Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

[aarond]

Mostly this would be used for around the house projects. I dabble in a bit of everything it seems and although not as often as I'd like to any more it's not uncommon for me to find jobs that I don't have the ideal tools for so I end up using things in ways they weren't intended or pushing things harder than intended. Case in point... I've cut up hot water tanks (jig saw IIRC), dish washers (don't remember w/ what) and refrigerators (illegal I'm sure) just so they would fit in my trash can... a little bit each week. I commonly work with metal in varying capacities as well. I'm not a contractor but I am a caveman at times.

Of course speaker related items I enjoy working on as well.

Most of my cordless tools are basically worthless now, newest ones of note are probably almost 10 years old and the batteries are no good so I started looking at decent combo kits. Of course DeWalt is the standard most quality tools are compared to and after looking at their website it seems that have a lot of tools to offer. I looked at other brands but it seemed that they were pretty limited in the number of tools that worked with a common battery.

So I found this and obviously it's nice:

http://dewalt.com/tools/cordless-combo-packs-18-volt-combo-packs-dck955x.aspx

I can pick it on Amazon for about $800 shipped after tax. If I use the gift card and, 2% cash back on a credit card, fuel point racket I can save $120 eventually.

The biggest thing I don't like about the kit is that it has NiCd batteries. I've been very impressed with he weight and performance of Lipo batteries, but of course they are expensive. I figure the NiCd's will wear in a few years and hopefully the Li batts will come down in price in the meantime.

I still need to research the kit a little bit but before I drop a huge chunk of change I figured I'd get some input from you guys. I know DeWalt in the past has used cheaper "combo" version specific tools in place of the higher quality tools available individually (specifically the sawzall and skill saw I think). I've verified the skill saw is the better one that is included in the kit but I have compared each too individually yet.

What do you think?

[donradick]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

Dewalt is good quality - I've got one of their tables saws. At this time I think Nicad batteries are last-generation tech, and I
wouldn't buy into them unless I had a severe $$ shortage.

[1100xxben]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

I have a handful of Ridgid corded tools and I think they are all top notch quality. My next set of cordless tools will definitely be Ridgid as they also offer free lifetime battery replacement for the batteries purchased with tool kits.

[djg]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

I have had four Makita cordless drills over the last 30 years. They are all still serviceable, but their batteries are toast. Well, actually the second to last Nimh powered Makita was still good, but when the new Lion Makita came out, I just had to have one because it was so much lighter than the Nimh unit. When the last Makita Lithium Ion powered unit got down to one good battery that took a couple of tries to get charged, I bought a Bosch. It is very nice. The Ridgid battery deal is hard to beat, usually the tool outlasts the battery.

[rhubarb9999]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

Don is right. I would not bother with NiCad .. Lithium is the way to go.

I have a bunch of DeWalt tools and I liked them a lot .. until I got a Milwaukee drill and a Bosch electric driver. Those are now my brands of choice.

They are more expensive . but you get what you pay for.

Instead of one big all in one kit, I would decide which tools you use the most and get better quality versions of those. Pick up the rest used (garage sales are wonderful for that).

I have also found that some tools are really not well suited for cordless applications. Unless you are doing very small scale cutting, a corded Sawzall and circular saw are the way to go.

[badger]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

I currently own a couple of Dewalt Li-Ion tools and really like them. I would suggest not getting the large kit that comes in a bag and really think of the tools that you are going to use the most and get them in 2-packs. That way you get a nice hard plastic box with them thats great for storage and transport.

If I could do everything over again I would have gotten Bosch cordless tools instead of the dewalt. A combo like this would be REALLY nice.

Drill and Driver - http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-CLPK234-...ch+drill+combo

Reciprocating saw - http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-Bare-Too...ef=pd_sim_hi_4

Circular saw - http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-Bare-Too...ef=pd_sim_hi_2

That set up would be a little over $500 if my math is correct. Then you could buy tools as needed.

[fastbike1]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

I wouldn't say Dewalt is the standard. For example, lots of folks complain the Porter Cable quality has gone down hill, yet PC and Dewalt are the same company and have a number of common tools. Milwaukee and Bosch are a cut above. Even Makita has gone to plastic chucks on some models.

With that said, one of my favorite tools is a PC compact 12v lithium drill. My corded stuff is all Festool now.

As folks have said, don't bother w/ NiCAD. Further I don't think a multi tool combo kit is that useful (as you point out).

I would stick to a drill combo: drill driver and impact driver, or just a drill driver. I might add a multitool and a compact drill as well.

I would currently recommend the new Milwaukee M18 stuff. For a full size drill I would strongly recommend the new brushless model.

http://www.cpomilwaukee.com/

[billfitzmaurice]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

I got one of these three years ago, and they've served me well:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_36099-79992-PC418C-2_4294707836__?productId=1244431&Ns=p_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNs%3Dp_product_qty_sales_dollar%7C1&facetInfo=

I've found the NiCads work fine, and you can add other tools to the kit. Not quite contractor grade, but a lot better than B&D or Skil, or Craftsman. I'd only go more expensive if I was a contractor.

[cujet]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

I work as Director of Maintenance/aircraft mechanic on corporate jets and other things (Gulfstream G550, PC-12, EC-135, Extra 300L and my personal Cessna 177RG)

I use battery drills like crazy, for pulling thousands of screws from panels, leading edges, and floors. I also drill holes for rivets, brackets, and fixtures. I drill out bolts, screws, hiloks, and other hardened hardware. My drills get trashed!

My current "go-to" drill is a lightweight, 12V Max, Dewalt Lithium. It's a Homeless Depot special with the 12V impact driver too. Came with 3 batteries and charger. It's the best I've had so far.

I also own the stupidly heavy, metal chuck/gearbox, Dewalt XRP NiCd drill for heavy duty use. It's really no better than the 12V Lithium one.

I also have a number of Ryobi, and Rigid drills. They don't measure up. The Ryobi Lithium batteries contain cheap 18650's and fail and cannot be recharged. The variable speed triggers are harder to modulate perfectly. And, 3 years down the road, batteries cannot be found.

I'm not at all convinced Makita quality has improved, and/or the Makita drills are any better. For a while there, Makita's were not holding up for me. I gave away a pile of them.

Suggestion: Purchase the Max line of Dewalt tools.
Reason: The Lithium batteries hold up very well. The batteries will be available for many years, locally. Even the plastic 12V Max is a really tough and capable drill. And the 20V Max simply can do it all.

[jclin4]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

I wouldn't say Dewalt is the standard. For example, lots of folks complain the Porter Cable quality has gone down hill, yet PC and Dewalt are the same company and have a number of common tools. Milwaukee and Bosch are a cut above. Even Makita has gone to plastic chucks on some models.

In my limited experience, I have found DeWalt has gone down hill, but just a bit.

I had a 11-12yr old cordless drill that worked great, but the batteries came to the end of their lifecycle. I looked at replacement batteries but cost as much or more than a new drill.

I looked at getting a Bosch drill, based on recommendations in several threads here last year, but my dear spouse jumped the gun and got me another DeWalt for x-mas. Functionally there are some improvements like smaller and lighter, higher DC volt power, and small LED light. But the chuck slips if I do not give it a hard tightening, and the speed adjustment switch feels cheaper...not the smooth feel with nice metal-on-metal sound of certainty when switching between speeds on the older model.

[djg]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

Of four technicians in the hangar nextdoor, I got one each, Makita, Bosch, Dewalt and Hitachi. We favor the lightweight models for screw duty.

[fixthedoor]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

For cordless drills, I'm a dewalt fan. I worked as a project manager for a GC, until a few years ago, and about 5 guys used the Dewalt 18v system (nicad). I didn't see any equipment failures, and if memory serves, only one battery failure (don't know how long they lasted for a given charge). They handled regular abuse very well, and even took abuse from the newbs.

I have gone through a couple Makita drills in the past 10 years or so. Both fell victim to battery issues. I had 14.4 nimh units. One had transmission issues after I lent it to a newb. Afterward, high gear was worthless. I was a fan of the Makita drills because of their ergonomics and their balance when I held them.

A couple years ago I picked up a 20v lithium dewalt drill and impact combo, which came with an extra battery (total of 3). I love it. The size, weight and power are great. My only complaint is the storage box layout/size. I always have to remove the bit when I put the drill or impact driver away. I have to agree with jclin4 on the chuck issue, I experience the same thing.

I honestly don't know how you can go wrong with the 18v dewalt your looking at. It's durable, inexpensive, has a wide availability and a lot of tools to choose from. It will go the way of the dinosaur sometime, but when? Who knows. I was expecting them to be discontinued a few years ago. If you can step up to Lithium Ion batteries, that would be ideal. The weight savings is well worth it.

Do you need everything in that kit? Specifically the impact wrench, grinder or the cutout tool? Seems like you could get away with a smaller kit.

EDIT: Just reread your post, maybe you do need everything....No offense to anyone, but some of the field guys were cavemen.

[scid714]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

It's Milwaukee and Makita for me but I thin k Makita has lost some quality over the years. Battery is the weak link in everything cordless. I got the Milwaukee M18 Li-ion drill/driver/hammer and impact 2 years ago and they perform like new and they get worked very hard day in day out. constant discharge/charge cycle. FYI the impact driver is the bomb I do not know how I lived without it.

[djarchow]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

I don't know about the big combo kit like you showed, but Dewalt was recently offering $100 off the new Max drill driver/impact driver combo when you trade in an old drill. Using this I got the new 20V Max drill driver and impact driver with two batteries and a charger for $179. Heck of a deal since two new batteries for my Bosh drill were going to be over $100.

[Alien_Shore]

Re: Need advice for cordless power tool combo purchase...

You're getting good input and advice here; I'll throw in my 2 cents.
I'm still holding onto my Dewalt 18v XRP NiCad hammer drill for the big stuff. I have abused this thing for years and it's still running well. For xmas a couple of years ago, I got the Bosch 12v LI "mini" drill and impact drivers. I find them to be very useful. I keep a countersink pilot bit in one, and use the other for everything else. They are quite powerful for their size (I've accidentally wrecked several things with the impact driver!), and really hold a charge. My only complaint is that the little LED spotlight isn't positioned very well - it doesn't really shine on your work directly.