I've had Wahl, I've had Remington, and I've had some others. Entry-level models and they all broke down fairly easily, would overheat, and had cheap plastic hardware.

The main thing is just not to buy entry-level models. The best "cheap" one I've had was the Remington HC5850. Easy to clean out the blade section from hair and a much better (and more compact) design than others.

The Wahl Professional 5-Star would be a better choice for BIFL, though.