feature of which I love.

Saws in any category: Makita...don't need to say anything else. I have put the Makita products through their paces for a very long time and i can tell you its the best saw out there whether you are looking for a smaller 7 inch or a larger, 12 inch chop saw. Hands down the highest quality IMO.

Sawzalls: Milwaukee...my dad still has his original from the 80's, works like the day he bought it and has used it on thousands of jobs.

[Jason125m]

In the winter months I use cordless tools everyday, all day. We've gone through a lot of drills over the years, but the milwaukee is hands down the best. We have 3 sets of the cordless 18V lithium Drill/impact drill sets. Charges last a long time, cold doesn't hurt them. Dewalt is overpriced junk. Dewalt is just black and decker with a different name, painted yellow.

[redsox]

take a peak at hitachi. i know, i know, not what you were thinking. but they are really, really well made, nice impact drills and drivers. its between that and Milwaukee. they are equal in my eyes.

[hippyplz]

Dewalt has fixed a lot of there quality issues. I have between 6 and 10 drills going a day 5 to 6 days a week at the shop, plus there is another 10 guys in the field all with drills. When Black&decker took them over the quality was horrible, but the new 18v and 20v lithium ion drill are very will build and have tons of power. We switched to Milwaukee awile back when Dewalt was crap and It started out as a good drill, but couldn't hold up over time. I will say the cheaper dewalts with the non li batterys are junk and just rebadged b&d.

[RDH/86200X]

I just picked up a milwaukee 3/8 impact with two red lithium ion batteries and a quick charger for $240. I looked at all the other brands and liked the milwaukee the most and its 166ft lbs torque.

[captainweezy]

All great ideas and recommendations. Keep them coming guys. I thought I heard some brand had a life time battery.
DC where ya at buddy??

[Dirtcrasher]

I did love my 24V lithium Ion RIGID but they dropped the lifetime battery replacement. At first even when 1 tool broke, you brought in the whole set and they replaced the whole set. That drill, left handed around a corner could snap your wrist.

Ryobi has always stunk, but I have not seen their newer stuff like Jay mentioned.

Now I buy regular DeWalt 18V and plan on getting a few years out of them. You HAVE to use them, and they hate the cold no matter who says what. On sale I have seen the drill,light and sawzall with 2 batteries for 159$ -179$. Then I get an out of the box special circular saw on EBAY. The circular saws need a perfect blade and eat the most battery power.

The lithium Ion charges faster and has full throttle then all of a sudden, dead. No gradual loss of power which is nice unless you think it's fully charged and it's on it's last leg. You just signed into the Mall security, you parked way out back because, how DARE a tradesman step foot in a beautiful shopping Mall when if it wasn't for me, they won't have heat or AC; (That tells me I'M DA MAN!!!!!!!!) only to find you brought 1 battery for 28 screws on a RTU, roof top unit. And the boss calls to wonder why it's taking so long?..............

I treat my tools terrible. I drop them from the top "no step" of a 12' ladder and throw them in a box truck when I'm done. I push them to their limits, the flashlight is actually the most useful tool, :lol:

The Sears man did not like me at all :D

For the average guy, keep them indoors as much as possible and use them every couple weeks. Otherwise abuse them all you want and plan on every few years needing a whole new set and sell the good leftovers on EBAY!!

I have seen brand new Makitas and Milwaukee gear boxes explode when they were 6 months old. Many of them are just a crap shoot for that individual owners needs

[captainweezy]

I did the same thing with crapsman drills. I use those the most by far. About every 2-3 years I will find a good deal on a drill, 1/4 impact and a couple battery's. I will sell the old drill, battery's and new impact on eBay and end up with a new drill and fresh battery's for free.

[MNhondaguy]

If you go with a dewalt drill get the metal chuck, the plastics crack and become virtually worthless right away. The regular batteries don't last long but you can get them anywhere and everywhere cheap. The lithium ones are lighter but I'm not sure about life span. 1/4 driver I prefer Mikita because they are small and light, but I have zipped about a million screws in building pole barns with the dewalts and never really had a problem other than the batteries. A for the mini drills and drivers/impacts I prefer Mikita again, and they look awesome haha. Guys at my last job in the body shop loved em. Sawzall? Dewalt is all I know and are great, batteries once again.. I have used snapon but can't fathom the price.

[brd812]

Your craftsmen is made by dewalt and Milwaukee, just as FYI. I like Milwaukee personally I have no issue with battery life.

[90guy]

Well, I am a Dewalt Fan. I have the new Dewalt 20v Lithium Ion battery. I went from a worn out craftsman 14v and this thing is a dang torque monster! I love them. My old man runs Ryobi. I really can't complain about them by how much we use them. Have held up really well for how long he has had them. Just batterys are non lithium so not as much run time! We have Milwaukee at work and I do love them but that price tag hurts at the store.

[kebby28]

I've been running the blue and the white makita sets. Both are nice and strong. Had one battery go bad quick but was able to ship it to makita and get a new one. Dewalt has I think a 24v impact that I was using to screw a deck off. 1 battery. What a drill!
Rayobi is the cheap home owner tool imo. I wouldn't show up to a job site with one :)

[the great gazoo]

I just bought the DeWalt 20V 4 piece kit and I love it! Nice and light, and the batteries(so far, I've had it 2 weeks) last longer than I woulda expected. I've got the 20V grinder on the way, & I'm excited as all get out about having a cordless grinder! Formerly I ran the Makita drill/impact set. The batteries were great at first, but it wasn't long before I replaced one, then another, & when it was time to buy a third battery, the Xmas bonus came through, so I bought the DeWalt set and I'm glad I did, and I HIGHLY recommend it.
I also just purchased the Ingersoll/Rand 20V 1/2 inch drive impact, and let me tell you, it's the best 420.00 I've spent in a long time.This MoFo puts out 783 ft/lbs of tourque! It's incredible, I couldn't be happier knowing I don't have to chase down an air line & drag it up2 flights of stairs, PLUS the lines here freeze in the winter, so cordless is the way to go!

[just ben]

I have been running my Makita set everyday for 3 years now with only one battery failure. The batteries can be rebuilt cheaply and easily because the batteries are held together with screws and not glued like a lot of them are.The catch with that though is they MUST be repaired after the first or second failure code from the charger. After 3 failed attempts to charge it the computer chip in the battery will be disabled forever,even with new cells. Almost always Makita has a free tool when you buy the 4 pc set either by mail in or included in the box with the set. IMO Makita is also the easiest to expand the set since home depot stocks various bare tools. I have also had very good luck with any warranty issues (carrying bag seam ripped) But I also have a Makita service center 20 min. from my house. I think some of the cheaper tools are fine for light duty or occasional use but for everyday use I would steer away from Ryobi,rigid,porter cable crapsman ect.

[kebby28]

Rigid make great intuitive tools the past few years but the cordless kits are kinda bulky.

[Thorpe]

Me personally, I am a dewalt guy... The shop I work for is the largest mechanical shop in the Twin Cities, and the keep dewalt tools in the hands of their 550 guys in the field... (Plumbers, Fitters, and Tinners) I figure besides my own good luck with the dewalt tools, there gotta be a reason thats the go to brand for such a big shop... (Just my opinion)

[trike savior]

DEWALT all the way. use them every day and never let me down. Always rate high in popular mechanics and consumer reports. Have the newer 20v drill/ impact kit that is awesome under the hood or around the house. ton of punch and small size compared to most. also have a 10 year old dewalt sawzall that still hates wood and metal like day 1.

My brother in law was die hard Milwaukee but after using my Dewalt he switched. We kind of raced driving screws on a project and Dewalt was quicker.

[rg97]

For anything cordless, I go with 18v lithium makita. Not cheap, but has outlasted everything else I have. Nice line of stuff to run off of one battery: Impact, Drill, Sawzall, Circular saw, Miter saw, Radio, LED light, etc. I use the impact most of the time and one battery will last a whole day of putting 3" screws in a deck (about 500 screws)
For air impact, 3/8 or 1/2 I use ingersoll rand, once again not cheap but lasts forever.
I don't know if home depot has any of those brands though

[slashfan7964]

Always had really good luck with DeWalt and Makita. Black and Decker used to be good, but they've gotten cheap.

[xela456]

i personally think your post title should read: "Millwaukee? or Dewalt?
no ryobi, those tools are for homeowners and hobbyests. I will probably be knocked for this but i think the cordless dewalt tools and millwaukee tools are about equal.
the 18v MW fuel xc batteries last a little longer than the dewalt 3.0 amp hour 20 volts.
i have yet to try the new dewalt xr packs but i expect good things.
I personally own a set of dewalt 20v tools i. e. a 1/4 impact, drill/hammer drill, 1/2 impact(high torque) circular saw, sawzall, and light.
nearly all my coworkers have the millwaukee conterparts so i've gotten a chance to use both and decide for myself and here's how i think they stack up
1/4 drive impact: dewalt (lighter, just a little more torque)
drill: the two are about equal imo
1/2 impact: the millwaukee deffinately has more torque (rated higher by 150ft/lbs)
circular saw: dewalt (performance about the same however the charge lasts much longer on the dewalt)
sawzall: the milwaukee has a more agressive oscilating cut so i thin it cuts a little better

just my .02


however, if i have wasted your time with this and you decide your going the cheaper route i would suggest the rigid line of power tools, i've never used any of them however i do know that they offer a LIFETIME WARRANTY something that neither dewalt or millwaukee have yet to provide

[hillbilly 200x]

I have used the 18v Dewalt for I'm going to say at least8 years and my first drill is still out there working my dad has bough a few more and he's using them around the house and farm on the weekends. Now I have moved to the 18v lipo makita because I find that they are lighter and more powerful. I use my 1/4 impact in the shop all the time it has no problem removing small nuts and bolts on the small engines and machinery that I work on. It comes in handy when I'm working on the trikes aswell. The drills have enough power to twist my rest apart, and I find it unbelievable how well the 7" saw works. You have to watch with the batteries. They have to a thinner one and a thicker one. The thicker ones are more money but are definitely worth it in the long run.

[Chopsaw]

What you gonna do with it ? General work around the house , or make a living with it ? I'm a commercial Carpenter , doing heavy gauge metal stud framing for the most part but also do my share of tenant finish . The Makita impact and drill are the best for what I do . All day everyday , and they get plenty of use at home as well . The shop supplies the black / white 18 volt , but I own the 14.4 blue / black . I like them both but the 14.4 has a 2.6 amp hour run time , makes it nice for doing wood deck work . I think the 18 is only 1.2 amp hour , but it's nice because its lite and the grip angle lets it fit into tight spots .

Chop

[DohcBikes]

Partnered with my dad for 13 years as a general contractor before entering the powersports industry...Makita and Milwaukee are our favorites.