# Ryobi vs Porter Cable



## jss344 (Jan 6, 2006)

I am in the process of buying beginner power tools. To start off with, looking for cordless drill/impact driver kit, cordless recip. saw, corded circ. saw, corded orbital sander, and corded jig saw. I am having a hard time deciding between the two. I hear PC has always been a good brand name but ryobi has come along way to be a decent brand. I know there are way better brands but I'm just a beginner diy and not in the market for professional/commercial grade brands. Any input would be appreciated.


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## Sgrem (Oct 5, 2005)

They all do the same thing and are all very similar....what it comes down to is the warranty. Rigid has a lifetime warranty....even on the batteries. The batteries will be useless long before the tool is worn out. Rigid is the only one that warranties that batteries. Otherwise they are all very similar...

I have had Ryobi, Makita, Dewalt, Black and Decker, etc....the batteries all went to poop....have Rigid now....


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## Its Catchy (Apr 10, 2014)

I think it depends on just how much you are going to use them. For a contractor I would recommend spending the extra money on the good stuff. For the average guy working around the house Ryobi will probably be OK.

I have a cheap 99.00 Hitachi chop saw. I have made thousands of cuts with it, dropped it off a Tree House, left it in the rain several times. It still works and cuts straight.


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## hudsonc (Sep 4, 2012)

i have always been partial to Dewalt and also did have PC stuff at one time and liked those, much better than the very few Ryobi tools. Batteries on all peter out way before the too as mentioned above. I have a Hitachi drill and impact combo that is strong, holds a charge, and is very light, very happy with it. Had about 3 years now, but only use occasionally. Milwaukee also good.


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## richg99 (Aug 21, 2004)

You pay for quality. If you are going to use the tools a lot...or expect to have them for 20 years...then buy the quality brands mentioned above.
I have a number of them.

At the same time, though, if the use is occasional, and you'd like to have a greater number of tools .....that will be needed for occasional home-owner type projects, ......then .......I've bought a couple of Harbor Freight drills, etc. that have lasted 5 or more years. They are often heavier, and not as well made, but do the occasional job just fine.

With their coupons and sales on all of the time, you can fill a home-owner tool box quickly.


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## bonehead (Jan 25, 2009)

I really like my porta cable 20v I got . Only had them a few weeks . Been a dewalt guy for years and just made the switch .


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## od (Mar 20, 2009)

Have had a Ryobi set I get bought refurbished about 15 years ago (drill,flashlight,sawzall,,and circular saw with hard plastic case and charger) and still kicking. My drill was starting to get a burnt smell when I used it and the batteries were going down and was just about to buy another battery during the Xmas holidays but bought a new drill, charger, and battery in a soft pack for just a little bit more that the battery itself. Well now both batteries are kicking the bucket and while at the Outlet Stores on 290 there was a store that sold all the tools and accessories and other stuff so I couldn't pass up the option to buy an new lithium battery for $59. It was the big one 4X. Just saw them at Home Depot for $99 today. Beware that the BLUE Ryobi battery charger (for cadium batteries) will NOT charge the new Lithium batteries But the Lithium battery charger WILL charge them both. Lithium charger is for $29 at Home Depot. Good luck.


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## TheSamarai (Jan 20, 2005)

what u get in a pricier set is something that is lighter, more ergonomically designed, and more power. Im a fan of good power tools, dewalt and makita, pay a little more but when u need it gets the job done. That being said, only my drills are cordless (just a conveniece for screws), everything else is corded so i never worry about battery issues.


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## KW (Jan 25, 2006)

The only bad cordless tools I've hade were the Harbor Freight specials. But, they did the job. For little projects around the house they were fine. If your a contractor then Dewalt or Porter Cable. They are the same company as MAC Tools. They are all made by Stanley Black and Decker. But, for home projects Ryobi is hard to beat. Go with the Li batteries and get the 8 bank charger. Also if price is a concern there is a store on the south side of the outlet mall in TX City that sales them at quite a discount, granted a lot of what they sale are remanuf. But worth the price.


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## Wordsaw (Apr 17, 2013)

For many years, Porter Cable was a premium brand, but was re-branded as an economy line after it was purchased by DeWalt's parent company. That being said, there's nothing wrong with P-C or Ryobi. About 90% of the cost of any cordless drill is the batteries anyway, so when the batteries die, throw the whole thing out and start over.


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## BadBob (Dec 16, 2010)

i see this is an old thread but whatever, porter cable is very good for the price and you will need that warranty for rigid as the batteries are terrible and wont last.
I used porter cable and never had problems but my new company was all about that warranty on rigid and i HATE using them


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## Wordsaw (Apr 17, 2013)

BadBob said:


> i see this is an old thread but whatever, porter cable is very good for the price and you will need that warranty for rigid as the batteries are terrible and wont last.
> I used porter cable and never had problems but my new company was all about that warranty on rigid and i HATE using them


I've had a similar experience with Ridgid. The batteries didn't last long and when I went to return them, Home Depot acted like I was from another planet. It's like they had never been asked to make good on their "lifetime warranty." I mean they absolutely could not figure out how to take back the old batteries and replace them with new ones. In the end, they gave me a whole new drill kit. Which was fine, except the new batteries in that kit didn't last any longer than the old one.


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## Gottagofishin (Dec 17, 2005)

Between the two, I would pick porter cable. That said, you should buy the best you can even if it means buying one or two less tools.

My cordless stuff is all dewalt 18V simply because I got a couple of cordless 18v dewalts about 12 years ago, and I have enough batteries now that I can just buy the tool without the batteries.

My corded tools are almost all Makita. Hard to beat Makita.

If I was starting over, I would go with Makita or Dewalt 20v for cordless.


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## cva34 (Dec 22, 2008)

*my 2c*

I've got and had (used and abused )Dewalt 1/2 drill/1/4 impact driver/skill saw and they been V good..Upgraded to Lithium Battery recently and Thats a real ++++....A couple years back I bought a (Looks like suitcase full of Ryobi 1/2 drill/skill saw/Vac/sawsall/skill saw/charger and dead battery..For 40 buck at a garage sale..How can you go wrong..I went ahead and bought 1 lithium battery at HD.So I could check things out..And to my surprise all worked OK..And to my to date I have bought a couple more Lithium batterys The drill ain't no dewalt but its my favorite its light /small and geterdone.The Sawsall is a work horse esp for trim trees and even cut a few railroad ties...And Skill saw V good too.So in the end as a home user and abuser Ryobi ain't bad...My son runs A/C crews in Dallas and he said they going to Ryobi and had good luck..There not the best, but (way more cost effective) where tool are lost or stolen before you wear them out..


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## peckerwood (Jun 9, 2012)

There's a Black & Decker parts store in Fort Worth that sell Dewalt parts too.First I've heard of in another post that Dewalt bought Porter Cable.I bought Ryobi stuff for a house remodel and it done just fine and we just finished my sons total gut remodel with the same tools with no problems at all.I've even bought a portable table saw,mitre saw,and drill press,all Ryobi.


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