Drill advice

[Tscott]

Here is the back story. It seems like I burn up battery packs for cordless drills pretty regularly. They seems to last one or 2 projects and then no more worky. The death nail for my latest set was the roof of a pole barn I put up. I was running them pretty hard screwing down the metal sheeting, and they have not been the same since.

I do realize that the batteries will not last forever, but I think my heavy use tends to kill them faster than normal. I have been using craftsman, but no more. I am hoping that if I step up in tool quality, that the batteries will follow suit. Besides, the new batteries for Craftsman will cost as much as a new drill. It also seems that Craftsman has redesigned by particular models batteries and no longer produce replacements.

So this is where you all come in. Who makes the best cordless drill/batteries out there? I noticed that Dewalts new thing is that all the newer tools use the same battery pack, this would be nice as finding replacements would be easier.

So if money was not object what would you buy, and why?

Tom

 

[Stuey]

How about Bosch?

Also, are you obeying general cordless rules, such as not charging batteries while "hot" unless explicitly permitted?

 

[daveblank]

Makita has always been my favorite since I switched to them in the mid 90's. Their new lithium ion is great.

 

[danski0224]

I have been happy with my 12v Makita impact driver with old tech NiCd and NiMh batteries... but mine is from the "Made in Japan" period of Makita tools- not the current "Made in China" period.

If you are driving screws, get an impact driver.

Lithium ion batteries are nice and light, but do not work well (or at all) at 40*F and below.

Craftsman cordless tools are made by the same folks that make Ryobi. At least Ryobi has maintained the same battery platform.

 

[Doug I]

I've been using a corded Ryobi hand drill as a screwgun for years. No problems yet. I haven't really noticed the cord being a problem, but in jobs around the house lack of power is'nt an issue.

 

[rsanter]

dewalt is the best all the way
for a lower budget you can go with the ryobi and they perform fairly well

cman cordless is the bottom of the pile IMOP

bob

 

[Bolster]

dewalt is the best all the way

Really? There's a big difference between Dewalt and the rest, such as Bosch, Makita, etc?

Where are the Dewalt made?

 

[terabyte]

get a corded drill and a small honda generator...

I pretty much gave up on cordless tools

 

[Tscott]

How about Bosch?

Also, are you obeying general cordless rules, such as not charging batteries while "hot" unless explicitly permitted?

Actually, I was not aware of this although it makes sense once you think about it. Still, I think I want to step up in tool, I am tired of the cheap stuff. But in the same right, I want to get what I pay for, so value per dollar is a factor.

If you are driving screws, get an impact driver.

Yes, i agree. I have seen these and would love to get one. I think all the manufacturers make them at this point, so I plan to get a drill and an impact driver of the same make and that use the same batteries.

get a corded drill and a small Honda generator...

I pretty much gave up on cordless tools

I agree that a corded drill is best for a lot of applications, but I do want a cordless drill and do not want the added expense of a generator, or the hassle of lugging it around.


I have some Dewalt tools but they are all corded. They have served me well so far and show no signs of dying. I even release the magic blue smoke from my corded Dewalt drill under heavy load, and she still works just fine. Are Dewalt comparable with other top of the line makes? I know there heavy duty drills (the ones with the metal gears) feel really heavy and durable. I guess what I really want is something commercial grade.

Tom

 

[BigK600]

kI got a Milwakee Hammer Drill/Driver and Impact Driver together in a kit on sale at Home Depot for $220 bucks, heck of a deal. Came with drill, impact, two batterys-18 volt Li-Ion, and the half hour charger.
Heres the Drill: http://www.milwaukeetool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_27_40028_-1_735044_192143_192137

Here the Impact: http://www.milwaukeetool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_27_40028_-1_743716_192145_192137

Now I haven't used them a ton, but I have found the Impact to be really handy. Batterys seemed to last. I was using the drill this last weekend with a sanding wheel, and running the drill for about a 40mins stright thats about how long I got pre battery, now it was about 28-30 degrees F outside(dont know if that makes a difference). But with the Impact. I built my work bench with it and put in around 50 screws that were either 2.5" or 3.5" long and the battery easily lasted for that job.

I've heard alot of guys like the Festool drill, kinda goofy looking: http://www.festoolusa.com/products/cordless-drills/c12-cordless-drill-564178.html

I've also heard alot of guys like Panasonic cordless drills. So you might want to look into those.

Well that just my two cents.

 

[Crawlin]

IMO Dewalt is junk since the B&D buyout. My 18volt DeWalt has had 3 motors in it. Only one was warrentied. One motor lasted one day after I bought it. Milwaulkee or Makita are the brands replacing my DeWalt stuff as they go.

 

[nissan_crawler]

How about Bosch?

Yep, my 14.4 ran a 1 1/4" holesaw through 3/16" steel with no trouble.

dewalt is the best all the way
bob

I have to disagree on this one. Dewalt used to be good, but that's been years ago. The most power tool failures at work by far, are the dewalts. Stripped gears, **** batteries, etc.

 

[Spookrider]

Would be my new addition to the family of tool when the money comes around. I like the shape of. It is good one handed drill.
Plus, I fell in love with when I had the chance use one with the builder when he doing the house last year.

Dewalt Heavy-Duty XRP™ 1/2" (13mm) 18V Cordless Hammerdrill/Drill/Driver Kit -
DC926KA

http://www.dewalt.com/us/products/tool_detail.asp?productID=15290

 

[Jokeman]

Rigid. Li-Ion. Charger will not charge if the battery is too warm. It waits until its is the correct temp to charge.

 

[speed bump]

I like my Craftsman 19.2v drills, and other than killing off a battery every couple of years between my dad and my 15 or so tools we have had pretty good luck with them. My dad is thinking about picking up the Lithium Ion batteries to see if they are much better than the Ni-cads.

As far as the Dewalt 18v drills go they used to be the sh*t. Know the last place I worked at we tended to kill off the lithium ion batteries faster than the Nicads and they li batteries didn't seem to last much longer than the old batteries anyway.

If I was going to buy something for constant abuse I think today I would pick a Bosch Lithium ion.

 

[MXtras]

Personally - I really like the Skill cordless stuff.

Scott

 

[rsanter]

IMO Dewalt is junk since the B&D buyout. My 18volt DeWalt has had 3 motors in it. Only one was warrentied. One motor lasted one day after I bought it. Milwaulkee or Makita are the brands replacing my DeWalt stuff as they go.

dewalt has been owned by B&D since the late 70s I belive
untill the familiar yellow tools dewalt was only a stationary comercial duty tool company and was bought by B&D to add to their line.
B&D bought ELU (europe) as a high end portable woodworking tool line in the 80s

it was under B&D that dewalt was turned into a portable power tool company

as far as the way to go....I like the dewalts as they have served me well even under heavy usage.
I have killed makitas, ryobis, craftsmans and more
the standard B&D like is only for light duty home use, I stay away from that

bob

 

[russlaferrera]

I use "Voltman" google the web. He will rebuild your battery with whatever you want, as long as it will fit in your battery pack and is the same voltage.

My friends and I use him and he has a great product.

 

[Tscott]

I appreciate all the input guys, a lot to think about. It seems as there are lovers and haters of most brand names here. I expected as much, but I have noticed that no one has commented negatively on Milwaukee yet. Any Experience with them? I like the idea that one charger will do it all, and all their tools seem to be compatible with the new and the old batteries, which could come in handy if I found a good deal on the older batteries somewhere. Older batteries would suit me just fine if I had more than 2. Shorter run time would be less of an issue with 1 or 2 extra cells.

Tom

Tom

 

[jmack]

Makita Li-Ion

 

[Sniper55]

For a Drill Go with DeWalt as far as impact drivers i would go with Bosch

 

[sberry]

I put the corded drills in the drawer. We have found uses for them that we never imagined.

 

[KraftwerkMk1Jetta]

I have beat the **** out of my Craftsman 19.2v drill since I got, probably close to 6 years ago. Tons of metal drilling, endless wire wheeling, and when i was building skate ramps, a lot of driving of screws. My batteries don't last as long as they used to, but they still don't need to be replaced. Just my 2 cents.

 

[PeteW]

I am firmly in the Dewalt camp. I use it for wiring houses and I really beat it up with larger self feed auger bits and big hole saws.

I do have to rotate through three batteries to get through a tough day of drilling, but it works.

I purchased the 4-piece kit (sawzall, 5.25" circular, XRP hammer drill, gooseneck light) about 6 years ago and not a single tool has failed.

Two batteries are finally down to about 30 minutes of use per charge, but they are old.

 

[Mike83]

Two days ago I picked up the new Milwaukee M18 1/2" compact drill and impact driver set for $250 at Home Depot, which is the best deal I can find...and believe me I looked in a lot of places. They are both small, lightweight and powerful. The first test I performed on the impact driver, which boasts 1400in-lbs of torque, is to remove a couple lug nuts (at 100ft-lbs) from my car, which to my amazement it did! However, I managed to twist the 3/8" square drive adapter that goes into the impact, so I quit the test.

The Li-Ion batteries have a fuel gauge on them, which is nice. They charge in about 30min. Beware, though, that this new M18 platform is completely new and the tools and charger are not compatible with the old batteries! Just an fyi. My set came with the compact batteries, but you can purchase the extra heavy duty battery which is bigger and lasts longer.

Both tools have a removable clip near the battery that can hook onto your belt or nail apron. I found this to be a nice feature. In addition, both have an LED light for dark areas.

With a 5-year warranty, I think these tools will be well worth the money and so far have shown to perform very well.

 

[Elroy]

Although now several years old, Elroy has received good service from this Bosch. As you can guess, he would recommend Bosch. As pointed out above, if your running TEK screws you need an "impact" driver.

Two speed gear box and a CLUTCH are a must have:

Swiss Made is never a bad choice:

 

[Smitty378]

MILWAKEE IS KING-Ive had them all.

 

[trackwelder]

If you can swing the coin the v-28 is the best hands down. The battery gauge is a nice feature when working at heights, nothing worse than climbing a ladder with a dead drill or saw.

 

[Vicegrip]

I have abused 2 DeWalt 18 Volt drills for years. Hard day to day use at work and home.

 

[PurdueSD]

I built my garage and many other projects from the help of a pair of 19.6 craftsman cordless drills. They are cheap and can take a beating. You can pick them up for 75 bucks or less and i think they are very comparable to the dewalts we use at work.

 

[Tscott]

I have beat the **** out of my Craftsman 19.2v drill since I got, probably close to 6 years ago. Tons of metal drilling, endless wire wheeling, and when i was building skate ramps, a lot of driving of screws. My batteries don't last as long as they used to, but they still don't need to be replaced. Just my 2 cents.

I built my garage and many other projects from the help of a pair of 19.6 craftsman cordless drills. They are cheap and can take a beating. You can pick them up for 75 bucks or less and i think they are very comparable to the dewalts we use at work.

I do agree the drills are of decent quality. but the batteries are what is in question. Both of mine are dead and Craftsman does not make mine any more. I have the 19.2 Volt drill, but it is an earlier model. As best I can tell, the batteries for the newer 19.2 drills do not fit my model due to the redesign of the protruding end of the battery being redesigned. So I figured this would be a good opportunity to move up in tool.

Tom

 

[chad s]

We use Panasonic drills at our company. We use them hard, and charge them irregularly on job sites, they dont get babied. The drills themselves are great, perhaps the best balanced drills I have held (Bosh being a close second, Dewalt being awful). The batteries last a good 2-3 years of hard use, and when they stop taking a charge, we just buy new drills, as for $20 more over the cost of 2 batteries you get a brand new drill. (These are Nimh batteries by the way, not the new Lithium Ion)

 

[Spookrider]

Could you use a dewalt on your Craftsman, since the Craftsman is made by the same company that makes Dewalts. B&D=Craftsman+Dewalt but different colors and name on/of tools??

 

[Lyaec350]

Could you use a dewalt on your Craftsman, since the Craftsman is made by the same company that makes Dewalts. B&D=Craftsman+Dewalt but different colors and name on/of tools??

Huh?

Ryobi = Craftsman.

B&D = Delta = Porter Cable = Craftsman, but I don't think the batteries are interchangeable because the clips for each type lock in differently.