I’ve come to the conclusion that if you’re buying tools, you should go for the sets. Take a socket set, for example. Realistically, you’re probably using the ratchet, an extension, and three to four sockets the most. At some point the cheap ratchet breaks and you replace it with a high-quality one. You may also lose or break a few of the most commonly used sockets and replace them with high-quality ones. In ten years you’ll have a set with a high-quality wrench and a few high-quality sockets that you commonly use, plus the rest of the other sizes you’ll only touch once every few years.
Had you gone for the high-quality set right away, you would have paid even more - and now you’d have a 4mm made-in-Japan socket you spent 10 euros on that you’ll never use.
Pick one of the battery ecosystems and carry on. I bought a Ryobi starter set about 20 years ago when they were still using NiCad batteries. They switched to lithium ion batteries but kept the connector the same. I bought the new style batteries when my old batteries died. All the old tools work the same.
I believe Makita and DeWalt follow the same philosophy.
I bought a Ryobi sander with its battery and charger for $20 at a garage sale to do one small job, I have a bunch of Makita tools and batteries but it would be completely foolish to buy a new Makita sander for one job.
I have a greenworks battery system and love my electric lawn mower, but when the stupid edger finally broke, I didn’t buy the same stupid tool that takes a giant 4AH battery because I’m tied into the system, I bought a lightweight Makita edger that shares the battery with my drill driver.
When I need cheap battery tools for one job, I buy Ryobi. When I’m upgrading, it’s probably Makita.
When I needed to cut down a few damaged trees, I bought a wired chainsaw and a long extension cable.
If I just stuck to Makita because I have that battery system, I’d be sitting on thousands of dollars in Makita tools I’ll use once a year at most.
I’ve come to the conclusion that if you’re buying tools, you should go for the sets. Take a socket set, for example. Realistically, you’re probably using the ratchet, an extension, and three to four sockets the most. At some point the cheap ratchet breaks and you replace it with a high-quality one. You may also lose or break a few of the most commonly used sockets and replace them with high-quality ones. In ten years you’ll have a set with a high-quality wrench and a few high-quality sockets that you commonly use, plus the rest of the other sizes you’ll only touch once every few years.
Had you gone for the high-quality set right away, you would have paid even more - and now you’d have a 4mm made-in-Japan socket you spent 10 euros on that you’ll never use.
I’ve stood by the philosophy of buying cheap tools and replacing what breaks with better quality.
The proliferation of 10000 different battery standards has made this a little more difficult recently, but it still works most of the time.
Pick one of the battery ecosystems and carry on. I bought a Ryobi starter set about 20 years ago when they were still using NiCad batteries. They switched to lithium ion batteries but kept the connector the same. I bought the new style batteries when my old batteries died. All the old tools work the same.
I believe Makita and DeWalt follow the same philosophy.
Harbor freight does not.
This is antithetical to the original proposition.
I bought a Ryobi sander with its battery and charger for $20 at a garage sale to do one small job, I have a bunch of Makita tools and batteries but it would be completely foolish to buy a new Makita sander for one job.
I have a greenworks battery system and love my electric lawn mower, but when the stupid edger finally broke, I didn’t buy the same stupid tool that takes a giant 4AH battery because I’m tied into the system, I bought a lightweight Makita edger that shares the battery with my drill driver.
When I need cheap battery tools for one job, I buy Ryobi. When I’m upgrading, it’s probably Makita.
When I needed to cut down a few damaged trees, I bought a wired chainsaw and a long extension cable.
If I just stuck to Makita because I have that battery system, I’d be sitting on thousands of dollars in Makita tools I’ll use once a year at most.
I guess I am a tool nerd as well. Currently live in a tiny studio and have no driveway. Have a tool box as tall as me plus a LOT of cordless tools.
My socket sets and wrench sets are old USA made Craftsman stuff I’ve had for over at least 30 years.
I still have a few of the old Craftsman USA screwdrivers. Most have disappeared.