Which one would you buy, need advice.

[ryan.s]

Just to give a bit of background I have about 8 or 9 drill/drivers including a cordless angle impact driver (ridgid 12v) as well as a corded heavy duty hammer drill (ridgid r5010) but do not have a regular handle cordless impact driver (recently returned the ryobi) or a cordless hammer drill. I also just recently bought the Ridgid table saw ts3650 which still has the OEM blade on it. I want to take advantage of the amazon special 75OFF300 but can't decide between the two choices. The only absolute for me is I realized I need a regular handle cordless impact driver after building a storage shed with just the angle impact. I know everyone has different needs but which of the two below would you buy?

14.4 Makita Impact driver kit, comes with case, light and m-force drill for 215.00 plus a forrest WWII blade for 95.00 which would bring my total to 310 (minus 75) .
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...lance&n=228013
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...lance&n=228013

or

18V Makita Lithium Ion impact driver kit which has a mail in rebate for the 18v Lithium Ion Hammer drill the total cost being 319.00 (minus 75)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/reb...604144-5398361

What I really should do is stop buying more tools! Need help! Thanks.

[Ken Massingale]

Ahhhh. Another 3650 man. It's starting to feel cozy around here! ;-D
Sorry, I can't help with your question about the driver, Ryan, but the WW II is great.
ken

[rockfish]

I think I would go with the 18V myself. The 18V would provide more power for driving screws, etc.. The ion lithium batteries are supposed to be much lighter than nickel cadmium, so I would think they would weigh somewhere around the same weight of a 14V nickel cadmium tool.

I haven't actually picked one up though, so I'm purely speculating.


P.S. Why did you return the Ryobi ??? I've heard their impact driver actually get's great reviews for power, etc..






rockfish

[Knottscott]

I played with the Makita 14.4v at a show Friday...it's really powerful!

The WWII is fantastic blade....I think the TK version is a better match for your saw....Forrest and Freud will say the same thing, and a recent article in American WWer stated that as well, and that's been my experience with the 16 blades I've had. The quality of this blade is high enough that you won't have deflection issues with it and it'll make your motor seem more powerful. It'll also save you $15.

My $.02.

[os1kne]

If you think that you may get the 18v cordless recip saw and/or the cordless circular saw, I'd say go with the 18v. If not, go with the 14.4v - unless your in the construction trade w/ hard daily use, I doubt that the added power from the 18v tools would be worth the extra $100 (or nice saw blade) that they cost you. The 14.4v drill and impact driver are pleny powerful for almost anyone's use, but, I don't think that you'd be happy w/ 14.4v saws.

[lcm1947]

I've got a 8 to 9 year old Makita 12 volt that I still use but I only used it on rare occasion up to a year ago when I got into woodworking but every weekends since. It is still going strong although I did have to replace one of the batteries about a year ago. I'd say if you don't need the flashlight or extra drill that comes in the kit then buy the 18 volt. I looked at one several weeks ago and was amazed at the weight of the thing. It is light! I think Makita has the best battery technology out there but that could just be my opinion based on what I've read. Anyway my 2 cents.

[wreckwriter]

I have a Black and Decker "Firestorm" 24v hammer drill. B&D doesn't have the greatest name these days but this tool really performs well and the price is great. I also have their cordless recip saw, 18v, also a good little tool. My corded recip is DeWalt but this little cordless does its job (was bought for hurricane cleanup) and a lot more and a fraction of the cost of some of the bigger names. I guess if I was using them day in and day out they might not be up to snuff but for what I do with them I give both of them an A+.

[kmk]

I played with the Makita 14.4v at a show Friday...it's really powerful!

The WWII is fantastic blade....I think the TK version is a better match for your saw....Forrest and Freud will say the same thing, and a recent article in American WWer stated that as well, and that's been my experience with the 16 blades I've had. The quality of this blade is high enough that you won't have deflection issues with it and it'll make your motor seem more powerful. It'll also save you $15.

My $.02.

Tk version?

[Black wallnut]

Tk version?

As in Thin Kerf.

[jdschulteis]

All I know is I was at HD, they had the 18V Li-ion Makita combo kit on a "try-out" table. I picked up the hammer drill and put a hole in a concrete block, and I really liked the feel of it. They also had the Milwaukee 28V kit which was much too heavy for me; the latest Heavy Duty Tool Club mailing I got says Milwaukee is coming out with an 18V Li-ion line soon.

As you say, everyone has different needs, but if it were me I'd go with the 18V Li-ion impact driver and hammer drill.

[ryan.s]

Looks like the opinions are split down the middle. Thanks guys.

Well after much agonizing I decided to go for the blade. Based on the reviews alone I'm very curious to see if the blade is as good as they say. I went with the TK - apparently that's what they recommend for the 3650.

Someone asked why I ended up returning the Ryobi - I bought the ryobi impact as a add on to the super combo set. I returned the combo due to lack of power, specifically in the trim saw. Didn't want to buy batteries or a charger for the impact so I returned it instead.

[Tom Slick]

my 14.4 makita impact driver will snap a gr.5 1/4-20 bolt or 1/4 lag screw (i've snapped both), so i wouldn't worry about power unless you need to install some really big bolts.