When I started buying tools for myself, I really did not know what I was doing. My process evolved as grew older, but there really was no direction in the beginning. Then there was not a method or thought process in my purchases, it was just I had a project that required a tool, so I purchased the cheapest tool I could buy.
As I grew older and started working in pawn shops, my process went to “oh, look a shiny new tool came out for sale and it is a great deal. Add to cart!” I bought so many tools that I had limited knowledge of or purpose for. At that time I lived in an apartment and my haphazard method of purchasing just ended with me being a tool hoarder for a bunch of stuff I really didn’t have a use for at that point.
I moved that pile of tools with me from apartment to apartment, and eventually to my house. Some tools were lost or damaged along the way, gave some away to friends who needed a particular tool or just sold some at garage sales.
Fast forward to the present and I have gained quite a bit of experience with tools. I have worked on helicopters and other vehicles, built props and furniture, and even done custom cabinets, home repairs, and remodels. My knowledge base has grown immensely. This time around, I started buying tools with purpose. Not only did it have to be the right price, but more so, it had to be the right tool.
Starting out in cordless tools
The first cordless tool set I bought was from a thrift store and the batteries were both busted. It was one of those 5 tool combo kits and they had no idea if it worked or not. I took a gamble and picked up the set for $25. Come Christmas time, Home Depot had their holiday sale. I scooped up a few of the battery multi-packs and boom, I was in business. I still have that set, 8 years later. All in all, I had a five toolset that served me well for under $100.
As I grew further and my income started to increase as well as the use of my tools, I started exploring more expensive and higher-end tools. First I purchased based on warranty. I wanted the tools with the best guarantee. As I continued to use my tools more and more, I started to care more about versatility and usability which makes sense. I am going to concentrate on the three tool manufacturers I own and use on a regular basis. There are others I will touch on them, but I will concentrate on Ryobi, Ridgid, and Milwaukee.
Ryboi
The first set I bought from the thrift store was a Ryobi set. As I stated, I still have it and it is still going strong. I am not particularly hard on the set or do much heavy lifting with it, but it definitely serves its purpose. When I “upgraded” to a higher grade of the tool, I considered getting rid of the Ryobi stuff. Why would I need to mess with another set of batteries and chargers? It just seemed like more of a headache than it was worth. Then it hit me. Why not make that headache work for me?
What I mean here is how many times have you gone looking for a tool and it has been taken by someone else or even yourself and left where the work was performed. The one I get the most is a tool that got taken from the shop to the house, and it ended up being put away at the house. I ended up making the Ryobi set my house set. All of the batteries, chargers, and tools live at the house. I have done this with a lot of my tools as I have upgraded. The older tools become the house set. No more running back and forth or tracking down a tool.
Ryobi makes a great set for the average homeowner or hobbyist. They have a crazy number of tools and a bunch of specialty tools that aren’t made by many other manufacturers. They target homeowners and hobbyists who need a wide array of tools, aren’t extremely hard on them and don’t want to break the bank. The tool availability is all over the place. They have everything from caulk guns to chainsaws that all work off of the same battery.
Even though I don’t buy Ryobi cordless tools for any of my shops or crafts nowadays, I do still make the occasional purchase when it comes to working around the house. I grew up in the time when you avoided electric yard tools like the plague, especially cordless ones.
The new Ryobi cordless chainsaws, blowers, and trimmers are really convenient. They work off of the same batteries as the rest of the line-up and just make the small tasks easy. Don’t get me wrong, if I am cutting down a tree or cutting down a bunch of brush, I am gas all the way. More often than not, I am just cutting off some small limbs, cutting up a downed branch, or trimming a small area that needs to be kept in check. Those are the times where these tools shine.
The setup is basically nonexistent and there are no concerns over old gas, cracked hoses, or any of the other myriad of problems associated with gas engines that don’t get used regularly. To add, I am still only using the standard tools, I haven’t even tried out the brushless versions yet. My friends that have them swear by them and that will make me give them a look when it is replacement time.
Ridgid
What really drew my attention to Ridgid initially was the warranty. While I have never used the warranty, it was definitely a confidence-inspiring program that made me feel better about investing my hard-earned money into the product. Ironically the only ones I have ever had issues with were ones that I did not register. I purchased a drill/impact combo and did not think to register it. One of the two batteries that came with it died after a few months and never would take a charge again. The other was an orbital sander that I had purchased used and the pad broke down. I have no idea what type of life it had before I owned it, so I can’t hold that against them.
When I really started to focus on buying new tools, Ridgid was who I decided to go with for the aforementioned reason. I only bought tools that I really needed at that point. I did not reach for tools I would use occasionally. If I was paying the new price, I was going to use it every day. I ended up with 6 or 7 tools that I used frequently.
In general, the tools are well made, tough workhorses. They have some unique features and geometry to them that can make for interesting ergonomics. They come with a higher price tag than the homeowner class of tools, but that price tag comes with noticeably more power and torque. There is a decent selection of tools available. They offer 18v and 12v tools. I own a few of both and have been equally happy with them.
Milwaukee
I pushed back for a while and stuck with my mixture of used tools. They did a lot of what I needed to do and performed well. I had friends who had moved onto Milwaukee a few years back. Every time I stopped by, they would have some new crazy niche Milwaukee tool. They were more expensive than what I was used to, so I held off and just kept chugging along with my pawnshop specials. One weekend Home Depot had a sale with a bunch of combos and extra batteries during the holidays. The variety of tools was too much, I jumped in with both feet and there was no looking back.
Milwaukee has taken over as my primary tool in my shop. They have gone insane with cordless and taken it to the next level. While they do provide cordless miter and table saws, I am a plug-in guy when it comes to those types of tools. Maybe one day they will convert me to full cordless, but at this point, I have no reason to convert. For my purpose, I focus on their hand tools.
They offer both 18v and 12v tools. Personally, I was shocked by the 12v tools they offer. They are lighter and more often than not have enough power to complete the tasks I have around the shop. There are tons of tools available in the lighter 12v. They even make a heated jacket that uses the batteries for God’s sake!
Just to be clear
No tool brands sponsor or support me, this is just based on my own personal experience. I still use and own other major brands including Makita, DeWalt, Grizzly, Jett, and Rikon, but they just happen to be corded. It just happens that I really like the variety of offerings from Milwaukee and they serve my purposes better. This will all depend on what your requirements are and what purpose you need your tools to serve. You are the only one that can make that assessment. Hopefully, this gives you a different point of view and insight into my strategy when building my cordless collection. Until next time keep making and stay awesome!
Pete