thebookkid Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Hi, this is my first post thus I assume Ive done something wrong on the post, sorry. I am starting over on a 18V line, I have Craftsman 19.2 but I am selling them as all the batterys are dead. I am looking for any advice about which brand to get. I don't honestly use most of the tools all that much, I have the Makita 12V and that does most of the day to day drilling/screwing. I want to have a few tools of good quality that will last, above all I want tips on how to make the batterys last as long as possible and not have the 4 dead batterys I have now. I am not all that worried about the money. Basically my cordless needs are - hammer drill, impact driver, and circular saw. I figure I will expand the collection as I need different stuff.Thoughts? J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craigh9916 Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 To be fair there all really good I'm a bosch man and have there 18v line but dewalt makita Milwaukee and all the others are great just look at which range is easily available in your area Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kruton Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 I think we all have our favorites but really they all are great lines to get into. If you don't have any specific tool needs you can't beat Makita, Bosch, Milwaukee, Dewalt, Ridgid, I woukd even look into Ryobi. I think you'll find that all of the brands will have their pros and cons. I'm pretty heavy in Bosch and Makita, but it isn't because the other brands aren't great, it's just what I caught on sale at the time I was looking. Sorry it's no definite answer, but really all of the brands are fantastic. Good luck and post pics when you get some new tools. Oh and welcome to the forum!Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboS1ice Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Welcome to the forum. Well, I have dewalt 20v (18v), awesome tools, I have their new impact which, I won't kill you with stats, but really powerful, equal to the milwaukee. Now even though I'm a dewalt boy, I am going to say Milwaukee, with their 18v Fuel, you can have brushless Hammerdrill, impact, and cordless circular saw. Currently Milwaukee, Rigid and Makita have a 7 1/4" brushless where dewalt only has a 6 1/2" brushed. Rigid is awesome too, I got a kit courtesy of Tools in Action!! great value and awesome quality if your looking for a budget but their line is limited where your best bet for huge like would be Milwaukee. They are all awesome brands though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khariV Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Welcome to the forums! Given the parameters you've stated, I would suggest Ridgid. The X5 lineup has very well reviewed hammer drills, impact drivers and circular saws. Not only that, but when you buy a kit, and register it of course, the LSA means that you'll never have to worry about batteries dying - free battery replacements for life. While the Ridgid lineup isn't as extensive as the other big names, they are expanding steadily of late. The fact that their tools are also a bit more affordable than some other brands doesn't hurt either. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
comp56 Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 ya it's not so much what brand to get the most common tools drill/impact/saw/ it's the other tools in the brand's line up that are available when you do want to expand...you can't really go by what you had either, craftsman was never really in the cordless game for higher end stuff. so I'm sure you will be happy with whatever brand you decide.....did I say Milwaukee out loud?....lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigmikez Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Welcome to the crew!! Like kruton said any brand u choose now a days will work perfect for ya I'm a Dewalt and milwaukee fanboy but I wouldn't mind adding any other brand to my arsenal all have there pros and cons but like I've learned here from all these crazy tool junkies is that u can't have just one battery line here lol good luck into finding a line to get into and enjoy the forum! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JerryNY Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 The best 18v circular saws right now are probably Mikeaukee Fuel and Makita. Milwaukee has better choice if you want left or right blade as you can choose between which you prefer as their 7-1/4 and 6.5's are similar but different blade positions. Milwaukee just updated their hammer drill and it's a torque beast and they come with 5 year warranties in the tools an 3 on the batteries.. That being said the Rigids mentioned above are pretty darn good and if you hate dead batteries I think rigid basically has lifetime replacements on them which is impressive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DamianD Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Honestly you cant really go wrong with any brand it seems these days. They all offer great products and have a good variety of tools in their lineup. Im a milwaukee guy myself, I love their products. They are built well, and just are great tools. I see you already have the makita 12v so maybe stick with them if you like them and their 18v lineup offers what you need. I dont know if they have chargers like milwaukee but its nice to be able to charge my 18v and 12v batteries on one milwaukee charger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboS1ice Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Way to go new guy you started a brand war!! LolJimboSent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboS1ice Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 ... AgainJimboSent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigmikez Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 ... AgainJimboSent from my iPhone using Tapatalk. LOL!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kornomaniac Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 All of the top Brands produce a good impact and Hammer drill. Circular saw is more for Milwaukee and Makita. They produce a good brushless circ saw.You must also check the scope of a Brands offering on thesame battery platform.Milwaukee had a few very specific cordless tools for specific trades that you will not find anywhere.Makita has by far the largest 18v tool line up.Makita 18V also extends into garden tools and 36v tools ( by combining 2 18v batteries ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeyB Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Makita or Milwaukee, their cordless lines keep getting bigger and bigger..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Glassey Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Hi, this is my first post thus I assume Ive done something wrong on the post, sorry.I am starting over on a 18V line, I have Craftsman 19.2 but I am selling them as all the batterys are dead. I am looking for any advice about which brand to get. I don't honestly use most of the tools all that much, I have the Makita 12V and that does most of the day to day drilling/screwing. I want to have a few tools of good quality that will last, above all I want tips on how to make the batterys last as long as possible and not have the 4 dead batterys I have now. I am not all that worried about the money. Basically my cordless needs are - hammer drill, impact driver, and circular saw. I figure I will expand the collection as I need different stuff.Thoughts?JFestool 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnarlyCarl Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 J,Hello, I saw the apology you made your first sentence so I'm going to assume you're Canadian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rfwjr Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Way to go new guy you started a brand war!! LolJimboSent from my iPhone using TapatalkHe is not the first is he. LOL 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
comp56 Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 does DeWalt make an impact?..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shuutr Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 The reason you are getting away from craftsman is dead batteries. if you buy into the ridgid line, their lifetime service agreement includes battery coverage for any batteries bought in a kit (with a tool). Or you could get your craftsman batteries rebuilt. I haven't done it, but others probably have. Otherwise, any of the above will fit the bill. If there is any special tool (other than drill, impact and saw) that you are interested in, find who makes that tool best and buy the rest accordingly.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Glassey Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 Yes when it hits the floor. Bump da bump. LolJohn, Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kruton Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 Welcome to the crew!! Like kruton said any brand u choose now a days will work perfect for ya I'm a Dewalt and milwaukee fanboy but I wouldn't mind adding any other brand to my arsenal all have there pros and cons but like I've learned here from all these crazy tool junkies is that u can't have just one battery line here lol good luck into finding a line to get into and enjoy the forum!Maybe try some Bosch brother, you will be a convert! [emoji6] Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DR99 Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 Welcome to the forums!Given the parameters you've stated, I would suggest Ridgid. The X5 lineup has very well reviewed hammer drills, impact drivers and circular saws. Not only that, but when you buy a kit, and register it of course, the LSA means that you'll never have to worry about batteries dying - free battery replacements for life. While the Ridgid lineup isn't as extensive as the other big names, they are expanding steadily of late. The fact that their tools are also a bit more affordable than some other brands doesn't hurt either.Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkThe Ridgid isn't a bad idea in his case. Also Ryobi wouldn't be a horrible choice either as the batteries are cheap They do the 99 dollar 2 packs of the 4.0ah batteries fairly often at HD. The one thing about Ryobi is you buy into a huge lineup of tools. Ridgid lacks in that department it is expanding, but I doubt it will ever be as big as Ryobi. Ryobi has cordless outdoor tools you might find handy. Unless he gets a good deal I don't know if he needs a Bosch/Dewalt/Makita/Milwaukee tool unless he wants to go that route. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DR99 Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 If big thing with lithium packs don't let them in the cold long, and never let an uncharged battery sit uncharged. If you do the pack can deep discharge and it will kill the pack. They say optimal battery storage is 75% charge for long term storage. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fazzman Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 You said you dont use the tools much,with that said,I wouldnt waste the dough on higher end stuff, Look at the porter cable 20v line,low cost and powerful.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stercorarius Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 It comes down to what your cordless use style is. My father builds houses solo for a living and has one cordless tool. It's a ryobi drill. NiCad not Lithium either. Was purchased a decade ago. He builds entire houses without any problems. I do completely different work and have every DeWalt tool. If you're a homeowner that hangs shelves occasionally buy whatever is cheapest at HD or even HF. If your livelihood is based completely off of heavy use of a cordless saw go with Milwaukee. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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