Makita, Milwaukee, DeWalt, Rigid, Bosch, Panasonic, Hilti, another brand, what do you prefer? I'm mainly speaking on battery powered tools.
Battery tools? Ridgid are cheap and have great warranties. It's what's on all my work trucks. If I'm a homeowner, have the cash and want to never buy another battery tool, go Dewalt
I went through 684 NiCad batteries over the years, which means I have 342 battery powered drills, because two batteries cost 99 coconuts and a new drill with two batteries cost 99 bucks. I bought a Milwaukee Lithium Ion last year and it is the motha****ing bomb. The batteries last forever.
I used to shop around brands but anything I buy now is a Milwaukee, they can't be beat imo. My hammer is an old Bosch that'll do anything it needs to do, three times over.
I got DeWalt 18V sawzall, circular saw, 1/4" impact, drill driver and a couple batteries from a friend for $100. That was too good a deal to pass up but the damn lith-ion batteries are $100 each for the XRP model that lasts longer on a charge. The guy I bought them from actually downgraded to Ryobi for no other reason than the batteries are half the price. I may just keep what I have, suck it up and get a few new batteries but DeWalt seems to be moving toward the 20V line so I wonder how easy 18V will be to get down the road. I thought about selling everything and switching to either 20V or one of the other brands. I'm not in a line of work that I use these tools on a daily basis but I'm a DIY'er and like decent tools so I could probably downgrade slightly. I wouldn't go down to Black & Decker but maybe Ryobi. Funny you mention Rigid, my uncle loves them because they have great warranties at Home Depot. He doesn't like DeWalt because it's a Stanley/Black and Decker owned company but he's in his 70's so I'm not going to tell him that the same company can make different quality tools. He worked in construction until he retired so he wouldn't listen to me anyway.
I know what you mean about those drills. They'll basically give you one if you buy a couple batteries. I never use mine, always use the impact.
I like them because they don't sell crap. Dewalt makes great tools, but they've also got some inferior stuff out there that's made to hit a price point.
My drill is a dewalt, is about 6 years old, and I've had zero problems. Bought a Ryobi chainsaw a couple of weeks ago. For what I need it for its perfect.
Milwaukee and DeWalt are the go to for me. With that said I have a pretty good 14v Ryobi drill that does what I need and is a decent size to fit in a portable toolbox.
Surprisingly, my little 20v Porter Cable impact drill has been charged three times since I've got it two Christmas' ago. Wasn't that impressed when I opened it but now, that thing is the best drill I own.
I don't know if it's just a south Florida thing, but 15 years ago, when I would take a Craftsman tool back to Sears, they would throw the old tool in a bucket and give me a new one, no questions asked. Now, they ask me twenty questions, and tell me what the tool is specifically designed for. Then they tell me if I use the tool in a way it wasn't designed for, the guarantee isn't valid. My standard response has been, just give me my new tool. Thanks to this crap, I haven't bought any Craftsman tools in years.
