I am wanting to purchase an 18 volt cordless drill. After going to Lowes and Home Depot, they all swear by different brands...Which is a really the best? Makita? DeWalt? Black and Decker? Milwaukee? I prefer the Dewalt, but a little pricey.

I never used a Makita drill before but everything else I have used from them has been good.

they are all good

I have a black & decker that I use in my shop

it keeps a charge for a good length of time and is strong enough to do what I want it to

Rigid 18V

I have a Rigid 18V and A Dewalt 18V. the rigid will out last and out torque the dewalt any day...

the dewalt is nice but if you are doing any real projects get the rigid.

Thanks Slim, Its for a fence I am putting in, plus to have around for a long time...

DeWalt is great, but keep in mind it's made by B&D. They make that as their "commercial" grade. If you just need something for around the house, B&D is just fine. Delta is also decent. If you were to talk to contractors at Home Depot, they would all have differing opinions on the "commercial" quality brands, but virtually any name brand is going to be sufficient for weekender use.

DeWalt

Whichever one your neighbor has. Borrow it and don't return it.

HTH.

porter & cable

I'd say Bosch--I sell screws (bring on the jokes) and nuts and bolts for a living--many of my construction guys swear by bosch. seems like dewalt is more appealing to people that use it less. B&D like said above is kinda the less tough version of dewalt...

I dont know much about the others, but these are the big two in the construction industry

Porter cable is good for corded power tools havent heard much about their cordless.

B&D are average at best. Makita makes a good one, Ridgid at Home Depot has a great warranty and is very powerful. I've had problems with Dewalt's keyless chuck breaking, you have to replace the whole thing.

Oh, and I have had more people come in asking for a replacement dewalt battery than bosch.

(I think Bosch makes Ridgid.)

i got a Milwaukee drill and sawzall when i got my F150. Its pretty good.

Oh--Milwaulkee hands down on the sawzall

Depends how much you use it. If you're not a contractor you don't need a contractor brand like DeWalt. I have the Ryobi 18v set and it's awesome. I've had it for about a year and I use it fairly regularly with no complaints.

I dont know much about consumer brands... who does ryobi?

Ryobi is Home Depots brand

son of a *****...usernames were too similar and I've been at work entirely too long.

[This message has been edited by Caramel Twix (edited 6/29/2005 10:31p).]

psttt... htown99 is my brother...not that other guy...

My dad has a Porter Cable and he loves it.