You're bound to get 100 people with 1,00 different opinions reply to this post, but I'll put my vote in for Makita. Milwaukee has traditionally been one of the top contenders but many have said their quality has declined recently (after the acquisition by a Chinese company...) I have abused Makita tools relentlessly over the years and can personally vouch for their durability, which I consider greater than that of Milwaukee. Couple that with a good selection of tools, and you have my pick for the "best" cordless tools out there.

 

I have a makita 4.5 inch 110 corded grinder..always works and I picked it up used.
If they have a good combo kit and a relatively affordable price it's a definite option.
I'm not looking for Milwaukee for the reasons above and I know lots are imports.
Like I said, these are just for a luxury, they won't be working to pay my bills. Just want some opinions on the more affordable lines.
I have 4-5 hundred I'd feel comfortable spending. I'd just like to have a grinder and a saw with my cordless set.
Thanks for the response

 

I used to have 18 volt dewalt, along with some others. I switched to the dewalt 20 volt and am more than pleased. I have most of thier tools and they are as good or better than the 18 volt stuff they made. The batteries are light years ahead of thier 18 volt. Stay away from thier compact stuff, especially the small 1.5 or 2.0 amp batteries. They just don't have the capacity. Get the 4 or 5amp batteries.

 

I use and like the Dewalt 20v tools. One of the original 4 yr old batteries is still going strong; the other got lost. The 20v tools are built better than the old 18v stuff, IMO. I would recommend getting the higher end professional grade tools; the lower end homeowner versions of some of them aren't built as solid and have less power. Also watch the kits; they tend to come with the cheaper tools or a mix of the cheap and better ones.

Dewalt & Porter Cable are both owned by Black & Decker. I have a Porter Cable drill and impact for use in the shop. They are basically a rebranded cheap Dewalt. They work and are built decent, but there is definitely a difference in power. They came with the small 2.0 Ah batteries, but they don't last long on a charge, even compared to the same size Dewalt battery.

They also have an adapter to use the 20v batteries on 18v tools.

 

You asked about "the best", it is unquestionably Hilti products (and it's priced accordingly).

Second best is "probably" Metabo products.

After that, Makita and Milwaukee and the rest.

 

Yeah, probably should have said best for a 4 to 5 hundred dollar budget. Just a fair quality for occasional light duty use

 

I'm going to go shopping at lowes and home depot in just a minute...just going to look since they are practically next door to each other. I love my old 18v dewalt and the 20v is a option too.
The 20v stuff may just be a little over budget for what i want.
But if it gets picked I may just have to buy a piece or 2 at a time.
I'll post my findings in a little while. Might find a decent deal

 

They do make what is called a " sled" adapter. This lets you use the 20 volt batteries in a 18 volt tool. That may be a good option if your tools are in good shape or your highly invested in them.

 

I like Milwaukee 18 volt stuff purely because of the diversity of the lineup. Secondly is warranty support.

 

Nothing against Milwaukee, but dewalts warranty is as good if not better. If you have a local authorized service center available, warranty service is typically better , regardless of brand, than a retail outlet.

 

The newer 20v lithium batteries are on a different level than the previous generation nick/nimh 18v Dewalt
Also the latest models have brushless motors which are even more efficient.

I have a bunch of the Dewalt 20v units.

The sled adapter mentioned above is worth a try.

 

I'm leaning towards the 20v dewalt stuff.
The grinder is a nice size and feels like the gear action is as smooth as any other. The Milwaukee has a nice line up and pretty good prices but I've been pleased with the dewalt so far.
Makita has a pretty nice line up too...
I'm going to shop around little more and see, but every brand I checked out did have one thing in common..the brushless tools advertising less power consumption but they also deliver less torque. For the little bit I use cordless, I think brushes are ok. I'd rather have a little extra power than battery life and switching to the lithium battery will provide more use than the old NiCad batteries.
I'm going to read some more and shop a little more maybe tomorrow

 

Milwaukee used to be my favorite, but since their "fuel" lineup came out, it seems like their durability has gone downhill for cordless tools.

Still can't beat a Milwaukee HoleShooter mag drill.

I've also found that many companies sell dumbed down cheaper versions at big box stores. Buy from a reputable electric tool dealer and there will be heavier duty options available.

 

After being a Milwaukee fan for many years I just bought my first Makita (brushless 1/2" hammer drill and Impact driver kit with charger and 2-18 volt 5.0 Lithium Ion batteries) not long after a recent, similar thread here on cordless tools. Milwaukee has definitely gone downhill on quality but their tools are still decent if you can put up with more problems. I still own many Milwaukees.
The reason I went with Makita is a discussion I had at the local industrial tool supply with the repair guy. I asked him how he liked the new Fuel line to which he said "I am not a Milwaukee fan" I said "DeWalt?" He said no, Makita and Bosch. So I decided to give Makita a try. Will know in a few months if it was a good choice.

 

I had some trouble with a Bosch drill I had bought about 16 years ago and really haven't reconsidered them...I may check those out tomorrow
Probably be dewalt or makita though, makita had a nice line up at the store earlier and I've found the same sets and tools online for several dollars less.
I do like the dewalt adapter..I do have a few 18v tools that are still nice and not worn out or been abused like the 3 I use most of the time. I may just replace my drill, 1/4 inch impact driver and cordless grinder with the 20v stuff and get a couple more batteries and an adapter for 20v battery to 18v tools
I think I can save money and upgrade to lithium batteries while saving some stuff that's still good

 

You won't go wrong with any of the brands really. Each one has their strengths and weaknesses and certain tools are better from one company than the other, so a yellow tool A might be better than the red tool A, but then the yellow tool B won't be nearly as good as the blue tool B.

So in the end, availability and price are probably the best way to choose.

I'm still running 18v Dewalt stuff but the couple lithium packs I have for my stuff are starting to get weak and I'll probably stick with Dewalt and do the sled too.

 

I kind of agree. It seems as if most all of the majors are now made in China. If it's one of the major brands and on sale....Its probably an OK buy. The biggest issue is batteries...And once you have a brand...Its seems more economical to stick with a unit which uses the same batteries you already have.

 

I've bought about a dozen kobalt (Lowes brand) in the last several years. You can get a multi year walk in and exchange plan for little and my guys use them daily and never had a problem they are built well and last a long time. Just put about 10 thousand screws in our new roof deck and the roofers said cordless drills wouldn't work. After three days we were done and the drills batteries lasted a lot longer then they thought they would. Good chucks too (the metal ones that grip good and are easy to use). JMO


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I bought the m 18 kits when they first came out and I have had pretty good luck with them. The batteries tend to last about 3-4 years I pick up new ones on Craigslist cheaply and I have turned a few in under warranty. I have 4 of the 1/2 drills 5 of the 1/4" impacts 2 grinders, 1 fuel 1 regular the sawzall, circular saw, 4 of the led lights. I have killed 2 drills 1 impact and 3 batteries in about 7 years. The 1/2 fuel impact Is amazing as far as power I can take tires and rims off of medium duty trucks. I also have the dewalt 20 volt kits I got them about 4 years ago and they have been very good to. Almost all the guys at work use them and they run 100,000s of screws with them a month. I have killed 2 of the dewalt 1/2 drills and 2 impacts from general use. All of them were brush failures. From running screw after screw in aluminum during the hot summer months.

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I would just add to this that if money is an issue, go in to your local pawn shop(s) and see what's in their tool selection for sale. I use M18 and Metabo cordless tools, and have picked up plenty of new/used tools and batteries for cheap. A lot of the stuff that gets turned in for pawn hasn't seen much use. A few months ago I got a 1/2" Fuel hammer drill and two of the new 5.0Ah batteries, hardly a sign of use on any of it, for $120.

A lot of the tools on my trucks have come from pawn shops and CL.

 

I have 8 Makita cordless tools. I haven't broken a single tool yet, but have worn out about a dozen batteries. I have had about as good of luck with the aftermarket batteries as I have with the Makita batteries. Makita has had a 4 amp hour battery for about a year now, so kits with the 1.5 or 3 amp hour battery are cheaper. I got a couple of 5 amp hr aftermarket batteries from ebay this summer. So far they are an improvement.

 

I'm fixing to head out and check some pawn shops, last time I looked at the pawn shops they were full blown retail for used stuff.
Maybe they'll have some holiday sales or something

 

Remember that most pawn shops will take offers below the marked price. They generally buy at about 30 percent of actual value, so they have some wiggle room *if* you play your cards right and they like you. The set I got for $120 was marked $170, for example. Think of pawn shops like car dealerships. Or welding suppliers.

 

I think no matter what I do I'm going to try the new makita sub compact drill and 1/4 driver kit.
That's the 2 I really could use more and that'll still leave me plenty to service the dewalt stuff I have already.
I can get a couple of the 20v batteries, charger and sled adapter then if I need something else later I'd have 2 brands to chose from, and what's another charger on the bench??
I like the size of the sub compact makita set and it's pretty reasonable, it's 229.

 

Good luck. On Fastenal: I don't deal with them enough to get decent prices from them. I can buy most hardware at the local hardware store cheaper than at Fastenal, but occasionally Fastenal is the only one who has what I need.

Me going into Fastenal is like the average hobbyist going into my LWS. Both of us are about to get taken to the cleaners.

 

Fastenal is a definite evil. I have gotten a few deals on closeout but otherwise they are insanely high priced. Combine that with the fact that they have little to no competition, in most local areas. Thier pricing seems to reflect selling to municipalities, large companies and government agencies with deep pockets. Take advantage of sales and try to buy local with your tool purchases.

 

I traded in all my batteries for a Honda eu2000i genny. Haven't had a dead or to hot/cold to work battery since! I love my honda!

 

Holy crap, where have you been?

 

Oh yeah, you missed the password debacle. Hope things are going well, Mike.

 

Piss on fastenal...pawn shops no luck today. A dewalt 20v max drill was listed at the pawn for 139.99 and was heavily used and over a year old. The same one new at home depot is on sale for 129....and it was the same part number...I knew they wouldn't take 50 for it and I wouldn't pay 25 for it anyway.
I'm going to get the sub compact makita set and upgrade my dewalt stuff..this way I'll have 2 different lines so if one comes out with a nice tool or something I want I'll have a couple options.

 

At this stage in life, TEAL....YELLOW....GREEN....ORANGE....RED1....RED2....and BLUE are all within the same approximate class of performance. Used many COLORS since the mid/late 90s. We selected YELLOW years ago with their 20V Li-ion batts and have had solid luck from Dewalt. Worked the 18V YELLOW Ni-Cads heavily in the field since mid-2000s and they always delivered. YMMV.

Corded, we dig Hilti (RED2) for concrete drilling and Metabo (TEAL) for material removal/finishing. Whatever color you select, use 'em and use 'em properly/frequently. Nowadays, these tools are semi-consumables.

 

I have most of everything as far as brands go except for metabo..always looking for a deal on one though.
I'm just looking at having just 1 or 2 battery types..
For corded tools, whatever color has the best quality and features I like is a winner. I just don't want too many batteries floating around..if I had a cordless color arrangement like my plug ins I'd have 20 or 30 different chargers and so many batteries it'd be ridiculous.