I'm looking to purchase a battery powered tool package and I have a few questions. Which package has the best bang for the buck I.E. Porter cable, Makita, etc etc? Do the tools provide enough power to be able to cut wood such as plywood, 2 X 4s etc etc? I'm building a shed and am looking to get cordless tools to make the construction easier and so I don't have to run extension cords. I already have a Makita drill and don't really need another one but I would like to get a circular and recip saw but I'm unfamiliar with the different options or whether or not these tools are all that thy're cracked up to be. Any input would be helpful.

Mike,

The vocational school where I taught has been buying Dewalt cordless stuff for the past couple of years. It seems to have good battery life- especially the Li-ion batteries. It's not cheap but the "product testers" at the school seem to have a hard time wearing it out.

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Lew Kauffman-
Wood Turners Forum Host

Time traveler. Purveyor of the world's finest custom rolling pins!

I agree with Lew on the li-ion batteries, lots lighter, quick recharge time and my Hitachi drill has a good life to it. The only cordless saws I own are hand powered , so I can't help you much with them.

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Greg
Scroll Saw forum host

http://www.thesawdustfactoryga.com/

Thanks for your input guys. I have a Makita 18V Li-ion drill and I really like it because of the quick recharge time. My main interest is in the skill saw and recip saw and whether they have the power to cut 3/4" plywood and 2" X  lumber and how long they can run on a single charge. I can get the Dewalt 20V Li-ion package at HD & Lowes for $450.00 and that's with a Military discount. The Makita is a bit less. I've always had great service with Dewalt products but are the Makita batt powered saws as good as far as battery life and power? Ryobi is out of the question. I also priced the packages at Woodcraft and Rockler and they are much higher.

Mike

Not to throw a wrench into this. I have had a 18 volt Milwaukee set for many years and it has been extremely reliable and dependable for me. I have replaced the batteries but the tools themselves keep asking for more.

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Wayne Mahler
God bless and protect our troops that serve so we can be free.

Get yourself a corded circular saw, a impact driver, and use squaredrive screws with the proper bit in the gun.

 

Cordless saws are basically trim saws and while yes, they will cut plywood, you'll burn them out because they just don't have the horses behind them to go through multiple sheets of plywood and it really takes a toll on the batteries.

 

Impact driver for screws, use one and you'll never use your "drill" for driving screws again.  and with squaredrive screws you'll never bitch out a screwhead again.  Also you can easily "remove" the screw when you make a mistake.  Go with the impact driver, you'll think your in heaven and ask "Why didn't I hear about this YEARS ago".

 

I bought one years ago and never looked back.  A drill is for drilling holes not driving screws.

Milwaukee or Bosch