Harbor Freight drill

[mgfranz]

Originally Posted by p3230

I bought a 1/2 Milwaukee 18 V High Torque Cordless Impact 3 years ago and the batteries last me for months and is very powerful. Depends on how much money you want to spend.

+1 for Milwaukee tools, use them every day. But I must say my DeWalt 20v impact & drill is my best buy, I think I paid $139 for both with 2 batteries and charger. But as far as wrenching goes, nothing beats old school ratchets and sockets. Something about actually feeling a stubborn nut breaking loose with nothing but a wrench and man muscle.
IMHO, HF power tools have come a long way in the past 20 years, back then I wouldn't touch them, but today, especially with the warranty, you can't go wrong, until they do go wrong at the wrong time... which is why I have wrenches.

[rfuerst911sc]

My 2 cents on the issue , if you have a decent air compressor get a decent air driven gun . If you don't have a decent compressor get a corded gun . My last choice would be cordless and would look into Home Depot's house brand Rigid . I say that because they carry a lifetime warranty INCLUDING the batteries which in my opinion is huge . I recently purchased a kit at Fathers Day that had a cordless drill , a driver , charger and two batteries . Also received as a bonus pack two more batteries . Registered all online except the bonus pack batteries so I have lifetime warranty on all . The bonus pack batteries have a 3 year warranty .

The electrician that wired up my man cave garage turned me on to these , he's had them for several years and has had one battery and one finicky trigger switch replaced all for free . He said he gave away all his Dewalt cordless tools because of the Rigid warranty . I can see why he thinks that as I have dead Skil , Craftsman , Hitachi , Makita cordless tools that all need replacement batteries but the costs are stupid expensive

[PaulE]

Originally Posted by rfuerst911sc

My 2 cents on the issue , if you have a decent air compressor get a decent air driven gun . If you don't have a decent compressor get a corded gun . My last choice would be cordless and would look into Home Depot's house brand Rigid . I say that because they carry a lifetime warranty INCLUDING the batteries which in my opinion is huge . I recently purchased a kit at Fathers Day that had a cordless drill , a driver , charger and two batteries . Also received as a bonus pack two more batteries . Registered all online except the bonus pack batteries so I have lifetime warranty on all . The bonus pack batteries have a 3 year warranty .

The electrician that wired up my man cave garage turned me on to these , he's had them for several years and has had one battery and one finicky trigger switch replaced all for free . He said he gave away all his Dewalt cordless tools because of the Rigid warranty . I can see why he thinks that as I have dead Skil , Craftsman , Hitachi , Makita cordless tools that all need replacement batteries but the costs are stupid expensive

My first "real" cordless tool was a DeWalt 12 volt drill/driver that I bought in 1997. A few years ago the batteries no longer held a charge for very long, and a pair of genuine DeWalt batteries would cost more than I originally paid for the drill, charger and 2 batteries that came with it. So I bought some no-name batteries for it on Amazon a few years ago and they have held up well so far.

[maytag]

Originally Posted by rfuerst911sc

My 2 cents on the issue , if you have a decent air compressor get a decent air driven gun . If you don't have a decent compressor get a corded gun . My last choice would be cordless and would look into Home Depot's house brand Rigid . I say that because they carry a lifetime warranty INCLUDING the batteries which in my opinion is huge......

As a guy who uses tools for a living, I'll suggest that cordless tool technology is at a point now where buying corded tools no longer makes sense. (In MOST cases). In some instances, the cost is still high, but if it's a tool you'll use often, don't waste your money on a corded tool, if you can find the features you want in a cordless.

BUT: DO NOT BUY CHEAP cordless tools. That's a recipe for disappointment and frustration. Stick to the major players: Milwaukee or DeWalt will always be at the top of that list. For wood-framing tools, Hitachi is right there with them.

FWIW: The Ridgid 18v 1/2" Impact gun is $149 and is rated at 450 ft./lbs of torque, where the Milwaukee 18v 1/2" gun is $249 and is rated at 1400 ft./lbs. (yes, you read that right) This is why I don't skimp on tools; you usually DO get what you pay for. There's nothing worse than buying a cheap tool with a "lifetime repair or replacement" warranty, only to have that tool be insufficient to the job, or break-down on you in the middle of a project on a Saturday evening at the racetrack. The BEST tool isn't the one with the lifetime warranty: it's the one that doesn't need it. But for the record: my Milwaukee vendor has ALWAYS done any necessary repairs / replacements of my tools at no charge. That's the best warranty I'll ever need.

[MWS]

Originally Posted by maytag

...DO NOT BUY CHEAP cordless tools. That's a recipe for disappointment and frustration...

Hallelujah on that! I've seen some really cheap crap, and often wondered "who would buy that?", but then realized that *someone* must be, and I instantly feel proactively sorry for them. My only hope is that the vast majorities of purchases are as Christmas gifts and are bought by people who have never held a tool in their life (hopefully also given to people who have also never held a tool).

With that being said, I guess that on occasion I have bought a tool at a "price point" because it is something that I might only use once...and ya know what? It was only used once because it either broke or got thrown away (or across the garage) because it wasn't even up to the "one-use" standard.

I firmly believe the best money spent is the money that is only spent once...now if I can just find a cordless tool (or more specifically, battery) that fits that description...

[maytag]

Originally Posted by MWS

...now if I can just find a cordless tool (or more specifically, battery) that fits that description...

I've begun to consider batteries as a consumable, like bits & blades (not as frequently, of course! haha)

There are usually enough promotions where a guy can buy batteries cheap, that I watch for those and pick up a couple whenever I can. I usually end up with an abundance of chargers, hahaha.

[Starter986]

Thank you all for the great recommendations.

It appears that the Milwaukee 18V wins. Thank you.

[p3230]

Originally Posted by Starter986

Thank you all for the great recommendations.

It appears that the Milwaukee 18V wins. Thank you.

Smart choice you won't regret it.