/diy/ - Do It Yourself

I enjoy working in both Metric and Imperial. I like Imperial when I'm doing rough work that doesn't have to be precise down to the last millimeter. It seems to make the work go faster if I'm doing framing, roof trusses, building stuff out of felled timber or working with stone. But if I'm doing any type of detailed work where precision is essential on things like dove tails, cabinets, or any type of furniture then I always use metric. Its just too much hassle to try and deal with 8th's and 16th's on that type of work. Just my opinion though everybody will inevitably figure out what works best for them.

Where ever you decide to buy tools and whatever brand you end up going with one suggestion I will make is this. Instead of buying an expensive circular saw buy a nice mid price range mitre saw. Then when you actually need to cut a whole bunch of 4x8 sheets of something invest in a circular saw. My recommendation is pretty much the same when it comes to bench top drill presses and drills but you might as well just get both as soon as you can. I would also invest in a nice heavy bench vise. Another recommendation that I'll give you and rarely see it made in threads like this is to buy lots of different types of clamps. Just make sure the moving parts are all metal or wood and you'll likely have them for life.
Good luck OP, have fun and learn a lot.