18v (ish) tool systems for DIY'er - which is best?

[PardonTheWait]

Hi,

I've got a few cheap power tools which see me alright at the moment, but I'm probably going to be needing an angle grinder at some point, and I'd like a cordless impact wrench. I see the various battery-sharing power tool systems and they look really convenient - but which is the most suitable for a DIY type?

The Ryobi stuff looks decent, and is reasonably priced, but is it any good? I know you can spend a lot more - is it necessary?

Tools I'd ideally like, in time:

power ratchet (this seems one of the rarer ones, Ryobi do one but can't find in UK)
impact driver
impact wrench
drill driver
hammer drill
angle grinder

Does anyone use one of these systems, and what do you think of it?

Cheers

 

[Duke]

Ryobi all the way for me, been very happy with the drill/screwdriver, strimmer and vac from them It is handy sharing batteries - I've got the original small capacity one for the strimmer and vac as they are low power and a high capacity one for the drill/screwdriver but can then swap to the second one if needed (has happened a couple of times when using it heavily).

 

[Maundie]

I have the Ryobi One reciprocating saw and adjustable hedge trimmer I bought for doing my hedge and they are great, I bought the 4.5 mah battery and have only charged it one, it's a heavy battery but I think I'm going to also get a 2.5 mah battery just to make them lighter.

When my drills and jigsaw pack up I shall buy Ryobi ones to replace them.

 

[kindai]

Have Makita stuff myself, cant fault it at all.

Have also used a set of Dewalt gear of mates, likewise, can't fault it at all.

The interchangeable battery packs are great.

 

[Buffman]

From what I'm aware, for diy use any of the big brands will be good. I initially bought a Makita impact driver but keep adding to it( drill, sander, hand saw.... Angle grinder soon )

 

[Shoeyuk]

+1 for the ryobi one plus, have the mower, hedge trimmer, strimmer, vac, and jigsaw. My old bosh drills are at the end of their life so when the time comes I’ll get ryobi to replace them

 

[PardonTheWait]

Sounds like the Ryobi stuff is decent then - I think I will look into a drill/driver first and go from there.

 

[a1ex2001]

Any if the big brands will be more than adequate for the average diy'er I'd total upbtge prices of the tools you think you will definitely get and then start with the cheapest system!

 

[Scrutinize]

@PardonTheWait Ryobi stuff is ok but you might be surprised, Makita and DeWalt can work out cheaper depending on deals. I have found the batteries and charging tech on the Ryobi to be a let down and also expensive. Even their fast charger is slow compared to the quick Makita ones.

You have to be careful as there are a number of tiers of Makita and DeWalt about these days. For example the cheap £180-£200 ish brushless Makita drill and impact driver kits from places like Screwfix are good but less powerful than the better and similar priced brushed models. You also often get the slower chargers and lower capacity batteries.

I use Makita and DeWalt but prefer Makita where their charging on the decent chargers is quickest and batteries seem to last the longest.

Makita is easy to add to with bare bones units and I reckon more choice plus slightly cheaper than DeWalt. If you get the drill + impact driver combi pack which comes with 3 X 3.0mah batteries it's circa £250 online. Then just add to it and the mid level bare bones kit is often in the £80-£120 range for things like the SDS, Angle Grinder, Saws etc.

 

[kindai]

Makita is easy to add to with bare bones units and I reckon more choice plus slightly cheaper than DeWalt. If you get the drill + impact driver combi pack which comes with 3 X 3.0mah batteries it's circa £250 online. Then just add to it and the mid level bare bones kit is often in the £80-£120 range for things like the SDS, Angle Grinder, Saws etc.

Quite, as my introduction to makita stuff I ended up going:

MAKITA DHP458Z 18V COMBI DRILL / DRIVER BODY
2x MAKITA BL1830 18V LXT 3.0AH LI-ION BATTERY
MAKITA DC18RC 18V LI-ION FAST BATTERY CHARGER 7.2-18V

Which came to ~£170 inc VAT.

A proper workhorse of a drill/driver as well, used several weekends almost constantly for large decking projects or pond builds, soon as one battery was dead, flip it over, and carry on.

 

[sovietspybob]

I've recently gone Ryobi after struggling on for years with a cheap drill, i got their brushless drill with 2x 5Ah batteries for £175 on eBay and then the impact wrench for £70 body only.

They're a huge step up for the previous stuff i had, i was tempted by Makita stuff as it does seem very good quality but at the end of the day i'm only a DIY'er and not doing anything professionally and the Ryobi one plus system just has so many more useful things in the range such as garden tools which i didn't see any of the others offering.

I'm also looking for the power ratchet but can't find it in the UK either, only seems to be sold out of Australia for some weird reason

 

[kindai]

They're a huge step up for the previous stuff i had, i was tempted by Makita stuff as it does seem very good quality but at the end of the day i'm only a DIY'er and not doing anything professionally and the Ryobi one plus system just has so many more useful things in the range such as garden tools which i didn't see any of the others offering.

I'm also looking for the power ratchet but can't find it in the UK either, only seems to be sold out of Australia for some weird reason

But its a bit of a misconception to think of it as "pro-only" equipment, when you start comparing like-for-like on single bits of equipment, its a few quid difference, but the quality bonus you get from Makita makes it a hands down choice.

 

[mysticsniper]

I bought a 20v one from Aldi's own brand. Such a brilliant piece of kit, comes with 2 Samsung chargers and for £49.99.

No load speed : 0-400/0-1400 /minImpact rate : 0-5200/0-18200 BPMChuck size :13mmChuck position: 16+1+1Max torque: 45N.mMax drilling capacity in wood: 40mmMax drilling capacity in steel: 13mmMax drill capacity in masonry : 13mmTwo speed gear boxVariable speed with reverseRubber over mould grip

 

[mattyg]

Bosch Blue

Mine have been abused over 5 full house renovations and never missed a beat inc the 36v SDS that fell off a roof......

 

[BurningHorizons]

Having owned and used various pieces from all the main brands, if I had to pick one brand, it'd be Bosch Blue. All brands pretty much compete on a similar level in terms of performance/longevity but for long periods of use the ergonomics, balance and materials used in the Bosch just pips the others for me.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

I buy makita and I buy wired. Tend to find its twice as powerful for half the price.

Plus unless you are using them often I don't need to worry about batteries dying on me, needing to charge them or them exploding. I know someone who died in a house fire who had a shed load of tools in his garage one of the theories was it was one of the lithium ion batteries exploded.

I have a cordless drill everything else is wired as it won't be used often.

 

[platypus]

Any of the big brands are absolutely fine. Just avoid the diy superstore own brands because they are crap, and you'll be fine. Seriously. That Macallister jigsaw thats only £20? Just not worth it, and dangerous to boot. I purely went Makita because I was given an LXT drill.

As for the above scare story, well the chances of your batteries exploding and burning your house down are slim at best. The sheer convenience of cordless tools wins hands down for me. Ever used an SDS up a ladder? No way in hell I'd use a corded one any more. Ever used a corded jigsaw/circular saw and found that the cable pulls and makes it really easy to not cut a straight line? Ever had a corded tool just trip the electrics for whatever reason and not been able to actually use your tool? If you're using Corded tools you should be using a transformer, and how many people actually use one of those? Given just how good batteries are these days the only reason to go corded is cost, and if you shop around and have batteries the bare kit isn't hugely more expensive.

 

[Telecaster]

I've stuck with Bosch blue for work but only because the battery fits the grinder, I'm on my second drill/driver as the gearbox went on the first and replacement was about the same as a complete new unit. Not mad on the plastic chucks either.

Will probably go Hilti eventually but OTT for home gamer.

 

[Lopéz]

I end with DeWalt because I find the tools to be the best balanced ones that feel the most comfortable in my hand. Actual performance between DeWalt, Makita etc is pretty close, so I let ergonomics be the deciding factor for me.

If you are looking for maximum compatibility per battery I think it was Ryobi that had the biggest tool range with the same power unit, but I never really got on with their products.

 

[divuk83]

I went with Dewalt, but that was what was on a good deal at the time. I'm really pleased with them and I don't regret my choice.

Annoyingly Makita now do a better range of 18v tools that Dewalt don't make, eg trim router and random orbit sander. That said the random orbit sander is not meant to be that good compared to a corded one so it's not that bigger deal to not have one!

Ryobi seem to do the biggest range of tools of anyone. I don't really have any experience with them though.

Dave