Favorite brand of battery powered tools?

[Colossus]

Hi Folks-

 

I have a 3 year old Ryobi cordless drill.  It came with 2 Lithium 18V batteries and up until the summer of 2017 everything worked great, however both batteries are now toast.  The cost of new batteries is almost more than the cost I paid for the kit new.  Where do you like to get your batteries for your drills and other battery equipment from? 

 

Next question- what is your favorite brand of equipment to use?  I grew up with Dewalt being the brand of choice and have a 15 year old Dewalt screw gun which saw a lot of hard use but is still going well.  I purchased no name replacement batteries for them from EBAY and while they don't hold the charge as long, they still get the job done. 

 

  I'm contemplating purchasing the Dewalt drill next but wanted to see what you opinions/pros cons are on the brands you have had experience with.

 

Cheers

Edited February 24, 2018 by Colossus

[KyleGT]

Milwaukee all the way for me. I use their stuff every day at work (M12 1/4” ratchet, M12 1/4” Fuel Impact wrench, M12 3/8” drill, m18 1/2” drill, and M18 3/8” Fuel Impact wrench) and the stuff stands up great to everyday use, and you can’t beat the 5 year warranty.

[diyer2]

I have owned Hitachi, Ryobi and Dewalt.

Retired construction worker.

Recently bought a set from Costco.

Green Works is the brand.

Half inch drill and a quarter inch impact driver, 20 volt with 2 batteries and a charger.

3 year warranty.

$100 plus tax.

No complaints.

 

[Grumpy Bear]

Porter Cable at my house. I have both battery and plug in. I still use plug in most of the time. If it isn't the cost of the battery as you say it's a charger gone feet up and guess what. We don't make that charger anymore. It isn't a felony to steal if you have a business I guess. My plug in stuff has been rock solid. 

[plumbob98]

Another vote for Milwaukee M-18 and M-12 series for me. I'm in construction also and the industry shifted from Dewalt to Milwaukee because the Milwaukee is that good. You can for the first time get real corded power out of battery units and the run-time is incredible. They also have an extensive lineup from Mechanic tools to Construction tools to Yard tools and all use the same batteries. Hope this helps!!

[muddkatt]

I have about a dozen Ryobi 18v tools and I wish I never would have went that route. The batteries don't last, I typically get about a year before they quit taking a charge.

 

With that said, buy Ridgid from Home Depot. They have a LIFETIME WARRANTY on the tools AND the batteries!  Here is a kit for $250.00

https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-18-Volt-Cordless-Lithium-ion-5-Tool-Combo-Kit-w-Drill-Impact-Driver-Circular-Saw-Reciprocating-Saw-Light-R9623N/300146409?cm_mmc=Shopping|THD|google|&mid=sXhADCnEW|dc_mtid_8903tb925190_pcrid_195274179091_pkw__pmt__product_300146409_slid_&gclid=CjwKCAiAt8TUBRAKEiwAOI9pAEBH4Bo9hMa_4x5SfcIz_ZKKzldJ5VmQ5LmH6-DEMp71fFbAxKx9whoChfUQAvD_BwE

[michigan2500hd]

I'm also in construction and I've found as a brand that holds up and it's comfortable to use Rigid is hard to beat. Tried many brands over the years and I've stock with Ridgid for the last few years. They're not perfect though

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

[Dnt]

A new Battery pack for my 10+ year old 18v B&D firestorm drills and drivers were outrageous. My son is into electronics, he took the battery pack apart and ordered new rechargeable batteries off the markings on the old ones and soldered everything back together works like a charm. Was under 10 bucks for enough batteries for 2 18v battery packs and took him about thirty minutes each. The batteries are the weak link on any of these devices and Tesla has yet to solve the issue..........

[djv1951]

I  find Rigid to be very good. I have gotten new batteries 2 times with no questions asked. You need to make sure you register the new tool and re-register the new batteries each time you get them.

Edited February 24, 2018 by djv1951

[MixerDriver]

Most of mine are Ryobi. They're cheap and it's nice being able to power any of them with the same battery. I've slowly been expanding my collection over the last 7 years or so, and I'm yet to have a problem with them. They don't get used daily, but see their fair share of abuse. Only recently did I wear out the first battery, and it's one of the ones that came with my 7 yr old dill/impact combo.  All the others hold a good charge, and power remains consistent till the end. Any time I'm at Home Depot, I look for the 4ah battery 2 pack for $99. For how long those batteries hold a charge, you can't beat the price. I especially like the 3spd 1/2 inch impact; it'll take off lug nuts that would give a gorilla with a breaker bar a run for it's money.

 

If I depended on the tools to put food on the table, I'd probably go with a bit better brand. Since I don't, Ryobi works good enough.

 

 

[crankman]

Milwaukee 18v stuff is good batteries last a long time. 

[Rob Okray]

I've had my Makita 1/2'' cordless so long I can't remember when I bought it. Still works great, and batteries still keep a charge.

Edited February 24, 2018 by Rob Okray

[newdude]

Mac Tools/Dewalt.  Both the bodies and batteries for the 20V and the 12V are fully interchangeable.  I have a Mac 1/2 inch cordless impact, 3/8 cordless impact and a 1/2 inch drill.  Got some Craftsman too, 1/2 inch drill and a 1/4 quick chuck driver both 19.2v Li-ion. 

Edited February 24, 2018 by newdude

[Nanotech Environmental]

For me, if it's hardcore daily use, Hilti all the way. A bit pricier than the pro-sumer stuff from the box stores, but much more powerful & robust. Their cordless stuff is really hard to beat. Far as I know you can only buy from their own stores.....Have a Hilti SF -18A Cordless drill that I bought in 2012. It has done a lot of reno & construction work, plus a lot of home projects. Batteries go all day with constant use & recharge in an hour. They still hold a charge like new. Has enough torque to give Popeye a sprained wrist & can easily run 4"+ hole saws thru structural lumber.

Also have a Dewalt heavy industrial combi-hammer (corded), which is a pretty good unit & it has broken and drilled a lot of concrete. Don't really care for the Dewalt pro-sumer stuff unless you're just using it around home sometimes. Milwaukee heavy industrial stuff is good & was always one of the gold standards for years, but the pro-sumer versions you buy at the box stores doesn't live up to that anymore, IMO.

It used to be that you bought a drill or saw & it would pretty much last you for life, or at least several decades, but not anymore unless you really pay up for high end stuff. Also with cordless, it's hard to get batteries to last more than a few years.

 

AvE has some pretty good power tool disections & reviews on YT.

Edited February 24, 2018 by Nanotech Environmental

[GhostWriter]

11 hours ago, Nanotech Environmental said:

For me, if it's hardcore daily use, Hilti all the way. 

There was a time when a 12 volt Panasonic could still outperform the box store pro-sumer 18 volts.

 

Still have my original 12 volt drill/driver Panasonic from the late 90's.  Been dropped from a ladder at least a dozen times.  It never broke.

 

Originally, believe Hilti's were re-badged Panasonics.

 

Won't find either in big box stores.

Edited February 25, 2018 by GhostWriter