biglar155
Jetboaters Admiral
- Messages
- 1,577
- Reaction score
- 2,142
- Points
- 277
- Location
- Fredonia, WI
- Boat Make
- Yamaha
- Year
- 2009
- Boat Model
- SX
- Boat Length
- 23
So..... About following my own advice..... 
I went down to Home Depot and started looking at Milwaukee. I liked what I saw but - as mentioned - the price was a bit "champagne" for my beer budget. Also, they didn't have the exact combo set I would have liked.
I spent about 45 minutes looking at various combinations and comparing them to the other brands available. I kept coming back to Ridgid. The demo-tools felt good in hand and they had a complete combo set at a price that couldn't be beat:
The thing that really got my attention was the circular saw. My old set has a 6-1/2" thin-kerf blade (to help keep the battery alive longer). The new sets (all brands) have a full-blown 7-1/4" blade like a corded tool. Very cool.
So I plunked down my $449 + Tax and headed home happy. (Even though that little voice in the back of my head said "Are you SURE about this?")
Upon opening them up I was still happy with the overall feel. The light built into the chuck of the drill seemed to be an extra-cool feature.
I happily labeled my batteries and charged them up (I number them and put the in-service date on them to keep track).
Then I started fooling with the circular saw. Upon inspection, the base-plate was not only a bit warped, it was also impossible to set it to a perfect 90-degree angle to the blade. We're talking a considerable amount of daylight between my square and the blade with no more adjustment possible in that direction.
So this morning I took the set back for an exchange. We opened up the new set right there at the service desk and (using a square I grabbed from the hand-tools section) saw that this saw had the exact same problem.
The lady at Home Depot happily gave me a refund.
Back to the cordless section I went. Lesson learned, I headed straight to the Milwaukee display and "built my own" kit. I purchased a Drill/Driver combo kit that came with a charger and two 5.0 batteries ($349). There was a cheaper kit ($299) with the same two tools, but it came with a 2.0 and a 3.0 battery rather than two 5.0 batteries and no case. Then I grabbed the circular saw ("tool only" for $199). Here's the result:
If you're counting, yes, I paid $100 more for fewer tools (no Sawzall or flashlight) but man, are these nice tools.
When I need a reciprocating saw, I have my Dad's old corded Dewalt for now. I'll pick up an M18 Sawzall ($129 at this time for the "tool only" option) when the need arises.
So, don't take this as a "dis" on Ridgid tools. I have a few and they are decent. That said, they obviously had some QC issue with a batch of their circular saws. I liked everything about that set and it was going to be perfectly fine for my needs - but I can't have a tool in my stable that can't make a square cut. I learned long ago that that's just stupid.
My old Milwaukee set lasted 15 years. A new set of batteries would give it more life (and maybe a new set of brushes on the drill) but - as I said - sometimes you just know when it's time to upgrade. Here's the old "team" that got me through many home-improvement projects:
Sometimes we have to re-learn our own lessons. I did that this week. Choose the best tool you can afford, and then go up one model higher.
I'll never pick up one of these tools and wish it was a Ridgid. I might have spent the next decade wishing I had bought Milwaukee.
I went down to Home Depot and started looking at Milwaukee. I liked what I saw but - as mentioned - the price was a bit "champagne" for my beer budget. Also, they didn't have the exact combo set I would have liked.
I spent about 45 minutes looking at various combinations and comparing them to the other brands available. I kept coming back to Ridgid. The demo-tools felt good in hand and they had a complete combo set at a price that couldn't be beat:
The thing that really got my attention was the circular saw. My old set has a 6-1/2" thin-kerf blade (to help keep the battery alive longer). The new sets (all brands) have a full-blown 7-1/4" blade like a corded tool. Very cool.
So I plunked down my $449 + Tax and headed home happy. (Even though that little voice in the back of my head said "Are you SURE about this?")
Upon opening them up I was still happy with the overall feel. The light built into the chuck of the drill seemed to be an extra-cool feature.
I happily labeled my batteries and charged them up (I number them and put the in-service date on them to keep track).
Then I started fooling with the circular saw. Upon inspection, the base-plate was not only a bit warped, it was also impossible to set it to a perfect 90-degree angle to the blade. We're talking a considerable amount of daylight between my square and the blade with no more adjustment possible in that direction.
So this morning I took the set back for an exchange. We opened up the new set right there at the service desk and (using a square I grabbed from the hand-tools section) saw that this saw had the exact same problem.
The lady at Home Depot happily gave me a refund.
Back to the cordless section I went. Lesson learned, I headed straight to the Milwaukee display and "built my own" kit. I purchased a Drill/Driver combo kit that came with a charger and two 5.0 batteries ($349). There was a cheaper kit ($299) with the same two tools, but it came with a 2.0 and a 3.0 battery rather than two 5.0 batteries and no case. Then I grabbed the circular saw ("tool only" for $199). Here's the result:
If you're counting, yes, I paid $100 more for fewer tools (no Sawzall or flashlight) but man, are these nice tools.
When I need a reciprocating saw, I have my Dad's old corded Dewalt for now. I'll pick up an M18 Sawzall ($129 at this time for the "tool only" option) when the need arises.
So, don't take this as a "dis" on Ridgid tools. I have a few and they are decent. That said, they obviously had some QC issue with a batch of their circular saws. I liked everything about that set and it was going to be perfectly fine for my needs - but I can't have a tool in my stable that can't make a square cut. I learned long ago that that's just stupid.
My old Milwaukee set lasted 15 years. A new set of batteries would give it more life (and maybe a new set of brushes on the drill) but - as I said - sometimes you just know when it's time to upgrade. Here's the old "team" that got me through many home-improvement projects:
Sometimes we have to re-learn our own lessons. I did that this week. Choose the best tool you can afford, and then go up one model higher.
I'll never pick up one of these tools and wish it was a Ridgid. I might have spent the next decade wishing I had bought Milwaukee.
