ryobi its the only cordless set that uses the same battery for all and the new lithium batteries are compatible with the older tools ryobi is the only one out there that is not out to squeeze every penny out of the consumer and my 18v drills have been dropped from the roof of the house several times have gotten wet been dropped on concrete and they are still as reliable as the day they were new as far as the money goes they are only a little more than skill and close to the quality of makita and the batteries are (nimh) about $40 for two and they last thru more charge discharge cycles than dewalt JMHO

 

Went by Home Depot, that Lithium Makita is sweet!

Going to check out Lowes hopefully today and purchase this weekend, thanks for all the help guys

 

Never had any Dewalt tool break. I use my 18v XRP hammer drill every day, and it's completely reliable. Once I dropped it right into a sump pump pit, and it sank straight to the bottom in 18" of water. I shook the water out, and kept on working. That was a year ago. This drill gets a Another awesome tool to check out is their impact driver. This thing is absolutely amazing! It will drastically shorten the time it takes to do wood screw intensive work, like decks, floors, etc.

 

ive had my black and decker corded circular saw for about 14 years and it still works great after being dropped many times. i even backed over it once with my truck lol. ive never had any cordless tools from them but.. i think they make a quality product.

 

Any good comments from Bosch? I have a cordless drill since some 4 years ago. No much intensive use but holds great. I bought the blue professional series

 

Agreed the royobi is a great toll for the price hands down, nothing comes close in it;s price range. I beat the **** out of mine and it continues to run no problems and it's made here in the USA.

 

My father in law is a Ryobi user and he beats the living crap out of his stuff. I am a big fan of their stuff....the new lithium line looks awesome. I am currently using a B&D Storm 24V...it's great, but heavy. I will be going with a lithium set soon, and I've got it narrowed down to the Ryobi and the Makita.

 

I'm surprised no-one has suggested he look at the Hitatchi cordless drills. Its cheap, very reliable, plenty of power and has the best warranty of any of them.

I use my Hitatchi just around the house, I don't use it as much as a contractor or anything. I did sell several (at a store, no I'm not a Hitatchi rep or anything) to a couple contractors. They really liked them, but I quit before I heard back from any long term tests.

 

You know I saw these at The Home Depot and they seemed about 15% less than the DeWalt & Makita and I did notice it carries a 5 year warranty. I like how they included a belt hook on the drill also. Anyone else have any experience with these?

 

I think you will be safe if you stick with any of the contractor grade tools:
DeWalt, Makita, Milwaukee, Bosch

For every story of a DeWalt dying early, there is another story of the other makes dying early. Lemons do come off the assembly line, just like trucks. Most are good, but we tend to hear about the lemons most often.

Avoid Ryobi, B&D and Ridgid. They are knock-offs.


And for what you are doing 12V is just fine. Just make sure to get an extra battery and a car charger

 

I bought a Ryobi set that was on sale at HD a while back, it was cheaper than all hell. I've beat the crap out of all of the stuff and it's still ticking. It's not bad. I think Ryobi is the best of the "lower" end. Makita and DeWalt are my picks if you're going to spend a bunch of money.

 

"The Ryobi Tools brand is currently owned by Hong Kong based Techtronic Industries Company Ltd, initially an OEM manufacturer for brands such as Craftsman and RIDGID, in every market except Japan.

US operations
Ryobi Die Casting (USA), Inc. manufacturers products for the automobile industry and is based in Shelbyville, IN.

Ryobi Finance Corporation of Chicago, IL is a financial operations company of the Ryobi Group."

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Hitachi is good, I have a few of their cordless and elec. tools. I'm just not a fan of their sneaker-like tool casing designs.