4 ms·

I recently decided I will go for the cheap Chinese store brand power tools for most things. It's about 1/5 to 1/3 the price of Ryobi, gets really good reviews,

I recently decided I will go for the cheap Chinese store brand power tools for most things. It's about 1/5 to 1/3 the price of Ryobi, gets really good reviews, have been sold for more than 10 years now with the same batteries, and comes with a 5 year warranty which is 2 years more than ryobi. It's maybe not going to last 10 years, but at 1/5 the price it does not have to.

sedawkgrep 5mo ago
I think the rule of thumb for non-professionals is: Buy cheap and if you use it enough that it breaks, buy expensive the second time.
- jeffbee 5mo ago
  By following this rule you could easily end up with a tool that lasts forever but strips out all your screw heads.
  - MarkusQ 5mo ago
    Replace "breaks" with "fails to work as intended" then. A tool that doesn't break but does smell like a refinery or damages nearby electronics when used, gets strangely hot or inexplicably changes shape when idle, etc. should still be replaced.
  - jerf 5mo ago
    I don't think anyone is asking you to stupidly follow the advice off a cliff. You're welcome to call "stripping all your screw heads" broken and take appropriate action.
  - fatbird 5mo ago
    I don't follow this example. Isn't stripping screw heads a skills issue? How does a tool help/hurt with that?
    - everybodyknows 5mo ago
      Better machining on a Phillips tip really does help.
  - skeeter2020 5mo ago
    that's not an example of a tool that works, though.
  - flanked-evergl 5mo ago
    I don't think that is how screws work. I really have a hard time seeing how the drill makes a difference with that. The bit you use, sure. How you use the drill, sure. Maybe if the drill has a completely messed up clutch maybe, but then the tool is not functional and you should return it.
- bluGill 5mo ago
  All too often I've seen amateurs do this and thing think "don't blame the tool, I must be bad", when it really is the tool! A good craftsman never blames his tools is a reflection on the types of tool a craftsman has, not just the skill they have.
fatbird 5mo ago
Perfect. The dirty little secret of this strategy is that most people's uses just aren't that demanding, so the cheap stuff is more than sufficient. Additionally, breaking a cheap tool is a great indicator of where your real needs for quality lie, which is rarely where you think it will be.

sedawkgrep 5mo ago

I think the rule of thumb for non-professionals is: Buy cheap and if you use it enough that it breaks, buy expensive the second time.

jeffbee 5mo ago
By following this rule you could easily end up with a tool that lasts forever but strips out all your screw heads.
- MarkusQ 5mo ago
  Replace "breaks" with "fails to work as intended" then. A tool that doesn't break but does smell like a refinery or damages nearby electronics when used, gets strangely hot or inexplicably changes shape when idle, etc. should still be replaced.
- jerf 5mo ago
  I don't think anyone is asking you to stupidly follow the advice off a cliff. You're welcome to call "stripping all your screw heads" broken and take appropriate action.
- fatbird 5mo ago
  I don't follow this example. Isn't stripping screw heads a skills issue? How does a tool help/hurt with that?
  - everybodyknows 5mo ago
    Better machining on a Phillips tip really does help.
- skeeter2020 5mo ago
  that's not an example of a tool that works, though.
- flanked-evergl 5mo ago
  I don't think that is how screws work. I really have a hard time seeing how the drill makes a difference with that. The bit you use, sure. How you use the drill, sure. Maybe if the drill has a completely messed up clutch maybe, but then the tool is not functional and you should return it.
bluGill 5mo ago
All too often I've seen amateurs do this and thing think "don't blame the tool, I must be bad", when it really is the tool! A good craftsman never blames his tools is a reflection on the types of tool a craftsman has, not just the skill they have.

fatbird 5mo ago

Perfect. The dirty little secret of this strategy is that most people's uses just aren't that demanding, so the cheap stuff is more than sufficient. Additionally, breaking a cheap tool is a great indicator of where your real needs for quality lie, which is rarely where you think it will be.