01-28-2013, 12:30 PM
I know you said you didn't want to go budget, but I'll throw my 2 cents in anyway
I've had a Ryobi 18V kit (ni-cad) for about 3 years now, and am happy with it for casual use. Battery design hasn't changed (though I haven't needed new batteries), and the tools operate like new. For irregular use, it's been great, drill and sawzall have decent power. That being said, that 18V ni-cad dewalt cordless drill you linked to (we had one at work) probably has twice the torque. The rotary saw lasts like, 5 minutes on a charge, but I use it a couple times a year.
I see the lithium prices have come down, seems like a decent price:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-203466914/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=cordless+tools&storeId=10051">http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R ... reId=10051</a><!-- m -->
Don't forget about "Rigid" brand at Home Depot, I might put that in the "medium" category, it does also come with a lifetime warranty (I've not read the fine print). :dunno:
Also don't even look at the battery voltage rating, that's like looking at processor clock speed (IE, it doesn't mean much by itself).
I've had a Ryobi 18V kit (ni-cad) for about 3 years now, and am happy with it for casual use. Battery design hasn't changed (though I haven't needed new batteries), and the tools operate like new. For irregular use, it's been great, drill and sawzall have decent power. That being said, that 18V ni-cad dewalt cordless drill you linked to (we had one at work) probably has twice the torque. The rotary saw lasts like, 5 minutes on a charge, but I use it a couple times a year.
I see the lithium prices have come down, seems like a decent price:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-203466914/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=cordless+tools&storeId=10051">http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R ... reId=10051</a><!-- m -->
Don't forget about "Rigid" brand at Home Depot, I might put that in the "medium" category, it does also come with a lifetime warranty (I've not read the fine print). :dunno:
Also don't even look at the battery voltage rating, that's like looking at processor clock speed (IE, it doesn't mean much by itself).
Mike Wrote:(including the impact that I'd want)Are you sure? It looks like it's rated in in-lbs. There's impact drivers for screws (which are awesome compared to a drill), that are usually rated in in-lbs, and then there's ones for cars (usually rated for a few hundred ft-lbs)
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a van is a good guy with a van