Any views on Ryobi 18v impact driver?

[Andy Hall]

More like hit thumb with hammer.

That isn't correct. There are many more factors involved than a simple one of every day use or not and tax relief or not. The difference in actual and opportunity cost between mid market products such as Ryobi and good quality such as Makita, Bosch, DeWalt, Metabo is eaten up by additional visits to the store to exchange/replace broken cheap tools and in the extra capital purchase costs of the cheaper tools over time.

This is why the lifetime cost and profile of use should be considered and not just the price on the ticket.

[dennis]

8<

You are kidding.. buy a cheap tool and chuck it away. Even if you buy a really cheap one and break it you can take it bake for a refund. Hell some would take it back for a refund anyway.

And end up with a worse job than DIY. Finding a trades person you can trust is difficult for many people (they don't all have the head of building control living next door 8-) ).

[dennis]

As should the cost of chucking it away when a better tool is made for the job. I can see that a 40 year old BOSCH saw is going to be as easy to use as a new one, maybe. Just because a tool can last 40 years doesn't mean it should, times change, safety systems change, materials change buying one built to last may mean throwing a tool away that could last another 20 years if you didn't want some better features.

[Rod]

A friend visited B&D HQ many years ago. Saw a building maintenance man disappear behind a hidden door in reception... carrying a Wolf drill (might have been another decent brand).

When he got to see the director he was visiting, he mentioned this. Response was pretty much exactly as above. Hence their own maintenance people had to use other makes.

[Doctor Drivel]

Matt, very true. One page spreads in S/fix.

That is marketing.

The same as what everyone else is using.

[Doctor Drivel]

I see many tradesmen using Ryobi tools. The likes of office fitters who need to use say an Impact Driver all day, they will use a super expensive tool. Light trade, like plumbing and electrical work, where a drill will be used occasional through the day, Ryobi are the business.

[Doctor Drivel]

** drivel identified **

This implies Ryobi is poor quality which is total drivel.

[Doctor Drivel]

The top B&Q power tool man in one store told me the average DIY tools get uses on average 2 minutes a year through its life.

[<me9]

My Black and Decker model 1 must be at least 52 years old. Still working (well it was last time I had cause to -- must test it again).

[Doctor Drivel]

It has a three hour charger, the only down side. But you can buy a fast charger for not that much at £20. Even at £120 that is still a great deal. Check if the batteries are suitable. It is 18v the same voltage as the ONE+ range so the batteries should be OK.

[Rod]

Damn you, Mr Medway!!! :-)

I had assumed that stocks would have been exhausted so gave it up as "missed that". But no, you have to post that link and make me spend more money.

[Doctor Drivel]

Why this obsession that only Makita a quality product, when others are better, like Hilti, Hitachi, Festool or Durofix.

Durofix Impact Driver and combined Collated Driver is superb.

[JohnW]

There are some on e-bay:

I got one from there, or a similar place, some time ago and it lives up to its reputation, especially when driving long screws into old wood when the wind was blowing hard :-)

[Andy Hall]

No I'm not kidding. You are missing the point of the difference in quality and usability or indeed of highly specialised tools and equipment. For example, let's say I had the need for a heavy duty breaker to break up some concrete. I can rent one for about £45. Buying even a cheap one would make no sense, for me at least.

That's always assuming that it could do the job in the first place.

[Andy Hall]

There's a real recommendation

I wonder where he obtained that information.

[Andy Hall]

Great.

It's advertising, which is one component of marketing.

???

[Andy Hall]

What obsession? Makita has and has had for many years a good range of drill products. Some of their sanders are OK as well, although Metabo makes a better random orbit sander. Festool makes a better drill than Makita in terms of the C12 product but does not have as comprehensive a drill range as Makita.

Hitachi makes a better circular saw than Makita (has a cast base), but Festool has a better one.

There is no one brand that is universally better than another within the same quality level. One has to pick carefully according to product type.

The other side of the coin as far as cordless single battery systems like One+ is concerned is that it is also a lock in. Customers are much more likely to buy other tools in the range because they already have the batteries. This may mean that they will end up with something very poor in some categories.

Do you have one, or is that simply what it says on the distributor's web site.?

[Andy Hall]

This is a valid point and should also be taken into account. However, in extremis it is not a reason to view tools as disposable items.

[Andy Hall]

I didn't that it was poor quality in absolute terms. TTI's stated positioning is as a mid market product. It's positioned as lower end than Milwaukee for example, but clearly is better than generic private label products.

If you pick up and use a drill ranging from generic, to Ryobi/AEG to Makita/Bosch to Festool, it's abundantly clear that there is considerable differentiation between each group in terms of usability, control, balance and feel

[Doctor Drivel]

Matt, I wonder too.