Ridgid vs DeWalt vs ???

Lurch830

Lurch830

messin' with sasquatch
Joined
Mar 1, 2007
Location
Wilton & Albemarle, NC
Looking for a cordless tool set that has a drill, circular saw, impact and grinder. I've narrowed it down to Ridgid 18V or DeWalt 18V. Anybody got opinions on either or another brand I haven't considered?

Ridgid - $470 4 piece (circular saw, sawzall, drill & impact driver). Personally like the lifetime warranty, but want a cut-off tool/grinder for the shop/trails

DeWalt - $700 7 piece (drill, right angle drill, sawzall, circular saw, cut-off tool, impact driver & flexible floodlight). Like the tool selection, but the 3 year warranty is keeping me from going through with it.

Thanks in advance,
Brandon
 
The 28V Milwaukee is the best cordless drill I've had by far ( $445 from MSC). I'd say the Craftsman 19.2 is a descent drill for the money. :beer: Dewalt just plain sucks, the batteries just don't seem to hold up.:poop:
 
Dewalt sucks.....period. Rigid seems to get good reviews, i dont have experience with it. I use lith ion makita stuff. I love it!
 
For a $230 difference, surely you could just buy a seperate cordless grinder? Would it be such a big deal to not be part of the same "kit"?
 
Ive also been less than impressed with Dewalt. I've had great luck with Makita and Milwaukee stuff (drills, disc grinders, cutoff saws, battery products, etc). Ryobi also makes a solid product, and the pricing is fair.
 
Black ansdd Decker bought DeWalt ~ 6 years ago. They now use thee DeWalt name because of its rep. I was as die hard as they come a mark for DeWalt but they bring the suck these days.

Ive been thoroughly unimpressed with Rigid the few times Ive used them.

Milwaukee Lithium Ion is amazing, but you get what you pay for on those.
 
I'm a die hard Milwaukee user and usually wont' use anytihng else. Everything I've purchased thats been Milwaukee has taken the abuse and then some, no problem.

All of the DeWalt tools I've ever purchased craped out on me way sooner than expected and those expectations were pretty low.

I've had good luck with most of the Rigid tools.
 
My place of employment is blindly sold on Dewalt. I also believe they are subpar, we probably have 15 or so 18 volt drills and just as many corded grinders and a bunch of sawsalls. The brushes typically go in the grinders, the newer body styled ones before some of the older ones. The bateries on the drills seem to puke way to early, my partners craftsman outlast the D's by hours. I personally like Makita. We do however abuse or well use what we have.
 
SkyHiK5 said:
Black ansdd Decker bought DeWalt ~ 6 years ago. They now use thee DeWalt name because of its rep.
Click to expand...

B&D bought Dewalt in the mid '60's , only started using it as there own in the mid late '90's early '00. Dewalt was their "Contractos line" while the rest of the B&D crap was marketed to the weekend warrior " Joe Consumer "

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_and_Decker

Then the box stores got into the mix asking for "quality" home consumer tools, target market pricing of $300 or less. THIS is where the tool quality started dropping, to compete in this catagory. B&D/Dewalt soon were buying up other brands ( Delta, Porter Cable to name a few.) and trying to integrate the various good points into one line, see how well that has worked ?

Home Depot is the sole marketer of Ryobi power tools, Which, oddly enough are or were made in Anderson SC, not sure if this still holds true.

Ryobi is kind of HD's "house brand" in electric tools, and they've actually made them a decent value. you can buy ppieces as needed, using one battery source, and the batteries are not priced so crazy that you are better off bying a new tool just because the battery has died. ( my current 18v set is 8 years old, batteries worked fine till last spring, replaced both for $40 )

The Ryobi stuff works well for me at home, I have A 3/8" 14.4v Makita set I use on my work van, would trade it for anything, works awesome for what I need it for drill, impact and fluorecent light wand. Very Handy. I also carry a Milwuakee 1/2 Magnum Hole shooter for the big jobs, All my air tools are IR. Everything I have I am able to source parts for locally should they need to be repaired.

Working in tool repair for several years has allowed me the chance to see whsoe what is worth having. Dewalts quality has been spiraling for several years.

Some interesting info...http://www.answers.com/topic/techtronic-industries-company-ltd?cat=biz-fin
 
Given the choice between a Ryobi and a DeWalt...

I'd buy a Milwaukee. The only thing they've ever made that I didn't like was the quarter sheet palm sander... and that's just because their hold-down design was crap. I've got a Porter Cable or something instead. Everything else is red with a lightning bolt on the side.
 
Interesting....
I have a basic DeWalt elec. corded drill, got it (wow) about 12 years ago. It is finally starting to die, not as much torque etc (and I'm pretty sure the chuck is bent) after really working it hard for most of that time. It was only like a $60 unit, maybe I got lucky.
Seems like what really took it's toll was using it to re-mix 5 gal buckets of drywall mud.

I'm just a weekend warrior though, don't use it every day for work.
 
saf-t scissors said:
Given the choice between a Ryobi and a DeWalt...
I'd buy a Milwaukee. The only thing they've ever made that I didn't like was the quarter sheet palm sander...
Click to expand...

Milwuakee has only had one tool that has ever caused me concern, was the circular saw with the hanle that rotates around the housing. The earlier modles of that had crap armatures. had a few of those frag on me when trying to diag (knowing full well that the commutator was gonna frag!!, nice bright flash and the sound of copper fusing , then the bench breaker trips WARRANTY TIME ! cooked a few of those.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Interesting....
I have a basic DeWalt elec. corded drill, got it (wow) about 12 years ago. It is finally starting to die, not as much torque etc (and I'm pretty sure the chuck is bent) after really working it hard for most of that time. It was only like a $60 unit, maybe I got lucky.
Seems like what really took it's toll was using it to re-mix 5 gal buckets of drywall mud.
I'm just a weekend warrior though, don't use it every day for work.
Click to expand...


12 years ago, DeWalt was still a quality brand
 
SkyHiK5 said:
12 years ago, DeWalt was still a quality brand
Click to expand...

Truth. My dad has a DeWalt 14.4v drill hes had for many MANY years (back when they came in metal cases instead of the plastic ones) that still works perfectly today. He bought a 18v combo pack a few years ago thats not nearly as good. I still use the piss out of them, but the batteries dont last long at all.

Duane
 
I really enjoy my Hitachi tools and they have outlasted the other brands I have tried. Lowes has a pretty good selection of them as well.
 
I've got a 18v Dewalt sawzall with 2 batteries. One of the batteries took a dump not long after I got it and the other is pretty much gone now. They didn't last long at all and they aren't cheap either.
 
I've got a 14 y/o dewalt 14.4 that has held up great for me but remember some old timers telling me the quality was crap compaired to the old dewalt. I guess I got in before they went to total crap.
 
DeWalt isn't what it used to be, but the flex light you mentioned is one of the most used tools I have. The "snake light" is the sh*t.

If you're not going to use them all the time, I'm all for a cheaper brand. I've got some old Black and Decker( I know, DeWalt and B&D are the same company) power tools I have used and abused that still work just fine.

Keep your batteries inside (heated) during the winter to help them last longer.

Someone mentioned Craftsman 19.2 - The regular batteries are only $35 regular price (less than half of DeWalt-Milwaukee). Big Bonus IMO.
 
The new makita 18v tools are great with the lithium ion batteries. 15 minutes to charge and last a lot longer than my dewalt tools. A battery powered grinder will never replace a corded one but is pretty good for what it is. Be sure to get the blue-ish colored ones and not the cheaper white ones. Huge difference in batteries.
 
Was poking around on the net today and found a 7 piece Makita (1/2" Hammer Driver-Drill, 6-1/2" Circular Saw, Sawzall, Impact Driver, 4-1/2" Cordless Cut-Off/Angle Grinder, FM/AM Job Site Radio, 4-Position Flashlight) for $630......again only a 3 year warranty, but it seems like they may be a more durable brand compared to Ridgid & DeWalt
 
Blkvoodoo said:
Milwuakee has only had one tool that has ever caused me concern, was the circular saw with the hanle that rotates around the housing.
Click to expand...

I've got one of those. It has not been treated nicely. ;)

Next time you're around, remind me... we'll take a look, see if the armatures on mine are different.

Oh, and everything Milwaukee makes is guaranteed for 5 yrs.
 
Blkvoodoo said:
Milwuakee has only had one tool that has ever caused me concern, was the circular saw with the hanle that rotates around the housing. The earlier modles of that had crap armatures. had a few of those frag on me when trying to diag (knowing full well that the commutator was gonna frag!!, nice bright flash and the sound of copper fusing , then the bench breaker trips WARRANTY TIME ! cooked a few of those.
Click to expand...
saf-t scissors said:
I've got one of those. It has not been treated nicely. ;)

Next time you're around, remind me... we'll take a look, see if the armatures on mine are different.

Oh, and everything Milwaukee makes is guaranteed for 5 yrs.
Click to expand...

I would buy dewalt over ridgid.


Alright, I have a milwaukee skil saw, that took a crap in less than 6 months of use. I am still using the dewalt that was supposed to be replaced by the milwaukee. I have 2 Makitas that are over 8 yrs old, and still cut like a brand new one, besides they are heavy as hell, when you have to use them for 8-10 hrs straight. I do like milwaukee hammer drills, and saw-zalls, but other than that, not impressed. I have a $350 dewalt hammer drill (18 v) that has been used and abused, and still kicks. I also have a b&d drill, and a ryobi drill that died probably within 6 months of use also

All in all, I do like dewalt battery powered products. A little pricey, but for me it is worth it.
 
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