Ridgid Nuke Vs DeWalt Atomic: How Does Home Depot's New Subcompact Tool Line Compare?

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Would you be surprised if we told you that Ridgid's upcoming compact 18V power tool lineup is the brand's answer to DeWalt's Atomic? Probably not; the brand wasn't subtle with it, naming the lineup "Nuke" and painting the "leading 20V competitor" named in its infographics a bright DeWalt yellow. And yet, Ridgid doesn't seem to be heavily invested in this new lineup.

Ridgid Nuke has far fewer tools than Atomic: only seven, if we ignore the bundles of tools already available as standalone. Of course, the lineup is very new, and at the time of writing, none of them were available for purchase; it's not exactly a surprise that there aren't a lot of models in there. That said, unless you've already invested in some Ridgid 18V batteries, it's hard to suggest you do so just for the company's compact tools. Seven tools for a battery-powered lineup is just not a lot, but that gets even worse when you consider that there seems to be a significant overlap between these products.

The circular saw and the blower are safe, but the two drill/drivers and three separate impact drivers don't inspire a lot of confidence. The 4-Mode 1/4-Inch Impact Driver, in particular, is only available as part of a bundle and looks very similar to the other Ridgid Nuke 2,000 in-lb, 5,000 IPM impact driver, the only difference being that the one in the bundle is equipped with an extra self-tapping mode, along with three separate speeds. Will this tool be available standalone? Does the other 2,000 in-lb/5,000 IPM impact driver have separate speeds? We'll know eventually, but for now, this confusion contributes to making the launch lineup a little odd.

All the currently announced Ridgid Nuke products benefit from the Ridgid lifetime service agreement, which includes batteries, parts, and service if you register your tool within 90 days of purchase. DeWalt's Atomic tools are instead covered by a three-year limited warranty and one year of free service. In this case, the main difference between service and warranty is that only the first covers issues caused by normal wear. If we take Ridgid at its word, the agreement means that any tool failure not caused by abuse will be serviced for free, forever. Even if in practice this proves impossible, it's certainly a better deal than what you get from DeWalt.

At a glance, the Nuke tools seem to be slightly more powerful than their DeWalt Atomic equivalents. The Nuke Subcompact Brushless 1/4-inch Impact Driver reaches 2,000 in-lb, 3,800 RPM, and 5,000 IPM, while the Atomic 20V Max Brushless 1/4-inch Impact Driver is stuck at 1,825 in-lb and 3,250 RPM. The Nuke circular saw has a similar advantage over the DeWalt Atomic, reaching 5,300 RPM against 4,500, while the Ridgid drill-driver has a higher listed top speed. We don't know how expensive this new Ridgid lineup will be, but if the past behavior of the two brands is any indication of what's to come, there's a good chance that Nuke will be slightly cheaper than Atomic.