... and why?

I'm looking to upgrade away from my aging Craftsman C3 gear that I inherited.

I've looked at:
Bauer (harbor freight)
Milwaukee (seem to be the best but $$$$)
Makita (insane variety but $$)
Ryobi (local at Home Depot, I see lots of used tools for sale).

Ideally I'd buy a second-hand set as a bundle if possible.

Ridgid has a lifetime battery warranty. Quality tools.

I'm a Makita guy. I like the variety and interchangeability. And their brushless technology is badass. My 36V (two battery) brushless blower is stronger than my buddy's gas-power backpack blower, and you can take my 1/2" drive impact from my cold dead hands.

Downside is that the tools are pretty expensive, and Makita battery packs are ridiculously expensive.

DeWalt or Milwaukee are the other best in class.

Porter Cable and Ryobi are the next tier. Great quality for the money for the home DIY-type person.

This is also helpful to understand the tiers (e.g. DeWalt/Porter Cable and Milwaukee/Ryobi)

I have Dewalt hammer drill, impact driver, circular saw, 1/2" impact, poke saw and weedeater and they're great, batteries have lasted 4 or 5 years w/ no problems.

I'd probably go Milwaukee if I started over (might get some 12V tools) as they seem to be just as good or better and have a few more items like pole hedge trimmer & ratchet. Seems like Dewalt is more popular in construction and Milwaukee more for mechanics from what I've seen lately.

In the process of converting my kids ride on 4 wheeler to use dewalt batteries so I might get some of the knockoffs on Amazon.

I have a Ridgid set, 1/2" Impact, IMpact driver and cordless drill that I bought based on a post here when HD was having their sale.

Its impressed me with the durability.

The lifetime warranty is great too.

I am using milwaukee fuel 3/8 and 1/4 cordless ratchets though.

I have become a huge Milwaukee fan - watch Lowes for some great deals

EMY92 said:

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Ridgid has a lifetime battery warranty. Quality tools.

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I've been a DeWalt label ***** in the past. Looked hard at Milwaukee's M18 sets after some sub rec's. Think my next set is going to be Rigid. I hate buying replacement batteries.

I'm in the Ryobi One ecosystem and it hasn't let me down. I am not a power user though.

I own some of each. I've come to standardize on the Ryobi One+ system, though if I had to do it over again I'd probably go Milwaukee; the electric ratchets that Milwaukee make are one of my primary tools.

I have all Dewalt 20v cordless. I also have the 20v leaf blower and trimmer. I sold my husqvarna trimmer it worked so well. I also use the cordless shop vac all the time.

Milwaukee
Buy once, cry once

Thanks guys

Been a long time Porter Cable user but their quality has gone down since Dewalt bought them. I've been building up a Milwaukee M12 set and now I've got a few M18 tools. Also bought a Bosch impact and drill recently. The build quality seemed excellent but the impact (freak) won't hold a bit anymore three weeks into ownership. The drill is a beast (755 in/lbs) though and got a 1" auger bit out of 7" of pine after my M18 hole hawg and my M18 drill (with 1,200 in/lbs of torque) wouldn't budge it. The M12 stuff is awesome for the times you don't need a lot of horsepower but more finesse, portability, or compactness. Don't discount it because it's only 12V.

GarlandAg2012 said:

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I'm in the Ryobi One ecosystem and it hasn't let me down. I am not a power user though.

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Same for me. I like that they use one style battery so you can use new or old tools on the same battery. Dewalt lost me when they switched styles of batteries. I know they make an adapter, but I am sold on Ryobi.

+1 for Milwaukee

Another vote for Milwaukee

Another vote for Ridgid

Seems to be an issue with some now; lots of tools are made in China but Milwaukee is owned by a Chinese company.

Just watched a few comparison videos. Milwaukee did not rank highly, which surprised me.

I'm pretty invested in the Makita 18V and have been very happy.

Home depot had a good deal going on the Milwaukee M12 batteries a while back so I went ahead and got some of those and the cordless ratchet. I plan on having a few of those tool, but more geared toward automotive use.

I had Ryobi in the past and it never failed me. I just bought into Makita a while back on a black friday sale. I've been slowly phasing out the Ryobi. Gave most of the tools to my BIL. My last Ryobi battery died the other day. The only tool I was still using it for is a portable inflator. Going to replace it with the M12 model and be down to just 2 battery types.

Dewalt and Milwaukee are primarily what I see on the commercial job site.

Each trade has their preference.

I switched to Ridgid because of the warranty and compatibility. I also have some Milwaukee and I really like their tools. Dewalt is obviously very good as well.

The Ridgid tools have performed very well, and I have no regrets about switching. They seem to be a very good balance in value and quality.

BQ04 said:

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Dewalt and Milwaukee are primarily what I see on the commercial job site.

Each trade has their preference.

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I'm seeing electricians and plumbers almost exclusively with Milwaukee. Carpenters Makita and Hitachi. Everyone else uses a mixture of different stuff.

Sounds like dewalt, milwaukee and makita are all out Definitely don't need trade grade stuff. Going to look into Ryobi

Ryobi, cuz i got the combo as a gift. All has worked well so ive picked up a few more pieces over the years.

+1 for Makita

EMY92 said:

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Ridgid has a lifetime battery warranty. Quality tools.

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FIFY

The tool and the battery are warrantied if you register within 90 days. Must buy it from Home Depot.

We have owned all the tools since 2004 when we purchased them to renovate a house. We used them again in 2011 to renovate another house.

Some of them died and have been replaced. All the old batteries (10+) have been replaced. Our newer tools are the 18 volt and fantastic.

They are easy to work with, but expect a long replacement process on the tool (~month). They send it off and try to fix it. If they fail, Home Depot hands you a brand new one. If they don't make it anymore, they give you the new equivalent.