Shop For Ryobi 18V ONE+ Lithium-Ion 5-1/2" Cordless Circular Saw P503 (Bare tool only, battery and charger not included)

There is no way you would buy this saw unless you already happened to have a Ryobi 18V One+ battery. It is just too lightweight and there are relatively few cases where a corded circular saw wouldn't be the proper choice in terms of power and price value.

Having said that, I already had the batteries and I've found this saw reasonably useful in cutting the occasional board while building a child's play area. I'd have preferred more power, but it is able to cut wood up to an inch thick cleanly albeit slowly. The grip is comfortable and it was easy enough following a pencil line for cutting. The included blade is of good quality and the battery pack is conveniently located. Changing blades is a bit awkward, and it's a bit hard getting it tightened properly with the included hex key wrench.

I've found the Ryobi 18V One+ tools are of good quality and design, and would highly recommend the drills, impact drivers and even the reciprocating saw in the One+ collection, but there are limits to what a cordless tool can and should do and this circular saw is just on the line for marginal usefulness.Get more detail about Ryobi 18V ONE+ Lithium-Ion 5-1/2" Cordless Circular Saw P503 (Bare tool only, battery and charger not included).

RIDGID 130377001 24-Volt Li-Ion Battery

"Ridgid" makes very good products & I'm impressed with their line of 24 volt cordless tools...the batteries provide ample power but ;ofcourse, being rechargeable they only last so long (about 2 yrs.). If well maintained you may get 3 yrs.+. Make sure to "register" your batteries & ask for "lifetime battery replacement" from "Ridgid", if you buy a "combo kit" it comes w/lifetime "repair & replacement" of the tools & batt.'s , a very good thing to have if you use your tools as I do (construction), daily use! Ridgid is right up there with Milwaukee & Dewalt...even Hilti.Get more detail about RIDGID 130377001 24-Volt Li-Ion Battery.

Makita BHP451 LXT 18-Volt Lithium-Ion Hammer Drill/Driver Review

The Makita BHP451 is the top of the Makita 18 volt lithium-ion powered hand drill lineup and despite its 2 speed gearbox should provide great performance. Overall it is a very good drill but the chuck is not the best (compared to Bosch or DeWalt) and the speed ranges are also less than optimum. It has 0-450 and 0-1700. For most tasks a 0-600, 0-1000, 0-2000 options like the DeWalt DCD970/940 drills works much better. The Makita BHP451 has in effect a low ranges and moderate high range.

The drill chuck has significant runout for a new drill and not nearly as good as those from DeWalt, Milwaukee, or Bosch with Bosch being in a league of its own. The chuck tends to hold drill bits well so long as they are smaller than 3/8" or 10mm. When using larger drill bits or hole saw arbors if there is any vibration the chuck will loosen to the point that the bit or arbor falls out. This is when the DeWalt self-tightening chuck makes a real difference as it never lets go.

The second side handle can be rotated to any position like the DeWalt and Bosch drills and this makes it a lot more valuable when you really do need two hands to control the drill. The 90 degree side mount of the Milwaukee and Ridgid drills provide a lot less support for the drill.

I like the integrated drilling depth stop of the Makita. This is something that should be standard for all hammer drills but is usually omitted entirely -- you cannot even add one later if you want to with the hammer drills from DeWalt and Milwaukee).

The batteries charge in roughly 30 minutes on average and this is in the middle range as far as the other lithium-ion batteries and charger combinations from other manufacturers. A lot is made of how fast a battery recharges which misses the point. If the drill and battery are up to the task the battery will last and not require frequent recharging during the day. Faster charge times are likely to shorten the useful life of the battery so I for one would rather wait 10 more minutes and get an extra year or two of use out of the battery. Makita recommends that their 3 Ah batteries be charged and then left on the charger of another hour to cool them down before reusing them.

Battery charge life is greatly influenced by the hole cutter that is used - much more so than most people realize. I did a quick test by first charging the drill to 100% and then cutting a single 2" hole in 1-1/8" plywood and then timed how long it took to get the battery back up to full charge. By the time the hole has been cut, which took about 45 seconds, the wood was smoking. It took more than 20 minutes to get the battery back to a full charge. Using the Makita drill and a Blue Boar TCT hole cutter (my favorite hole saws) I cut a second 2" hole in the same board and it took only 4 seconds and the battery charge was hardly affected at all.

There are what my own experience has shown to be exaggerated claims on available drill torque and battery charge times while at the same time the manufacturers without exception don't appreciate how much the right hole cutter will improve the performance of their drills. They will rate their drills at 2" maximum hole saw size in wood or 1-7/8" with a self feed drill bit while missing entirely that the drills can make 6" holes with a modern big gullet hole saw (like the Blue Boar TCT or Milwaukee Big Hawg or Bosch TCHS) or even 10" diameter holes in TJI or wood with an adjustable hole cutter (like the ones from Hole Pro).

BLUE BOAR 3" (76mm) Super Duty Universal TCT 2-1/4" deep tungsten carbide hole saw cuts more materials faster than any other hole saw. Hard RA 90-91 carbide teeth for faster cutting and longer life, ultra deep side gullets for faster plug removal

Hole Pro X-230 Kit: 1-7/8" to 9" Infinitely Adjustable Twin Blade Hole Saw Cutter 3" 4" 5" 6" 7" 8" 9" Hole Wood Sheetrock Plaster Fiberglass Plastic MDF Cement Board. Use ¼ Torque of Hole Saw to Cut Twice As Fast

Milwaukee 49-56-9050 4-5/8-Inch Big Hawg Hole Cutter

Bosch HTC300 3-Inch 76mm TCHS Hole Saw

Many of the complaints about cordless drill performance are based on real experience but often without the user realizing that they were not using the drill so as to get the most performance possible from the tool. Cordless drills that depend upon a battery for power cannot be used the same way as a corded drill plugged into an outlet and get the same level of performance. The drawbacks of using a cordless drill can be largely overcome by using them with a bit more finesse and using modern hole cutters. I can make a larger hole in inch thick subflooring using an 18 volt cordless drill like the Makita BHP451 than I can using a bi-metal hole saw with a 15 amp corded stud drill.

People should focus less on "what is the best cordless drill" and more on what are best hole cutters to use with a cordless drill. They would save themselves money and time and aggravation. There is no best cordless drill as there are strengths and weaknesses with every manufacturers products and it is really a matter of what features are most important and which flaws you can easily overlook. Fortunately there is intense competition and as a result all the cordless tools keep getting better and better. For light duty use the Milwaukee 2602 (not the 2602CT) is a great drill and for heavy duty use the DeWalt drills cannot be beat but for Makita fans and light to medium jobs the BHP451 is a good performer.Get more detail about Makita BHP451 LXT 18-Volt Lithium-Ion Hammer Drill/Driver.

Bosch PS10-2 Litheon 10.8-volt Lithium-Ion I-Driver Kit Top Quality

This is one of those tools that at first look you might think you don't really need, but if you do a lot of installation work you'll find this very useful for situations where any normal drill/driver just simply won't fit. I've used it to fasten conduit clamps above heating and air-conditioning ducts, drawer slides inside narrow cabinets, repairing equipment with very tight access to fasteners, and it works fine for normal use as well. I've also used it to quickly install all of the duplex outlets, switches and wall plates when I'm doing finish electrical work.

The 10.8 volt version of this tool will also work with the new 12 volt batteries if you happen to have another small format Bosch tool that used them. By the way, I have the newer 12 volt version of this tool.Get more detail about Bosch PS10-2 Litheon 10.8-volt Lithium-Ion I-Driver Kit.

Bosch OSC112 1-1/2-Inch by 1-5/8-Inch HCS Plunge Cut Blade This instant

There are a lot of similar looking blades out there ranging from the one at Harbor Freight, which cost $5.99 including two scraper blades, to the extremely overpriced Fein blades. When Fein had a patent in force, they were able to get away with a very high price. But how does Bosch justify it? They are cheaper than Fein, and that's about it.

I figured I'd give this blade a try since the ones from Harbor Freight wear out faster than I'd like. This blade is nice since it has laser etching, making it easier to make fixed depth plunge cuts. Unfortunately, the blade life seems about the same as the Harbor Freight blade. It might be a bit better, but I'd rather have three of the others, and six scrapers for the same price. If you hit one nail with this, you will kill some of the teeth. Even if this one lasts 300% as long, I'd rather have a stray nail leave me with two untouched blades.

Bosch makes many kinds of blades including BIM, which last 10 times longer than HCS, according to Bosch. They seem to be justifying HCS since this is a wood blade. But BiM works with soft and hard woods. At a $27 list price, it's absurd to say that they are justified to skimp, or call HCS the industry standard. It's not the standard for blades of this price.

There is nothing special about the blade itself, except that it's shaped to fit a multi purpose tool. At this price, they should be giving the customer a pack of 10, as they would with similar blades.

Even Harbor Freight is playing games. $5.99 looks cheap for a three pack of blades, but each time you need a plunge cut blade, you are forced to buy two scrapers. I'd prefer to pay $1.99 each, which is still pricey for a single saw blade.

Ultimately, you get what might be a $2 blade, were it designed to be used with a different tool. At that price, I'd recommend it over a generic blade.Get more detail about Bosch OSC112 1-1/2-Inch by 1-5/8-Inch HCS Plunge Cut Blade.

Factory-Reconditioned Bare-Tool Milwaukee 2471-80 12-Volt Cordless M12 Lithium-Ion Copper Tubing Cutter (Tool Only, No Battery) Immediately

I've purchased this item twice from Home Depot and returned both and bought this current refurbished one. The refurbished one stopped working on day two before the initial battery was finished with its' first charge. The first one from Home Depot did the same thing on day two shortly after the second charged battery was installed.
The second Home Depot tool started to run on the copper pipe on 1" signifigantly unless I held pressure against the direction it was running. It was like cutting a fine thread on a pipe machine for gas installation. The gentleman who made the review was correct about buying one for each of three trucks twice in a 14 day period. He is not exaggerating one bit and learn from our misfortune. It's not so much that it is made in China than it is poorly engineered and happens to be Milwaukee's big lemon that they should take off the shelves until they work out the kinks. I'm very careful with my refurbished one since I received it from the repair shop and I get the feeling it will last very shortly until it goes out. I definetly do not misuse the tool and have 29 years plumbing experience and use other M12 tools with no problems. The people who have good reviews just made their review to early in my opinion. Great tool I must say when it works. My fellow plumbers have lost interest in it since I've returned them and one co-worker saw it die right in front of me. Hope this helps you.Get more detail about Factory-Reconditioned Bare-Tool Milwaukee 2471-80 12-Volt Cordless M12 Lithium-Ion Copper Tubing Cutter (Tool Only, No Battery).

Bare-Tool DEWALT DC900 Cordless Hammer Drill 36 Volts 1/2" 36v (Tool Only, No Battery) Best Quality

I bought the 36v kit about 3yrs ago. The drill has seen alot of use and has performed very well, I agree that a hook on the drill would really be a plus. The batteries that came with the kit have required less recharging than my 18v Dewalt tools have. the light in the kit is very bright, I only wish that Dewalt would make an LED version. They last alot longer and don't require bulb changes. Dewalt needs to change the design of the plastic kit case, or have a diagram on the inside of the case telling how to fit it back in there----> when you're in a hurry to gather your tools, you don't want to have to spend much time figuring how they fit in the case. I have only used the saws a few times,as compared to the drill and light, but when I use them I use them for tough jobs that require alot of power, and I'm happy to say that thay deliver!Get more detail about Bare-Tool DEWALT DC900 Cordless Hammer Drill 36 Volts 1/2" 36v (Tool Only, No Battery).