Battery powered tool systems

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FlyingPete

112 posts

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#306173 3-Jul-2023 09:14

Hi all,

I currently use the Ryobi One+ 18v tool system, however my experience with their tools is mixed. I find in cases where there are a number of options of a given tool such as a drill the top of the range ones are good, however if there is a singular option them mileage may vary.

Because of this I am looking at getting into another system, I don't think I will move off all my Ryobi stuff anytime soon though.

What other systems do people find provide a good range of options with a higher standard than Ryobi but without a huge price premium. The guy at the local Bunnings pointed me towards AEG but that is just one opinion.

Use wise I am a home based hobbyist so the tools probably get heavier use than DIY but not as much as a tradie.

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7616 posts

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#3098831 3-Jul-2023 09:18

AEG appears to be sold in the US as Rigid - well regarded by DIY'ers and semi-professionals there.

Mike

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richms

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#3098891 3-Jul-2023 10:08

I have ryobi, milwaukee and makita. Gets annoying seeing the deals in the US on tools vs what we get here. Almost worth taking a trip just to get some.

Richard rich.ms

cshwone

1003 posts

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#3098896 3-Jul-2023 10:18

I paid the NZ premium for Dewalt Batteries and Charger, but the tools themselves come from Amazon or Home Depot in the US as skins/bare tools.

neb

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#3099096 3-Jul-2023 15:32

AEG is just another Techtronic brand, same as Milwaukee, Ryobi, and many others, so I'd go by user reviews rather than the brand name.

I like Einhell (= Ozito PXC, another alias brand) because you get decent enough gear for the price as long as you don't go for the cheapest stuff, they have a huge range, and you can pick up any new skins you need at your nearest Bunnings. You also get really good deals if you wait for their half-price specials, e.g. 4Ah batteries for $49, and they're good quality unlike the DeWalt ones. If it's for casual home use that'll be fine.

nickreno

26 posts

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#3099132 3-Jul-2023 16:24

I have AEG and although it is fantastically powerful I regret it as broken tools are out of action for a few weeks vs. immediate in-store replacement for Ryobi etc. If you will be using them for a big project, it is a huge pain for the circular saw / drill / etc to die in the middle of it and things to pause for the repair centre to declare the tool dead. The AEG warranty (6 years) has been honoured and each tool has been repaired / replaced when broken, and over the past 6 years this has been 3x for the circular saw, 3x for the drill, 1x for the reciprocating saw, etc, and although the wait has not been great I hate to think what it would have been like had I ordered the tools from overseas...

neb

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#3099139 3-Jul-2023 16:33

nickreno:
The AEG warranty (6 years) has been honoured and each tool has been repaired / replaced when broken, and over the past 6 years this has been 3x for the circular saw, 3x for the drill, 1x for the reciprocating saw, etc,

Unless you're beating these to death, that seems like a strong argument for avoiding AEG like the plague.

Many years ago a major US home appliance brand ran a huge ad campaign touting their warranties and service centers and how easy it was to get their products repaired when they broke. They actually turned the poor quality of their products into a marketing feature.

Not saying Techtronic (AEG) is like this, but if you're that reliant on warranty replacements to keep your equipment running...

nickreno

26 posts

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#3099149 3-Jul-2023 17:25

Einhell make a lot of the different brands - AEG is their higher quality tool but I'm also surprised at how many have broken, the circular saw was eventually replaced for free & the newer unit seems a lot more solid than the older model. The tools are being used extensively though - e.g. the drill has easily drilled 10k holes for rivets as part of DIY kitset home construction (the rivet gun is milwaukee and hasn't broken yet but probably cost the same as all the black-friday AEG tools together).

larknz

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#3099203 3-Jul-2023 19:38

The Ryobi brushless tools are pretty good, with a great warranty.

Lias

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#3099208 3-Jul-2023 19:56

My dad has AEG stuff and likes it.. I've got Ozito PXC and for a fraction of the price of his AEG stuff I'm pretty damned happy with it.

I'm a geek, a gamer, a dad and an IT Professional. I have a full rack home lab, size 15 feet, an epic beard and Asperger's. I'm a bit of a Cypherpunk, who believes information wants to be free and the Net interprets censorship as damage and routes around it.

djtOtago

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#3099209 3-Jul-2023 19:58

nickreno:

Einhell make a lot of the different brands - AEG is their higher quality tool but I'm also surprised at how many have broken, the circular saw was eventually replaced for free & the newer unit seems a lot more solid than the older model. The tools are being used extensively though - e.g. the drill has easily drilled 10k holes for rivets as part of DIY kitset home construction (the rivet gun is milwaukee and hasn't broken yet but probably cost the same as all the black-friday AEG tools together).

According to https://www.protoolreviews.com/power-tool-manufacturers-who-owns-them/

TTI (Techtronic Industries) Make AEG tools, along with Ryobi and Milwaukee

neb

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#3099211 3-Jul-2023 20:02

Lias:
My dad has AEG stuff and likes it.. I've got Ozito PXC and for a fraction of the price of his AEG stuff I'm pretty damned happy with it.

How old is his AEG stuff? In other words is it genuine AEG or Techtronic AEG?

(Not saying that it turned to garbage when Techtronic took over, but it certainly became a different product over time).

Lias

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#3099216 3-Jul-2023 20:21

neb:
Lias:

My dad has AEG stuff and likes it.. I've got Ozito PXC and for a fraction of the price of his AEG stuff I'm pretty damned happy with it.

How old is his AEG stuff? In other words is it genuine AEG or Techtronic AEG? (Not saying that it turned to garbage when Techtronic took over, but it certainly became a different product over time).

I think his stuff is about 5 years old so from what I can see that'd be the newer stuff.

neb

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#3099217 3-Jul-2023 20:33

Lias:
I think his stuff is about 5 years old so from what I can see that'd be the newer stuff.

Yeah, the Techtronic takeover was about 20 years ago. My mitre saw is early Techtronic AEG, the time period when they were constantly fiddling with things so the exact same model number could be half a dozen different variations, all mostly incompatible for parts.

Hammerer

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#3099383 3-Jul-2023 22:19

I’ve noticed that Ryobi 18V often has average designs for their new tool types but they make improvements in the next generation or two. This has been the case for about half the Ryobi tools I bought or tried including drills and drivers, portable and stick vacuum cleaners, lawn scarifier, lawn mowers, leaf blowers, etc. Though I’m still waiting for the improved design to come in several areas.

Every few years, I look at moving from Ryobi but it is difficult to get better value for money in any range and Ryobi have probably improved more than the competition. Much of their range, mainly those top of the line tools, are clearly competing with trade tools. Also, AFAIK, Ryobi are the only company who have committed to keep their 18V batteries using the same connector - although it has the disadvantage of being too bulky - whereas most of the other brands have caught people out with incompatible battery designs.

When it comes to finding better tools than Ryobi you don’t necessarily need to spend more. I went down rather than up and found Ozito/Einhell better value and performance for some tools - the best has been the $500 2x18V lawn mower (not the cheaper narrow deck one which only uses one battery at a time). Although their batteries don’t perform as good as the more expensive brands, they’ve had better price-performance and the tools I selected work well.

If you are prepared to pay a premium over Ryobi then I’d also consider Makita because they can be bought from almost every hardware store and have the best battery deals I’ve seen. A lot of their tool specials involve bonus free or very cheap batteries. That could help reduce the changeover cost of getting into another range.

Actually, I notice that AEG are offering similar battery deals by online redemption. https://www.aegpowertools.co.nz/promotions

By the way, not much has changed in 20 years since I was choosing between Ryobi, AEG and Makita. As you can see in a similar topic from 2015.

FailedWOF

39 posts

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#3099411 4-Jul-2023 02:39

All of my battery tools are AEG. I haven’t had a problem with the battery ones since I bought my first a decade ago (touch wood). Even the batteries from that kit are still going strong.

- 1/2” impact wrench
- Impact driver
- Hammer drill
- Inflator
- Multitool

The 1/2” impact replaced a Dewalt which, anecdotally, needed many more ugga duggas to crack my wheel nuts (torqued to 120Nm)..

The only AEG tool I had a problem with was a corded random orbital sander that stopped randomly orbiting (just spun like an angle grinder). Had a new one in a couple of days though, but was annoying at the time.

Also have a couple of other corded AEG tools:

- Hammer drill (for when a bit more oomph is needed)
- Multitool (bought this before the battery one because the price was sharp at the time, but then the cord just become annoying)

The rest of my tool wall is a mix of Makita (125mm angle grinder, 185mm circular saw), Ryobi (hedge trimmer, wet/dry vac), and Bosch (laser level, range finder). All have been fine so far, although (ironically) the Ryobi vac could suck a bit better.

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