Festool Drill Owners

Hi,

Soon I'll be replacing one of my cordless drills and have narrowed it down to the following:

1) Panasonic 15.6v drill/driver w/3.5ah batteries
2) Panasonic 12v impact driver w/digital clutch and 3.5ah batteries
3) Festool C12 w/3.0ah batteries
4) Festool TDK 15.6

I hear a lot of great things about impact drivers, and about 40-50% of my work with a cordless is home improvement which is much more likely to need an impact driver than my ww projects. A plus for the 12v impact is a rebate from panasonic for a free 12v drill body.

A recent PW mag test said the Panasonic 15.6 was able to drill more holes and drive more screws than the TDK 15.6 (quite a bit more). But the TDK comes with the Centrotec chuck which I like.

The appeal of the Festool drills is the durability and ergonomics which I think are even slightly better than my 12v Panasonic which has been my favorite for shop/cabinet work.

I'd like to know your opinions/experiences with any of the above mentioned drills, thanks in advance!

Pete

I have a TDK12 and like the size. I've been using 12V drills for years and the power and weight is what I'm used to. The biggest difference is the right angle and offset attachments. The charger also doesn't make the annoying hiss my PC charger used to.
Overall I like it. My 2nd choice was either a Panasonic or a Drill/Impact combo. I haven't used one of the cordless impact guns, so I can't comment on differences there (though I love my air impact wrench).

Jay

I have the Panasonic 15.6 and have been very happy. Battery life is great, I've never run it down on a single project if I started with it fully charged.

I was able to get the kit with the flashlight as well.

Like Jay, I have the TDK 12 v Festool and absolutely love it...and all the chuck options make for a very versatile tool. I didn't feel the need for the heavier 15.6v version since I have a Dewalt 14.4 hanging around as a now-second choice. The Festool goes, and goes, and goes...and goes. I hardly ever change batteries it seems. It also seems to have nearly the same driving power as the heavier 14.4v tool I own...'could be just me dreaming, however.

But the Panasonic is a very nice tool for a bit less money if you don't need the versatity that the Festool offers with the chuck system.

Jim and Jay,

Do you find that you use the additional chucks offered by Festool very often? I'm going through the same thinning process as Peter (in fact, my list of candidates was virtually identical to his) but the allure of the offset chuck in particular (and the engineering side of the brushless motor) has me leaning towards the C12 (even though I find the ergonomics for traditional drilling a bit unusual). I’m guessing that the extra chucks are not used that often but when there is a need, they quickly become life-savers. Can you guys give any real life examples of when you have brought them into use?
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Peter, do you know if the PW tests were using 2.4ah NiCd's or the 3.0ah NMH batteries? The TDK's come standard with the NiCads so that could explain some of the differences (it wasn't until the c12 that you could order different batteries in the base package). However, I suspect that Panasonic has the best battery technology so that likely accounts for most of the difference.

Finally (a bit of a rant), why does Festool charge $40 more for the C12 kit with the NMH batteries than the NiCads when the retail on each battery is only $7 more? Seems like they are pushing the older technology. Or does the charger not work on the NMH batteries? (I hope that's not the case as I would like the option of buying replacement NMH batteries in the future if I buy the kit with NiCads)
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Thanks again,
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-Scott

Scott,

I'm almost certain it was with the 2.4 NiCads. Like you said that would explain the difference.

I held both the C12 and the TDK 15.6 today and they really are small compared to all other drills.

Thanks guys,

Pete

Scott,

I've used the right angle attachment once, but I've only really had the drill for a month or so. In that case (hanging some shelves), I could've taken a shelf off to drive the screw but didn't have to with the right angle attachment. I do have a future application running home theater wiring where I know I will want a right angle drill and would've bought one anyway. I have a cheapo right angle adapter that I've used a dozen times or so over the last 5 years, but when I've needed it it's been crucial. The adapter has a handle on it that won't allow it to work for the upcoming application. This one works much easier/better ... very slick. Since I knew I was going to spend more soon anyway, the decision got easier.

Jay