Milwaukee Reviews

I bought this to replace my 15-year-old Porter-Cable 1/4-sheet palm sander, which lacked a dust bag.

What a letdown. I love my other Milwaukee tools (cordless and corded drills and Sawzall) but this tool is junk. It vibrates so badly that it skips across the surface of the wood. The clamp levers are so weak that one of them bent the first time I used it. And the pad is so flimsy that it was damaged in two places after a half hour of use. The P-C never suffered any such problems.

I've been working wood for over 40 years and have never used such a bummer of a power tool. I think I'll stick with my P-C.

I use palm sanders quite often at work for finishing. Compared to the Dewalt orbital palm sanders, the Milwaukee sander is a pleasure to use. It runs smoothly, has a stronger motor, and is well solidly constructed. I can feel quite a difference in vibration between the DeWalt and this one... after a half hour of using the Dewalt, I end up with tingly hands. This does not occur with the Milwaukee. Milwaukee's paper holding latches hold the paper securely, and never allows movement (again, can't say the same for the Dewalt). Top-notch unit all-around.

I've owned this sander for a few months. Therefore, I can't vouch for its long term reliability. I can, however, easily recommend it to anyone looking for a nice finish sander. It's a sweet little machine, fits the hand nicely, has a much better on/off switch than some. The paper attaching clamps work great. Quite simply, it's a pleasure to use.

I have recently switched from the DeWalt Timberwolf to the Hole Hawg because my friends told me to. I have since hung it up and lost two teeth and fell off my ladder. I thought this thing had a safety clutch like the DeWalt. Also, I can't get any leverage with the short body of the Hole Hawg. I am going to lose the Hole Hawg and keep my remaining teeth.

I use my Hawg on a daily basis, and if you respect its power and use it like a human being, you won't lose any teeth. The Hole Hawg is the standard in right angle drilling for a reason...extreme durability and big time power and torque. Not a stud in the world that can stop this drill, but remember, be careful or the power will bite you.

Be careful! The photo used has nothing to do with the product description. Lighted eyeshields are listed as a feature but not shown on in the photo.

Who knows what you'll get.

You get what you pay for. Best bench grinder i've ever used!!

I bought this tool three years ago and using it only occasionally have spent more on repairs than the tool cost in the first place. Don't waste your money like I did.

This Rotary Hammer packs a lot of punch for the money. The 11 amp motor runs smoothly and makes easy work of drilling 1-1/8" holes in concrete. Insert a flat chisel and break through block, brick and concrete with ease. The detachable cord is a nice feature; if it gets damaged you can get a new one and plug it in, instead of having to open up the machine. The tools vibration dampening system works very well and reduces operator fatigue dramatically. After 100 hours of use a service light will come on, and you will have about 8 hours of use left before the tool shuts down, and the tool will need to be serviced by a Milwaukee service center. A rugged metal case rounds out the package on this affordable, durable, made in USA tool.

This is a flat and sturdy plate for the fine BenchDog table. The lack of interchangeable rings is a real weak point, however. I've had to purchase two seperate plates with different size openings and then alternate my router between them. That's a real hassle when you are busy and in a hurry, not to mention expensive. The new aluminum plate is supposed to have different sized rings, however I have not yet seen it available.
-This product would have merited a "5 Star" rating were it not for this oversight in design.

I bought this Factory-Reconditioned for a great price, free super saver shipping, and no tax.

The notice in the box said it had been gone through at the company and was inspected mechanically and electrically.

Rite out of the box the AM radio worked but the FM did not!

All rite now what? I read the warranty, it says one year send it to an authorized service center. I looked it up on line and luck has it there is a shop 1/2 mile from where I work, no postage involved.

Okay, dropped it off figuring two weeks tops. Three weeks and I gave them a call to see what progress had occurred, parts ordered and expected any day.

Six weeks and I dropped by to see what the problem is, parts arrived its on the list maybe today or tomorrow. Parts were back-ordered they usually get them in within a week.

They call after seven and a half weeks, unfortunately it can't be fixed the rep is sending a new one which is not normal procedure.

At eight and a half weeks I have a brand new radio in my hands today. Milwaukee recommended two parts to try for repairs but that didn't work.

I can't give a review on the radio's performance, I thought every one would be interested in the experience I had to this point. Good or bad, I will let you decide.

The saw is functional and does what it is supposed to but the time it took to get it here was TOTALLY unsatisfactory. The fact that Amazon split the shipment between two manufacturers made this even more evident. One site shipped the same day and we got their part (the arbor) within the two days (GREAT JOB btw). The guys who shipped the second part (the saw) took their sweet time for whatever reason and we ended up having to find someone locally who had the saw that we could borrow to take care of the project. Now we've got the saw - it works fine - but we were REALLY disappointed that it took so long to get.

As a timber framer, I bought it to fill in between my Dewalt 8 1/4" and Makita 16". The thing that came in my shiny red box is all but useless as a tool. Some part of me hopes to read that Milwaukee never made a 10 1/4" saw and that what I bought was a backstreet knock-off. As others have said, the saw cannot be used for accurate deep cuts. If accuracy is not important, and your just looking for greater depth of cut, save some money and buy a cheap chainsaw. You will be happier with the results. I wish I had ponied up the money (about $465) for the Makita 10 1/4 the first time around, but here I go now. If after reading this you are still interested in this saw, I've got one for sale!

No offense to Taiwainese folks, I'm just big on domestic tools. Hey Amazon! Your Technical Data link says USA for Coutry of Manufacture. (I've noted in several instances of tools I know to be imported that the listing says they were made here.) The box, maybe but the saw was made in Taiwan. Maybe that was just the couple of these I've seen and used and the rest are made here (doubt it). Gave it two stars because even though it's junk, it's a Milwaukee and it's powerful. Not accurate like everyone else has said. Buy a Big Foot!

Complaints are overblown. I've used this for framing, fencing and decking without significant problems -- just a bit of fettling prior to each use.

Depth adjustment is by a WEIRD post-mount system -- never saw such a BIZARRE thing before. It's imperfect, but I can't suggest a better way to rigidly fix the position of blade-to-saw and get every bit of blade exposed for the deepest cuts.

Gauge of the base plate is a trade-off on weight (& balance) vs. durability. If I felt I couldn't rely on it, I'd have a steel plate base fabricated and fitted, but so far it works great.

Careful setup and periodic realignment are VITAL for accuracy on this beast (esp. as to pitch of cut -- that post-mount can shift), but take no real time once you learn the saw. [Hint: Take five minutes and fabricate a calibration slot block to keep the blade perpendicular to the base while tightening that crazy post-mount. Make extra calibration blocks for all angles you routinely use. Add a wide stand slot beside the blade calibration slot to provide a base to set the saw on between cuts, rather than dropping it on the ground to warp the plate, gall the plate and knock the saw out of alignment. Stop being a lazy, whinny dummy.]

I also use the Makita 5402NA 16-15/16" saw and the Skil HD5860 wormdrive 8-1/5" (as well as other great Bosch, Makita and Porter-Cable saws). Each one, like this, is a 5-star NICHE tool but only a 4-star GENERAL tool. Savvy?

i got this w the screwdriver. works fine doesnt fit as well as the one that came w the tool. may be defective but works and i got a good deal on it

The caps seem to be misaligned with the body of the battery. Although I can get it in there and it works fine, God forbid when its time to get it out. Very tough and onconvenient. Disappointed in the quality control. I have 3 of these Milwaukee drivers and none fit well so its definitely the batteries not the driver.

I must be lucky - the battery fits my screwdriver just fine, no jams.

The joker in India that assembled this thing should be fired (yes, it's made in India). The collet was installed backwards in the nut. I'd hate to think of what would happen if someone actually tried to use it as assembled.

Like another reviewer's, my collet was shipped from the factory assembled improperly, with the collet inserted backwards in the locking nut. Ridiculous. I was quite nervous about reversing the piece without damaging the brand-new parts, but they are basically pressure-fitted, and can be removed and reinstalled with a pair of (strong) bare hands.

Now it works fine, although I find installation of bits more of a nuisance than with my Bosch router.