Over at Home Depot, today’s deal of the day features this Ryobi 18V 5-tool cordless combo kit, P1897N, on sale for $149.
The kit comes with a drill, impact driver, circular saw, reciprocating saw, worklight, charger, tool bag, and (2) compact Li-ion batteries.
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Here are the things to be aware of: the circular saw is a small 5-1/2″ size, the work light looks to have a bulb-type emitter (e.g. it looks to be non-LED). Other than that, these are all basic tools.
This looks to be an okay starter kit for DIYers and casual hobbyists. It’s an entry-level combo kit at a decent price.
But if it wasn’t a “deal of the day” today, nothing about this kit would have stood out to me. Still, it might make for a good housewarming gift, or something like that.
Deal ends at 4am 12/1/2016 unless supplies run out sooner.
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I saw mention of a lowish priced Ridgid 18V combo kit in the “related products” list. While not including any brushless tools, or any of the latest Gen5X tools, this combo kit is priced at $289. It might be worth checking out.
See Also(Ridgid Kit)
The yeti
Wow that whole ryobi kit. For about the same money I spent on any one bosch tool . I can see why guys go neon
Pete
More tools per dollar to accomplish more tasks not to mention ryobi sells yard tools for the 18v line… i switched from makita and have love it.
fred
Ryobi certainly has carved out what seems like a nice niche for themselves. The fact that they stayed with a backward compatible stalk-connection battery design is also interesting – and certainly appealing to homeowners who are not accustomed (or don’t want to be) to changing out tools on a regular basis. Some of their tools get pretty good ratings from buyers – but I still don’t hear (perhaps with the exception of the Air-Strike 15ga and 18ga nailers ) that they are making much of an inroad into commercial use.
The yeti
I own a small gas powered ryobi chainsaw . It’s great for my limited needs . Actually owning it . Has given me faith in the brand . If I were starting over buying tools . I’d look at ryobi early on .
Koko the Talking Ape
Yes indeed. I have bought some entry-level Ryobi tools, usually because it was something I don’t ever use, but I happened to need it right then. For that purpose, they are fine. Mostly they sit on the shelf (I think one was a 4 1/2 angle grinder.)
For tools that I use often, I usually get something that gets good reviews, has good ergonomics, and some of the newer technology (brushlessness is nice.) Usually the increased durability, power, versatility, etc. justifies the higher price, even when the better tool costs twice as much as the cheapie.
But these tools are not just cheap. They are super cheap. Crazy cheap. Sure, the the nice Bosch drill is worth double the price, but is it worth 4 x the price? Will it last 4 times longer? (I am ballparking the drill, driver and circ saw at $30 each, less for the other tools.)
So I suppose another approach would be to treat these entry-level tools as semi-disposable. If you get one season of use out of that drill and toss it, you might still come out ahead. You can give away the other tools, or use them to make some avant-garde sculpture, or whatever. (I wonder if that light bulb in the flashlight can be replaced with an LED.) I hate the idea of disposable tools, though.
So yet another approach might be to think of this package as an entry to the Ryobi 18 V battery system, with some dainty tools tossed in so that you can get working right away. Ryobi offers a pretty big spread of 18v tools. Weird way to think of a big box of tools, but there it is.
Adam
For $11, you can replace the bulb in the Ryobi incandescent lights with a drop-in LED replacement: https://www.superbrightleds.com/moreinfo/flashlight-bulbs/1-watt-flashlight-bulb/372/#/tab/Overview
I did this for an old blue/black light from the early Ryobi 18V days, and to a neon green/gray one from a clearance drill/light kit I’d bought to get lithium batteries when they first came out. Both work like a charm, and the batteries last essentially forever, it’s not as hot, and no filament to break (all for the price of a 2-pack of replacement bulbs).
Derek
Are the drill/impact cheaper less powerful versions?
Cr8ondt
They are the ones that come in the commonly sale priced kit of $99 if I’m not mistaken. So entry level regular line, the recip saw also appears to be the older model.
abnormalist
Everything in this kit I have, I have also already bought better options from Ryobi on most of it on already, and everything in this kit is the “old” or lower model. That said its not like they dont do the job.
Recip saw, circular saw, impact driver, and drill are all older models. Even the flash light and the charger have better options out there.
That said I own the drill and for most jobs it works, I have that impact and it does the job well for a single speed impact.
Circular saw is good for up to 2x stuff, just don’t push it and let it run at its speed. The recip saw is nice for its size, but its somewhat under powered and gets hot if you really work it. I’ve used mine for tearing down pallets and it can get too hot to hold after 3-4 pallets in short order.
I agree with another commenter that replacing the bulb in the flashlight with the $11 LED is a good solution, a better one though is their newer LED flashlight.
And the charger, well its a charger. Its the slower of the two that are generally available, but i have three hanging on the back of my garage, so I can charge 3 batteries at the same time. It works well there.
The batteries included are the crappy p102 1.3ah one, they work, but no fuel gauge. Grab some p108s to go with it and you’re doing a lot better.
Cameron
seems like a killer deal for the casual DIYer, like me.
Jon
My old Ryobi cordless drill from 2007 still works like a charm with the li-ion batteries. NiCd batteries hold zero charge at this point but pop in a li-ion battery kit and it still drills with the best of’em!
Of course, my go-to drill is now a Ridgid 18v but the Ryobi has helped me out in a pinch. For the casual DIYer, it’s a great value!
Cameron
I sent the link to my wife, found them under the Christmas tree. I haven’t used them much, but they do what they’re supposed to do. I don’t see the circ saw cutting more than sheets of plywood, but that’s about 99% of my circ saw needs. I haven’t tried out the recip saw yet. The drill and driver both work fine.
jason. w
Pretty sure this kit often drops to 129.99 rather often.
Pete
Ive never seen THIS kit at that price. They sell one with out the recip saw and and a smaller circ saw for that price- it was the kit my wife wanted lol. She enjoys the small saw- small+light & easy to handle for her crafts
Jon
A similar kit was available on Black Friday for $119 but it did not include the impact driver.
Johnn
I have this Riyobi kit from last year when it was $149. It’s fine for what it is and I have been very happy with it’s performance for a home user.
firefly
The price is good. I don’t know about Ryobi but I have the rigid drill and I wasn’t too impressed. It’s very loud. I was taken back the first time I use it. I did some research online and other have notice the same thing.
I was in either the HD or Lowes the other day and I saw the same rigid drill on display along with many other. The rigid drill is loud and so was another no name brand that I forgot. The Dewalt, Makita that were on display were much quieter. I have use a Milwaukee and Bosch drill before, they were also much quieter.
Don’t give me wrong, the rigid drill is powerful but the noise factor is definitely something to take note of. Plus I have also read mixed review on the Rigid lifetime warranty. It’s definitely a YMMV.
Jon
I used the Ridgid lifetime warranty a few months ago. I dropped my drill in my garage and the internal fan blades broke off. Brought it to HD and they had it fixed in less than a week, no charge. Funny thing about it is that the repair guy at HD said it was going to cost Ridgid around $80 in parts + labor to fix the drill which seems rather inefficient when they could have just given me a new one for less cost to them.
Anyways, I used the lifetime warranty and had no issues getting my drill fixed.
Anton
The $199 6 piece kit is a much better deal in my opinion. It has an occicilating tool and the upgraded batteries and upgraded drill and driver.
ktash
Lowes has Porter Cable 20volt 7-pc kit for $129. Ad says four piece, but add in the 2 batteries and charger. Same items as the Ryobi Kit but no driver. https://www.lowes.com/pd/PORTER-CABLE-4-Tool-20-Volt-Max-Lithium-Ion-Li-ion-Cordless-Combo-Kit-with-Soft-Case/50353174 Just FYI. Add says good thru 12/5.
I like Ryobi and have a similar kit for a similar price. I still haven’t used the circular saw, but plan to soon. I like Ryobi because the batteries are affordable and they are good tools to use out of doors*, to loan to others, etc. They interchange with yard tools, like a weed whip, hedge trimmer, leaf blower. I like the fact that the batteries are not frequently redesigned, etc. The hold their value.
*My woodworking power tools don’t go outside (Makita, Bosch). They might catch cold :p
Stuart
Of the 2 brands, I’d buy into Ryobi’s lineup sooner than Porter Cable.
I bought a Porter Cable 18V grinder/cut-off tool, and it’s a paperweight now because I can’t get replacement batteries. Well, at least not PC Li-ion packs.
I don’t expect them to revamp their battery form factor any time soon, and I really like certain Porter Cable 20V Max tools and accessories, but the brand has a serious identity issue.
I’d like to see some serious expansion of Porter Cable’s 20V Max lineup until I’d consider them on even ground with Ryobi.
They are trying, though.
I guess if the price was right, I’d look at PC if all I wanted was a cordless kit or combo kit.
ktash
Good to know, Stuart. PC used to be a top brand, but has fallen. I’d heard that it happened when DeWalt bought them and decided to make DeWalt the “better” line and PC the lesser one. Not sure if this is accurate. But what you say fits with that story.
In thinking it over, I’d go with Ryobi again if starting out. Ryobi is kind of what Craftsman power tools used to be, an affordable, dependable basic brand that would serve a homeowner well for a long time.
Stuart
Porter Cable used to be pro-grade. And in a lot of cases they still are.
But if SBD engineers come up with a great new tool for professionals, should it be Dewalt or Porter Cable branded? Well, Dewalt has the stronger reputation, so that would be my choice. So what gets branded under Porter Cable?
PC had strong cordless and power tool sales at Lowes, but Lowes seems more focused on their Kobalt line now. You won’t find PC at Home Depot. Or at industrial suppliers.
So… with fewer retail channels, and less innovations, it’s kind of tough for PC to stretch their wings, let alone grow.
Part of the problem is that Porter Cable doesn’t know what kind of tool brand it wants to be. The other part is about what kind of tool brand can it be? It lives in Dewalt’s shadows, and on the other end of the spectrum there’s Black & Decker.
fred
As you know al three brands used to offer professional grade tools here in the US. Initially Dewalt was the weak sister – mostly focused on their radial arm saw – but then once acquired by Black & Decker they were built into their pro-user brand. I guess a good think – because B&D had seriously damaged their own brand with lots of orange-colored junk sold at discount home centers. Porter Cable meanwhile was owned by Rockwell International (the aerospace conglomerate) and was focused on high-end tools – mostly for woodworking. When Rockwell was splitting up – PC was sold to Pentair. Then Pentair sold PC to B&D – who tried to position the PC brand below Dewalt and above B&D. I don’t have high hopes for PC any longer – but still have a batch of their vintage corded tools – some of which are still near the top of their class. My analogy is that PC may end up being like Mercury in the Ford lineup – neither a Ford nor a Lincoln – so something that may end up disappearing.
ktash
Interesting Fred. The person who told me about the decline of PC was a woodworker. I think that was what he had in mind. I’m a hobbyist woodworker and have used (but not owned) older PC routers for dovetailing with the PC jig. They still sell the jig and it is the most popular entry-level dovetail jig. It is excellent. But the newer PC routers are not as stable on that jig because of the form factor. It would be a shame if they faded away completely. Perhaps they should focus on the woodworking market. My first set of woodworking drills were the PC 12-volt because they were small and easy to maneuver inside cabinets. As the batteries weakened, the 12-v Bosch drills were available on closeout for less than a new set of batteries. I use the Bosch now, but the PCs had many advantages.
fred
Our first cordless drill were 12V NiCad – PC Magnequench. When we bought them the competition was a 9.6V Makita. The PC’s were an actual working tool – and our first cordless. I think we ending up having nearly 30 of them. PC also made the first random-orbit sander – based on an angle grinder body. I still have one – particularly good for rough work – like my big wood garage door. My PC “Locomotive style” sander is also a workhorse. In my home shop I still use my 3 vintage PC routers – my favorite is the D-Handle one. In our cabinet shop – we had a batch of Betterley routers – based on PC guts – and we had their lock-mortising machine . My Rockwell-PC 4-1/2 inch worm gear saw is still useful – even though I’ve mostly replaced it with a Festool track saw
Patrick H
It’s all entry level tools in this kit, i don’t feel its that fantastic of a deal. I saw someone else mention the $199 kit with the oscillating tool, that is a much better pickup in my opinion. Those are more mid level Ryobi tools. This kit is almost entire the low end ones. These are the lower quality lithium batteries as well.
I have slowly been switching from Craftsman C3 to Ryobi and selling off my C3 tools as I go. I am about 3/4 of the way there. I have been much happier with Ryobi so far and feel much more secure about the brand, that it will be around and that it has ongoing R&D on new and improved tools. Plus before I decided to switch I took a careful look at the two lineups, almost across the board Ryobi seems to have tools that are a touch better at the high end but still manage to be 10-15% less than competing C3 tools on average.
I think Ryobi is an ideal DIY brand that actually has decent pro upside particularly on their higher end tools.
Tyler
Home depot has a one day deal (12/1/16) going on under Special Buys, $500.00 Dewalt 9 Piece OR Milwaukee 9 Piece Set