ToolSkool Reviews

It’s true, even if somewhat hard to admit, that smaller is better is some cases. That holds especially true for this saw. It’s not everyday that you’ll need to use a miniature reciprocating saw, but when you do, this is a pretty good choice.

The saw’s handle is sized well – you don’t have to struggle to get your hands around it in almost any position. The trigger and safety switch are ergonomically located and simple to use. The variable speed is smooth and responsive, and the power is ample for just about anything you can think of.

I used this saw in several locations around my remodel. I replaced the included blade with a longer “Torch” metal-cutting version from Milwaukee since I was going to be removing protruding nails. Both blades performed admirably.

The tool is small enough to find its way into tight spots that a full-size unit couldn’t even dream of. Couple that with the fact that holding it in any position over your head is worlds easier and it’s a winning combination.

I left it sitting for more than a week and was pleased that the charge held. I expected as much from the 18 volt lithium ion power plant, but you just never know these days. Batteries can get weird, to say the least. This one seems to have what it takes. 

The Ridgid came in handy on a hardwood flooring project when I had to remove some flooring nails from strips close to the wall. Thanks to its compact size and maneuverability, I was able to clip the nails without damaging the wood. Being smaller, it simply is more controllable than a full-size model in situations like this. 

My only complaint about this tool is the fact that it’s available only in a kit, packaged with an impact driver. Yes, I like both tools, but it would be great to buy the saw separately. I know it will likely happen in time, but patience is still something I have to work on.

You can find the kit at The Home Depot.  Or you might try one of these refurbished individual tools (no battery) or refurbished kits on Amazon.com. 

I highly recommend this tool from a performance and usability standpoint. It works…very well!.

A battery charger is a battery charger, right?  Not if it’s the Ryobi Intelliport Charging System.  The charger charges up to 6 Ryobi batteries at a time, and they can be either NiCad 18V One+ batteries, or 18V Lithium Ion One+ batteries.  

This charger is pretty self explanatory if you just take a look at the box, but after testing it,  I found the claims to be true as best as I could tell.  It has a 1 hour charge time, and charges each of the 6 18V batteries one at a time, in one hour or less… check, that worked in the test. 

The next thing you’ll see on the box is that the charger helps to maximize battery life by keeping them cool, which in turn keeps them operating a peak performance.  It charges the batteries only as needed, and the batteries that are stored on the charger don’t heat up too much, which is good since heat is a battery’s biggest enemy.  I assume this claim to be true, as the batteries are always ready to go, and they are not at all hot to the touch.  Another check!  Also, they have the energy star stamp of approval as a qualified battery charger for a better environment. 

The charger comes with a quick-release wall mount bracket that reduces workspace clutter.  The charger releases from the mount easily and the batteries are securely locked into place for transport.  The soft-grip handle at the top makes it easy to carry batteries to a jobsite or to your buddy’s house to help him or her finish the “honey-do” list.  

If you use the Ryobi One+ line of tools, the 6 port Supercharger is a great accessory to have.  Never be without power, and keep your batteries lasting longer!   You can find the charger anywhere from around $100 - $150, but here’s a link for $99.95.  Yes, that’s a chunk of change, but if time is money, you certainly get every penny’s worth.

So some of you are probably saying…  a portable fan on a tool review site?  Really?  To you, I firmly say: REALLY.  If you haven’t heard of the Ryobi One+ line, you either don’t live near The Home Depot or a rock has fallen on top of you.  Ryobi started this line several years ago with NiCad battery technology.  It’s a consumer line of tools that is at an entry-level price point, but with some pretty fun bells and whistles in a lot of cases.  Pros don’t usually go near this stuff, but the average Weekend Warrior can find some decent power and a wide range of tools and accessories to do a lot of jobs around the house.  And there are a lot of accessories, which makes gift-giving for Dad a bit easier.  

To get started in the One+ line, you first have to buy a tool that comes with a battery (like a drill driver) or you have to buy an 18V battery.  Once you have a couple of batteries, you can use them to power any of the tools or accessories in the One+ line.  Since the introduction of Lithium Ion, you can buy both platforms of battery, and they are also interchangeable with the line of tools.  

Back to the portable fan:  Ironically, when I got this fan to be tested, we had just had a flood in Nashville and the weather had just gotten extremely hot and sticky.  So, it was a good time to stick a battery in, turn it on and see if it would help dry out my basement, keep me cool in the workshop, etc..  

The first thing you notice about the fan is that it’s very lightweight, even with the battery attached.  It has a high and a low speed and an off position all on the same switch.  The fan itself if very well-balanced for carrying with the handles on the top, which made it extremely functional for carrying to various spots in my basement, and then up the stairs into the house, and even to locations for video shoots or jobs.  It’s even got a little “j hook” at the top that pops up if you want to hang it, but I never really found a need for that. 

What I did really like was the adjustable base, which made it very easy to blow the fan in several directions… So if I was sitting at my desk I’d point it towards me, or if I was standing in my basement working, I’d tip it back a bit further to blow the air higher.  

There really was no assembly.  You just took it out of the box (and it is NOT one of the tools that comes with a battery, so you have to already have a battery from the One+ line), plug in the battery, adjust the base to the direction you want, and flip the switch.  The run time listed on the box was five hours, but I found that it ran even longer than that if the battery (NiCad) was fully charged, and it even ran over 7 hours when I used my fat-pack Lithium Ion battery.  

Is it the most powerful fan in the world… No, but it was great for the portability it offered for moving around the shop, hauling up and down the stairs, etc… And  I didn’t have to keep it near a plug or drag an extension cord around.  With a price point of just under $30, it’s not all that unreasonably priced as long as you already own a couple of the One+ batteries (this tool is not one of the One+ line that comes with a battery).  Overall, I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked this fan, and how often I have used it in the month I’ve had it in my office / house.  For keeping cool in the shop, using when you’re outside at a garage sale, hauling between home and office, it’s a great solution.

Let me start by saying that I had one of the first-generation Ryobi battery-powered chain saws that came out several years ago. It was (and remains to this day) a trooper! I had used it several times before I even realized it required chain oil. That said, I had it about 15-20 feet in a tree and dropped it to the ground (accidentally). It survived the fall and my ignorance with flying colors.

Now, Ryobi has introduced their lithium-ion powered saw. I love it even more. I’ve never been a big fan of gas-powered chain saws, as I could never seem to get the fuel/oil mixture right and the saw never really wanted to start after my initial use. I have a Stihl that remains in its case to this day because I don’t want to hassle with the starter.

The Ryobi battery-powered saw got its first use this week when I tackled two large limbs that had fallen from a tall oak into my back yard. Of course, on the way down, one of them took out a skylight while the other left two 4-inch holes in my roof. But I digress. The Ryobi, on a fully-charged battery, took on the 6-inch oak limb (about 17-18 feet long) with flying colors. I was able to cut all but about 5 feet of the limb on a single charge – and that was with the smaller battery that Ryobi supplies. I think that if I had used the larger battery, I would have gotten through the entire limb.

It has a 10-inch bar, so the Ryobi isn’t designed to be a tool for downing huge timber, but it certainly is a great tool for eliminating the occasional fallen limb or even a small tree. It was actually my tool of preference for cutting the smaller limbs off a downed tree in my back yard some months ago (the first-generation tool, that is). With the addition of the lithium-ion power plant, this saw is a no-brainer for anyone who hates dealing with fussy gas machines.

I give the saw a thumbs-up for ease of use (press the safety and pull the trigger), and for doing a tidy job. Granted, it cuts more slowly than its petro-fueled cousins, but that’s to be expected…it’s a lighter-weight tool. For me, the additional wait time was minimal. A little pricey at $120 (found it online at that price today, but that is WITH the lithium ion battery that powers other One+ tools), but worth it, in my humble opinion. Just don’t forget to add the chain oil. ☺

For more information, click here. 

As you well know there are about a gazillion different cordless tools out there.  I admit, I don’t understand all of the differences between them, but I get a few of them.  We were very fortunate that when Porter-Cable® introduced their new line of lithium ion cordless tools, they sent a kit containing a drill, reciprocating saw, jigsaw, circular saw, flashlight, hand vac and a rotary saw to review.   In the world of me, that’s probably every handheld power tool that I can ever imagine using.
 

The first thing I ended up using was the vac.  Now I’m not a huge fan of the cordless hand vac in general.  I’ve always found them to have mediocre pick up ability and short battery life.  I was EXTREMELY impressed with this hand vac.  It has picked up everything that I’ve attempted, including gravel, and I have yet to have the battery quit before I did.  One of my favorite things about this hand vac is that the switch can be made to stay on continually, without having to hold the trigger in.  I totally dig that.

The recip saw was the bomb when it came to helping out with getting my shrubs and small trees shaped.  I had a lot of stuff that was too big for any of my trimmers and too small to even think about a chain saw (can you imagine what kinda damage I could do with a chain saw?).  I will have to say that anything bigger around than a wooden spoon handle needs a full charge and you can’t cut more than about 5 of them at that.  Let’s be honest though, any job bigger than cutting off a few branches, I dunno – have to really work up the energy for that.  I can’t say that a jobber would be that impressed with the run time, but for me, it’s sufficient for most stuff.

The only tool in the kit with which I was completely unimpressed was the spiral saw.  Since there’s no on-board tool storage, the wrench got lost between testing at the office and getting the kit home.  That is a HUGE black mark in my mind.  It cut okay in the test at the office, but then I couldn’t use it again – no bleedin’ wrench!  Not happy about that.

The rest of the tools worked as expected.  The battery life was just fine and the power (it’s an 18 volt lithium ion kit) was up to my tasks.  I don’t think I’ve ever used a flashlight as frequently as I have since testing this kit.  I’ve definitely hit that age where I’m a bit vision challenged here and there.
  

Let’s talk about the battery for a minute.  Porter-Cable® offers two batteries that work with these tools.  One of them is very short in stature, yet long on run time, referred to as the LX battery.  They also have an extended life battery known as the EX.  Both batteries are lightweight, but the LX battery is really, really lightweight.  I absolutely love it!  

You do have to watch out for pinching with both batteries on the circular saw.  But really the Circular Saw is designed to be used with the EX anyway.  I am also of the manner in which the batteries attach to the tools.  That whole bit of having to push in buttons on either side is challenging for me because of the span of my hands.  The Porter-Cable® method is a pushbutton on the back of the battery – much easier.  Now, what I don’t know is what kind of overall life I’m going to get out of these batteries.  I’ll have to let you know when I kill them.  One thing I will say is that I’m starting to notice that I have to make an extra effort to ensure the battery clicks in place.  I swap them between the tools pretty frequently.  If that becomes a real issue, I’m going to have a real problem.

All in all, I dig the Porter-Cable® line of lithium ion tools, with the exception of the rotary saw.  The grips feel pretty sweet, as well as the balance and weight on every single one of these tools.  While women weren’t the target audience for the line, we definitely get the benefit of the design.  Tools in this line that we haven’t tried with the exception of briefly at the PC press event:  area light, detail sander and impact driver. 

All trademarks referenced are the property of their respective owners. www.deltaportercable.com. 

Check out pricing for the Porter-Cable® Lithium Ion Tool Line at amazon.com.