Tools & equipment that are fantastic.

[jigs_n_fixtures]

In battery tools, you need for purposes of simple economics to get one battery type, and manufacturer and stick to them.

I run Dewalt, mostly because I looked for a drill/driver with adjustable torque settings, and a cord, 25-years ago. They were in the catalogs for Milwaukee, Bosch, and Makita. But, could not actually be ordered.

I was in Home Desperate at 0500, one Saturday morning, checking out clearance tools, and there was a Dewalt Hammer Drill/Driver and Impact Driver combo kit, on clearance for half price. So I bought the kit, and have run DeWalt ever since. When you get invested in a system, you tend to run with that system. Not really a “Fan Boy” thing. More of a practical decision, based on simple economics and logistics. If I’m going out to work somewhere, i don’t want to pack three different chargers on the truck. It is a lot simpler to have two chargers for the same line of tools, and always have a couple of batteries on the the chargers.

Dewalt has the broadest catalog of various 20-Volt tools, of the “Pro” grade tools, (Ryobi has the broadest, but is “Pro-Sumer” grade). There are reputable channels, on YouTube who test tools, and the Dewalt is consistently in the running. the guy does things like test the max torque an impact driver will deliver, then runs tests to see how it performs until the battery goes flat. In the last 3-months, Dewalt, Bosch, and Milwaukee, have come out with multiple new impact drivers. And, he tests all of them when he can get them delivered from a normal online retail source. the “Best” changes with every new one.

In reality, you pick what is best avialable, where and when you are, and then go with that line, for decades into the future.

There is a guy on YouTube, who has a channel devoted to Finish Carpentry. He uses Dewalt and Milwaukee both, and buys whichever has the better tool he needs, when and where he needs to buy a new one. He sells Dewalky t-shirts on his website.

 

[Hay Dude]

Another Fav of mine is my last Chopper-1 splitting axe.
Dad and I used to split firewood together when I was a kid. We used to heat our house with firewood. I used them for decades. Plenty of broken handles and memories.
We must have split 100 cords or more together back in the 80’s. I saved this one.

 

[scootr]

I confess to brand loyalty when it comes to battery powered tools, specifically 18v ryobi rotary and hammer drill, leaf blower, vacuums, imact gun,flashlights, skill saw, sawzall, disc grinder, and more. Because they work and they all use the same battery and charger. I bought (over the yrs) many big and small ryobi batteries and aftermarket ryobi batteries. I mark the yr of purchase on the bottom just to track performance. Not a day goes by I don't use one of these tools. Last yr I recycled a 2014 battery. Ryobi tools are pretty darn good. The little skill saw and sawzall rock. They will do whatever you can do. Signed a retired carpenter.

By the way thanks for the laughs in this thread this AM girls.

 

[4570Man]

Arguing DeWalt v. Milwaukee?
LOL
Thats like arguing Ford v. Chevy

Brand loyalty is so stupid. Doesn’t anyone understand thats what manufacturers want you to do? They WANT you to be a stooge for them.

I use the Dewalt line and own at least one of the majority of the offerings. My Dewalt framing nailer is a piece of junk. It has to wind up to fire which is annoying. It doesn’t have very good penetration power either. Leaving the nails 1/4” proud is a common occurrence. Nailing a harder material like advantec or old dried out lumber is out of the question. The Milwaukee nailer I used didn’t have to wind up to fire, it could shoot instantly like an air gun which was nice. I didn’t test it against advantec but I could tell the penetration power was better just nailing 2x4s. Milwaukee has always been ahead in impacts. I wouldn’t consider their to be enough difference in 1/4” drivers to worry about, the Dewalts new 3/8” Atomic series sets them closer together there. Dewalt doesn’t have anything close to matching up the biggest 1/2 drive Milwaukee and they don’t have a 3/4 or 1” drive at all. They actually do have a 3/4 but it’s the same driver as the 1/2 with a different anvil. It’s no debate at all that Milwaukee is the clear winner in those categories. The rest of the lineup is closer together. I’m not typically brand loyal, I’ll buy the most practical offering but when it comes to cordless tools I do try to stick with the same batteries.

 

[ArlyA]

I'll post here later. Just watching for now.

 

[Hay Dude]

I use the Dewalt line and own at least one of the majority of the offerings. My Dewalt framing nailer is a piece of junk. It has to wind up to fire which is annoying. It doesn’t have very good penetration power either. Leaving the nails 1/4” proud is a common occurrence. Nailing a harder material like advantec or old dried out lumber is out of the question. The Milwaukee nailer I used didn’t have to wind up to fire, it could shoot instantly like an air gun which was nice. I didn’t test it against advantec but I could tell the penetration power was better just nailing 2x4s. Milwaukee has always been ahead in impacts. I wouldn’t consider their to be enough difference in 1/4” drivers to worry about, the Dewalts new 3/8” Atomic series sets them closer together there. Dewalt doesn’t have anything close to matching up the biggest 1/2 drive Milwaukee and they don’t have a 3/4 or 1” drive at all. They actually do have a 3/4 but it’s the same driver as the 1/2 with a different anvil. It’s no debate at all that Milwaukee is the clear winner in those categories. The rest of the lineup is closer together. I’m not typically brand loyal, I’ll buy the most practical offering but when it comes to cordless tools I do try to stick with the same batteries.

Where I got trapped and where the manufacturers KNOW they have you trapped is the batteries.
The high volt/amp batteries are brand exclusive and VERY expensive. Once you buy a couple batteries, the brand of tool tends to go to ONE brand.
I went with DeWalt on MOST of my cordless and have no big regrets.

When doing construction work, I still use mostly plug-in AC powered tools anyway. That allows freedom from being forced into one brand because of batteries. Nail guns are both pneumatic and run off an air compressor. There’s no way to frame in mass production style with a battery nail gun.

I have Milwaukee saws, Bosch table saw, Dewalt compound saw, etc. All plug-in

 

[ovrszd]

In battery tools, you need for purposes of simple economics to get one battery type, and manufacturer and stick to them.

I run Dewalt, mostly because I looked for a drill/driver with adjustable torque settings, and a cord, 25-years ago. They were in the catalogs for Milwaukee, Bosch, and Makita. But, could not actually be ordered.

I was in Home Desperate at 0500, one Saturday morning, checking out clearance tools, and there was a Dewalt Hammer Drill/Driver and Impact Driver combo kit, on clearance for half price. So I bought the kit, and have run DeWalt ever since. When you get invested in a system, you tend to run with that system. Not really a “Fan Boy” thing. More of a practical decision, based on simple economics and logistics. If I’m going out to work somewhere, i don’t want to pack three different chargers on the truck. It is a lot simpler to have two chargers for the same line of tools, and always have a couple of batteries on the the chargers.

Dewalt has the broadest catalog of various 20-Volt tools, of the “Pro” grade tools, (Ryobi has the broadest, but is “Pro-Sumer” grade). There are reputable channels, on YouTube who test tools, and the Dewalt is consistently in the running. the guy does things like test the max torque an impact driver will deliver, then runs tests to see how it performs until the battery goes flat. In the last 3-months, Dewalt, Bosch, and Milwaukee, have come out with multiple new impact drivers. And, he tests all of them when he can get them delivered from a normal online retail source. the “Best” changes with every new one.

In reality, you pick what is best avialable, where and when you are, and then go with that line, for decades into the future.

There is a guy on YouTube, who has a channel devoted to Finish Carpentry. He uses Dewalt and Milwaukee both, and buys whichever has the better tool he needs, when and where he needs to buy a new one. He sells Dewalky t-shirts on his website.

And now you can buyer adapters to run Milwaukee batteries on DeWalt tools for example.

 

[4570Man]

Where I got trapped and where the manufacturers KNOW they have you trapped is the batteries.
The high volt/amp batteries are brand exclusive and VERY expensive. Once you buy a couple batteries, the brand of tool tends to go to ONE brand.
I went with DeWalt on MOST of my cordless and have no big regrets.

When doing construction work, I still use mostly plug-in AC powered tools anyway. That allows freedom from being forced into one brand because of batteries. Nail guns are both pneumatic and run off an air compressor. There’s no way to frame in mass production style with a battery nail gun.

I have Milwaukee saws, Bosch table saw, Dewalt compound saw, etc. All plug-in

I’m a GC so I don’t spend much time doing the same job. If I did I could carry a more dedicated tool lineup. I have a corded circular saw and a battery circular saw. The dewalt 7-1/4 cordless saw with an 8ah battery is actually capable of doing some work. If another crew already has cords out I might use the corded saw but I rarely find the need to roll out 100 ft of cord. I can’t carry an air compressor for a pneumatic framer so I’d hoped that the battery gun would reduce the time and money spent using screws. That didn’t pan out. I’ve not used a corded sawzall or drill in years.

 

[Hay Dude]

I find my Zero-Turn mower to be fantastic.
Uneducated people think all they can do is mow grass.
However, it can utilize several useful attachments.

 

[Hay Dude]

I’m a GC so I don’t spend much time doing the same job. If I did I could carry a more dedicated tool lineup. I have a corded circular saw and a battery circular saw. The dewalt 7-1/4 cordless saw with an 8ah battery is actually capable of doing some work. If another crew already has cords out I might use the corded saw but I rarely find the need to roll out 100 ft of cord. I can’t carry an air compressor for a pneumatic framer so I’d hoped that the battery gun would reduce the time and money spent using screws. That didn’t pan out. I’ve not used a corded sawzall or drill in years.

Agree with sawzall and drill. They are pretty much battery powered all the way.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

Tools are strange in a way. A contractor friend/neighbor and I built a horse tack room last year. He had an expensive pancake air compressor and a Paslode framing nailer. Both gave problems early on so I got my Harbor Freight nailer and compressor. They both worked fantastic throughout the job.
I started with DeWalt cordless and stayed with them for everything since I have lots of batteries and chargers.

 

[ovrszd]

My favorite Milwaukee is this 1/4 impact. Excellent power. Excellent battery life. 3spd. Soft start for self drilling/tapping screws. Compact for tight places. And it's pretty light for battery powered.

 

[ArlyA]

I sure have liked my various makita cordless tools. Have multi mini chainsaws, multi drills, grinder and impact. All use the same 18v batteries and had good luck with aftermarket 10amp hour batteries for them as well.

 

[Hay Dude]

I love my Makita (Sach Dolmar) saw. It’s a beast

 

[2LaneCruzer]

When I decided to do a complete restoration of my '70 Nova, one of the first things I bought was a rotisserie. Doing any kind of body work on it was so easy when you could position it so it is easy to work on. Was worth every penny, and when I'm done with it, hopefully this coming spring or summer, I have a couple of friends that want to buy it for their projects.

That brings back some memories. I bought a 70 Chevy Nova brand new; six cyl, three on the tree, radio (no AC). I'll never forget writing that check; $2,330.00 (company fleet discount!).

 

[sea2summit]

I've got a whole ton of tools. Three have gotten me out of more pinches than all the others put together. First is a 6lb sledge head I found in the woods, cleaned up and put on a 16" handle. Second, a pair of sidecutters I keep in the little pocket on my pants. Lastly a battery powered 1/2 impact driver.

 

[ovrszd]

That brings back some memories. I bought a 70 Chevy Nova brand new; six cyl, three on the tree, radio (no AC). I'll never forget writing that check; $2,330.00 (company fleet discount!).

I bought a 69 Mustang Coupe, 302V8, 3spd on the floor, radio, no AC for $2,300.00 I was 17.

Those were the days!!!

 

[BigBlue1]

One of the most surprisingly useful tools I've purchased in recent years is an oscillating tool. I have the DeWalt cordless version, but any would have the same benefits. They are just SOOOO useful for making cuts in atypical situations. Like cutting off the bottom of a door jamb/casing when installing new flooring or making a quick hole in sheetrock. Or reaching several inches into an opening to make a cut. They are quick, easy, have many different types of blades and are very useful. My last use was last night where I put on a non-serrated blade (think utility knife edge) to cut the enamel paint at the edge of a door's casing as I was removing it from the wall. Kept the paint from peeling the sheetrock paper as I pried the casing away.

 

[ovrszd]

One of the most surprisingly useful tools I've purchased in recent years is an oscillating tool. I have the DeWalt cordless version, but any would have the same benefits. They are just SOOOO useful for making cuts in atypical situations. Like cutting off the bottom of a door jamb/casing when installing new flooring or making a quick hole in sheetrock. Or reaching several inches into an opening to make a cut. They are quick, easy, have many different types of blades and are very useful. My last use was last night where I put on a non-serrated blade (think utility knife edge) to cut the enamel paint at the edge of a door's casing as I was removing it from the wall. Kept the paint from peeling the sheetrock paper as I pried the casing away.

I have no consistent "need" for one, but I "want" one.

 

[4570Man]

One of the most surprisingly useful tools I've purchased in recent years is an oscillating tool. I have the DeWalt cordless version, but any would have the same benefits. They are just SOOOO useful for making cuts in atypical situations. Like cutting off the bottom of a door jamb/casing when installing new flooring or making a quick hole in sheetrock. Or reaching several inches into an opening to make a cut. They are quick, easy, have many different types of blades and are very useful. My last use was last night where I put on a non-serrated blade (think utility knife edge) to cut the enamel paint at the edge of a door's casing as I was removing it from the wall. Kept the paint from peeling the sheetrock paper as I pried the casing away.

That’s what I was going to comment before I got sidetracked. I use mine all the time. No other tool can efficiently do what it does.