Power Tools & General Tools Recommendations & Advice

Pendulum action for certain.
I have mostly used Bosch blue jigsaws ,might be a bit more than you want to spend.£120 I think last I checked
 
Looking at picking up a drill and impact driver set in the black friday/cyber monday sales as I really have only the most basic of tools at the moment and I'm going to need the above for a project im planning.

I've always heard you cant go too wrong with DeWalt so i've been looking at something like this https://www.screwfix.com/p/dewalt-d...ck/682fk#product_additional_details_container

I'm welcome to any suggestions but i would say £250 if my upper budget
 
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Is it just for DIY? If so, you don’t need to spend nearly that much.

there doesn’t look to be any good twin packs on offer at the moment so I would wait for a couple of weeks.

That kit you have linked above isn’t a good deal IMO. You can normally get something brushless and 2x batteries for under £180 from Dewalt or Makita so I would wait it out.

The 2AH batteries are more than enough for DIY and the tools are far better balanced with the smaller packs IMO.
 
Yeah it'll be for DIY generally. I was just using that link as an example as im sure i can find something better priced. Im more interested at this point at brand recommendations before i seriously start looking
 
Zenduri said:
Yeah it'll be for DIY generally. I was just using that link as an example as im sure i can find something better priced. Im more interested at this point at brand recommendations before i seriously start looking
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I prefer Makita over the cheaper dewalt stuff. IMO dewalt quality has taken a dive over the last few years.
 
Another vote for Makita.Been using the 12V system for 20 years :eek:
I find thate even with this voltage i have plenty of power for drilling/screwing purposes:)
 
Looking for advice on a palm sander. Away to start prepping bodywork for making prepreg molds, round would be preferable and clip on sand paper. Thoughts? Dewalt?
 
Anyone keep their tools in a shed? New house doesnt have a garage but i presume putting them in a sealed plastic box in a shed will be ok?
 
Zenduri said:
Yeah it'll be for DIY generally. I was just using that link as an example as im sure i can find something better priced. Im more interested at this point at brand recommendations before i seriously start looking
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Dewalt, Makita and Milwaukee are all fine and are pretty much the same at similar price points. If it’s your first fray into cordless then just buy whichever Dewalt or Makita is on offer and start there.

Bosch are also fine but I personally don’t take their ecosystem as highly as the others, their garden tools run on a different 18v battery system iirc.

You’ll get loads of people saying X is better or Y is better buy in reality there all very similar at similar price points.

I’m expecting to be crucified on here for saying this but If it’s just for normal/basic DIY you probably don’t even need one of those high end brands and can just get an Erbauer or even a Lidl/Aldi special and save a whack ton of money. If you planning on doing a bit more and would benefit from those high end brands ecosystem then sure buy in to them with confidence. They are all good.
 
Batteries are best keeping in house on charging occasionally i have personally found
But so long as tools are in the dry they seem ok,maybe cover tools/boxs with a few towels or some sort of insulation?
 
Re Milwaukee
I had to change brushes for a guy in work a while back
NEVER AGAIN
they were soldered into the tool and had to strip the tool into many bits to do it :(
 
I've just upgraded my 12 year old Makita kit (It was top end MXT, but NiMH batteries) which has lasted the course but the batteries are dying and they've had 12 years of heavy DIY abuse..

I went for the Milwaukee M18 Fuel stuff, namely as they have good performance and most importantly I keep finding good deals for them in the pre-black-friday sales.. (£315 for both their top end Hammer Drill and Impact Driver kit with 2 x 5.0Ah batteries).. I've also got a body only M18 Fuel Jigsaw, nice enough, solid build, good pendulum throw, the only thing lacking is a speed control (it's got a crazy long throw trigger with good speed control that way). I'm looking at their cheaper circular saws, but there are some deals on the Fuel version so might be tempted and then it's just a multi-tool but the Fuel version of that was only launched in the US in August, so imminently expected here in the UK (It reviews well).

I am quite impressed, the drills /impact driver are a fraction of the size of my old Makita gear and yet a good deal more powerful.. The Drill Driver in particular is well built and the mechanics/chuck feel really good, and despite being so small it easily fights it out with the best Milwaukee/DeWalt have to offer.

I'd be happy with any mainstream brand, I always buy their better models for things I heavily use and mid-range or lower for lightly used items, since they all seem to come with 3 year warranties (Just registered my Milwaukee stuff to get that), I know from my Makita stuff, the tools that lasted 12 years of heavy DIY are all their MXT range.

I would not judge any of the brands based on entry / lower tier products, the cheaper Makita stuff I have does not have externally replaceable brushes, you have to dismantle it to change them, but their MXT range have easy to change external brushes.. obviously going brushless alongside performance gains removes any concerns..
 
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Demon said:
I went for the Milwaukee M18 Fuel stuff, namely as they have good performance and most importantly I keep finding good deals for them in the pre-black-friday sales.. (£315 for both their top end Hammer Drill and Impact Driver kit with 2 x 5.0Ah batteries).. I've also got a body only M18 Fuel Jigsaw, nice enough, solid build, good pendulum throw, the only thing lacking is a speed control (it's got a crazy long throw trigger with good speed control that way). I'm looking at their cheaper circular saws, but there are some deals on the Fuel version so might be tempted and then it's just a multi-tool but the Fuel version of that was only launched in the US in August, so imminently expected here in the UK (It reviews well).
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That's a good deal! I paid £356 in July (Milwaukee M18FPP2A2-502X). I've been really happy with it, much more power than my older C18PD drill. I too have started to buy the Fuel range for things I use the most.
 
Zenduri said:
Looking at picking up a drill and impact driver set in the black friday/cyber monday sales as I really have only the most basic of tools at the moment and I'm going to need the above for a project im planning.

I've always heard you cant go too wrong with DeWalt so i've been looking at something like this https://www.screwfix.com/p/dewalt-d...ck/682fk#product_additional_details_container

I'm welcome to any suggestions but I would say £250 if my upper budget
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If you plan on Dewalt keep an eye out for the DCK266..... twin packs, the 796 is a great tool.

Also the Milwaukee range of 18v tools just seems to grow every day, if I needed to start again I'd probably go Milwaukee.
 
Just been doing some wall chasing using a borrowed Titan chaser and it's fine until you get near skirtings, cornices, dado rails etc when you just can't get close enough. Would an angle grinder be the right tool using a cutting disc to finish the cuts ahead of getting the SDS hammer on it? If so any good brands/models to go for? I guess if getting one I may as well get a good all-rounder that will cut and file steel, plastic, wood and masonry. (If it makes a difference I'll probably go corded. I don't use my tools on site and just don't want the hassle of charging batteries and having them pack in over time.)

Edit - presume I'd just need a 4.5" (115mm) version and not the bigger 125mm or 230mm versions?
 
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last silly question: how much does variable speed vs fixed speed matter?

I presume it's diamond discs I'd need for cutting into the masonry? Like these: https://www.screwfix.com/p/makita-masonry-stone-segmented-diamond-blade-125-x-22-23mm/5823r
then for cutting metal/plastic etc it would be some of these: https://www.screwfix.com/p/norton-metal-cutting-disc-5-125mm-x-1-x-22-23mm-5-pack/703fk (can't find any makita ones)
I presume a grinding disc is something different again and for polishing/smoothing cut metal surfaces?
 
Has anyone got any tips for buying a good set of electric tools. Right now I'm just thinking cordless drill and circular saw, but in the longer term I'd like a jigsaw, electric hand sander, router, and some random smaller bits like drill bits etc.

Where do you buy this stuff? Is Amazon just the best place or am I missing a trick?
 
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