cordless ryobi owners only…………..
alwaysoverbudget
| Posted in Tools for Home Building on
well it looks like i’m about to take the ryobi plunge. i want a cordless hedge trimmer and figure i might as well get one that will run other tools.
so i have to buy the batts seperate,is the lithium batts worth the difference. standard 18v 20. a pc, lithium runs almost 3 times that.
the tools in there lineup that i’m interested in are the : hedgeclippers, 4.5 grinder and caulking gun,maybe rotozip. maybe grab a impact for 70.00 also. anybody have any reviews on these.
everybody can talk about them but why can’t the other manfs. come up with 1 batt fits all and lots of choices on different tools.
thanks larry
if a man speaks in the forest,and there’s not a woman to hear him,is he still wrong?
Replies
That's what I like about the Ryobi system. You only buy what you need.
The manufacturers like to sell kits. All kits come with a drill. I already have four drills.
I wish all the battery packs were interchangeable.
~Peter
Other manufacturers sell cordless tools ala carte... often not at the typical big box store, though.
Ryobi and Ridgid have an exclusive deal with HD, unlike everyone else- big incentive to have those single tools on the shelf for your exclusive line.
If you live where the temperature gets below 40* F, you will be disappointed with the lithium batteries because they won't work. They are much lighter than the nicad versions- but the nicads work in a wider temperature range.
I have several Ryobi cordless tools and 4 18 volt nicad batteries. One of the main selling points for me was the price of the batteries (about $20 each when you buy the 2-pack).
$20 for a battery is cheap and it's worth every penny, but in terms of run time, they don't begin to compare to everyone else's batteries. I have a 14.4 drill/battery that will out-perform the Ryobi.
I'm not saying it's not worth it. I've used them a lot and I'll even grab the cordless circular saw to cut 3/4" plywood. A task that it wasn't really designed for, but it does surprisingly well. Of course, the battery is done after only a few cuts, but that's why I have 4 of them. Depending on what you're cutting, a hedge trimmer could run down those batteries pretty quickly too.
I don't know how well the Ryobi lithium-ion batteries perform, but based on their nicads, I wouldn't expect a lot. For the price, I would start out with extra nicads instead of LI and make sure they're all charged up ahead of time.
cordless ryobi owners only
What is this a secret club?
I want to know what you Ryobinians are up to.
no one with makita,dewalt,bosch or milwaukee allowed.we have secret handshake......................larryif a man speaks in the forest,and there's not a woman to hear him,is he still wrong?
Does that secret handshake require a double-jointed thumb?
Does that secret handshake require a double-jointed thumb? Or the ability to squeeze two dimes from a nickel.
If you guy's were serious you'd be buying Harbor Freight tools!
Not waisting your money on these high priced fancy tools by Ryobi.
Actually, I do have few HF tools, but I can't discuss them in this thread :-)
I've got a bunch of the 18v Ryobi stuff, and I've always been very happy with it. I recently added an 18v weedwacker and an impact driver (had to buy that because I had five 2" lags to drive....lol) to the bunch for the same reason you did- why buy something different when I've already for 1/2 a dozen batteries and 3 chargers?
I wouldn't bother with the lithium batteries unless you're planning on using the tools all day- once you've got a few tools and a few chargers, its easy to keep enough Nicad batteries charged (they charge pretty quickly).
I've got a pile of the Ryobi stuff, none of it Li-Ion. All Nicad. I've got the right angle drill, sawzall, hammer drill, regular cordless drill, trim circ saw, flashlight and caulking gun.
Only one that's nearly worthless is the caulking gun. For some reason, it likes to blow out the sides of caulk tubes unless the speed is set almost to zero. I wrecked several tubes of PL caulk last fall by setting the speed too high. Plus it's heavy (like all the Ryobi stuff). All the other tools get a lot of use and are still going strong. I use the sawzall, in particular, several times a week for the past four years and haven't killed it yet.
My brother has the impact gun and it's no more powerful than my 12v Hitachi impact driver. And twice the weight. But for the price, I guess if you can live with the weight, it's not bad. He's also got the little dustbuster vacuum which works great on dog hair and other dirt around his house.
One of my pet peeves about Ryobi is the dangerous "safety" button. Even under ideal conditions, the button requires moving your hand so that you don't have as good a grip on the tool. Sometimes, when using the tool (such as the reciprocating saw) in an awkward position, I've actually had to use my other hand to depress the so-called safety button. On other occasions, I've left the tool running between cuts just so that I don't have to move my hand again. It's a really lame design that works against the user and does not enhance safety.
Of course, if money were no object, I would have bought another brand, but it would have cost 3 - 4 times as much and I still wouldn't have had battery compatibility.
Despite this safety button shortcoming, I still think Ryobi is a good value.
Got the ryobi set from a boss for xmas. Cursed him for cheap and beat on the tools for two years before the drill driver finally broke down. I replaced it for 60 dollars and am quite happy with it. I use hilti tools at work, and yes, they have a little more torque and the batteries last a good bit longer, but I can use my ryobi packs to throw at cats, the charger doesn't go tits up in the rain(the hilti did) and if it gets stolen, I am only irritated, not furious. I will stick with ryobi cordless for a while. The corded tools suck, though
Not all the corded tools suck. I bought a portable tablesaw for cabinet and millwork use on site. $200 Ryobi that cuts 30" right of the blade and about 20" to the left, outfeed support and a dustcollection bag. Light enough to carry easily and small enough to store in a cupboard, stand detaches and collapses and straps to the saw. Not heavy duty by any stretch, but much better capacity than the big names at half the price. Really sweet to be able to trim 28 1/2" deep gables to size on site and with an 80T hi-ATB, it cuts chip free melamine.