I've been looking at getting some new cordless tools. I've got a set of Makita 18 volt drill and driver now. Nothing wrong with them. They've been good tools. I really want to get a cordless circular saw and reciprocating saw. I could purchase Makita separate or get a new set. Really considering Dewalt or Rigid. I like Rigid for the Lifetime battery replacement. But don't know much about them. Dewalt is a no brainer. They make great tools. Can save several hundred on the Rigid though. Anyone have experience with the new Rigid sets? Are the new GX5 worth the Xtra $. I think GX5 was the new model anyway.
I have been well pleased with my "Gen4X" Ridgid tools. All of the manufacturers are continually making improvements so the "Gen5X" is no surprise. They utilize a motor magnet but also still use brushes. LINK (http://www.protoolreviews.com/tools/power/cordless/combo-kits/ridgid-gen5x-5-tool-kit-review/13558/)
I was helping our pipe fitter/electrician/doall guy today. He had one of those Dewalt bags with everything under the son in it. I used a couple tools and they were nice. He held a piece of 1/2" PVC pipe about 4" long in his fingers while I sawed a male adapter off the end. ::) And he still has 10 fingers!
My son uses dewalt while I use Milwaukii. I really do not see a lot of difference in them and we use them hard. I like all mine to use the same batteries and chargers, so have gone soley to milwaukii, as I do not think they make the strong 1/2 and 3/4 impacts.
We do buy the high end brushless ones in everything they have brushless, some things they don't.
You must have different dewalt than I do.
I wont buy yellow tools anymore. The yellow grinder I have will kill your ears and shake your hands to death. The yellow sawzall I have wont hold a blade. The yellow drill I have is missing to many teeth to function anymore. The yellow framing saw I have locked up solid.
The blue tools I have are smooth and quiet. The red tools I have are smooth and quiet.
just my .02
I don't have a cordless sawsall or frameing saw. The dewalts my son uses the most are the 20 volt drills and small impacts, these have been used hard for probably over 3 years now and pretty much every day.
I use the milwaukii fuel series if it is made in the tool I am after, but even at that there are different grade of them, at least in the impacts. Even the grease guns have different grades, but I have had no trouble out of any of the high grade ones.
If Ridgid is any good,the life time battery replacement caught my attention.
I recently bought both the tools you mention, 7-1/4" circular saw & sawzall in the 18v Milwaukee Fuel version. These tools make corded units obsolete!
I used the sawzall on a large demolition job where we burned up 5 brand new yellow tools cutting steel conduit and the Milwaukee still looks and runs new. Not even in the same ballpark.
I love my older Makita drill and saw but the batteries are hard to find and expensive. I've switched to Ryobi. They don't cost much and work pretty well. They also make about fifty tools that use the batteries. I have a cordless weedwacker, buffer, grinder, jigsaw, vacuume, air compresser, several lights, drills and circ. saws.
If I used them all day long, I might not be as much of a fan but for what they cost, they are pretty good and I can often get a good deal on batteries.
I'll be watching this thread closely. I have had the yellow tools for more than 15 years and they've been real good, but NiCad batteries are not the answer now that LiIon batteries are available. My old yellow drills are still going strong, but the new yellow ones don't seem as well built. I can't say for sure though since I haven't used or punished the new ones.
All the manufacturers have different tiers of cordless tools, just like chainsaws. There is a difference between the top end tools and the lower and mid-priced tools from each manufacturer for sure.
I recently added a couple Makita impact tools and a Makita drill (18v). They perform well but the drill doesn't fit my hand like the old dewalts. Probably just because I've been using the dewalt for so long.
My old yellow recip and circ saws are working fine, but I really need to get new ones just because it's time to replace the batteries and I can't see buying four more NiCads at this point. Having all the tools use the same batteries is a must - to me anyway.
It will be interesting to see if there's some consensus reached on this discussion.
There has Bern a lot of discussion on my Rebuilding 18v batteries thread. I think any of the new brushless tools are going to perform great. I'm dedicated to Milwaukee Fuel now. Very impressed.
I'm a big fan of the blue tools, not so much the yellow. The makita 18v system has a long line of tools for the batts. The little circ saw is the bomb I use one a lot in my carpentry biz, also the recip. There are better recip saws than the one I have but it's a few years old. If I'm really sawing a lot I go for my corded red one but the cordless is so handy for wall framing and such where you might just cut a plate or ten on one side of the house before going to the other.The impacter is a must for carp work, to me just behind nail guns in necessity.
I like to buy bare tools as reconditioned and lately have been buying aftermarket batteries to supplement the factory ones simply because of price. Having said that the factory 18v lithium ion are really long lasting and powerful, if very pricey.
Why does the Makita cordless (and my old Dewalt cordless) have the motor on the "wrong" side?
I've kinda gotten used to it, and once every 27 months I find it to be convenient, but generally I'd prefer it be on the left side of the blade.
Am I missing some benefit of the motor being on the right side?
Many "finish/trim" saws have the motor on the right side. You can see the blade better but you pay the sawdust price.
Why is the blade on the wrong side is a question that's puzzled me for years. Being raised as a blade right sidewinder fan I don't have an issue with visibility either way. Milwaukee and some other pro grade makers have for years offered their 7 1/4 " framing saw [corded we're talking] as blade right and blade left models. Most right handed people find the blade right models more balanced and left handed folks blade left. Blade right saws are the big seller. A real big time custom house framer will have one of each because they bevel different directions, long story short there.
Only corded or cordless trim saws I own or have ever used are blade left. Maybe many right handed people do find blade left to be easier to see but I don't figure a seasoned carp will. All trim saws are lighter so balance is less an issue. Worm drives... a whole 'nother matter.
I really love my cordless Makita but for the most exacting cuts I will want the heavy corded ol' milwaukee. Less runout, more rpms and power.
I have not had good luck with the 18v Makita LiIon batteries. They can fail prematurely when put in the charger and never give a warning. At least my old Dewalt XRP batteries start to loose some life before giving out. :)
I've had awesome luck with the 20v dewalt tools. I did upgrade to the bigger 5aH batteries as opposed to the 2aH batteries. I'm building a garage and restoring an old house so I've put them through the paces. The cordless circular saw and sawzall are my favorite. With the bigger batteries I go most of the day without needing to charge, and I don't think they're any heavier than the old NiCad 18v tools. I had a 20v milwaukee that one of the batteries wouldn't keep or take a charge most of the time. I bought the dewalt through home depot on a 'deal of the day' sale and paid half, so watch the sales and you can usually find a deal. Our local ranch store has sales on the batteries every few months and I buy them on their buy one, get one free sales.
I don't understand what's up with the worm gear saw and brushless tools. Someone explain the difference and benefits please.
Brushless technology gives more power, and uses much less battery. I end cut 64 feet of two inch thick pine flooring with one 5ah battery with my Milwaukee 7 1/4" Fuel saw. (Picture one board 64 feet wide) My Dewalt XRP might cut about one foot. :D If you are expecting to use these tools on a regular basis, then I think brush less is worth the money. If only occasional use, then saving some bucks and getting a regular kit with the small batteries isn't a big deal. My experience so far with Milwaukee is that the fuel tools are basically like a curded took, without the cord. In fact, some of them are, like the band saw, which is the same tool, with an 18v motor. I have run a 2" boring machine bit with my cordless drill, and regularly drill all my peg holes in high gear.
I have no idea about the worm drive. My saw is a right hand blade, direct drive.
I bought a pair of Li Rigid drills several years ago. I really liked them for a month or so. The batteries failed, the receipt ink disappeared and I was not able to get the batteries replaced under warrantee. I do like the DeWalt cordless tools and have had good service out of them. If they have cords, l like Milwaukee tools although the wire in the older ones must be the same stock as Mercury used in their outboards-it does not hold up too well.
I watch with interest as my cache of yella tool batteries are dying off. I was actually considering Makita as the corded Mak stuff I have is very good.
About 10 years ago I bought the Rigid pack. Drill, impact, circle saw, ricp. saw, and a flash light. Free batteries for life. They just didn't mention that they were going to change to a different style of battery the next year. Yup you guessed it, about a year later I couldn't even buy a battery for the tools as they were discontinued. Had about $600.00 worth of garbage. I don't know what style of battery they are using now but I wouldn't let the free battery thing make the decision for me.
While I have 18 volt Dewalt drills etc at work and home they certainly aren't a direct replacement for corded tools .What they are is handy for short jobs.
The drills are better power drivers than they are as drills .The recip saw is fine but they go through batteries .Plus they run rather hot after continued use .
The Milwaukee sawzall ,corded can run all day and never run hot .Of course you have to plug it in.Then again the Milwaukee drills are drills,lousey power drivers .
So what's the deal on worm drive saws? I have 1 that I picked up at a garage sale years ago. HEAVY!!!
Quote from: clintnelms on August 17, 2016, 07:23:18 PM
I don't understand what's up with the worm gear saw and brushless tools. Someone explain the difference and benefits please.
The average circular saw user probably does not need a worm drive saw. If you're a framer or assembler of building components (beams, trusses) you'll use it often.
Ripping 2x stock is probably my most used application, also trimming long runs. Picture assembling a 40' wall with sheathing and trimming the sheathing full length.
The worm drive will do these tasks effortlessly and not heat up. The overall length of the tool allows ease of staying straight on a chalkline.
Quote from: OldMasterTech on August 18, 2016, 09:02:06 AM
Quote from: clintnelms on August 17, 2016, 07:23:18 PM
I don't understand what's up with the worm gear saw and brushless tools. Someone explain the difference and benefits please.
The average circular saw user probably does not need a worm drive saw. If you're a framer or assembler of building components (beams, trusses) you'll use it often.
Ripping 2x stock is probably my most used application, also trimming long runs. Picture assembling a 40' wall with sheathing and trimming the sheathing full length.
The worm drive will do these tasks effortlessly and not heat up. The overall length of the tool allows ease of staying straight on a chalkline.
Makes sense, Thanks!
Quote from: caveman on August 17, 2016, 08:46:26 PM
I bought a pair of Li Rigid drills several years ago. I really liked them for a month or so. The batteries failed, the receipt ink disappeared and I was not able to get the batteries replaced under warrantee. I do like the DeWalt cordless tools and have had good service out of them. If they have cords, l like Milwaukee tools although the wire in the older ones must be the same stock as Mercury used in their outboards-it does not hold up too well.
Did you not register them online? You are supposed to register them online in order to receive the warranty. I looked at the website and it's very easy to do.
Brushless tools are the best use them every day all day long .
Multi tool circ saw drill driver replacing truck loads of 1x8 shiplap on 300 condo units .
The brushless tools run so much better . Lighter to .
Fest tool has a new cordless small trac saw coming out for small trim cuts , looks to be a super tool for what I do for work .
I did not register the Rigid drills on line. At the time of the purchase, I did not realize that I needed to register them on line. I still use the bag that they came in to carry my DeWalt drills and some other small tools-awesome bag.
Caveman
I was running away from cordless tools, having been frustrated with two sets of Makita drills, different vintages (4 drills total) and all the batteries died, at least early for me and I am not a heavy user. Cheaper to buy new tools and batteries than batteries only. So out came all my corded tools and been working hard for the last year or so. Suddenly I am now totally vested into the Milwaukee cordless tools with fuel batteries, etc. The 7.25 inch circ saw cuts long time and efficiently and far away from an outlet and up on roofs etc. The drills are incredible, have two, also the recip saw both large and single handled versions and thinking about the 3.5" planer. The Milwaukee tools are worth the price!!!
Battery technology has come a long way in the last few years. I believe all major brands have decent batteries now. A lot of them are probably made by the same manufacturer. My Makita batteries have lasted a long time with no problems. Lithium batteries are so much better than the old NiCd batteries. I did almost by a new combo drill set from Milwaukee though. Home Depot has a special where you get a free tool choice with the purchase. I really only needed the cordless saw so I ended up just getting the makita saw. Used it a few times so far and it cuts better than my corded skill saw. Very happy with it so far. When and if I burn up my Makita tools I'll definitely be taking a hard look at Milwaukee tools as a replacement.