On a more basic note, I found my cordless 14.4 Craftsman drill to work
well, but the batteries were dead within a few years, and replacements were
almost as expensive as a new drill. In retrospect the corded option was
better for me:
Always ready, never lacking power or charge, and no big bill a year later
for new batteries. Unless you use your cordless equipment regularly, the
batteries die long before the tool dies. ( I did remember to discharge
completely to try and avoid 'memory'). Be sure to check out how much the
replacement batteries cost, as I made a big mistake on Craftsman, with their
overpriced batteries. My corded drills still work fine, and my crapsman
cordless sits gathering dust.

Dave
"chillermfg" wrote in message
news:Mlagd.539634$8_6.389391@attbi_s04...
Evidently you don't use the Milwaukee, Porter Cable, Skil or Ryobi
Cordless
equipment. When we think of corded tools, the class changes significantly.
Like the Dewalt. Their corded stuff leaves a lot of room for improvement,
but their cordless is pretty damn good. The Milwaukee cordless,
well...let's
just say I would by the Skill or Ryobi long before another Milwaukee comes
near my toolbox. The Porter Cable was pretty decent although the battery
life was short. Not just run time, but life span in general. And no I
wasn't
burning in memory by short charging or half charging. I still have my
first
cordless drill at home. A 12 V Dewalt that I bought back in spring of 97.
Except for having to finally replace the 2 batteries, the drill still
works
without a hitch. 3/8" keyless chuck. I can still turn a 3/8" Black and
Decker corded drill backwards with it. Another feature of the DW that I
like
(some others feature it too) is the auto brake. Since then I have owned a
B&D, Milwaukee and an 18V Professional Series Craftsman. I was reluctant
to
buy the Craftsman as I have the used the regular series numerous times and
wasn't really impressed. The professional series was pretty OK and managed
to build a 12 x 20 deck on 4 charges. Keep in mind that was over 20# of 3"
deck screws + countersink and pilot holes. As far as the my Milwaukee, it
was good for light stuff and tinkering. Could not handle the rigors of
drilling concrete or automobile firewalls. No it was not a hammerdrill,
but
my DeWalt did it and my Craftsman does it now.
ReRe

"Bo Williams" wrote in message
...
chillermfg wrote:

When
you step up again and decide to start your own handyman company and build
decks and sheds for "others" then you need to get into a more
"professional
series" piece of equipment. The DeWalt cordless products fit that
description.

I have a lot of yellow tools myself, and I do like them. But they're
not all by themselves at the top of the heap, as you imply.


Next step down Craftsman Professional, Bosch High End. Then on
Down to the Skill, Milwaukee, Ryobi, Craftsman, Rigid, Porter Cable.

Putting Milwaukee, Porter Cable, and Ridgid in the same category with
Skil and Ryobi? If you're a troll, call me gullible. If you're
serious, that's ridiculous.

[...]
--
Bo Williams -
http://hiwaay.net/~williams/