Depends if you use your tools to make money.
I do, so I spend good money on good quality with good warranty.
In Australia that’s snappon for hand tools and Milwaukee for power tools.
It costs me a lot of time if I have to go back and buy a broken tool again.
Time is money
No matter what level of effort you’ll be using… don’t get the Walmart brand. Yeah, they’re good for beginners and can handle the occasional weekend project. But even you don’t use them enough to wear them out, the other dads/men will make fun of you for having the hardware equivalent of velcro shoes from the dollar store.
Honest answer: I started with DeWalt. Had issues. Went to Milwaukee. Never regretted it.
We have those walmart brand equivalents in Germany, from supermarkets like Lidl, Norma and co…
In my world, people who come to the task with a brand new, expensive Makita drill deserve way more mockery than people who come with a cheap, well used Lidl drill.
Makita. Best tools that aren’t stupid expensive.
Be prepared for endless mockery no matter which direction you go. Best of luck sir.
Second harbor freight and dewalt. I work industrial maintenance and use Pittsburgh impact sockets and wrenches,and dewalt for power tools. No problems at all. If you want tool truck quality,def gear wrench and even icon(their wrenches were tested and proven to beat snap on),for a fraction of cost. I use and abuse a set of icon chrome sockets,and they take a beating and keep going.
Dewalt if you want it to last forever
Milwuakee if you want to put it in a cool box
Ryobi if you’re broke but dont live near a harbor freight
Festool if you have a trust fund
While I generally agree, I must say that my Ryobi tools are doing just fine after 15ish years of use. Primarily the drill is what’s used, and it’s seen some shit but aside from a little cosmetic issue (rubber peeling off here and there) it’s in great working order. I can afford better now, but I’m happy enough to keep what I’ve got.
I’m just a handy home owner, so it’s not like I’m abusing these things.
I started with Ryobi but they kept busting. I’m the type of home owner thatll remodel a kitchen or bathroom so I use them a little above average.
Red boxes fit all brands :)
Burn the heratic
I wish Dewalt could make half do half as good as the pack out but every new system has been a big miss.
I’m a big fan of buying power tools twice. I happen to go Ryobi for the first round but Harbor Freight / Northern Tool are probably similar.
If you can stand the fuss, buy corded tools and skip the brand loyalty that comes with batteries.
The biggest killer of cheaper power tools is generally heat. There are plastic components in the drive train. They hold up great to short jobs, but heat is their kryptonite. If you let a Ryobi tool cool down whenever you notice it getting warm to the touch it’ll last a long time. If you need to run a tool for hours at a time then skip the fuss and go straight to a more brand with a good reputation like DeWalt, Makita, Bosch, or Milwaukee.
If you can stand the fuss, buy corded tools and skip the brand loyalty that comes with batteries.
Just want to second this. A good quality corded tool can last you a decade or two, even with moderate use. You’ll probably be replacing your cordless tool batteries within 5 years.
The only cordless tools I have are a drill, lawn mower, and chainsaw. That’s only because I use them often enough to justify it.
Drill, impact, etc are pretty much necessary to have cordless. I agree with the corded stuff though. Need an angle grinder or sawzall? Get corded. Way more powerful too.
I’m a cheapskate, I usually end up with ryobi.
I went with Ryobi under the rubric of “if you use it enough to break it then buy a good one”. I have a wall of green tools because most of them are used only occasionally. My hammer drill is the one that is gonna go. And yeah. I will buy something f’in awesome. Because using an underpowered hammer drill sucked.
Yeah I’ve got DeWalt drills and Ryobi everything else
Hilti. Or Duss.
After three and a half years of semi professional use, my ryobi impact driver has a lot of play in the shaft making it rather difficult to use and it can no longer do heavy jobs. But for the price, 3.5 years was worth it.
Plus I like obnoxious green as a color.
Genuine question, is there some reason you can mix and match tools?
Power tool batteries are expensive and are not interchangeable between brands (without 3rd party adapters that can be a bit risky). I only own DeWalt power tools because I want one set of batteries and chargers.
I have no brand loyalty to hand tools, however. Well, except for Knipex. My pliers-wrench has been life changing.
assuming you mean *can’t
if cordless: batteries
else: brand cuckery
Yep. Had a family member buy me Ryobi and 2 batteries. Guess I’m a Ryobi man now
Ryobi cordless tools because I’m a light duty user. Wiha screwdrivers because I’m worth it (and they are worth it). And the nice Hakko soldering tools because I use those more.
Bosch: never the best choice, but always a good one.
In the EU -
Makita - what most folk use
DeWalt - what posers with tan boots use
Bosch Professional (the blue stuff) - what pros use
Ryobi -
Bullshit!I don’t agree. Many pros use Hilti, the best brand, full stop, but crazy expensive, followed by Fein and Festool (the basic Festool circular saw is like 600€) Pros who want to pay less use any of the other “color teams”, yellow, blue, red, dark blue… And yes DeWalt is 100% pro, and some pros use Bosch blue. My buddies shop uses Bosch blue for corded, but has gone Milwaukee for battery, as cordless Bosch has been hit-and-miss. I had a 80% DeWalt shop and can vouch for them. I particularly love their sliding miter saws and small, thin waist angle grinders (the unsung multitasking wonder tool). BTW. Angle grinders MUST be corded, except for a very small set of use cases. Battery angle grinders suck pig’s balls.Also Makita>Bosch blue.
Sadly Ryoby has gone full cheap DIY, like SKIL (owned by Bosch now?) I have an old maybe 18ish Ryobi (Blue) circular saw. Built like a tank, with a cast aluminum foot, that is as precise as day one. Oh well…
Ryobi garden tools are legit. I have the 40V string trimmer and 40V mower, and an 18V leaf blower, and so far I have no complaints. I once heard someone say that Ryobi tools are R&D for Milwaukee (as they are the same parent company).
My shop tools are all DeWalt because that’s what my parents and wife’s parents bought us for gifts.
The Ryobi tools I’ve handled are alright. The main reason my home shop isn’t full of Ryobi is my town has no Home Depot, so I’m a Lowe’s guy by default.
I’m bought into the Craftsman V20 series for both shop tools and lawn tools and they stand pretty much alongside Ryobi. Some of the Craftsman tools are obviously rehashed tools out of the B&D or Porter Cable catalogs, some are pretty obviously discount DeWalts, especially the brushless tools.
As a German Handwerksmeister: i disagree with the Bosch Thing. Bosch is more for the everyday Dude, the professionals i See are using Hilti, Festool, Milwaukee and sometimes FLEX and Makita.
Bosch Green is everyday stuff, not the Blue
I am far away from being a pro and own several Bosch Blue tools that were all rather cheap. You can buy them in every hardware store. Fein, Hilti etc. are usually far more expensive. As I don’t own them, I can’t compare the quality but I’d say Bosch Blue is mostly a consumer brand.
I sold all machines to customers, including Milwaukee, DeWalt, Bosch Professional, Festool, Makita and Güde. Hilti can only be bought directly.
I invited manufactures and my clients to get hands on these machines regularly.
Bosch Professional are indeed quality tools. What differs is the amount of torgue for each model.
If the smallest 18V shows up with 45 Nm people are inclined at first when comparing to a 18V 60 Nm tool. But there are other things to consider. If the power is sufficient for the task, the smaller tool may do more sinks.
Additionally, you can get all machines repaired at Bosch. Even 15 year old ones. Makita will simply prompt sorry, to old. You need to get a new one. Bosch maintains each item of the device as it and you can just buy the broken part as well.
I also got some very nice deals for customers which were not listed officially.
Repairs of pro tools are so expensive, especially for old, obsolete tools, with Ni-cad batteries, that it’s usually economically absurd.
Yes, I’m talking about yer average builder, they’re not taking Fein and Festool onto a site, they’re way too pricey!
No love for Einhell?
Fucking love Einhell. Cheap as chips, and you can just trash them until they die, then buy a new one
I hate this so much that because of their proprietary battery slots you have to stick with one brand. And I can’t understand how this is even legal in UE when they spend so much time and resources to push usb-c as a standard and even made Apple bend. Why would you allow this, it’s much worse than a cable on ecological level
(I’m not saying that usb-c was a bad thing, far from it!)
I agree, but in the mean time you can buy adapters that allow us to use mix-and-match batteries with other brands. Just search aliexpress for strings like "Makita or (insert brand here) battery adapter.
I’m ordering a LIDL parkside battery to DeWalt XRP adapter. There are compatible batteries for around 20€, but I have a few LIDL Parkside tools now, and only a couple of Dewalts.
You can buy adaptors to put bosh batteries in devalt tools.
