6 Of The Best Milwaukee Tools For Beginners

When you are starting out with power tools, it can be overwhelming to figure out what you should add to your collection. Milwaukee sells a vast array of tools with different motors. Additionally, there are three different battery systems — some of which have different battery types. It can be confusing which direction to go and what kind of tools you'll need to purchase that will be the most useful for you.

In this list, there is a mix of brushed and brushless tools. Brushed power tools tend to be a bit cheaper — however, you may find that you'll need to put more maintenance into the motor later down the line. Brushless tools are more expensive but are said to need little to no maintenance. Additionally, popular tools like drills come in both Milwaukee's M12 and M18 battery lines. More aggressive power tools that need extra power can be found in the MX FUEL line. In the end, it's up to you what kind of motor or battery system you purchase.

Based on thorough research of product page user ratings and reviews, professional tool reviews, and other information avenues, here are six of the best Milwaukee tools for beginners. A more in-depth explanation of our methodology can be found at the bottom of the article.

A drill is one of the most well-known and versatile tools that every beginner should have in their arsenal. You can use it to place screws in walls to hang pictures, assemble furniture, mix paint, polish surfaces, and other jobs with useful drill extensions. At $129 and with a 4.5 out of five-star rating, Milwaukee's M18 18V Cordless 1/2 Inch Drill Driver is an affordable brushed option that still gives you the power from the M18 battery system. Even the YouTube channel VCG Construction comments on how they started with this drill years ago, and it is still running strong.

It has simple features that you expect from a drill such as two-speed modes, a forward and reverse control switch, and a 17-position clutch. With this drill, you can expect between 450-1,800 RPM and 500 in.-lbs. of torque. Additionally, it comes with a five year warranty bought brand new.

However, there is a cheaper option for the same drill. For $93, Acme Tools sells it reconditioned, which means it was previously owned but the company restored it to near-perfect conditions. The warranty on reconditioned tools through Acme Tools is one year. It may seem a bit nerve-racking to purchase a tool that's been owned by someone else, but on the product page and Reddit discussion boards, many of the reviews state that the tool looked and worked like it was brand new and the experience with Acme Tools was good.

As a beginner cultivating a power tool arsenal, a rotary tool may not seem like something to buy, but it can make all the difference when you do need it, especially if you don't want to deal with the high vibrations of other power tools. It is a versatile tool that can be used to cut through all types of material, sand in tight corners, grind down metals, and remove rust. As part of Milwaukee's M12 battery system, the 12V Cordless Rotary Tool costs $99 at Home Depot and other stores that sell Milwaukee tools.

At 1.4 pounds without the battery, it's a fairly light handheld tool, so you can easily and accurately maneuver it. There are also six speed settings that can go anywhere between 5,000-37,000 RPM. Additionally, it has a shut-off function, so if you're cutting something and it gets in a bind, it will immediately turn off taking pressure off the motor. This rotary tool comes with a 4.3 out of five-star rating from over 1,000 reviewers.

Especially if you are a homeowner, you're going to want power tools to help maintain your yard. Priced at $249 at Home Depot, Milwaukee's M18 FUEL 10 Inch Brushless Pole Saw with Attachment Capability is just the thing to get to those stubborn high branches. It comes with a three foot extension along with a 10 foot maximum pole length and a 10 inch bar length giving you a total of 13 feet and 10 inches of cutting space. However, the maximum cutting diameter for the saw is only eight inches, which is perfect for branches, but you shouldn't use it on anything too large that should be a chain saw's job.

This power tool is incredibly innovative due to Milwaukee's Quik-Lok system that lets you exchange the pole saw attachment for a different yard tool like a string trimmer, a hedge trimmer, and even a rubber broom just to name a few. This means you only need one power head for a range of tools, and based on Techtronic Industries and reviewers, the ability to separate the tools doesn't affect the tools' capabilities.

The power head contains a brushless motor that can sustain power under load without bogging down the tool. It also comes with a variable speed trigger that communicates with all the tool attachments and a wide enough handle to have full control. The Quik-Lok pole saw with the power head comes with a 4.6 out of five-star rating from over 2,000 reviewers. However, most of the Quik-Lok tools have incredibly high ratings as well.

Whether you're renovating your bathroom or have upcoming woodworking projects, a sander will be needed to smooth out drywall or wood pieces. Milwaukee sells its M18 18V Cordless 5 Inch Random Orbit Sander, which is just small enough to not take up too much space in your garage and powerful enough to get the job done. It sells for $129 at Home Depot. This orbital sander is incredibly user-friendly with an on/off switch and a variable speed control right where your thumb would go. You can control the sander to produce anywhere between 7,000-12,000 OPM. Additionally, there is also a solid and transparent dust canister attached to it.

This sander has a 4.6 out of five-star rating from over 4,000 reviewers. Usually one of the biggest complaints about a sander (other than whether it does its sanding job or not) is the vibration. Having to hold on to a power tool with your palm, if the vibration is too much, it can get tiring and a bit difficult to control toward the end of your project. However, according to many reviews, Milwaukee's orbital sander has minimal vibration and is light and easy to use. Additionally, some say that it is comparable to a corded sander, though that seems to be a controversial topic in the sanding world.

As a beginner, you'll want tools that have more than one function to save time, money, and space. An oscillating tool is a multi-tool. Milwaukee's M12 FUEL 12V Cordless Oscillating Multi-Tool is a brushless option within the M12 battery line that has impressive performance. In fact, it holds up against its 18V FUEL counterpart in many categories while being much cheaper at only $159 compared to the M18 at $229. It delivers between 10,000 and 20,000 OPM and has a 12-setting dial. Additionally, you can use several different types of attachments with Milwaukee oscillating tools. It fits the Universal Fitment as well as Starlock attachments.

ProTool Reviews gave the M12 FUEL oscillating tool a 9.4 out of ten score while users gave it a 4.8 out five-star rating on Home Depot, so across the board, this multi-tool is highly recommended. ProTool Reviews was impressed by the tool's low vibration and cutting and sanding speeds. In the review, there are no significant drawbacks that could be found. The review does state that when cutting and sanding, it's not as fast as other dedicated tools, but it's still better than many other multi-tools the review company used.

You can have all the Milwaukee tools in the world, but you also need the battery power to back them up. However, if you only have a few, a super charger can help keep your jobs moving along, so you don't have to stop and wait for batteries to charge. There are two options for battery super chargers based on what kind of batteries you own.

If you are only invested in the M18 battery line, the M18 Dual Bay Super Charger charges six times faster and costs $249. It comes with a 4.8 out of five star rating. It can charge a 6.0 Ah battery to 80% in 15 minutes and 100% in 25 minutes. If you had a standard charger, it would take 115 minutes for the same battery. However, understand that if you have two batteries on the dual bay, the machine will evenly distribute power between the two batteries, so it'll take a little longer to charge both batteries.

If you have both M18 and M12 power tools, for $169 and at 4.6 out five stars, you can get the M12 and M18 Super Charger, which accommodates one slot for each battery type. However, this super charger only charges one battery at a time even if you have two attached. It's not quite as fast as the dual bay super charger, charging batteries only four times faster, but it can fully charge an M18 12.0 Ah battery in only one hour.

These Milwaukee tools were selected for a number of reasons. Firstly, we looked at user reviews, both positive and negative, to conclude if the tool should make the list or not. Some tools, like the orbital sander, had negative reviews based on personal preference, which isn't a reason to not consider the machine. Each tool had at least a 4.3 out of five-star rating. We also used reviews from discussion boards, YouTube videos, and ProTool Reviews, a reputable online publication in the industry.

Furthermore, these tools were selected based on what a beginner who is simply cultivating their power tool collection should consider. Of course, if you've got a project in mind, your tool needs may change based on what the job is. Additionally, outside of this list, there are many other useful Milwaukee products, some of which aren't even power tools. In the end, it's up to you what kind of tools you feel comfortable starting out with, what battery system you want to invest in, and what motor type you're willing to spend your money on.