So.. I have a couple bucks and wanna invest in some decent tools, something to last me the next ten years.

The last 2 drills I bought...

one was an old 14V dewalt, that I got for $10, then spent another $30 for 2 batteries, but it's heavy as hell, and showing its age. It's still serviceable, but long charge times (NiMh) are getting annoying, and the chuck has seen better days

Black and decker 12V Lithium... Had it since.. 09? Batteries finally gave up the ghost, didn't have much power and battery life was abysmal, but it worked for 99% of the stuff I needed to do, and the $40 I paid for was nothing.

I wanna get something I can use to take my lugs off, and BOTH companies have high torque models....upwards of 1000lbft.. but I also want a small drill for daily stuff that doesn't weigh 20 lbs...

Thoughts?

I have a Milwaukee drill, driver, and camera with lithium batteries. I love it. The batteries last about 4-5 years then give up the ghost.

My Dewalt tools, bought as a set, have lasted 16+ years with only battery replacements.

but... Dewalt has gone through about 3 design changes in batteries over the last five years or so... Are they done for a while?

Also: they do some funky things with their multiple tool sets. The "discount" you get may not be as good a deal as it seems since they include tools with fewer features or lower power than those available to purchase separately.

I've heard good things about Mil's Fuel brushless tech and batteries, but evertone else has caught up to brushless...

I may go Makita next go round.

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I really didn’t have a set until last year and committed to Milwaukee Power Tools. Ran into a manufacturer demo sale and bought the combo tool sets. Plus got some extras from the manufacturer rep.

Depends on the frequency and intensity of use. Daily, heavy use? Dewalt. Infrequent, weekend use? Milwaukee or Ryobi.

I like my Milwaukee drills and sawsall. I like them better than the Dewalts I've used in the past. So far they have taken a beating but still keep on performing.
Even though I use the big battery packs they still recharge really fast so it's helpful on heavy use days.

Makita - I bought a set like this several years ago, and it has served me well. In fact, the price was so good, I bought 3 sets, knowing 2 of my buddies would buy them from me. They love them as well.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Makita-18-V ... /205995895

I own mostly DeWalt tools for professional use but that's simply because they offer some of the best lightweight tools for my niche industry. In battery operated Milwaukee simply makes better tools.

That being said, your best investment for tools that will hold up to sporadic use without breaking the bank is hands down Porter Cable. I have a few PC tools that I use professionally but my battery powered home use tool set is Porter Cable. They're surprisingly durable and a complete set with everything you need and 2 batteries can easily be found under $300. If you have an impact driver with socket adapters you don't really need to worry about overall torque specs unless you use it for every day mechanics work. Just buy a cheap socket adapter set from Hazard Frought and keep a backup breaker bar on hand for really tough stuff.

My $0.02

Will Fuck Yee for most things that Hilti doesn’t make.

Milwaukee by far. Makita I think is just as good, but not as many options as milwaukee.

I have dewalt stuff too, but I think they have been going downhill.

All my electric tools area Milwaukee, even the chainsaw.

Mikita 18v here

Cordless screw gun/ driver/ impact gun
Makita all day, every day.
Burn it to the ground, if you can, then buy a new one.
Porter Cable multi tools are the bomb. But don’t last
Other cordless tools... MEH... been there done that , they all mostly suck

Corded tools.
Milwaukee or porter cable Sawsalls
Skil wormdrive circular saws, although I’ve had a Makita hypoid drive for 25 years that won’t die, tons of torque, watch your fingers
Makita chop saws
Dewalt (B&D) drill motors
PC sanders
Nail guns? Depends on what nails you need
Hitachi or Bostitch for framers
Hitachi finish guns
Stihl or Husky chainsaws... did someone say electric???? Silly kids

The fact is that most of the big manufacturers make good stuff these days. The new brushless stuff Is best for no maintenance. In my industry we use Milwaukee and DeWalt. Both run great and would work for your application. Black Friday sales are coming. Wait for a good deal and buy why you want.

For home use I have Ridgid. Its new, but I like it much better than my old Dewalt set. Some of that may simply be technology though.

At work we use either Milwaukee or Hilti. Hilti seems to perform fine in most cases. Dont care for switching batteries and charging them and such. With their features I dont care for them. Strictly performance, they work.
Milwaukee is the shit! We just got a new 1" cordless impact with 1800 ft lbs of torque. Thing will rip your arm out of the socket. Our 3/4" ones have something like 1100 or 1200 ft lbs. All the other smaller tools work great too. If I had the money it'd be a set of Milwaukee for me. Simply due to the use and abuse they get at work. Very, very impressed with them.