I'm going to throw up a few that I've encountered this summer.
This one's mainly for shits and gigs, but, everyone should get the chance to absolutely DESTROY some shit with one of these in their life. Holy MOSES. It's almost more satisfying than using a bigger 60 or 80 lb hammer, because it's so much lighter.
Real talk now, this was 75 bucks very well spent. I use this little fan constantly. With a 5.0 battery it'll run on low for so.ething ridiculous like 25 hours. On high, it'll kick air 40 feet, apparently.
Milwaukees drawer set sold me on going away from DeWalt for toolboxes. Oddly, the DeWalt batteries and chargers fit better in the drawers than Milwaukee ones.
Tough, decently sealed, easy to live with. I love it, and it's taken shit and abuse from me. Money well spent.
I have always adored Stihl equipment. I had been humming and hawing over whether to go with a battery powered DeWalt blower and chainsaw, but am had I went with gas powered.
Less than half the price, and I'll be damned if every level gas doesn't kick profession lithium out of the water.
After years of waiting, Miranda got me a dado set for Christmas.
If you look for a Diablo set, and see 2 of them, the only difference between this one, and the cheaper one, is the coating on the blades. And the price difference is substantial (about 25%). We got this because it was in stock.
Dado sets make joinery a breeze, and since it's purchase, it's been used the most in my shop.
Snagged a pocket hole jig to do a piece of furniture for a friend.
And it was also very worth it. I had always thought they were kinda gimmicky, but Kreg makes a helluva jig.
If you don't want to dado, rabbit, boxtail, or dovetail a joint, but you want strength, pocket holes and glue will serve you well.
I snagged a laminate trimmer as a small router for myself. And kicked myself immediately.
I didn't get the one with multiple speeds. This is good for anything using a small diameter bit, but for anything like a roundover, cove, or ogee, I still have to bring out my Hitachi to slow things down.
The sad part is, the multi speed model is no more expensive.
But, this has its place. I'll give credit to Makita. Milwaukee and DeWalt give you a shitty little bag, and no gauges or guides.
Makita gives you a metal case, guides, and a bit or two even.
I snagged this for 150 bucks from my employer.
It completes the stationary tool trifecta; Table saw, Jointer, Planer.
Oddly, I purchased all 3 in different years, all 3 from different people, and all 3 are the same era of Delta tool.
Having those 3 has allowed me to take on much more millwork, which is very satisfying work for me. Handrails, bedframes, dressers, picture frame for Miranda, all possible now because I can take shitass wood like this:
And mill it up for this:
Naturally there's more steps, but you can't normally do much with garbage dunnage from a rebar shipment.
And steel, being very heavy, always comes on hardwood. Maple, oak, walnut (WALNUT!)
Nice to be able to use that stuff.
And finally, this motherfucker.
Like my 60v DeWalt cordless drill, the best way to describe this thing is "A fucking truck". I haven't found something it won't undo.
I've lent it to the guys putting up our structural steel. They couldn't tap it out. Milwaukee has very specific, very targeted ratings (for instance, this is 1400ftlb, on a 1/2" oiled fastener, with a fully charged XC battery), so it's tough to say exactly how potent it is without really digging into it and checking it on a dyno.
And I won't be doing that. I just know that I haven't found the thing it won't break loose, or confidently tighten.
I need to get a 6.0 or 8.0XC for it, and my old 4.0 is noticeably drawn by it.