Lady friend bought me a drill..

[livinloud11]

Like the title says, my girlfriend bought me a drill because she knew I wanted one. She got me this one:

Craftsman C3 19.2-Volt Lithium-Ion 3/8-in. Drill/Driver Kit (sorry I can't find out how to link this from sears website)

It looks pretty good for around the house stuff, but I also saw the Craftsman Bolt-On drill that has the attachments that can be added for different things such as a 3/8 impact wrench which is what I think would come in handy.

My question is, should I return the one she got me and get the Bolt on one instead? I've seen mixed reviews on the Bolt On one and I'm unsure of what to pull the plug on. I told her this already and she doesn't care if I do it or not I just don't want to get the Bolt on one and have it be a POS. Anyone have any first hand input with either of these drills?

 

[thewatusi]

**in before 30 people tell you to return it and get a Milwaukee instead**

(I'd keep what you have)

 

[the gypsy]

Her heart is in the right place, she is a keeper until you find one that will buy you the Milwaukee Fuel. LOL.

 

[pendragon1998]

Keep it and let her see you use it. If you get to the point where you need more capability, think about looking for something better down the line. Drills aren't super expensive, and since you didn't have one to begin with, you probably weren't needing one every day.

 

[bczygan]

Keep her AND the drill.

You KNOW that's the only answer.

 

[mmack66]

The Bolt-On seems like too much of a gimmick to me, so I would just keep what she gave you.

 

[livinloud11]

Lol I looked into the bolt on and I heard rough things about it thats why I was thinking about just keeping the one she got me. I only had a corded drill so its nice, I was just thinking of a cordless impact for the car or something, but I can always get one on another occasion.

 

[Zeke]

I get pretty tired of "this is the best." I have a 14v Ryobi that someone gave me because they were tired of buying batteries. The thing works like an animal. 15 years old. One new battery bought in '08.

Oh, and I use my 25 YO 9v Makitas every day.

 

[Kevin54]

Keep what she got you, and give her a big 'ole apology. Use what she bought you until you wear it out. It sounds to me like you have a keeper, so don't shoot yourself in the foot right out of the starting gate. Remember.....she has feeling also.

 

[Rickster55]

...........of the girlfriend. Drill? Nah!

 

[wild cowboy]

C3 is much better made than their Bolt ****

 

[gkring]

Skip the bolt on deal no matter what. I have the 19.2 kit with reciprocating saw, small circular saw, and the drill and impact driver. Works great for around the house small projects. If you are using it more than a couple times a week, upgrade to something better.

 

[Papas63]

I'm with bczygan.

It's more than enough for use around the house.

Keep her AND the drill.

http://www.sears.com/craftsman-c3-19.2-volt-lithium-ion-3-8-in/p-00945200000P

 

[Fugio]

Forget that bold-on gimmick stuff. That C3 is a nice drill and damn near indestructible. It will last you for many years, maybe even decades. The lithium batteries are terrific (older nicd were garbage!). And there's a TON of accessories to add to it later.

 

[Tellingthem]

If it works for you keep it. No need to invest in anything major....yet haha. I've heard the bolt-ons are good for basic stuff, little projects. You know "jack of all trades master of none". But haven't really used them. I got a Skil cordless I got about 6-7 years ago and still works great so I keep it. Plus with the battery technology and brushless motors advancing as quickly as they are. I figure its better to wait another year or two before a major investment for myself. And by then they will be cheaper, more powerful and reliable that I'll be set for a few decades...

edit: And really the more that I think about it you should keep it and tell her that you looked into it and she did great and got you a great tool.

 

[Buckgnarly]

Don't bother with the bolt on gimmick, the Sears 19.2 is good stuff and more than adequate for homeowner use.

 

[Fugio]

Oh, and Milwaukee never made an RC truck that takes your drill batteries. But Craftsman did!

 

[Fugio]

Heck, there's even a brushless version now. 200 bucks for the kit, but goes on sale for 130.

Here's a list of current and discontinued stuff you might enjoy. I use the leaf blower all the time.

 

[livinloud11]

I told her I'm keeping it and we went and hung a shelf in the garage before leaving for work. I know that made her feel good

 

[Syntax_Error]

I started out as a contractor with the craftsman 19v line and some ryobi 18v and have made rediculous money with it. Cordless drills are all the damn same. If you can't drill a straight hole with a ryobi what are you gonna do with say a Festool. Aside from a wobbly chuck or something. Keep your C3 it's a great drill. Kinda heavy but plenty of power for drilling most homeowner project.

 

[cbacres]

I get pretty tired of "this is the best." I have a 14v Ryobi that someone gave me because they were tired of buying batteries. The thing works like an animal. 15 years old. One new battery bought in '08.

Oh, and I use my 25 YO 9v Makitas every day.

Yes, the old 9 volts. Only thing we used for all cordless drill work back in the eighties. Hung many a cabinet with those.
Had the Ryobi also, 18 volt, did go through some batteries, but they used to be cheap.
I run Ridgid today, mainly due to the lifetime warranty. I don't use my drills for work like a lot of you do, but they do get a good workout from time to time.
And the Ridgid warranty works fine, just did two batteris and a charger.

 

[Lyptix]

I have the 19.2 drill, impact driver, 1/2" impact, grinder and trim saw.
There's an Amish place nearby that sells sears returns. Got them for next to nothing.
Can get the batteries for $10 a pop. That's the new batteries too. I stockpiled some motors for the drill and impact, haven't had to replace them yet. Going on about 4 years of homeowner projects, weekend wrenching on vehicles, and maintaining my commercial truck with 440,000 miles on it (gm 5.7l)

The 19.2 angle grinder ***** in my opinion.

Also the 20v bolt system is like having all your eggs in one basket. Main unit goes bad then what?

 

[Shipfittin]

If you can't drill a straight hole with a ryobi what are you gonna do with say a Festool.

Exactly, 90% of the time it's the operator, not the tool that makes the difference. Nice tools help those who know what they are doing go quicker and more comfortably.

The average homeowner is wasting their money if they purchase a Milwaukee 18V Fuel. They will never use the tool to it's fullest potential. That's why Ryobi and Craftsman have been such a strong symbol for homeowners.

GJ is kind of a double edged sword a lot of the time. I love this place, being a professional tradesman myself I get to read and talk about a lot of industrial tools that I and others use daily. The average person doesn't have any real need for these tools unless they have money to burn or a select few of these tools to suit certain tasks they may want to accomplish.

 

[DrBaker]

My lady friend got me that same drill. I later added the 3/8 impact that shares the same lithium batteries.

May not be the best out there, but it's in my toolbox and I really like it.

 

[crazytrain]

I have the older ni cad 19.2 volt Craftsman drill and 1\4" impact driver. The batteries need replaced now but they are almost 10 years old. I have built and fixed a lot of stuff with them at home. They don't owe me anything and have paid for themselves many times over. I built tons of shelves, a deck, a front porch, a swing set all from scratch and have done tons of home improvements and auto repairs with them.

Like others said the bolt on stuff is gimmicky. If the main motor dies you are left with tools you can't use. If sears discontinues the drive unit at some point all the add-ons are worthless. I like specific use tools for that reason, if the tool dies you are only replacing one tool not all of them.

Glad you are keeping the drill your girl got you. Give her a hug and let her know you really like it. Let it put a smile on your face when you use it thinking of her. Consider adding a impact driver to your toolbox at somepoint. Maybe hint to her for a birthday, Christmas or anniversary gift. Its great to have both when building stuff not to have to change bits from a drill to a driver while holding pieces together.

 

[91FE]

...give her one back

 

[Fender1325]

+1 for the C3 impact driver and Drill set. I've done contractor work and really loved the Makitas I had on the job, but they cost almost 3 times as much. I just built a workbench with the C3 lithium impact and it worked perfect. Good balance and never ran out of power.

 

[quattroJoe]

I'll say I too think you made the right choice. The Bolt On stuff seems cheap and gimmicky to me. It's basically a rebrand of the identical Black & Decker system (attachments and batteries are supposedly cross compatible,) but how often do you hear people raving about B&D anymore? The C3 stuff is pretty solid, the batteries aren't going anywhere (can't say the same for Bolt On if they drop it,) and there is a huge range of tools on the C3 platform when you want to expand, well beyond what can be attached to a drill.

I use Milwaukee every day at work where I can justify the expense, but I've got a large collection of C3 at home. My C3 drill is over 10 years old and still going like a champ. Just upgraded to the lithium batteries this year and it's like a new drill. If yours came with the NiCad, look into the lithium batteries when the original wears out. Also, if you ever have the need, you can upgrade the chuck to 1/2". Jacobs makes a 3/8 to 1/2 chuck that fits the C3 drill and is nicer than what it comes with. But yeah, it sounds like you got a keeper (the drill and the girl!) Give her a kiss and tell her she done good, make sure she knows how much you like the drill and appreciate her. You could be getting socks for your bday!

 

[Shadowdog500]

It was a gift from your girlfriend. Keep it and use it.

Besides the gimmic tools at sears are just that, a gimmick.

chris

 

[livinloud11]

Birthday is next month, don't want socks lol. The drill does have the lithium battery, and she knows im happy with it and she loves helping me do things either around the house or on my car so we'll get use out of it, together

 

[928'er]

Craftsman C3, Craftsman, Ridgid, AEG, Milwaukee and Ryobi are all made by TTI. The C3 line and the Ryobi One+ line are pretty much the same except for certain tools and the way the battery clicks in.

Sure there are differences, but you can rest assured that the same basic technology is shared.