Cordless Drills? Are They Worth It?

[Marmaduke]

I had a rechargable dremel I had to through in the garbage when the batt, died, a remington shaver I actually had the batt replaced which cost more than the shaver and its in the garbage too. 2 black and decker rechargable screw drivers both in the garbage. A wagner drill, dead batt and I missed garbage day this week but it almost 15 years old, My son just gave me his Dewalt hammer drill 18v rechargeable with dead batt, he tells me its worth about 250 bucks so I went and bought new batteries for it 2 pack for 100 bucks, you can buy drill and 2 batts for 150 bucks at home depot but its not the xrp model. In summary I don't use my tools everyday or every week for that matter so I dont like rechargable stuff. My go to drill is the very first drill I bought in 1980, Black and Decker pull out the extension cord and plug er in. I also have a Makita 1/2" Hammer drill plugs into the wall works every time.

 

[Zeke]

Hey rockchucker, Some of us on GJ ought to swap stories on a blog and write a book from the collection. That's a good one about placing the battery in his bags, contacts down and full of nails. What the hell was he thinking?

Well, I guess "thinking" is generous.

 

[speed bump]

I'm wondering about these combo sets you see everywhere, not really talking about the saw and flashlight sets, more the drill and driver sets.

If a person has a decent drill, maybe even a 1/2" unit, do you really need a driver too?

I've been using my Makita drill for years and years for everything I run across. When watching these home improvement shows I notice most of these guys have their drills in hammer mode when they are driving in normal screws.

Is that the way to do it these days? Use the hammer setting on your drill to drive screws into wood or whatever? If you are lucky enough to have a hammer drill.

When do you actually need to have a separate driver? They make the kits very expensive and I just don't see the use in it.

Mm

Well considering that my 10.8v Hitachi impact driver will drive screws faster than an 18v Dewalt drill I never put screws in using a drill unless I have to. An impact driver is the hammering device which you see everyone using now days.

As far as a hammer drill typically you use it for drilling holes in masonry or stone.

 

[PeterT]

I find cordless tools to be nothing but frustrating. Every time I have ever used one it was not up to the task at hand.

Well I, like most others in this post, have had and used cordless drills for 10 years and there isn't much they cannot do.
If you want to bore a 4" hole through concrete, a 18v cordless hammer drill probably isn't the right choice... But for every day drilling, fastening, etc Cordless is by far the choice of mine and most pros.

 

[Bruce4310TX]

I have a Rigid 24V from HD, Rigid has free battery replacement for the life of there tools as long as you register the tool and keep the code they send you. I had a chuck i wore out and one battery replaced no problems getting this fixed and no cost to me.
I have had my drill over 4 years, most of my friends have switched over also because of the warranty.

 

[mrbreezeet1]

So I guess the Lithium Ion is the same thing?
I just got this one.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_122305-70-D...oductId=3115357&N=0&catalogId=10051&langId=-1

Hopefully I will have better luck with these batteries.
I have a XRP 12V from about 8-10 years ago, and the batteries never seemed to last very long.

I use the **** out of my Craftsman C3 units, both the 1/2 drill and the impact driver. Pay extra for the lithium batteries - they have extra life and power over the cheaper NiMH batteries. I'm about to need new batteries - these are about 5 years old. $90 a pop isn't cheap but they last, and work longer in the tool. Yes, the battery cost the same as the tool - so what. I have a $400 pro photo printer and one set of ink cartridges is $150. It's chewed a good $1000 in ink since we've owned it. Same deal. I've been using the C3 items for almost 10 years. The 4 NiMH I have batteries are all about 24 months now as the others finally gave it up. I have a corded 1/2 drill - it lives in the bottom of the tool box and comes out once in a blue moon.

 

[Ez Trbo]

I had 12V dewalts for years when i was doing a ton of race car fab work and the batteries seemed to last alot longer when i was charging them maybe each 2 to 3 times a day. Have a 18V dewalt hammer drill now and don't use it as much but when in the shop working in the winter or out on a job site and need it...its there when i need it. Just replaced my 12v lincon grease gun with a new 18V one...HOLY COW, what a huge difference when greasing a slug of machines. Hope it treats me as good as the 12V did.
Trbo

 

[DZL JIM]

I used to go with Craftsman tools a lot so I have a bunch of the cordless tools, 19.2v variety.
When I started using the cordless drill everyday in my shop the batteries would last maybe 6 months. I purchased 2 new ones for $60 from Sears and they both lasted....6 months.
So I went to the local battery builder and they wanted $60 for one 19.2v battery. That's a lot more $$$ but I figured I'd give it a shot. He told me specifially that they use the same batteries that Dewalt uses becasue they last longer.
That original battery I had built has lasted 3 YEARS working everyday in my shop. I just got another battery built by them, too.

I also have a lithium Rigid drill/impact combo pack about a year ago, I keep in the house. I hardly ever use it, maybe once a month, and always keep them charged up. A couple weeks ago I needed the impact driver and although both lithium batteries showed full charge, I got maybe 5 screws of life out of each battery. I'm bummed....
So I go grab the old B&D bag full-o-tools like drill, saw, vacuum, light, pop a battery in the drill which I KNOW I haven't charged in over 2 years, and the dam drill worked great and finished the job.


I will be taking the Rigid lithium batteries to the local battery shop to see if they can make them better, too. They have proven to me to be worth it.

 

[PCO6]

How about the cold? My garage is insulated but not normally heated so it's not uncommon for it to be well below freezing in there. In the past I have not brought the batteries in during the winter but maybe I should. Any thoughts?

I keep my batteries on top of a heated pet pad like in the link below. I don't use the fabric mat. The pad is made of hard plastic and I put a piece of metal wire shelving on top of it. The metal elevates the batteries by about an eighth of an inch and provides a bit of ventilation. These pads are not hot to the touch. The batteries stay at about room temperature and are always ready to go. It also works well for my laptop mouse and cell phone charger.

http://www.princessauto.com/all-seasons/seasonal/pet-heating/pet-heating/list-all

 

[Neuswede]

I have a dewalt 1/2 inch hammer drill and a impact driver i got in a set back in 2007 , have had nothing but great work out of both for years , only reason I had to buy a new Bare impact driver is the fact that i sheared off a hex extension inside the nose and rendered it pretty useless.

Wanna sell the impact with the broken extension?

 

[sberry]

Thats a good idea about sending them to a re builder, I have been pondering on what to do about mine.New batteries would cost me a grand. They been worth it though. I should get impact driver, I do as much or more drilling and self drillers as wood. I have a couple heavy corded units but they are in the drawers, used it once in the last year to bore about 50 2 inch holes in some planks with auger bit.
My Dad wanted to go ice fishing, I cut the handle off the ice auger and drove it with battery drill, talk about bore holes. I walk out on the pond to test it, 20 or 30 seconds thru a foot. Put a coffee can lid on so if it comes loose it wont go down hole.
Hole saws up to about inch and a half if needed, 1 1/4 real well.

 

[sberry]

Drill hole, pound post. Really fast and solid. Battery power.

 

[glider]

I have a Rigid 24V from HD, Rigid has free battery replacement for the life of there tools as long as you register the tool and keep the code they send you. I had a chuck i wore out and one battery replaced no problems getting this fixed and no cost to me.
I have had my drill over 4 years, most of my friends have switched over also because of the warranty.

I am changing from Dewalt to Rigid before I buy another Dewalt Batt. Its a no brainer free service for life, including batt. replacement.

 

[mrbreezeet1]

I am changing from Dewalt to Rigid before I buy another Dewalt Batt. Its a no brainer free service for life, including batt. replacement.

Yeah, that does sound like a heck of a deal.
If I need another one, I'll get the Rigid too.

 

[Bruce4310TX]

And if i remember right when you buy your rigid tool you have to register it with in 30 days to get the lifetime replacement and never lose the code they send you.

 

[sam 8]

first, this disclaimer...my eldest son works for a company that is part of Sears and he gets a decent break on Craftsman Tools..so you know what i ask for for Christmas.

The C3 line of tools has served me very well. The new 1/2 impact wrench is awesome, we use it alot around here on lugnuts, etc. I love the dang thing.
I have 3 of the drills, the right angle drill, the sawzall, the 1/4 impact, the 1/2 impact, the inflator ( pretty amazing for what it is) the 7-1/4 skilsaw and the trimsaw.
They are all good tools.
I have started phasing out the nicad batteries, and have had great luck with the Lithium-ion. They have more power, last longer, recharge faster, and have the little light to tell you their status. I bought a second charger and keep it in my toy trailer, and just bag up the tools when i am going somewhere.
I think the C3 line is a huge value, and avoid dragging out the corded stuff at all costs.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

My 14.4v DeWalt was awesome for over 10 years. Replaced it with a cheapo Ryobi. Its only been a couple years and already the battery is losing performance. I went out about 6 months ago and bought a new Milwaukee 18v lithium and this thing is AWESOME.

 

[kyles974]

I just purchased Bosh kit. It has 18v Lithium drill and impact. WOW, worth every 200 dollars I spent! I can't believe I lived with out a cordless impact driver all this time.

 

[astropuppy]

A great way to extend the life of NIxxx batteries in any weather. Fully charge the battery just like you would normally. After there fully charged plug the charger into a ($7) lamp timer set to come on for one hour every day. Your batteries will always be ready to use anytime.

 

[CHRIS LUCKYMAN]

Gotta have a cordless drill.

 

[Jazz]

I have a fairly new Ryobi which can as a set, drill with clutch and angle drill. I hardly use the right angle drill and the pack came with two batteries. One battery is ALWAYS on the charger and the other in the drill I'm using at the time. When it starts to die I swap batteries. Works great for me. When I upgrade to a better unit I'll make sure that I have two batteries and will keep the same system.

I remember years ago when battery powered drills weren't so great. Getting a couple years life of of a battery would have seemed amazing back then. Everything is better these days, we just seem to forget what things were like only 10 years ago I think.

 

[IDASHO]

The only ones Illl even touch are Lith-ion

Picked up a new Makita 18V just last night

 

[IslandOlds]

I bought the Rigid combination Kit from Home Depot. The impact driver and the circular saw are worth their weight in gold. That saw will rip 3/4 inch plywood all day on one battery. 2x4 and 2x6 cut nice too. Lifetime service agreement rocks.