18V Cordless - which to keep?

[land_kel]

Cleaning up..... Keeping Festool and one other.

All are 18v and have extra Ion batteries.

Milwaukee, DeWalt, Makita

Who gets to stay?

 

[TelcoRandy]

Kind of a hard question to ask to people on the forum. I guess it really depends on how much you have invested in these battery platforms on each manufacturer. I would probably keep the set with the most tools + newest batteries. Or keep the platform you'd like to upgrade the most in the future. Personally I don't like Milwaukee drill chucks, they don't seem to ratchet as tight as Makitas'.

I've never been able to find a definitive answer to the question of which tool manufacturer is best. I remember seeing a YouTube video where Milwaukee beats Festool/Dewalt/Makita for the most amount of screws fastened only for someone to make a point about how in a full day you could do more work with the Makita drill because the batteries charge a million times faster (fan cooled battery chargers).

It seems to me that most of this stuff is arbitrary/subjective. If you like to work on cars you might wanna stick with your Milwaukee 18V though, Milwaukee has a sweet 18V impact wrench that is just as powerful as Ingersoll Rand's 20V impact wrench.

 

[land_kel]

Yes your most likely right, as a lot of views but only one reply.  Maybe, on scale of 1 to 10, with 10 highest, how do you rate each drill for your typical woodworking only use.

I'm thinking that the Makita will be the 2nd. and the others regardless of inventory will be disposed of to someone who may need a good set of cordless tools for general use.

Thank you for your comments.  Appreciated!

D

 

[Kev]

None  [big grin]

 

[wow]

If you like to work on cars you might wanna stick with your Milwaukee 18V though, Milwaukee has a sweet 18V impact wrench that is just as powerful as Ingersoll Rand's 20V impact wrench.

My experience is that that's true - but only on paper. I own the IR W7150 and got a chance to try it against the new Milwaukee Fuel wrench. The IR beat the pants off the Milwaukee - it worked on stubborn bolts and lug nuts that the Milwaukee couldn't budge. But then I work on diesel trucks and tractors and really ask a lot of my mechanics tools. The IR is the ONLY cordless I've found that is truly the equal of their air tools which are regarded as some of, if not THE best in the industry. Also, the IR is available with a 'boot' that covers the gun and protects it from the kind of abuse it will get in a truck shop - like being pulled across the concrete under a vehicle.

That said, if you're investing in a battery 'system' and want to minimize your selection of batteries and chargers, the Milwaukee may be perfect for what you and most people will use it for. It's also a damn site cheaper than the IR unless you find a deal - I got a free second battery with my IR when I bought it last summer. And I would buy the Milwaukee in a minute if it met my needs since it's a good product backed by a good company. But it's not the equal of the IR, in case that matters to you.

 

[TelcoRandy]

Thanks wow, well I'm glad to hear my 20V Ingersoll Rand impact wasn't a waste of money.
I was disappointed when the new Milwaukee M18 Fuel Impact came out.

I was basing my opinion on this youtube video:

But I trust how something operates in the real world more than anything and I'll take your word for it.

 

[wow]

If someone IS looking for the Milwaukee Impact, Home Despot has them at 20% off ($343.20) with free shipping 'til the end of the month or until they run out, whichever comes first.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-M18-Fuel-18-Volt-Lithium-Ion-Brushless-1-2-in-Cordless-High-Torque-Impact-Wrench-with-Friction-Ring-Kit-2763-22/204410433

Somebody can have mine, since I'm not planning to buy one.

;D