Cordless Drills

[MacMcMacmac]

Been thinking about picking up a cordless drill for awhile. I have been using some Milwaukee Fuel 18V brushless ones at work, and while the chucks are garbage, they are certainly powerful and handy. I have come across a couple of seemingly good deals. The first is an 18V DeWalt for $99. The second is an 18V Makita for $89. The Makita is clearly marked Made in China, which kind of disappoints me, but I have some experience with Makitas in a welding shop years ago, and they certainly took a beating without failing. The DeWalts I've used on the job have likewise been pretty robust. I bought a DW208 1/2" corded hammer drill a few years ago for a good price and have been happy with it.

Any real reason to choose one over the other, or should I just pocket $10 and call it good?

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/dewalt-18v-compact-drill-driver-0542970p.html

http://homehardware.ca/en/rec/index...fZ67l/Ne-67n/Ntk-All_EN/R-I1239121?Ntt=makita

 

[FigureItOut]

My personal suggestion is that is to skip the Dewalt 18V. If you consider Dewalt look at the 20V line. Longer term you'll have better options and better availability of batteries etc.

 

[FigureItOut]

In your price range that leaves you with DEWALT DCD771C2, which is their compact version and goes for around $130, with 2 batteries that have a 33% higher capacity than the Makita batteries in the kit you linked to. The Dewalt will have a bit better torque as well, but if you must stay under $100 I'd go Makita Li-On over Dewalt 18V.

 

[AceofSpad3s]

Out of the two I would get the makita. Buying the dewalt is like buying you way onto a sinking ship since the 18v line has already been left behind for a while.
Personally, I am going to be buying the ryobi impact and drill combo at home despot when it goes on sale for $99. I like that the new batteries can be used with old tools, so if I run into any of the old blue tools at yardsales I could use them. Plus they have a pretty diverse line of tools out. Not saying you should buy them, just my opinion.

 

[kunkernator]

Don't limit your options to just Dewalt and Makita, although I do not know what you have in Canada. DO NOT buy a NiCD Dewalt. It is a dying breed, and the batteries are decades behind the Li-ION ones. Out of those two? Makita. Me, I am a Milwaukee fanboy, they have everything!

 

[Jack Olsen]

Get the Ridgid from Home Depot and get a lifetime warranty on the drill and free replacement batteries for the rest of your life. The performance differences between the different drills are dwarfed (for me) by the fact that a Lithium Ion battery only lasts 4-5 years from when it's manufactured (used or not) and then you're looking at paying a hefty percentage of the tool price for a replacement battery. With the Ridgid drill sets, you can keep the tool as long as you'd like without battery lifespan flushing your investment down the toilet.

 

[FigureItOut]

Get the Ridgid from Home Depot and get a lifetime warranty on the drill and free replacement batteries for the rest of your life.

They don't advertise this like they used to, and I know some changes were made to the policies regarding battery replacement, but the warranty sure seems to read that you'll get free batteries for life. Any idea how this plays out in practice?

 

[Tenex]

Been thinking about picking up a cordless drill for awhile. I have been using some Milwaukee Fuel 18V brushless ones at work, and while the chucks are garbage, they are certainly powerful and handy.

I need you to elaborate on this claim because it's the first time I've ever heard it said.

 

[L.Cheapo]

I own that dewalt kit, and I have to say, it's a POS. The price of the kit was only $10 or so more than just the two batteries I needed, so I bought it. The drill has maybe 20 minutes of total runtime on it, and the chuck wobbles like a drunk on a unicycle. It's not just the chuck, its the shaft it's on, likely the front bearing. Havent messed with it yet. Its out of warranty, of course.

I bought a dewalt 18v cordless when they first came out. It still works flawlessly. I bought this kit to get the batteries to use for that drill.

 

[FigureItOut]

I need you to elaborate on this claim because it's the first time I've ever heard it said.

I wondered about that too. I researched Fuel pretty thoroughly and never heard that.

 

[firworks]

Is this bad boy out of your price range?

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=303606

All the cool kids in the Hot Deals forum are doing it!

 

[MacMcMacmac]

I need you to elaborate on this claim because it's the first time I've ever heard it said.

We replaced all of our older DeWalt with M18 Fuel stuff earlier this year. We have replaced at least four chucks already. Some are wobbly from new.

 

[LumpyMusic]

I have nearly every DeWalt 18v tool and doubles of some of them. They've all worked flawlessly, longest in use has been since 1998. Replaced NiCad batteries finally on the original 17 year old batts just this month. I replaced a charger that died a couple years ago. That cost 50 bucks. Replacement rebuilt batteries, 3 Ah, are about 30 bucks.

Enough about DeWalt working for me.

If I were buying into any new cordless, I'd examine what other tools are in the line that fit the same batteries. Drills, impacts, lights, circular saws, sawzalls, fans, grinders, all kinds of stuff.

I'd also examine battery cost, initial and replacement, as well as charger styles and cost. If you use the tool much at all you'll want two batteries, one charging while you're depleting the other one. There's 110v and 12v chargers for some. 1 hour chargers, conditioning chargers, chargers built into boom boxes, blah blah.

Bottom line for me, look at all the other stuff that goes with the drill. The drills will surely all drill holes and drive screws. It's all the other tools that fit the same batteries that, and the cost of those batteries, that would shape my decision.


Sgt Lumpy

 

[Josey Wales]

Get the Ridgid from Home Depot, and when you get tired of trying to register the LSA, return the Ridgid and get the Makita.

 

[hautpot]

We replaced all of our older DeWalt with M18 Fuel stuff earlier this year. We have replaced at least four chucks already. Some are wobbly from new.

I second this... all of the milwaukees at my Home Depot on display have terrible chucks.

 

[MushCreek]

My Milwaukee is about 4 years old, and the chuck has held up fine. I pretty much built my whole house with my M18 tools.

 

[DonPowers]

I buy the Makita's when on sale for $99. Most recent one was the 18V impact. If you consider that it comes with case, battery & charger, its a pretty good deal. Especially when the battery and charger sell for $150 if bought separately, $99.99 for the battery and $49.99 for the charger.

If there were a Home Depot in the area, I would check out the Rigid deal mentioned by Jack Olsen.

 

[mriddell]

FWIW, I'm currently pretty pleased with the Dewalt 20v. I've been working on a project for an hour or two per night drilling a lot of holes in MDF and I have yet to change or charge a battery in 3 weeks. It does have one flaw though; abruptly coming to a stop on the higher speed happens so quick it spins opens the chuck and the bit falls out lol.

It's more than I'd planned to spend but considering I was replacing a cheapy Ryobi, I splurged.

 

[cosp600rr]

I dont think its been mentioned but the porter cable 20v lithium cordless drills are nice. I have had this set for about a year and am impressed with them this far. Batteries last forever and they have plenty of power. These 2 come as a set with 2 batteries and a charger. I have since added the sawzall and small circular saw.

 

[butchfig8]

I have the Ridgid from Home Depot and get a lifetime warranty on the drill,
painfull registration, warranty only as good a s the service center man, feels like,
Keyless Chuck on drill pcs of junk, trying to hold a drill bit into steel forget.
Ridgid = POS

 

[FMC1959]

With 2 links to CDN vendors, pretty sure you are somewhere in Canada; I am guessing you've a HD not too far? I have seen a Milwaukee M18 drill for $99 with 1 batt & charger in a couple of HD's lately.

The Makita deal is great for the price also. In both cases you are buying into 2 systems that are NOT going away anytime soon. Also, Makita (#1) and Milwaukee close #2 have the largest tool selection.

Dewalt is also good, but stay away from the older 18V kits, if others have had good or bad experience is not as important as the fact they will soon be extinct.

Depending on your expectations (using M18 Fuel at your work), the Ryobi is definitely less expensive and gets the job done for most people and also has a great selection of tools.

 

[Jim Dawson]

I gave up on Dewalt because of my bad luck with their 18v NiCad batteries. I sold all my Dewalt tools and bought 18v Lithium ion Makita tools. I bought extra 3ahr batteries on line for 2/$98. I love the performance and batteries seem to last forever.

 

[oldldh]

How about the Milwaukee M18 Fuel's 1st Cousin???

Model #2701-22CT...

$199.00 from a bunch of places...

Milwaukee doesn't give their tools away...although, right now, they're including, for free, a M18 Cordless Lantern, that has a "bare tool" selling price of $79.00

i got the drill/driver for my birthday, and, so far, it's been a hole poking, screw driving unit...

And my chuck is fine...no wobble...

 

[The DIY Hubby]

I agree with previous posts that Nicad is a dying breed, so focus your search on LiIon models. Makita, Milwaukee, Hitachi and Dewalt are the brands that are getting the best feedback in consumer <a href="http://www.thediyhubby.com/cordless-drill-reviews/">reviews</a> at the moment. Porter Cable is another brand with some good models.

 

[Tsquare]

Stay away from Nicd batteries - they are done - The lipo batteries give all cordless tools better performance and they will stay charged on the shelf and last longer when used - worth every extra penny they cost.

 

[Brownsfan]

I use a Makita impact and hammer drill daily. Fantastic tools. I use them for work . I have the Craftsman 19.2v tools at home. I have to say I have been extremely impressed with them. I have no doubt that they could have been used professionally.

 

[dgithens1]

I dont think its been mentioned but the porter cable 20v lithium cordless drills are nice. I have had this set for about a year and am impressed with them this far. Batteries last forever and they have plenty of power. These 2 come as a set with 2 batteries and a charger. I have since added the sawzall and small circular saw.

I have the same set and really like it, but my use is mainly home owner type stuff.

 

[cosp600rr]

I use them daily in construction and the have held up just fine.

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[tube_guy]

Is this bad boy out of your price range?

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=303606

All the cool kids in the Hot Deals forum are doing it!

The Fein drill/driver is really quite impressive, especially for that price. Made in Germany. I'm a corded only tools guy, but the Fein has really put some pressure on that notion.

 

[engineer2]

I gave up on Dewalt because of my bad luck with their 18v NiCad batteries. I sold all my Dewalt tools and bought 18v Lithium ion Makita tools. I bought extra 3ahr batteries on line for 2/$98. I love the performance and batteries seem to last forever.

^^^ Same Here!

A $99 drill is probably fine for occasional light duty homeowner use.
If you do home construction projects, step up to a $200 model.
If you need it for daily use, step up to a $300 model.

 

[ZRX61]

 

[Badasssapper67]

About home depot; investigate their specific part number of the tools they are selling. If Milwaukee makes a version of that tool without a hyphen and letters added onto the end then the version sold at home depot is NOT the version that gets all the good reviews. The reason hd versions are cheaper is because the units plumbers, electricians, and hvac guys buy and use everday are the real deal and the diy version at hd are for that exactly. Used every once in a while.
I went with Bosch. I was upset that Milwaukee moved their production to china and figured screw'm Im no longer a Milwaukee guy and looked around for something better. If I could do it again, I'd go red instead of blue. Bosch is a great tool but not better than Milwaukee and the red team has way more tools in their line up. The only benefit with Bosch is their battery charged die grinder which is awesome. Once you buy it's cost prohibitive to get a bunch of different batteries and chargers so choose well.

 

[franzdom]

Are we really still having a thread comparing NiCd to LiIon???

 

[stg454]

I have been very happy with my 20v DeWalt drill. Extremely powerful with a long run time. I also have 12v Bosch tools that I am very happy with for the lighter duty stuff.

 

[Ericgst]

Milwaukee, Makita, and Dewalt all make fine tools. However, I would not buy their budget drills. If I wasn't willing to get a higher model, I would just buy Ridgid to save the money instead.

 

[Fender1325]

Ya know its odd.....The tool companies seem to have an issue making a quality chuck for their drills. Ive seen it **** on all brands. Most of them are plastic and wobble. My sears 19.2 kit drill ***** when it comes to the chuck. Ive literally broken drill bits bc it comes loose spins on the bit without notice and then overheats the bit and *snap*

Makita and Milwaukee have similar cheap designs. The only drills Ive seen that have a chuck worth a damn is the dewalt ones made from metal, and they have that fine tooth sound that really clamps down on the drill bit. My old school craftsman 1/2" has a heavy duty metal chuck with big teeth and you need a key - but that sucker works!

I feel like Ive seen higher quality after market chucks available where you can upgrade your drill. That might be the route to go.

That being said....my next round of impact and drill set will be a makita without a doubt. Their impacts are damn work horses.

 

[d.mcfarland]

I hate how a chuck can be slightly loose or wobbly. That makes the whole unit just about useless for anything you need any little bit of precision for.


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[timtim2008]

if only they made one battery, and fit several brand of tools (or adpaters)

 

[engineer2]

Agree. I wish power tool batteries were standardized across all brands.

 

[firworks]

Agree. I wish power tool batteries were standardized across all brands.

I'm honestly suprised that hasn't happened yet in Europe. They did it with cell phone chargers. I know those are used a lot more but it's kind of a similar idea.