In Europe, LIDL’s Parkside lineup is fantastic. The battery lineup is a system, with two battery types, a 12V and a 20V. Their battery and charger lineup is great, cheap and reliable. A 2Ah is 20€, and an 8Ah for 50€. The 8Ah has bluetooth (I thought it was a gimmick, but is surprisingly useful!)
The range is astounding, having tools that no major brand has. I have a convertible saw that can be a sawzall or a jigsaw that has no right to work so well as it does in both modes, or a tiny rotary drill, smaller than a full size battery hammer drill, that is a little beast.
I used to own a sign shop so I kind of know a bit about these tools. Sign shops work with almost all materials, from metal to wood to plastics, to concrete and masonry, so the range of power tools we had was bewildering. My shop was team yellow with the odd Hitachi, now Hikoki. When I closed the shop I kept some of them. DeWalt is very, very good, but for DIY purposes, LIDL’s Parkside is my go to now.
I would place much, but not all the lineup at prosumer level, with features like all-metal one-hand-locking chucks, metal gearcases, brushless versions, and more.
There’s nothing wrong with going back to old hand tools that were made when James K. Polk was in the White House. Who needs a DeWalt when you’ve got a hand drill?
As a German Handwerksmeister: i disagree with the Bosch Thing. Bosch is more for the everyday Dude, the professionals i See are using Hilti, Festool, Milwaukee and sometimes FLEX and Makita.
I am far away from being a pro and own several Bosch Blue tools that were all rather cheap. You can buy them in every hardware store. Fein, Hilti etc. are usually far more expensive. As I don’t own them, I can’t compare the quality but I’d say Bosch Blue is mostly a consumer brand.
I sold all machines to customers, including Milwaukee, DeWalt, Bosch Professional, Festool, Makita and Güde. Hilti can only be bought directly.
I invited manufactures and my clients to get hands on these machines regularly.
Bosch Professional are indeed quality tools. What differs is the amount of torgue for each model.
If the smallest 18V shows up with 45 Nm people are inclined at first when comparing to a 18V 60 Nm tool. But there are other things to consider. If the power is sufficient for the task, the smaller tool may do more sinks.
Additionally, you can get all machines repaired at Bosch. Even 15 year old ones. Makita will simply prompt sorry, to old. You need to get a new one. Bosch maintains each item of the device as it and you can just buy the broken part as well.
I also got some very nice deals for customers which were not listed officially.
I always start with harbor freight. When I break that one, I buy a nice version of whatever it was. I don’t buy “nice” tools very often. HF is nearly always “good enough.”
I had a Harbor Height cordless drill that worked just fine for like six years, to my surprise and delight. I’m a light duty user, so I upgraded to a brushless Ryobi.
Ryobi cordless tools because I’m a light duty user. Wiha screwdrivers because I’m worth it (and they are worth it). And the nice Hakko soldering tools because I use those more.
Meh, fuck brand loyalty. Keep an eye out for used tools. If it’s tough enough to make it to round 2, its demonstrated some selection bias. For some stuff you just need to weigh how much you’re going to use it to decide how much you want to spend. If you’re using it enough to be frustrated with it every time you take it out, time to upgrade that one.
I have an old corded Milwaukee drill that I inherited from my dad. The torque is so strong it will fly out of your hand if you’re not careful, and the whole body is made of metal. If you happen across old tools like that, snatch em up.
In honor of my dad, I also bought a new Milwaukee to go along with it. I adore that thing.
While I generally agree, I must say that my Ryobi tools are doing just fine after 15ish years of use. Primarily the drill is what’s used, and it’s seen some shit but aside from a little cosmetic issue (rubber peeling off here and there) it’s in great working order. I can afford better now, but I’m happy enough to keep what I’ve got.
I’m just a handy home owner, so it’s not like I’m abusing these things.
I’m a big fan of buying power tools twice. I happen to go Ryobi for the first round but Harbor Freight / Northern Tool are probably similar.
If you can stand the fuss, buy corded tools and skip the brand loyalty that comes with batteries.
The biggest killer of cheaper power tools is generally heat. There are plastic components in the drive train. They hold up great to short jobs, but heat is their kryptonite. If you let a Ryobi tool cool down whenever you notice it getting warm to the touch it’ll last a long time. If you need to run a tool for hours at a time then skip the fuss and go straight to a more brand with a good reputation like DeWalt, Makita, Bosch, or Milwaukee.
Power tool batteries are expensive and are not interchangeable between brands (without 3rd party adapters that can be a bit risky). I only own DeWalt power tools because I want one set of batteries and chargers.
I have no brand loyalty to hand tools, however. Well, except for Knipex. My pliers-wrench has been life changing.
Going to work on cars? Milwaukee. Not going to work on cars? Can save a few bucks with Dewalt, the nailguns and saws are real nice. I say this as someone who has a LOT of Ryobi but they just don’t work as well as the better stuff. If I had either of the two big brands I could probably ditch my corded circular, jig and reciprocating saws. Same with the 4in grinder.
Hand tools just mix and match, they don’t need to be the same brand.
