Power tool recommendations

[Ornery]

If you don't already own a corded 1/2" drill buy a quality one right now.

Milwaukee 0234-6 1/2" Magnum Hole Shooter

That's a lifetime tool there. Same with their other tools.

Nothing too expensive, eh? It' more expensive to buy one cheap unit after another over time, than to just buy one good one from the start. Not to mention having a quality tool to work with from the beginning.

 

[Doggiedog]

Another stupid question but are all drill bits and screwdriver attachments standard or are they different for each tool?

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
Another stupid question but are all drill bits and screwdriver attachments standard or are they different for each tool?

The drills, bits etc. for a drill are held in the tool with an adjustable chuck that will fit any round or hex shaft of to its stated capacity (3/8" for typical home user & cordless stuff, 1/2" when you get serious)

Ornery: Just got a 1/2" Hitachi cuz my old crappy 3/8" ccrafstman was starting to smell funny when I asked it to puch a 3/4" irwin or 2 1/4" hole saw through a double top plate. What a difference! Should have done that long ago!

 

[Ornery]

Originally posted by: ergeorge

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
Another stupid question but are all drill bits and screwdriver attachments standard or are they different for each tool?

The drills, bits etc. for a drill are held in the tool with an adjustable chuck that will fit any round or hex shaft of to its stated capacity (3/8" for typical home user & cordless stuff, 1/2" when you get serious)

Ornery: Just got a 1/2" Hitachi cuz my old crappy 3/8" ccrafstman was starting to smell funny when I asked it to puch a 3/4" irwin or 2 1/4" hole saw through a double top plate. What a difference! Should have done that long ago!

Took me twenty years to break down abd buy that quality Magnum. I got a monster sized Craftsman to last that twenty years, but it finally puked. I don't EVER see the Milwaukee giving up the ghost.

Those really small cordless do use a standard (I think it's 5/16") hex drive. I've got nothing against a simple cordless. Snagged a nice one at Home Depot, that they were closing out. Complete with case and a few bits, it was under $20.00. Grabbed three total, cause they make a nice gift. They're handy as hell for zipping screws in and out of electrical outlets or even computer cases. Never had a need for a mega industrial one, though.

 

[JupiterJones]

Apologize for getting off topic. But for you guys who buy the Ryobi tools, if you want an extra battery and charger you can buy the vac at home depot for $50, harvest the charger and battery ($100 value) and sell the vac sans battery and charger online for $25.

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Ornery

Originally posted by: ergeorge

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
Another stupid question but are all drill bits and screwdriver attachments standard or are they different for each tool?

The drills, bits etc. for a drill are held in the tool with an adjustable chuck that will fit any round or hex shaft of to its stated capacity (3/8" for typical home user & cordless stuff, 1/2" when you get serious)

Ornery: Just got a 1/2" Hitachi cuz my old crappy 3/8" ccrafstman was starting to smell funny when I asked it to puch a 3/4" irwin or 2 1/4" hole saw through a double top plate. What a difference! Should have done that long ago!

Took me twenty years to break down abd buy that quality Magnum. I got a monster sized Craftsman to last that twenty years, but it finally puked. I don't EVER see the Milwaukee giving up the ghost.

Those really small cordless do use a standard (I think it's 5/16") hex drive. I've got nothing against a simple cordless. Snagged a nice one at Home Depot, that they were closing out. Complete with case and a few bits, it was under $20.00. Grabbed three total, cause they make a nice gift. They're handy as hell for zipping screws in and out of electrical outlets or even computer cases. Never had a need for a mega industrial one, though.

Oh yeah,
note to self: Use that extra handle when you have the big hole saw chucked. It grabbed on me the other day, and I punctured the back of my hand on a stucco lathe staple A bit more torque then I was used to!

 

[FrustratedUser]

Anyone tried the Binford 6000 series hand tools?

 

[Sundog]

Originally posted by: FrustratedUser
Anyone tried the Binford 6000 series hand tools?

Heh, didn't feel like buying gas powered drills!:Q

 

[FrustratedUser]

Originally posted by: Sundog

Originally posted by: FrustratedUser
Anyone tried the Binford 6000 series hand tools?

Heh, didn't feel like buying gas powered drills!:Q

Gas?
I was just joking. Binford was the 'used' in Tim Allens Home Improvement.

You might not belive it but Tim Allen has a set of hand tools with his name on on the market.

 

[FrustratedUser]

Tim Allens tools.

 

[notfred]

Originally posted by: werk

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
I'm looking to buy a cordless screwdriver and maybe a dremel type saw as I probably need to do some fixing up of a house I'm going to buy.

Any recommendations on brand? Nothing too expensive. Should I get 14.4V or 12V or 9V?

How much "fixing up" are you planning on doing? An electric screwdriver and a Dremel are just about the last things I would think of to work on a house with.

I was going to ask something similar. When me and my dad were fixing up the house after we moved, our tools were Makita Drills, a Sawzall, Craftsman Tablesaw, etc...

 

[BooneRebel]

I'll throw another vote in for the Ryobi line of tools. Unless you are -building- a house, Milwaukee or DeWalt are overkill. I bought the Ryobi 18V drill, recipricating saw, circular saw, and flashlight package last year (think it was $199, similar 'contractor' grade was $500 or more) and have no complaints. I built a deck using 3" screws. Before I started I thought I would have to pre-drill the holes for the screws, afraid that the drill wouldn't cut it. Instead, I had to adjust the clutch on the drill to keep from burying the screws. Really impressive. The battery on the drill would last for nearly two hours of solid use, occassionally swapping the battery to the circular saw. About as long as it took for battery #2 to charge, at which point I'd just swap out the dead battery on the charger (coincidentally, about 2 hours is all the torque my wrist would take, so I'd pop in the house for a break!)

 

[Ornery]

You used a freakin' cordless drill on a deck? It burried the screws? That is impressive! A cordless recipricating would come in handy for fallen limbs around here. I don't own a chainsaw. Hmmm, maybe that would be a nice Christmas present... for me! :Q

 

[Doggiedog]

The Ryobi sounds good. I'll check it out at HD.

BTW: My offer for the house was accepted so I will definitely be buying myself a nice tool set.

<==Previously apartment dweller all my life.

 

[Farmall]

Congratulations, owning your own home is the way to go.

BTW - The Ryobi line is tough to beat for price/quality. If you are seriously looking into the drywall bit, take a long look at the cordless roto-zip that Ryobi offers, that thing works great. It might be a bit more than the corded models but I can tell you it is worth it, plus you have the 3rd battery around when you aren't using it.

 

[BooneRebel]

Originally posted by: Ornery
You used a freakin' cordless drill on a deck? It burried the screws? That is impressive! A cordless recipricating would come in handy for fallen limbs around here. I don't own a chainsaw. Hmmm, maybe that would be a nice Christmas present... for me! :Q

I kid you not. It was for a boat dock, too far for an extension cord. I was actually tossing up the idea of buying a generator to use a corded drill before ruling out the cost. After using the Ryobi on the first board I was sold.

The reciprocating saw only has a 4" or so blade on it, the fallen limbs would need to be pretty small (I haven't used mine enough to know if there are longer blades available). A little chainsaw would only cost you $100 or so, might be worth the investment depending on how many trees you have. You can always use the wood for a fireplace (if you have one) or pick up a little woodstove for the garage...

 

[dakels]

My experience with a new set of DeWalt cordless tools are great. I was REALLY impressed at the power and longevity of their batteries. It may be more then you were looking for though, but it all depends on how involved you want to be with your home. Don't plan on doing alot with crap tools. You'll lose the money in wasted time and sometimes materials. On that don't be one of those guys that buys a nail gun to hang the picture frame.

You may want to consider some of the corless kits. Some can run as low as $150-200. They are not great but for light work, they do the trick. For $500-600 the DeWalt set does some serious work (shed construction/cabin reconstruction) on a weekend basis. Cordless was needed cuz we are working in the woods 4 miles from any source of power.

 

[Rilescat]

Originally posted by: KenGr
Old Milwaukee is an excellant tool but if you want one that plugs in it's a Milwaukee.

Recommendation - Do not mix Old Milwaukee and Milwaukee. Impromptu amputations sometimes occur.

For power tools - Higher voltage = Better.

Black and Decker is fine for the average home user as long as you don't buy the super cheap line.
Some of the Sears tools are a good buy as long as they are on sale. At regular price they are too expensive.

The yellow DeWalt stuff looks way cool if you can afford it.

Milwaukee....all my life.

 

[Mister T]

Another vote for dewalt....

Back in college I made a bed out of 2x4's and 4x4's and 3/4" plywood... Since it was to be lofted, and I am a pretty big guy, I overbuilt the bed to support upward of a thousand pounds... All I used for the drilling was a 14.4volt dewalt cordless drill. Screws went it like a knife through butter... Still have the drill which is god knows how old (hand me down from fraternitu brother)... If I was to buy new power tools, I would seriously look at some of their tools from their 24V line... Big @ss hammer drill, circular saw, reciprocating saw....

http://www.dewalt.com/us/cordless/cordless_systems/tool_detail_listing.asp?voltage=24

 

[d33pt]

Originally posted by: flot
For light-duty stuff I have been amazed with the quality of my Black and Decker / Craftsman "3 in 1" tool.

It's a cordless Drill / Sander / Jigsaw. I haven't really used the sander for anything, but the drill and jigsaw work great. I got it a year ago for $99 and don't regret it at all. Ironically I bought it fully intending to be disgusted with it and return it - but I really like the thing for any kind of small/medium project.

It's a power unit with attachable heads that change its function. You snap off the drill and snap on the saw. I swear, I thought it would be junk too - but it's definitely a decent piece of gear. Also in all honesty it's a great "starter tool" in that you can use it and figure out what it's good for and then buy more $$$ tools as you see fit. Also, if you aren't super-hardcore, keep in mind that something like this can be useful to start, and later if you think you need better cordless (or corded, sometimes nothing beats the torque of 110v) tools, things like an extra cordless screwdriver ALWAYS come in handy. For instance, if you're drilling pilot holes and then screwing things together, it's great to have two cordless drill-drivers handy - one with a drill bit loaded, the other with a screwdriver bit.

Dremels have very specific things that they are very good at. But outside of those things (which I never seem to really need) they're mostly worthless. For house-size projects, I'd steer clear of them.

As for you get what you pay for: stay near the middle of the price range on tools and you usually do okay. Don't buy the cheapest and you probably don't need the most expensive.

I'd have to disagree. I bought one of these units for $50 on clearance and even then I had to return it. The drill is very sloppy and makes nonround holes. The saw is very weak and not really usable for much. I do like the quickrelease blade though. The sander is the only thing that worked ok, but i didn't want a $50 sander so I returned it. Also, the heads were very hard to put in because the gears had to be perfectly in mesh before you can slap it on

 

[Doggiedog]

On that don't be one of those guys that buys a nail gun to hang the picture frame.

LOL god knows I don't want to be one of those poseur guys. Like those people who buy nice skis but can't ski or $3,000 golf clubs but can't play.

 

[Farmall]

Originally posted by: BooneRebel

Originally posted by: Ornery
You used a freakin' cordless drill on a deck? It burried the screws? That is impressive! A cordless recipricating would come in handy for fallen limbs around here. I don't own a chainsaw. Hmmm, maybe that would be a nice Christmas present... for me! :Q

I kid you not. It was for a boat dock, too far for an extension cord. I was actually tossing up the idea of buying a generator to use a corded drill before ruling out the cost. After using the Ryobi on the first board I was sold.

The reciprocating saw only has a 4" or so blade on it, the fallen limbs would need to be pretty small (I haven't used mine enough to know if there are longer blades available). A little chainsaw would only cost you $100 or so, might be worth the investment depending on how many trees you have. You can always use the wood for a fireplace (if you have one) or pick up a little woodstove for the garage...

You can put just about any blade in the reciprocating saw, I have 7" AX blades in mine and it works fine, those 4" blades that come in the set are pretty cheasy imo.

 

[Ornery]

Originally posted by: BooneRebel

Originally posted by: Ornery
You used a freakin' cordless drill on a deck? It burried the screws? That is impressive! A cordless recipricating would come in handy for fallen limbs around here. I don't own a chainsaw. Hmmm, maybe that would be a nice Christmas present... for me! :Q

I kid you not. It was for a boat dock, too far for an extension cord. I was actually tossing up the idea of buying a generator to use a corded drill before ruling out the cost. After using the Ryobi on the first board I was sold.

The reciprocating saw only has a 4" or so blade on it, the fallen limbs would need to be pretty small (I haven't used mine enough to know if there are longer blades available). A little chainsaw would only cost you $100 or so, might be worth the investment depending on how many trees you have. You can always use the wood for a fireplace (if you have one) or pick up a little woodstove for the garage...

I was looking into small chainsaws a while back. I've got a wonderful Stihl BG75 Blower, which I LOVE. It blows away my old Homelite (heh )! I figured I'd stick with Stihl on the small chainsaw. I figured $150.00 or so would be enough... hah! :Q They don't make no stinkin' $150.00 chainsaws! I stumbled onto this Stihl HT70 Pole Pruner Chain Saw. Ain't it cute! I figured that would be nice and safe for cutting up branches while keeping myself out of harm's way, and how much could it cost? Yikes! Maybe I ought to just settle for the cordless recipricating saw after all!

 

[BooneRebel]

Homelite makes a cheapy chainsaw, there are a couple of other companies that do as well. The biggest difference I've noticed with a Homelite vs. a Poulan, etc. is how hard it is to start. Seems like the Homelite I had would take 15 minutes of cussing before it would warm up enough to turnover, and even then would have problems restarting after filling up.

Here's a McCulloch at Northern Tool for $109