Power Tools & General Tools Recommendations & Advice

danlightbulb said:
So far I have:
* DeWalt battery drill
* DeWalt battery impact driver
* DeWalt battery multi tool
* 2x 2Ah batteries & charger

* A wired cheap jigsaw
* A wired cheap palm router

I think the tool that I should buy next is probably a circular saw. I considered a mitre saw too but a circular saw is much more flexible and can rip sheet material.

Question is though should I stick with DeWalt or go for a cheaper solution (eg Ryobi) just for this one tool or perhaps all future tools?

If I stick with DeWalt the tool itself is twice as much, and I would ideally need a 5Ah battery too as the 2Ah I currently have show their limits already with heavy multitool use. A 5Ah would be better for the a circular saw as well as my current multitool.

But if I go Ryobi the tool is cheaper and I could then use that platform to build up some other tools eg some garden products like a small chainsaw, leaf blower or a reciprocating saw.

But then I'd have two systems in play.

In hindsight it may have been better to go with Ryobi from the start, but when I was looking at drills initially and impact drivers the price difference wasn't very big. It seems larger on other tools though.
Click to expand...
I’d stick with DeWalt myself
 
ristac said:
I’d stick with DeWalt myself
Click to expand...
Are the cheaper dewalts much better than the likes Ryobi?

If so then they're worth it, yes.

I've got a cheap Ryobi jigsaw and it does vibrate a lot, I do wonder if it a better brand would not vibrate as much. Worth considering if you're going to be using the tools for long periods.
 
Last edited:
The Dewalt kit is better quality but that’s not to say the Ryobi isn’t good enough for what you need.

The 165mm saw is £110 you’ll probably be ok with 2ah batteries, you’d just be charging them more. Consider grabbing a 4ah battery instead.

I’ve got the big 184mm saw, it’s an absolute unit. It runs fine on 4ah batteries which happens to be the bit I have.
 
sigma said:
Are the cheaper dewalts much better than the likes Ryobi?

If so then they're worth it, yes.

I've got a cheap Ryobi jigsaw and it does vibrate a lot, I do wonder if it a better brand would not vibrate as much. Worth considering if you're going to be using the tools for long periods.
Click to expand...
I’ve never owned Ryobi so I can’t compare the two, just know I’m very happy with the quality and feel of the Dewalts I use.

My dilemma now, I have a battery Stihl chainsaw and strimmer. I need a hedge trimmer, do I pay over £300 for a bare Stihl unit or £100 for the DeWalt
 
I’ve got the Dewalt trimmer, it’s decent. I only use my little 2ah batteries on it and it’s fine in terms of power.


Dewalt also do a bundle on the saw which will set you up with batteries for the foreseeable.
www.screwfix.com

DeWalt DCS391M2-GB 165mm 18V 2 x 4.0Ah Li-Ion XR Brushless Cordless Compact Circular Saw - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. Efficient cordless solution for trimming and sizing wood. Features electronic motor brake for improved safety, intelligent variable speed, lock-off switch and spindle lock for quick and easy blade change. Keyless bevel angle and depth of cut can be adjusted with...
www.screwfix.com www.screwfix.com

I’m sure you could get it cheaper elsewhere like from FFX or eBay with an code over the bank holiday.
 
Thanks and I just noticed I wasn't comparing like for like anyway, the Ryobi I was looking at isn't brushless whereas the DeWalt is. If I'm buying cordless tools I want brushless tools, as I've already made sure my drill, impact driver and multitool were all the brushless kind.

So the brushless Ryobi is actually much more expensive.

Another thing on circular saws - I'm thinking a right bladed model is best and am struggling to change my mind on that but there seems to be a lot of support for left blade designs. Which do you all have?
 
b0rn2sk8 said:
I don’t really think it matters does it?

It’s not something I even considered.
Click to expand...

Yeah it does matter I think. If cutting with offcut on the right, the left blade saw isn't well supported on the wood as most of it is on the offcut side. But you can supposedly see the blade better.

Whereas the right bladed saw more of the saw plate is supported on the good side of the wood which typically you're holding with your left hand.

Also the right blade puts the blade much further away from your left hand/fingers.

There's several videos on it and pretty much a 50 50 split on which is right for a right handed person. Some say the right blade saw is safer and more stable, others prefer the better visibility of the cut line on a left blade version.
 
Your point about brushless and upgrading batteries is key. I shopped around and forced myself to pay extra for a brushless DeWalt circular saw. It's a much better experience but I still feel the 2Ah battery is inadequate. I used a reasonably flat battery and it died on the first cut ripping some 2x4. Even a full battery feels like I'm taxing the saw.

Similarly I feel like I bought into DeWalt and ended up stuck with the expensive tools. But I'm loathe to run 2 battery systems. No luck finding battery adapters for DeWalt yet either.
 
danlightbulb said:
Yeah it does matter I think. If cutting with offcut on the right, the left blade saw isn't well supported on the wood as most of it is on the offcut side. But you can supposedly see the blade better.

Whereas the right bladed saw more of the saw plate is supported on the good side of the wood which typically you're holding with your left hand.

Also the right blade puts the blade much further away from your left hand/fingers.

There's several videos on it and pretty much a 50 50 split on which is right for a right handed person. Some say the right blade saw is safer and more stable, others prefer the better visibility of the cut line on a left blade version.
Click to expand...
I’m left handed but I can and do use both hands for this kind of thing without issue, that is probably why I don’t even think about it. I suspect you are overthinking it.

P.s. if the saw isn’t well supported by the wood, cut from the other side. Clamp the workpiece down if you don’t want to operate the saw with your left hand.
 
b0rn2sk8 said:
I’m left handed but I can and do use both hands for this kind of thing without issue, that is probably why I don’t even think about it. I suspect you are overthinking it.

P.s. if the saw isn’t well supported by the wood, cut from the other side. Clamp the workpiece down if you don’t want to operate the saw with your left hand.
Click to expand...
This was my feeling too. I did consider left/right bladed saws but ultimately I adjust the tool and the work piece for the right cut and geometry. But then I have always been quite ambidextrous with woodwork, just have to move yourself around the work as needed. At college it turns out I picked the left handed workbench but didn't realise, so I was always working on the "wrong" side of my piece.
 
danlightbulb said:
Has anyone used the 3rd party batteries? Quite a few DeWalt knock offs on Amazon, around half the price of OE.
Click to expand...
This comes up a lot, the answer as always is they might be fine, they might not and burn your house down.

They will not be using quality cells and rarely make specification.

I’ve seen too many horror stories of dodgy/knock off lithium batteries burning peoples houses down and killing family members to risk it.

It’s usually dodgy e-bikes off market places but I don’t see why they would be any different to dodgy power tool batteries off marketplaces.

Ultimately you are rolling that dice every time it’s plugged in. Particularly something that’s going to get bashed around a bit like a power tool.

I don’t even leave my official batteries charging overnight or unsupervised.

This is not me being some tin foil hat skeptic, I studied electrical and electronic engineering at college, I’ve got an electric car and a home battery storage system which incidentally are both outside! It’s just the risks of using knock off lithium batteries is real and they can be very dangerous.

I wouldn’t touch them with a barge pole.

Edit: I wouldn’t touch them with your barge pole let alone mine!
 
Last edited:
Hi. Can anyone give recommendations for a long reach hedge trimmer?
Not sure whether to buy a budget model. Seen one by VonHaus that seems to get decent reviews for under £100.
Worth paying extra for Bosch etc?
Needs to be battery due to location of use.

Primarily for trimming low hanging thin branches on trees that hang over footpath.
 
danlightbulb said:
Has anyone used the 3rd party batteries? Quite a few DeWalt knock offs on Amazon, around half the price of OE.
Click to expand...
I've used them for ages on my Dyson stick hoover. Most of the times the cells state Samsung. Buy them from somewhere reputable at least, so there is some level of come back.... don't leave charging overnight etc. (not that you should do that anyways I guess).
 
ajf said:
Hi. Can anyone give recommendations for a long reach hedge trimmer?
Not sure whether to buy a budget model. Seen one by VonHaus that seems to get decent reviews for under £100.
Worth paying extra for Bosch etc?
Needs to be battery due to location of use.

Primarily for trimming low hanging thin branches on trees that hang over footpath.
Click to expand...

I would research products from Stihl as well. They're German and seem to be popular with professionals:

shop.stihl.co.uk

Hedge Trimmers

We have a great range of battery-powered hedge trimmers that are quiet, lightweight and powerful, and so easy to use. All STIHL hedge trimmers have laser-cut and diamond-ground blades, so you can be sure that you will get a precise finish at all times.
shop.stihl.co.uk shop.stihl.co.uk
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom