Anyone heard anything about the Ridgid tools?? I’m in the market and the last I heard they were having battery problems galore, but that was back in late 2004….
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Here's clarification to my first comment....with the possible demise of Porter Cable due to B&D buying them out, I am going to be in the market for a new cordless drill when my PC finally expires and I am also going to be looking at the other Ridgid tools as well. There are many opinions out there concerning the way B&D has demolished a once good line of tools, that being B&D itself and sadly, Dewalt, so I am looking at options. I'd like to be buying American, but with (and someone correct me if I'm wrong on this) most tools being imports now, I'm reminded of the "King of the Hill" commercial.....so, are ya Chinese or Japanese??? Comments??
I've got a Ridgid 1/2" corded drill and a bench sander. Both are doing good service.
I am looking at the jobsite table saw. Seems pretty durable and I like the stand.
There'a a lot to recommend Bosch.
Have you considered it?
VIVA SANCHO RON!
"Affairs on the border cannot be judged by standards that hold elsewhere."
When I first came to Oklahoma I worked with an outfit that had 2 Bosch table saws on site, both died for the same reason, the gears that raised/lowered the blade stripped. They were the bottom of the line Bosch saw I would imagine and upon closer inspection the problem could be traced to the guard that protects the underside of the blade inside, it clogged and the sawdust backed up and got onto the gears, causing a improper meshing....preventitive maint could have avoided this and I'm sure they would have been fine, but as my experience here in Okie grows, I'm finding a lot of problems with the workers themselves...I've fired many a so called "carpenter because he didn't know right from left...and I'm far from being a master carpenter myself, but not showing up on time, etc., and abusing tools is uncalled for...wish I could find about 3 good concerned workers and I could go after the bigger dollar jobs.....
I own many ridgid products. I started with the jointer,...flawless I then bought the tablesaw (contracter saw)..flawless. I then bought the bandsaw,..flawless. I then bought their oscillating sander... no problems but a little bit timid,..very useable though. Back then they were carying a lifetime warranty. I think since then they have dropped to a 2 year warranty, but that is still better than most.
I live in wichita falls texas. Howdie neighbor!
OK.....this is some of the stuff I've been looking for....I looked on their website last night and they offer a 3 year unconditional on their cordless stuff, not sure about their corded tools...we've been using a planer of theirs on commercial work and it is flawless as well...I'm impressed with thier stuff in a limited capacity thus far even if it is Chinese made(or so I'm told)
Same 3-year guarantee on all corded/cordless tools.Regards,Ron
Here's a post I found at the Rigid Forum, from a current employee of TTI, which holds the license for Rigid Tools:
BTW, China and Taiwan aren't the same thing. Maybe less difference now than 15 years ago, but still.......forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
Thanks for the info.....The warranty on the Ridgid's is getting my attention right now..the prices are reasonable(although to the weekend woodworker they may seem high) but to me it's more than fair as long as the tool is durable and reliable. I was just getting into the swing of things with PC, having bought 5 of their tools early last year, then they go and sell out to B&D so my faith in them has "diminished". The last B&D I owned was back in the mid 70's, I got one of their drills as a Christmas present and they were junk then. The real old BD stuff I'm told was better but I'm only in my early 40's and don't remember that far back....I'm skeptical of buying anything made by PC now for fear the BD idiots have "redesigned" it to be a cheaper mass produced throw away, suitable only for grandfathers hanging a nick nack shelf or urban yuppies who drive a screw once every year or so to secure the wires to their new plasma TV........
Ridgid has a pretty good calendar, too.
http://www.ridgid.com/Tools/Calendar/index.htm
VIVA SANCHO RON!
"Affairs on the border cannot be judged by standards that hold elsewhere."
Thanks for the link.....from what I'm reading here the Ridgid stuff is pretty good.....I heard about battery problems last year but lately it seems to be unheard of...I've hefted their stuff in the BBS and it seems to be pretty sturdy stuff......use one of their cordless drills on a job site one time and never got the chance to drain a battery or two....
They have a Forum on their website where you can get some pretty frank opinions.
VIVA SANCHO RON!
"Affairs on the border cannot be judged by standards that hold elsewhere."
was just in the BD website and could not find the forum you mentioned???? Will continue looking...
any chance you can send me that link?? I looked on the website and couldn't find anywhere I could get this type of info...thanks in advance....
This should get ya there:
http://www.ridgidforum.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi
"Affairs on the border cannot be judged by standards that hold elsewhere."
thanks...just finished registering there......
It really seems like Rigid is making a serious run for the contractors' money. They'll have to make fairly reliable and durable tools, and they should know that, LOL. If they can move in where DeWalt is flailing, they'll do pretty well.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
Maybe BD should put somebody on payroll to just review what we people in the industry think about their tools and how we feel they've made junk out of once fine tools...I'll bet when they see all the comments about European tools they'd think again about their marketing strategy(if you can call it that) Wonder how many forums there are concerning the same things we talk about here???
B&D is a very sucessful company and is considered one of the better marketing companies in the world. If they were as bad as a few state, I doubt they would be in business much longer. In fact, they defined the lower cost contractor tool market back in the late 1970's when they resurected the DeWalt brand name which they had owned for a number of years. They put their "Professional Line" into the DeWalt brand and turned it into yellow.I hate to say it but if anyone has cheapened the Delta and Porter Cable lines it was Pentair. Pentair knew nothing about power tools or their marketing and no money was put into developement. The PC stuff was priced beyond what many contractors wanted to pay for tools and sales fell off.Howie.........
Don't mean to argue...but...In all my years of contracting in 4 states, I have yet to see a Dewalt table saw on a job site and in the course of the past 4 years or so, with the exception of the vastly overrated cordless tools Dewalt produces, I've seen little or no actual electric Dewalts out there. I have , however seen a load of Delta table saws out there, being used from anything from doing cabinetry work on site to being used to rip down lumber for trim and etc. Now the last I checked the Delta saws were more expensive than the Dewalts, maybe not in all cases but in the majority of them. Good contractors buy good tools and expect to get what they pay for, they make their living using them and they have to be reliable. I think a lot of the problem is that craftsmanship has deteriorated over the past 10 years or so and the consumer is partly to blame for this, always looking for the cheapest bid and so forth...I learned a long time ago that best price doesn't mean best job..I could go out tomorrow, drop my rates 20% and I'd still have customers that felt my price is too high....right now, my closure rate bidding jobs is around 67%, even though I'm not the cheapest (by a long shot!!) I show the customer up front what they'll be getting, explain any problems that may occur (before they do occur), explain pre construction photo's and their value, both for them and I, walk them through a site, make suggestions, I even go as far as to tell them to take my contract to their attorney and have it reviewed, all before we sign on the dotted line. I've found that giving superior customer service before any money is exchanged is the real way to close. I ask for 50% labor up front and 100% of materials once they are delivered to the site and I've never once had a customer balk at this. They know me and my ethics up front and have no reservations. Now, I've told you this because the people I've either worked for in the recent past or I have working for me now are true craftsmen, there's no "oh, that cuts bad but leave it" in my circle, we do it right and if we do it wrong the 1st time we fix it before the customer sees it. My tools have to be right every time, and from what I've seen on here a majority of people are in this same line of work and not just a casual woodworker, and I'll also bet that 85-90% of the talk about Dewalt, BD et al. is all negative.
PC/Delta had the right tools to begin with, and for somebody (them) to not know much about the tool business they sure made a heck of a product....the reviews are there from the magazines, the forum on here basically agrees and another large majority think that buying PC now being under BD ownership is a huge mistake..the speciality shops around here agree as well......not trying to tick you off, but I can't recall the last time I saw a BD on the worksite
In the Dallas area the Dewalt bench top saw is by far the most popular for on site carpintry. Also their cordless tools are the most common.
Mike.
P.S. I too have ran my batts down too low on occasion and have not had any noticible problem. please excuse my spelling.
The contractors who just built my house mostly used DeWalt tools. There were some Makita and one guy who used a PC circular saw.Howie.........
Market penetration for various brands of tools seems to be a regional thing. Most of what I see around here (MN) is Dewalt, with PC a poor second and Bosch a distant third. This is just my perception, and may reflect the fact I spend most of my time on renovation, and never visit new house construction sites. The dominance of Dewalt may also be due to the fact the HD's in this area feature Dewalt (along with Ridgid), and in order to find much of a selection from other brands, you have to go to a real tool outlet. Lowes is just starting to arrive in this area, and I don't know what the selection strategy will be with them.It is easy enough to compare tools by feature, but nearly impossible to make any informed judgments on durability and reliability. So that's why a forum like this is so useful. It is really the best way of gathering feedback on individual experiences with these machines. But even so, it's too bad the tool buying public doesn't have a source that gathers data on durability/reliability -- like Consumer Reports.
I agree, if the average consumer had a place they could go and get the info we know through hands on experience and the like, then the little disposable tools like BD and Skil would long be bankrupt. They look at a tool costing 100-200 or more and then see a cheapie for 29 or 39 bucks and think to themselves they can see no reason to lay out the extra bucks for something thats a far better tool and will serve them better.I'm fairly new to this forum, having just discovered it a week or so ago, and what got my attention was the sale of Pentair to BD last year. I'm a firm believer in PC tools, I work them hard on commercial construction and have never witnessed a PC tool of any sort crapping out, all the while watching all the other "contractor grade" i.e. Dewalt, etc, taking the trip to the dumpster while my pc stuff still runs strong. It's a good thing for all the Dewalt users on my sites that there's a HD or lowes close by because the batteries on the cordless tools are always dying at inopportune times. I've been reading stuff on here about Dewalt slider compound miter saw problems, table saw problems, planer problems, etc and have had a bad experience myself with a new dewalt 1/2 inch electric drill. I do own a DW 12 inch compound miter saw and it's performed as it should. I just bought a Ridgid combo kit 18 volt cordless hammer drill/ circ saw, due to the fact that BD bought PC and I can't bring myself to trust BD enough to think they'd leave the PC line alone and keep making the quality I experienced with my 5-6 year old PC. I've never replaced the batteries in the old girl and there are many times in that past 5-6 years that I've cycled the batteries 5 or more times daily, in all weather conditions....no probs with the PC whatsoever. BD has taken the DW line and cheapened it to the point where it's a throwaway tool for the most part and the general consensus here is that they'll probably do the same to PC. DW has saturated the market but I think their time is coming, too many complaints from folks who use them for more than a weekend hobby. Could this be part of the BD marketing strategy?? Rather than do the research and development into making tools better, just cheapen up quality tool companies they buy, then when they've bled it dry, buy up another company that still makes quality tools and do likewise to them?? They're running out of companies to buy up from what I see, and the European companies are licking their collective chops over the prospect of breaking into the American market full scale. I bought Ridgid due to the warranty they offer. Price was not the determining factor in my purchase, it was the quality and the perceived value of purchasing a quality tool. I'll know long before the 90 day unconditional warranty is over if I've made the right choice or not.
I sure hope they do make a solid effort to make the quality stuff...hearing Metabo makes the 6" ROS heartened me, I remember really abusing one of the Metabo hammer drills and having it not complain once. After a week of use, the Ridgid cordless seems to be performing nicely. I have noticed that when the batts go dead, they go dead all at once, hopefully this is just the result of them being new and not broken in yet, my PC batts went dead slowly instead of all to once......Dewalt flailing?? Really?? I never would have guessed. I can tell you in all sincerity that the 1/2 inch electric drill (dewalt) I bought will be the last Yellow tool I ever plunk money down on....
Dewalt's 12" Miter saws are the real deal. Same holds true for the Dewalt biscuit joiner. My old DW733 planer has also given me great service. I am much less impressed with their circular saws, drills and jigsaws and any/all of their cordless products. My personal jury is still out regarding DW routers. Regards,Ron
Thanks Ron...I too like the 12 inch miter saw but do not feel my next one will be a Dewalt, and if it is you can bet I'll be trying all of them for "fit and feel" before I buy it.I agree with your statement about the cordless line, too many stories on here about breaking shafts and my own witnessing of the batteries crapping out way too soon...My Ridgid combo kit seems stout, well made, heavy to say the least, but I'd rather have it that way, I'm not one much on ergonomics and I've got this stuff in my hands almost daily for 10-12 hours per day, and I can still get up the next morning and have at it again......
I have seen more and more contractors using Ridgid cordless tools on the job, and they seem to hold up pretty well. While I wouldn't rule them out, my favorites have always been Bosch and Hitachi. Right now, Hitachi seems to be the rising star among the brands. I have a 12v Hitachi impact driver, and it is a beast. However, I wouldn't have bought it if Bosch had come out with an impact driver sooner. I missed the Bosch by a month.
Given the choice of tools available at your average Home Depot (limited lines of DeWalt, Bosch, Milwaukee, and a few random tools from other brands) with the majority being Ryobi or Ridgid, I'd be leaning hevily toward the Ridgid.
Thats one of the reasons I bought the Ridgid combo, from seeing it used on commercial sites and the warranty, the 3rd part that made my decsion was that BD bought PC and I can't trust them now. Won't be long and I'll be in the market for another contractor saw, I'll be eyeballing the options (manufacturers) heavily before I purchase one. The Ridgid saw looks real well built, I'll have to see what the Delta looks like before I plunk down serious money for one of them.....
FYI - Delta is also a Black-and-Decker acquisition. There's already been a few changes, and quite honestly, I'd much rather buy the Ridgid contractor's saw than one of the Deltas. I don't trust 'em anymore.
The only way I'll buy a Delta tool is if it's older than me. (i.e. pre-1970's)
Yeah, I know..thats what led me to my comment about checking out the Delta's...I hate to think of all those fine tools that are now in the hands of a company that makes crappy junk tools......
Chaumont,
I agree with nikkiwood that popularity of various brands is a regional thing. Makita and Dewalt are both big around here (Rochester, as you may recall from your New York thread). Therefore, you can't determine quality in any one tool company based on local popularity.
I believe that all of the major tool companies (PC, Bosch, Makita, DeWalt, etc.) make some tools well, and others poorly. Milwaukee makes the best reciprocatings saws. Makita makes a well respected sliding mitre saw. I have a few Dewalt tools, and I have been happy with them. The 12" chop saw is a great tool. Their jobsite table saw which Bosch and Rigid have copied is also a great tool. I don't have one, but I know people that do, and they are very happy with them. I never liked their circular saws though.
I think that PC makes strong motors that are durable, but ergonomically, they never fit me well.
As far as B&D ruining PC and Delta, I agree with Howie. I think that Pentair has been living off reputations earned long before the Rockwell days. They seemed to have maintained PC fairly well, but Delta is another story. They have many different price points, and therefore, quality levels. Unisaws are still pretty good, but they make some tablesaws and mitresaws with the Delta name that are pretty cheesy. At least the B&D people market their professional line under a different brand from their homeowner line, which is much less confusing.
If you don't like Dewalt tools, that is fine. But, I think that it is incorrect to make a hero out of Pentair.
Cheers
Kyle
EDIT: sorry Kyle, but I meant to address this to the New Yorker guy, but some of these comments agree with your post too.I don't disagree with anything your say -- or any of the conclusions you have reached. But I do see things maybe not differently, but through a different prism. First, I think there has been a general downward slide in a lot of the old established brands. HD and Lowes have become the dominant player in the tool market, and taking a page from the Wal-Mart strategy manual, they have forced manufacturers to meet a price point in order to get space on the shelves. As this trend has occurred, other manufacturers have seen an opportunity to introduce tools at the high end of the quality spectrum -- and here I'm thinking of Festool, Metabo, Fein, and maybe Panasonic and Hitachi. If you accept my premise, it is possible to say the tool buying public is being better served than at any time in the past. You can buy a jig saw at the bottom end for $29 and march right through the levels until you reach the Festool model at $270. So any of us can plug in at any level we choose. I would not be too quick to think PC is automatically going down the tubes under B&D. If you think about it, Dewalt is positioned in the market in the niche represented by high end consumers and low end professionals. If they have their wits about them, they may see an advantage in keeping PC at the present market level, and perhaps even nudging it up a bit to compete more effectively in the mid-to-high end professional niche -- with the brands I mentioned above. If I were working for B&D, I wouldn't see much point in cheapening PC, therefore cannibalizing the already robust market Dewalt enjoys. The same is true for Delta. I suspect getting Delta was the main reason driving the purchase of PC/Delta from Pentair. B&D has never had a presence in the stationary tool market, and now they do in a big way. Maybe the marketing "geniuses" at B&D will find a way to solve the main problem at Delta over the past 5 years -- which is using the same brand name to introduce a line of equipment for the hobbyist crowd -- therefore confusing every body, and casting doubt on the integrity of the Delta brand.
Edited 3/6/2005 10:27 pm ET by nikkiwood
nikki,
I am not sure there has been an overall downslide in the quality levels offered by the major professional tool companies. Some people may argue that these tools don't have the longevity of their predecessors. However, that maybe offset by more features, better ergonomics, better accuracy, lighter weight, etc. that the current offerings have. Frankly, the tool companies seem to be competing pretty hard with each other.
As you surmised, we seem to agree on the other points.
Cheers,
Kyle
I have had the 6" random orbital sander for about 6 months and have been happy with it. Use it often, no complaints.
They appear to be trying to stay competitive in price, features and quality for the contractor market. Many of the products (cordless drills, 5" ROS, miter saws, etc.) are commodities these days. There won't be any surprises and you're going to get what you pay for. No Easter eggs out there, and not many sheeps in wolves clothing either. Take the time to check the features closely and get a feel for each candidate tool before buying.
A few of their tools, like the 6" ROS that is actually a Metabo, stand out in their class. Most of them, however, are just reasonably precise, convenient, and durable for a fair price.
I have a Rigid planer..now 4 years old...bought it, then "augmented" with a DeWalt, and just recently started using it heavily again. It's a dream compared to the DeWalt..in terms of smooth operation, noice, etc.
And I apparently have one of the "good" DeWalts that hasn't displayed any of the nasty problems that other folks have reported...
Given the choice, I'd do the Rigid again.
lp
I used a Ridgid 5 piece 18 v. set for a year and had no problems. In fact I believe that they have the absolute best battery/charger combination on the market. The charger is the best ever. 30 minuites, truly intelegent, cooling fan, dual battery. All the tools were excellent. My only complaint is that the circ saw uses an odd size blade and there are no real choices for it. I make most of my money remodeling and these tools are used hard, it is not uncomun for us to cycle the batteries 3 or 4 times in a day. That set was stolen a few months ago and I have since purchased a Dewalt set (it was $100 off). Over all I think that I like the Ridgid set better. The circ saw was beefier, and the shoe on the recip saw was adjustable. However the Dewalt light is much better. For wood working I'd think the drill is what is most importaint to you and the Ridgid drill is great. The only thing I didn't like is that it is really long from the chuck to the back. But I bought an impact driver so I didn't care so much.
Hope that helps,
Mike
I just picked up the Ridgid 3 piece combo kit this afternoon...and got a certificate for a free battery by mail, all for 299 bucks...I'll track the unconditional 90 day warranty and know by then if I made the right choice or not......the batts are charging right now. When I bought the PC 19.2 back years ago, the owners manual said to run the batt down until it "wouldn't perform the task I was doing", then recharge it. I've read the Ridgid manual cover to cover and see no mention of how low to draw the battery before recharging...nor have I found any info on the amp draw per hour with the ridgid batts.....some of the PC are 2.4 amp/hour...I think Bosch is a 3 amp/hour...no mention though on the Ridgids.....do you have any info about this???
There have been a couple of articles in the last year on how to maximize batter life in cordless tools. IIRC, they state clearly not to run the batteries all the way down. When there is noticeable loss of performance, you should re-charge. Most batteries have to go through 3 or 4 cycles to reach full potential.
Ryobi doesn't have the amp-hour info either. Couldn't find it anywhere!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
The Ridgid chop saw stand is sweet.
Funny that you ask about the Amp/hr rating. I asked everyone at HD and read all the lititure and found no mention either, also checked the web. I meant to call Ridgid and ask them but didn't. One of the mags (not FWW) did a test on 14.4 volt drills and the Ridgid had an average run time I think that Craftsman of all tools had the longest! I remember that the run time was just under Dewalt. That may be an indicator. Every battery tool I've owned says to charge as soon as a "loss in performance" is noticed. NEVER run it all the way down. Personaly I am very anal about cycling the batteries. The first 4 or 5 cycles I try to run them down to the loss of performance level then I charge them for a few hours (after the first 30 min it goes into a trickle mode). After that I recharge when ever I' ve used them enough (not necessarily run all the down though). Then every ten or so cycles I run them down all the way again. Even though people say that "charge memory" is a thing of the past, I can't help but worry about it. Heck, my cordless tools are the most importaint tools in my truck and also one of the most expensive. I do NOT want to replace them any sooner than necessary.
Enjoy the new tools,
Mikeplease excuse my spelling.
I'm not sure what to think on the batteries..my PC batts say to recharge as soon as performance decreases, but I ran them down to the point where they'd barely turn and I got 5 years and still running strong out of them......I think the memory issue was cleared up over 5 years ago, but like you I ran them down anyway to make sure.....BTW, I heard that if they did develop a memory, you could put them in your freezer for 24 hours, then let them thaw and recharge and that would resolve the situation...NO JOKE!! I've never tried it(never had to) but always kept it in the back of my mind......
first off, do NOT run the battery all the way down before recharging it. there's a very good article in the current issue of wood (feb/mar 05) on getting the most from your batteries. the multiple cells which make up modern rechargeable batteries all store charge and discharge at slightly different rates. running a battery all the way down risks fully emptying the charge on a cell while it's neighbors still have charge. even while idle, batteries are always slightly discharging. thus, current is flowing, which sets up an electromagnetic field. two cells having stored charge surround one without charge can cause a polarity shift in the "in-between" cell resulting from the neighboring cells' electromagnetic fields. (without an electromagnetic field of its own, the in-between cell can "adopt" the surrounding fields; the adopted field induces a current, albeit a weak one, in the direction of the neighboring cells, which is opposite the original direction -- battery cells are set up "spooned" in the battery pack, ie. plus-to-minus/minus-to-plus/plus-o-minus, etc.) with apologies to the un-interested for the physics explanation, the moral of the story is don't run the batteries all the way down. the wood article recommends charging when the tool starts losing power; that seems reasonable to me.back on topic: i bought the 4 piece 18v ridgid combo set last fall and added he jig saw when it came out, and have used all the tools a lot. went to build a storage loft in the garage, and quickly discovered my dewalt and craftsman "professional" cordless tools weren't going to do the job. so, i bought the ridgid. i figured with a 3yr warranty that covers even the batteries, and a 90 money-back guarantee, i couldn't go wrong. even before i finished the loft, i was convinced the ridgid tools were keepers: more torque on the drill, and a lot more run-time on the batteries. plus, as others have said, they charge in about 30 mins, so it's easy to keep one going. also, i decided to try charging a hot battery (a big no-no generally as charging a hot battery will usually kill it, but the guy at the HD had told me it would handle it as part of his sales pitch); the charge sensed the battery was hot, blew air through it until the battery cooled down, and then charged it. once the battery was full, it turned the charger off, but kept the battery cool. what a great charging system.since the initial loft, i've used the ridgid tools to build a loft extension (the other arm of the L), and the "dad part" of an eagle scout project (scouts aren't allowed to use power tools themselves) which involved cutting and drilling through a stack of pressure treated 4x4s and 2x4s, and drilling lots of holes into 3/4" galvanized pipe. also, cut up an old shelf and a rusted out wheelbarrow so they were easier to dispose of.my only complaint is that the tools are heavy. after hefting the drill for 4-5 hours, i'm pretty tired. so, i bought the impact driver. (plus, i wanted to try one out -- and i had 90 days to decide if i liked it.) so, recently, i picked up a 12v right angle impact driver (ridgid doesn't make an 18v impact driver), which i used to replace all the screws in our redwood deck (a few hundred square feet) -- got through it in a single charge, which is good since i only have the 1 12v battery. and get this: even though it's 12v, it uses the same chargers...as far as their cordless stuff goes, i'm totally sold. i'm waiting to see if an 18v impact driver comes out. if not, i'll probably buy the 14.4v one just to have a "drill style" with a little more torque if i need it.i've read good things about other ridgid tools, such as the 6" ROS, the benchtop planer, and jointer. also heard about an arbor problem with the ridgid TS: vertical wobble problems with stacked dadoes. in any event, i already have the major machines, except a belt/disk sander. but i'll probably buy the 6" ROS to augment my 5" porter-cable.hope this helps,
bertif it's worth doing at all, then it's worth doing well.
Thanks for the input...I've only had the ridgid for a few days now and thus far I'm happy. Haven't used it enough yet to get through the low cycle charging of the batts, can't wait until they come up to full steam and I can really try them out.What got me into this forum was the thread mentioning the sale of PC to Black and Decker, I've used the PC 19.2 for years and was sold on them UNTIL.....ahem....I started doing some checking around and have seen the dewalts used on job sites and they don't compare, even though they're advertised as the "professional" tool, especially the cordless lines..I tend to disagree and from what I've read on here a majority of others do as well. My personal experience as, far as Dewalts I've owned is :12 inch compound miter saw-ok....1/2 inch electric drill-junk. The guys on my sites are using dewalts and replacing batts yearly, my PC's are 5 years old and still going strong, but they are finally wearing out, so I bought the Ridgid combo kit. I love my PC and would buy another one in a heartbeat, if they were still owned by Pentair......
NY'er,
I should have contributed sooner.
I own two Ridgid tools -- a large shop vacuum, and a benchtop table saw. Both are the more recent orange variety.
The shop vacuum has been very reliable and powerful. It's had pretty extensive use.
I bought the Ridgid TS2400 a couple of weeks ago. So far, it's proven itself to be a great saw -- substantial design, smooth adjustments, very low vibration, and accurate. The fence on this saw is as smooth and accurate as any contractor saw on the market, or even some cabinet saws. My shop has somewhat limited space. I wanted a benchtop saw that would get as close as possible to contractor-saw capabilities but not take up as much space as a contractor saw. Because of the telescoping design of the fence, it only takes up as much space as you need for cutting, then goes back to being more compact.
Before I purchased the TS2400, I got my hands on the Bosch 4000 and the Ryobi BT3100. In my mind, the Ridgid was better, and when I got it into my shop I was very pleased. My only issue is that the mobile base the saw comes with is not as compact as I had wanted. I'm going to build a rolling cabinet for the saw.
Edited 3/4/2005 7:28 am ET by Matthew Schenker
Only the topic of Ridgid tools.
When I was in the market for a stationary planer, I looked at a number of them. The Delta 12" was the one I wanted, but for the cost of that one I got the Ridgid 13" planer with the stand in a package deal at Home Depot.
All in all, it has been a top notch performer. The anti-snipe lever works so well, you don't really need to worry about snipe ruining the fit of something. It is also so easy to use that it quickly becomes second nature. The height presets for specific thicknesses works but be advised they are sometimes off and you need to back the crank off when a really accurate depth matters. My friend borrowed it and was impressed enough to get one himself. The second generation of this planer is in stores but it seems to have been made more cheaply. The fit and finish is not nearly as good and there is more backlash in the crank and it is no longer bundles with a stand.
The next thing I got was a birthday present of their 3 in 1 shop vacuum. With all the fittings, it works extremely well cleaning up after the 13" planer. It sometimes doesn't collect things that get flung out the front of the planer when you plane things that are thicker and narrower than boards. When vacuuming carpet, it has too much power and tends to stick to the rug. The diffuser tends to blow loose items around like wood dust, hand plane shavings and small children or pets. The dust blower is a nice touch
I also needed a random orbit sander, so I got their variable speed 6" that has a switch to change between 1/4" and 1/8" orbits for finer work. The sander works extremely well with just the dust bag. Just like the planer, it has all the fittings to use the shop with it. When using it, a don't even worry about closing the door to keep the dust out of the rest of the house. There is also an LED on the plug so that you can tell the tools has power when you plug it in. It was more expensive ($230 Can) and for that price they could have included a better starter set of sanding discs.
One thing that stands out with all these tools was how well they take care of the problem of were to put the power cord after use. It the case of the planer and shop vac, they wrap around handles and have a small latch that attaches the plug to a loop of the cord. The sanders has a velcro strap to wrap it up. All in all, elegant.
I did try out a friends Ridgid bandsaw and it works decently. I prefer anothers friends Laguna but the comparison isn't fair as the Laguna cost about 3 times as much.
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