What's your favorite tool company poll

[Big Red]

Guys like tools and most of us are passionate about the brand we use so I thought I would do this just for fun.
My first time doing a poll, so I hope it works.

 

[Clubin]

Easy one for me. Been in business for over 30 years. Started with corded tools in 94 Makita stuff sucked. Bought black and decker industrial which dealt later bought. Then in 2010 changed over to Makita and love the product. Job sites I’m on mostly Makita some Milwaukee. I have a few m12 specialty tools.

 

[Mr.C]

Easy, been using makita for 15 years. Never had any issues. Batteries last forever. And unlike clubin, there’s very few contractors using Makita around here. Most are using Milwaukee. So, I don’t need to worry about tools or chargers “walking” away.

 

[Big Red]

I started off with a Makita 9.6V then upgraded to the 9.6V / 12V combo drill when it came out, one of the best on the market at that time. I then moved to Makita 18V drill, impact, radio, light, and maybe a few other tools. When it was time to upgrade, I heard the local Milwaukee dealer would give $100 credit for any drill/driver tool on trade, so I made the switch to red. By now I probably have a 100 Milwaukee tools everything for wood working, mechanic, outdoor power tools, radios, lights, heated gear, you name it. I just picked up a new chainsaw Tuesday and can't wait to try it out Saturday. I do have 5-6 DeWalt tools as I like their routers the best. I use Festool for all my dust extractors and finish sanders, and I have 1 lone Makita sliding miter box saw.

 

[oneal]

I'm all over the board on this..
Like Clubbin I was in the mud before battery tools so corded Milwaukee sawzall and right angle drill along with some commercial black and decker was about the only choice.
Early battery stuff was dewalt 18 volt, it replaced the above and was bullet proof. When dewalt upgraded to 20 volt we couldn't get a year out of them and threw out dozens. (Our guys are in muddy ditches a lot). Milwaukee M18 has become the go to for our guys and they by far have the largest selection.
Me personally, I have 20 year old Bosch 36 volt drill that is a two hander in tough stuff, Bosch and Milwaukee impacts, at least a dozen other Milwaukee gadgets. All work well.
Woodworking, Festool when I can afford it. They had a track saw first, it is awesome, I use/loan it out regularly. Same with their sliding compound miter saw.

 

[Big Red]

Really............62 views and only 4 people could hit the vote button? I thought there would be more "Tool Guys" among us.

 

[Jay B]

We have all Milwaukee Fuel stuff on our farm. Our 3/4 inch impact will perform about as well as our air impact. Big Red mentioned the chain saw. You aren't going to cut firewood all day with it (unless you have a big pile of batteries) but for general use it's great. I just ran around with it the other day trimming things up around some of my property. So nice not having to start it, just pull the trigger and cut. You'll love it. That said, I have a few Dewalt tools at my house. Not as powerful as the Milwaukee Fuel stuff but just fine for home use.

 

[Big Red]

We have all Milwaukee Fuel stuff on our farm. Our 3/4 inch impact will perform about as well as our air impact. Big Red mentioned the chain saw. You aren't going to cut firewood all day with it (unless you have a big pile of batteries) but for general use it's great. I just ran around with it the other day trimming things up around some of my property. So nice not having to start it, just pull the trigger and cut. You'll love it. That said, I have a few Dewalt tools at my house. Not as powerful as the Milwaukee Fuel stuff but just fine for home use.

I already had the 16" chainsaw and the M12 Hatchet and love them both. The new Top Handle 14" saw was just a guilty pleasure because I'm a tool guy and just had to have it. As far as batteries go I have enough to cut more than I would ever want to. I have 3 - 12 amp hour, and 10 - 8 amp hour batteries, plus some 6's, 5's, 3's and a few really old 1.5 CP's

 

[Big Red]

Lots of new members here so I thought I would recycle this thread

 

[JTBarlow]

The only one on that list that we don’t have is Festool. Really, it comes down to which brand has the particular tool we need.
We’re a big fan of the Milwaukee Packout line and use them on our SxSs.
In drills, Milwaukee has the smallest box drill with the M12 that fits in tighter places, but my favorite drill is a Makita. The big Dewalt drill we call the “Arm Breaker 3000” and it’s a bit scary.
We have a 36v Makita Circular Saw that we’ve been using for years for cutting aluminum, and it’s still going.
Dewalt has the e faster 1/4” impact driver, but I use all 3 brands equally on those.
For the big boys, the Milwaukee 3/4” and 1” impacts are beasts. I use both for changing semi truck tires.
At the end of the day, we’re not particularly brand loyalists, we just prefer whatever gets the job done.

 

[WalkersRanger]

Call me crazy, but I’m a huge Harbor Freight fan.

 

[Big Red]

Call me crazy, but I’m a huge Harbor Freight fan.

Me too! Don't get me wrong I'm a Milwaukee Fanboy and 99% of my cordless tools are Milwaukee and I have a LOT of them. 10 years ago, I wouldn't buy a tarp from Habor Freight, today I stop by every time I'm in town. I have both the Daytona and Badlands floor jacks and love them both. I have a Predator generator which is great and super quiet. I have a couple of Fortress air compressors that I really like. I have 2 US General toolboxes which are the best bang for your buck anywhere. My latest love is everything ICON and have started to replace many of my older tools like my creeper, mechanics seat, and numerous hand tools. I just picked up the new 3 position needle nose pliers and love it. I still shy away from Chicago Electric and some of their older brands, but their newer stuff is damn good.

 

[oneal]

HF has definitely evolved. Six years ago I purchased an Icon tool chest (roll cab) , it is extremely heavy duty at a third of the cost of the commercial brands.

 

[Mr.C]

I don’t mind Harbor Freight either. I’m just selective, depending on how often I’m gonna use the tool. My brother just purchased the big 72” (I think) icon tool cabinet and it’s awesome.

 

[Dragoon]

My DeWalt tools have been good to me, but I'm slowly changing to Milwaukee as my old DeWalt stuff starts to peter out.

 

[oneal]

I am definitely going to HF and purchase one of the Badlands jacks Big Red turned me on to.

 

[JTBarlow]

I am definitely going to HF and purchase one of the Badlands jacks Big Red turned me on to.

We’ve got one in our shop, and it’s definitely worth getting. Previously I’d been using a regular floor jack and several blocks for lifting SxSs. It’s so nice not having blocks topple off the Jack anymore

 

[oneal]

We’ve got one in our shop, and it’s definitely worth getting. Previously I’d been using a regular floor jack and several blocks for lifting SxSs. It’s so nice not having blocks topple off the Jack anymore

I hear ya, I recently shared some pics of an A arm install with my oak blocks on top of my old faithful iron floor jack. It is steady as the concrete it rests on but a couple folks mentioned the poor appearance of rigging. I was embarrassed

 

[Big Red]

You were shamed into it Just kidding once you have the Badlands Jack you won't want to live without it. It's not just the height the BIG wheels and handle lock are VERY useful and make moving it around a breeze. It also rolls well over gravel something a regular jack will not do.

 

[oneal]

You were shamed into it

That is EXACTLY what I told the boss and we are sticking to it.