Power tool recs?

[SirVicSmasher]

Bosch Jig saw is amazing.

I have a makita circular saw corded thats great, and a rigid octane 18v thats only ok. When you need cord free its the best thing ever to have handy, but it will bog down cutting thick wood, or with the slightest twist if you are cutting quick and slopping. That said, the adjustments are so much better than my basic makita, I would prioritize that in my next circular saw purchase.

I've only used dewalt chop saws but would buy again.

I have rigid brushless impact driver, hammer drill and drills, they are pretty good. The batteries and power are fantastic, but the rubber is kinda peeling after our second home reno.

I have a Kobalt portable table saw that is actually great for the money. As mentioned though, a track saw would be better for cutting big materials, rather than a portable table saw. I see the need for both though in my future.

All the cutting tools, it must be said have decent, purposeful blades on them, its probably what makes them good to be honest.

My Makita compact compressor is amazing, works fine with my cheap porter cable nailers, which are just ok, im sure theres better, but I dont care for my purposes.

My Dewalt orbital and palm sanders are workhorses that have survived years of jobs that they probably shouldnt be doing. (corded of course)

Things I have an hate:
Rigid brushless, corded trim router. It overheats frequently, and I have to take breaks in the projects im on and put it in the fridge. I probably work it too hard for its intended purposes, but I feel like an old cheap craftsman should not out perform this. Not sure who makes the best routers.

Anything Ryobi is always a waste. I bought a belt sander, thinking they are simple, corded tools. My Dad had one that lasted forever (when they were blue). Motor burnt out after 2 days of use tapering some plywood. Spent time and money for home depot to fix it since I hate throwing things out, broke again after less than an hours use. Want to buy a makita when the project comes up. Theres a few other tools that made it through 1 project, and then the motors burnt out.

get a Dewalt belt sander instead of the makita

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[old goat]

you just (probably) saved me a ton of $ spread over a few years. good, simple logic.

but aspirational ski buying still ok, right?

No. It's mandatory. Remember, the more skis you have the longer each will last, and since the price of skis goes up every year, the more skis you buy, the more money you save. (Unfortunately my wife uses the same logic buying food for just the two of us at Costco--the shelf life of chicken is somewhat less than that of skis or tools.)

[Rideski]

Not currently a real contractor not sure where I might go with this.
But pulled in several g’s this summer doing gig work.
I have a 3/8 corded drill that’s lasted decades of home owner usage, but I think I bent it when using a cutoff wheel one day before I bought the angle grinder. Have a 3/8 cordless drill/driver that I got some mileage out of, but I bent it driving fence rail screws. What was it I bent? Would it be called the spindle?
So I hate shopping, and needed an impact driver pronto, and got a dewalt 20v 1/4 inch. Didn’t really realize till later that maybe I should have gone 3/8 or 1/2. I’ve done a few hours of reading and haven’t figured out yet if that only applies to chuck size, or if the internals are also beefier, which might result in less bendage in the future. I don’t like returning things, doesn’t seem fair, I definitely have used this, so I’ll keep it around, might just be more careful with it if it’s a wimpy model and get something bigger if I do another big fence job and keep this for maybe putting up shelves or something.

In the same tangent, noticed a neighbor selling a 1/2 inch dewalt drill/driver with two batteries. Would be nice to have a new drill since I bent my others, and the batteries would go with my impact, but I do have an SDS hammer drill for beefy drilling, so I’m not exactly sure what the benefit of the 1/2 would be.

Also on the same tangent (this gets to be like chess) Id like to have a cordless impact wrench for working on the truck, so some of this seems like overlap, if I were to get a heavier impact driver as opposed to wrench.

[old goat]

If what you need is an impact driver for screws aren't they all 1/4 hex? Or can you use impact wrenches with larger chucks as drivers? I'm ignorant and asking.

[climberevan]

If what you need is an impact driver for screws aren't they all 1/4 hex? Or can you use impact wrenches with larger chucks as drivers? I'm ignorant and asking.

Correct. The bigger impact wrenches are for bolts and lugnuts.

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[Skidog]

I know the green brand of sorta frowned upon, but home depot has the double sized 4ah batteries on sale. 2 for $79.99. normally each is $99.99.

Kicker..make sure you go to the "holiday" section..if you go to normal tools they will still sell for full price. Assholes.

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[RShea]

I know the green brand of sorta frowned upon, but home depot has the double sized 4ah batteries on sale. 2 for $79.99. normally each is $99.99.

The Milwaukee batteries are or will be on sale too. Depending on if you go M12 or M18 lines, M18 6.0 Ah and 3.0 Ah or dual pack 3.0 Ah are on sale at HD.

[lifelinksplit]

For vehicle work get the biggest red one you can afford. Also extensions and elbows and throw down for real set of impact sockets.

[Skidog]

The Milwaukee batteries are or will be on sale too. Depending on if you go M12 or M18 lines, M18 6.0 Ah and 3.0 Ah or dual pack 3.0 Ah are on sale at HD.

My bro in law said the deal on the milwaukee 2 pack wasn't that great. He runs all red on the job.

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[s_curran]

I spent all day yesterday on a diamondback 10" tile cutter that I got from harbor freight at a really decent cost. It was sort of their higher end model, and it was worth every penny over the others I saw from rigid. Very impressed for the money. Smooth cuts on slate, the sliding tray doest have any play, and the rubber coating is great. The laser is more helpfull than I ever would have imagined.

I also used the mid range (35 bucks, ha) Bauer angle grinder for tighter cuts and it wasnt terrible, the switch sucks, but thats basically where a lot of the differences are it seems. Should have paid more for one with a decent switch.

Im also in the buy when you need camp. It might end up with some crossover, but its better than having things that were never used. Same thing with router bits and a lot of other cutting tools, buy nice ones, one at a time, rather than shitty ryobi sets where you only use one if them and it wears out quick. If you plan well, you'll know exactly what tools and supplies you'll need (and create a better result) and you can weigh the cost of doing to job with what you have, vs buying something specific for that project.

This is coming from a total weekend warrior (although I guess weekend and weeknight warrior at this point).

[fleaches]

Thanks all for the responses. I ended up picking up a bunch of corded tools on craigslist without paying too much attention to the brand--Dewalt belt sander, Bosch jigsaw, little Makita hand router, skil circular saw. No complaints with any of that so far, except I second the rec for tossing out whatever blades came with tools. I tried cutting some plywood with the circular saw and could not for the life of me cut straight, even with a guide clamped to it. New blade and it is fine.

For battery powered stuff decided to go with the red ones and started with a brushless drill + impact driver set. Self drilling torx screws with the impact driver are some kind of magic. The one thing I'm not crazy about is a Craftsman chop saw, but it was cheap on CL and I needed it for the projects I was working on. If I see a good deal on a table saw I'll probably sell it and get that instead, but there is only so much space in the garage. Decided I don't really care about a drill press for wood working and it would take up too much space. I'll pick up other tools as needed, but this was a good start and was sufficient for the projects I had in mind.

And speaking of projects, here is what I made so far with said tools:

Kayak rack:



Custom cage for the pet lizard:



Ski wax bench + storage based on something I saw on Wildsnow:

[old goat]

Next step is getting everything out of the garage except tools, work bench and skis.

[Rideski]

[ntblanks]

re: Heat Guns

Seeking advice: I bought a heat gun (Hercules/Harbor Freight) a few weeks back for use in ski repair & binding mounts.

Only used it a few times but not impressed. Specs say it reaches 900+° but I swear it seems no hotter than a $10 hair dryer. I've only used it a few times.

Bought it in part because I have other Hercules tools & battery system. (aside from low heat, also questioning battery-operated in this application)

Should I return it for a corded (probably cheaper) heat gun? Or am I missing something?

[snowaddict91]

re: Heat Guns

Seeking advice: I bought a heat gun (Hercules/Harbor Freight) a few weeks back for use in ski repair & binding mounts.

Only used it a few times but not impressed. Specs say it reaches 900+° but I swear it seems no hotter than a $10 hair dryer. I've only used it a few times.

Bought it in part because I have other Hercules tools & battery system. (aside from low heat, also questioning battery-operated in this application)

Should I return it for a corded (probably cheaper) heat gun? Or am I missing something?

I think the battery-power is a big part of your issues. Making heat takes a shit ton of power and I can't imagine HF batteries being up to the task. I'd definitely go corded unless you have a reason to require cordless.

[climberevan]

No way is a battery going to be able to run a decent heat gun for long. I burned up a HF corded one thinking that I didn't need to spend much for a glorified hair dryer. Then I bought a DeWalt one that's been going strong for several years now. Spend a few bucks.

[Rideski]

Minor thing to add: when you get an impact driver, get a set of impact driver specific bits and throw any other driver bit you own away. I've chipped out/blown up enough shitty bits in the impact driver and need to pass this lesson on.

Also, safety glasses when running the impact driver, always. Especially if you ignore the first piece of advice.

You mean like that? Thanks for the heads up, I always have eyes protected but was good to be prepared for this, had a backup with me. I hate shopping didn’t get around to finding a better set yet. Guess I’ll move that on to the top ten priority list.

[ntblanks]

I think the battery-power is a big part of your issues. Making heat takes a shit ton of power and I can't imagine HF batteries being up to the task. I'd definitely go corded unless you have a reason to require cordless.

No way is a battery going to be able to run a decent heat gun for long. I burned up a HF corded one thinking that I didn't need to spend much for a glorified hair dryer. Then I bought a DeWalt one that's been going strong for several years now. Spend a few bucks.

thanks, fellas.

returning it today for a corded model.

climbervan - this one was actually more $$. no problem spending for the right tool.

[El Chupacabra]

I'm on my second Harbor Freight corded heat gun. For the $9 they cost, well worth the cheap ones. First one broke after being dropped a few too many times on concrete.

[El Chupacabra]

Bumping one of the more recent cordless tool threads --

I have Bosch cordless for a drill, impact driver, and sawzall. Bosch's offering for a cordless impact gun is either kinda weak (for the cheaper one) or expensive (for the good one). I have a decent size air compressor and a reasonably good air impact gun, but am kind of tempted to get a cordless impact gun.

Saw this Ridgid brushless one for sale -- for homeowner automotive use, worthwhile? I have no other Ridgid tools.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-1...kBU0hQV13YRT40

[adrenalated]

A friend has an older full set of Ridgid 18V cordless tools, including the impact, they have been good to him.
I'm happy enough with other Ridgid tools I have for homowner use.

[John_B]

I've got the Ridgid Subcompact 3/8" impact and that has worked well enough for zipping off lugnuts, brake calipers and driving lag bolts so I feel like the 1/2" ought to do even better. I've only had mine for a year but it has survived several falls off of ladders.

[El Chupacabra]

Thanks - I think I'm going to buy the tool, and think about it some more. Could always just return if I change my mind.

[SirVicSmasher]

Thanks - I think I'm going to buy the tool, and think about it some more. Could always just return if I change my mind.

Keep it. Buddy has one and loves it. He uses it nearly every day.

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[fatnslow]

Bumping one of the more recent cordless tool threads --

I have Bosch cordless for a drill, impact driver, and sawzall. Bosch's offering for a cordless impact gun is either kinda weak (for the cheaper one) or expensive (for the good one). I have a decent size air compressor and a reasonably good air impact gun, but am kind of tempted to get a cordless impact gun.

Saw this Ridgid brushless one for sale -- for homeowner automotive use, worthwhile? I have no other Ridgid tools.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-1...kBU0hQV13YRT40

IF this "Maximum torque output of 485 ft./lbs. of torque in forward and 620 ft./lbs. of torque in reverse for heavy-duty applications" rating is correct that is a hell of a price.