good impact/drill combo?

for wrenching on your Taco (and who knows what else),

what tools do you use, such as impact and drill?
In this case, I mean probably the small kind and drill, for regular stuff
and not necessarily the huge kind, such as for lug nuts

Though feel free to post any and all
For the big one, I've used Snap-On, Harbor Freight Earthquake, and Hilti

but for small ones, I've used a Snap-On impact (3/8", not 1/2")
and random drills,
I kinda need one to cut holes in the bed mat for cargo hooks and am curious what you all use
Drills can be handy sometimes, including random work around the house

Last drill I owned was a Black & Decker FireStorm that they probably no longer make. It was cheap, with a replacement battery. People say they suck. Maybe it did, I dunno. Only used it to drill holes in drywall every now and then, such as to hang a curtain. Nothing heavy.

Lately I've heard the following:
-blue drill from Harbor Freight ($50) better than their $20 one
-Ridgid from Home Depot supposedly good
-Milwaukee good and used by auto mechanics, but expensive
-Snap-On good but expensive. Even cheaper used ones still go up in price when you get a new battery, since the used one is probably worn out

but yeah, what drills and impacts do y'all use?
I'm thinking I might need an impact to install this anti-tweaker tailgate bracket, to undo those torx bits. Because in my experience, impact guns are less likely to strip bolts undoing them, versus hand tools.

I think the next tool sale at Home Depot probably isn't until Labor Day, if going Ridgid, to save some dollars.

Any car dealerships I've talked to, I hear their mechanics use a mix of DeWalt, Ridgid, Snap-On, Milwaukee, etc.
though I heard DeWalt made up some bullshit power naming system that tries to advertise their new line of power tools as being stronger than they really are. Supposedly their quality is not as good as it used to be.

 

I use a combination of electric tools at work.

1/2" Mac (its really a dewalt but red and anti-oil) 3/8" Mac (again dewalt but red) 1/4" Dewalt and Dewalt 20v Drill. All use the same battery. About 70% happy with them professionally. All more than good enough for home use.

I use Snap on Cordless ratchets and screw driver, but I'm never truly happy with the battery life.

The clear new winner in Garages right now is Milwaukee. They have comparable prices to Dewalt but closer to professional grade like snap on and mac. I'd be using Milwaukee if it weren't for my investment in Dewalt batteries and snap on batteries.

 

Wow I didn't know Mac outsourced to DeWalt.
A Volvo dealership mechanic told me he really likes Milwaukee, but I don't remember which volt product line. I think they have some different ones and supposedly a specific one is better quality and more expensive. Whichever that one would be, is what the guy said he prefers.

Then there's HumbleMechanic (YouTube channel) who is a Volkswagen dealership master technician, and seems to prefer Milwaukee.

They just cost a lot more.

Hilti seems better than Harbor Freight but I think it's an expensive construction site/contractor tool.

I heard that due to changing environmental laws, all manufacturers are going to have to switch to lithium ion (Li-Ion) vs. nickel cadmium (Ni-Cad) or whatever it is. And that this also makes the battery price go up, and maybe reduce their interchangeability.
Because DeWalt might make the new battery a different design fitment, to try forcing you into buying the new drill that goes with it. Even if the old one still works fine. As a marketing tactic.

 

Stanley Black and Decker owns Craftsmen, Dewalt, Mac and a crap ton other brands. All the power tools are the same. B&D is the home brand which doesn't usually hold up as well.

Ridgid tools have a great reputation, just not among mechanics. I have a shop vac, and branch trimmers from them that I love. A lot of Ridgid tools are made by the same parent company as Milwaukee and Ryobi.

Milkwaukee tools the M18 is what you see in shops now. I have a heated sweater that uses the same battery. Their sister is Ryobi.

 

I thought Ridgid was a Home Depot brand, while Craftsman was typically stocked by their rival company Lowe's,
people on GarageJournal in recent years have taken to nicknaming Craftsman "Crapsman", claiming they switched production to China and dropped in quality.
Not that this argues your post.
And either way, I still ordered some Craftsman sockets off eBay before because 1)they were cheap, and 2)it was better than whatever sockets I had from Harbor Freight and threw away. The Harbor Freight sockets didn't even have dimples inside of them to work with an extension detent ball, so they fell off all the time.

Ridgid does seem to be popular for shop vacs.

I hear if you spend $400 on Milwaukee, they give you a red T-shirt.

this is me anytime I see the price on a Milwaukee something:

 

I use a lot of the Milwaukee M12/M18 series at work. They're strong enough to be used all day and somewhat abused. I've had one instance of the 3/8 ratchet failing after a couple years use but after emailing them they replaced the head on it for free.

 

I forgot to say, I believe Ridgid is one that has a lifetime warranty, and if Milwaukee is known to be expensive and good quality then I bet they offer that as well

 

I like millwaukee because they got a lot of different cordless tools that use either m12 or m18 batteries . Homedepot got some good sales sometimes on the combo kits . They might have a sale for labor day.
If you worried about striping bolts and screws etc the manual impacts work great .Hit with hammer so you know socket or bit will stay on solid when removing

 

I have a lot of M12 Fuel, battery life and power are awesome. For a hex impact driver it's all you need, it's got enough power to snap hex shanks, and the drill is plenty if you're not running big hole saws or hammer-drilling a lot... M18 is just heavier and bulkier with no real upside for most people.

M18 Fuel is pretty awesome for real heavy-hitting stuff. My angle grinder, for example, is actually useful... a first for me in cordless grinders. My old brushed Makita was about worthless, 3ah battery life was like 5 minutes if you didn't push it, it would overload out if you did push it, and it destroyed batteries like crazy.

Milwaukee's battery longevity is great. I've got probably a dozen batteries between the 2 systems, they're all at least 5 and some pushing 8 years old, and I think I have 2 that won't charge. Warranty service is good too, a little slow, but they have a website that lets you enter SNs and preauthorize repairs, and it'll give you a paid shipping label. Ridgid is "lifetime" but it's technically a 'service contract' and not exactly a warranty, they can change terms or eliminate it. My dad has a bunch of their stuff that he registered years ago, they lost a bunch of registration info and pretty much said take a hike unless you can dig out your proof of purchase AND proof you registered it.

 

We use

$119 Milwaukee m18 Cordless Lithium-Ion 6-1/2" Circular Saw - 2630-20 - ( MILWAUKEE ) - BARE TOOL

Milwaukee m18 for everything at work (construction) but I have porter cable 20v stuff at home. Like 1/3 of the price and it works fine lol

 

I like my Hercules drill from harbor freight. Hasn’t let me down, super long battery life. Nice bright led work light above the trigger. Battery level indicator on the battery to

 

Always been happy with Dewalt. Good luck with so many good options.

 

I really like my Milwaukee set
Milwaukee 2691-22 18-Volt Compact Drill and Impact Driver Combo Kit

$216 Milwaukee 2691-22 18-Volt Compact Drill and Impact Driver Combo Kit

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B001F7BIMG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ZxWrDb6H248WM

A lot cheaper at home depot

 

I'd have to agree with most guys that are commenting. I vote Milwaukee tools.

I'm an electrician by trade, and when I started, I was debating between Milwaukee, Makita and DeWalt.

At the time, Milwaukee was the only brand that focused on their 12 volt stuff while the other 2 were focusing on their 18/20V tools.

The M12 line is super versatile, and surprisingly powerful. I grabbed a M12 Fuel 1/2 impact wrench recently for tire changes and it's been amazing

 

I went with Milwaukee.
I have the M18 Drill / Driver kit. I love it.

 

I don’t know how good the tools are, but ryobi has a 6 port battery charger that I wish Makita had when I was building my deck.

 

I switched to Makita after going through B&D, DE Walt, Milwaukee and Ridged. Why, to try something new I suppose?
The B&D I inherited from my father were very old but rock solid, still have a 40+ year old 1/2" corded drill. Still have a couple solid Milwaukee tools but gave away the DE Walt and Ridged after they broke or wore out. They both were very solid for several years. Good luck with the Ridged battery warranty, especially with Home Depot.
My two polishers are older Flex and just seem to keep on running.

 

+1 for

$119 Milwaukee M18 Cordless Lithium-Ion 6-1/2" Circular Saw - 2630-20 - ( MILWAUKEE ) - BARE TOOL

Milwaukee M18 1/2 Impact and 1/4 Hex Impact. The two tools I use more than anything else on a daily basis. Next would be a toss-up between a torque wrench or die grinder. Milwaukee just released info on their M12 powered digital torque wrench as well. No more swapping sockets from the impact to the torque wrench. If reviews looks good on it I'll probably pick it up along with the M12 1/4" die grinder for small stuff where I don't want to drag a compressor hose around.

I've used that same Tekton phillips impact for a bunch of bottom end rebuilds on small engines, it was a solid buy especially for the price. Bought their hex bit socket set for my dirt bike tool kit and they didn't hold up to the M18 1/4" impact unfortunately. In their defense, they weren't impact rated, but all the Snap-On and Husky sockets have held up to it just fine for years.


Go with the M18 Impacts!

 

I vote Makita blue/green ones with brushless motors and the all metal mechanicals.

Cost a but more, but they are like timex watches, take a lickin, keep on ticken

 

Anyone got the M12 Fuel stubby impact wrench or M18 Fuel mid-torque?

I've got an old faithful M18 Fuel 3/8 that does almost anything I need from with a 3/8 or 1/2 socket, but I've been considering downsizing to the stubby 3/8, and getting the 1/2 mid-torque. I'd been wanting to get the high-torque for a while, but I'm thinking I'd rather have a more convenient tool that'll still do most of what I need, and if I gotta bust out the air gun every now and then, so be it...