ok, so this is a bit off, but we're probably going to want some cordless tools in the shop, and to some degree this will depend on what we can get donated, however in the long term we're going to want to pick a brand to use overall.

there are two classes to look at, one is "electric screw drivers" of which we'll prolly want a few for electronics and light duty use, and the other is "drill/drivers" and other "power tools" like hammer drills, impact wrenches, reciprocating saws and the like. these tend to be different battery styles, so we may be looking at 2 brands for certain sorts of things. even getting thigns from pawn shops and the like if we focus on one brand we're not looking at having to buy one makita battery and one skill battery etc etc for a motley collection of tools and having a perfectly good tool get used for parts because it costs more to buy a new battery for it, or not have a spare battery to swap in when the only one we have runs down, where as if we have say 10 batteries for 5 drills, a sawsall, a trim saw, and an impact wrench, we'll have backups to charge but can use the sawsall battery for a drill most of the time.

personally i'm a fan of dewalt, but makita, rigid, bosch, and milwaukee, all make more heavy duty tools rather than more afordable black and decker or ryobi

n.b. we don't need a decision, as it may be we get a gift from a mfg of refurbished stuff, or the like, but i'm curious what other folks who have trades/shop level experience like for tools (specifically battery powered)

every theatre shop i've worked in uses dewalt, and the professional handymen and contractors i'm friends with do as well, but would love to hear more input.

I think Dewalt is pretty standard.

I'm not crazy about this idea, because the batteries tend to wear out and not be charged when you want them, but in the end I'll relent if the membership as a whole wants this or (especially if) someone donates something. Also, I'm fairly certain that I could replace the cells in most packs myself fairly easily, and for << cost of a new (or even used/refurb) unit.

I sat on the fence on this one for a while. I think at the end of the day for the use levels and for simplicity sake having one brand/battery type is the correct way to go. This is one area that i think standardization is acceptable and beneficial to the group.

from a safety standpoint cordless drills are a massive step up. no cords to trip on, and battery life is fine. unless you're running them literally constantly, a second battery will be recharged when the other is run down, and with a charging bank or two (charger for every battery) you just put the battery back in when you're done as you'd put any tool away.