They also do some very cheap power tools - cheap enough to buy for a project and throw away after... not sure how good they are though.

W.

Well I have had a BandQ 12v drill driver for almost 8 years of regular woodworking use all on its standard battery-all for £12!Likewise a pistol grip screwdriverfrom Wickes.

BUT do like mains Bosch tools

Phil

With the exception of a 2nd hand hot air gun all my power tools are Bosch too - had most of mine for around 15 years and still going strong, except the first angle grinder which had a bearing failure just out of warranty.

W.

Funny thing is Bosch over here is cheap ... about lower middle road pricing compared to Pro gear. The last Bosch gear I had apart from the Power washer failed as quickly as other Korean / Chinese gear ..... I took back to shop and they showed the Made in China label !!

I now buy cheap Chinese rubbish and accept that I get 1 - 2 yrs out of it. Costing out total - buy cheap and short life still beats high priced "quality". But most cheap gear I have bought - still going well long after the 2nd anniversary.

Quite agree-my cheap and cheerfull seems to go for ever

Phil

I agree with power tools, there seem to be few highly unreliable ones about. I bought an unnamed sander from B&Q a few years ago that lasted about an hour, but otherwise everything seems good. Some of my Bosch stuff is well over 10 years old, as is my Black and Decker. I have a freebie battery drill/sander/jigsaw that I got as a points reward for spending in my Dutch chandler. It is used frequently, I left Holland in 2003, and it still works well, holds a charge for a remarkable time.

The one to watch for is hand tools painted black to try and make them look as if they are hardened steel. Screwdriver ends are one example, they are often as soft as butter under the paint. The worst of all is Allen keys. Painted ones really are hopelessly soft, which makes them dangerous. They are so cheap anyway that you might as well buy quality ones.

Used many tools over years and can destroy a crap screwdiver in minutes-recently destroyed blade of a  cheap and cheerful small electrical one with plastic handle from Tescos in a few seconds.However these I mention which happen to have vanadium embossed on blade appear indestructable -whether vanadium or not certainly blade is well tempered! combined with a reasonable size ergonomic soft grip built into handlesstill grippable if greasy/wet.

Phil