Cordless Drills

[Brad Wood]

Hey all,

I know the topic of cordless drills comes up a lot. I searched and found a lot of stuff, but most of the conversations seem to be asking for op opinions on one unit, or a comparison between two.

I'd really like to get input from everyone on models/choices in general. There are so many options out there these days it is hard to make a decision.

I am pretty confident I want Lithium, NiCd is old school and you have to worry about the battery too much.

What will it be used for you say? Not for professional or constant use by any means. With my old unit (which I've been without for a few years now), I did stuff like hang pictures, drive a drywall screw into either wood or drywall (what were the odds). I expect basic household use to continue.
Most of my woodworking consists of stuff that doesn't involve using a drill, but I am getting ready to build out cabinets in our mud room. They will match the cabinets in our kitchen, will have drawers, and all the stuff cabinets have. I'd like to have a cordless for doing the drawers... so, this is where I start to get confused... 12v, 14v, 18v, etc, et all.
I've been looking at the Bosch, pretty expensive really. The kit that comes with the impact driver and drill is $279. I really don't want to spend that much, but gee, just the driver is $179. The 12v kit is $159, so that is a little more digestible.
I'm just wondering if the 12v is going to be a disappointment. Also wondering about other options. It sounds like a lot of you like the Milwaukee. Do the batteries on the smaller units come out, and are they replaceable?
I seem to be leaning towards the compact units, particularly in thinking about the cabinet work (I'll also be doing a full buildout in our master closet, lots of drawers). In my past life I'd just by the biggest baddest unit and run with it.

thoughts?

[Ralph Okonieski]

Brad,

I am a weekend warrior also. I have the Bosch driver and the same size drill, both 12V. I do not care for the driver much because the impact starts too soon for my tastes. The drill on the other hand is my favorite drill. It is compact but has a lot of power. The 12V is nice because the battery is compatible with the Multi-X. I just bought a Bosch flashlight that takes the same 12V. I am a Bosch fan no-doubt.

I have a B&D 18V drill also. It is OK but the keyless chuck has to be really torqued so it doesn't loosen during use. It is heavy when trying to get inside cabinets and other tight areas but is a pretty powerful tool. It's OK but I reach for the Bosch first.

[Bruce King]

I recently had to replace some drills so I bought two Porter Cable 18V drills, this way I have 4 batteries and two chargers, all for about $200. This way I will never have to buy any replacement batteries or chargers, just toss it all out when I run out of working parts. One of the kits had a circular saw too.

I have a rare, slightly broken/loose Bosch 24 volt that I got at a tool show in 2000, this was an awesome drill, used it to drill holes when wiring a house etc. I dropped it from 8 feet onto concrete and the damage did not really show up much for 8 years where it cracked the main transmission inside ($80) and now the chuck is kind of loose so I quit using it.

[Glenn Vaughn]

Admittedly not high-end but I recently purchased the BLACK & DECKER 18v High Perf. Drill/Driver w/ Bag from Home Depot (online at $69) and it has been great. Plenty of power and it hs 2 batteries.

http://www.homedepot.com/BLACK-DECKE...atalogId=10053

[Chris Bruno]

Some may roll their eyes, but I'm a big fan of the Sears Craftsman cordless line up. I have a Sears right down the street, which makes a difference, but the C3 lineup is pretty comprehensive and you can get NiCd or Li batteries. Plus they have different drill and driver bundles almost always on sale. I have (2) 1/2" drills, (1) 3/8" drill, the driver, the 5" trim saw, and the flourescent light, as well as 4 batteries and two chargers and I think I've paid $250 for everything. Admittedly, the trim saw has been a bit of a disappointment, but the 1/2" drill and driver are probably my 2 most used tools in the whole garage...

-Chris

[Jerome Hanby]

I've got the 18 volt Ni-cad Black and Decker kit kit that pretty much goes unused. My folks got me this B&D Li-ion 1.4.4 volt drill for Christmass a couple of years ago and this Hitachi 18 volt a month or so later. The Hitachi is great, I use it constantly. It has great run time. The B&D works well too, right up to the point where it's out of juice (which is much faster than the Hitachi).

I use the tandem for almost every project. I keep a drill bit in the B&D for pilot holes, and a DeWalt quick change gizmo in the Hitachi for drivers and countersinks.

[James Waters]

I recently bought one of the Rockwell Li-ion kits with a half inch drill and the impact driver and I have been more than impressed. I have been working on my kitchen cabinets and I can typicially run all day with both on a single charge be it countersinking and putting the cabinets together or doing pocket screws on the faceframes. It has a metal chuck like the older Porter Cable drills did and also has a lifetime battery warranty similar to what Ridgid has. I also have used the craftsman line prior to this set and I still use them on occasion but the battery performance is night and day (they are nicad). My biggest complaint with Craftsman drills is their chucks.....you have to tignten and retighten the chucks or you loose bits.

Hope this helps.

[Dave Lehnert]

Some may roll their eyes, but I'm a big fan of the Sears Craftsman cordless line up. I have a Sears right down the street, which makes a difference, but the C3 lineup is pretty comprehensive and you can get NiCd or Li batteries. Plus they have different drill and driver bundles almost always on sale. I have (2) 1/2" drills, (1) 3/8" drill, the driver, the 5" trim saw, and the flourescent light, as well as 4 batteries and two chargers and I think I've paid $250 for everything. Admittedly, the trim saw has been a bit of a disappointment, but the 1/2" drill and driver are probably my 2 most used tools in the whole garage...

-Chris

The Sears Craftsman line is the same as the Ryobi units sold at Home Depot but in a 19.2 volt.

I own a Ryobi 14.4 volt and like it very much. I like it better than my Porter Cable. If I were doing over I would get the 18volt (not available when I purchased the 14.4} You can buy the 18 volt tools without batteries, just use the one that came with your drill kit.
We have an 18 volt Ryobi at work (retail setting) and it has held up very well over the years.

As far as volt goes. I used a 12 volt for years and it worked very well. Got hard to find 12 volt as the "bigger is better" crowd won that battle.

A magazine review once said that 12 volt was all you needed to do woodworking. They were only reviewing drills.

[Brad Wood]

I recently bought one of the Rockwell Li-ion kits with a half inch drill and the impact driver and I have been more than impressed. I have been working on my kitchen cabinets and I can typicially run all day with both on a single charge be it countersinking and putting the cabinets together or doing pocket screws on the faceframes. It has a metal chuck like the older Porter Cable drills did and also has a lifetime battery warranty similar to what Ridgid has. I also have used the craftsman line prior to this set and I still use them on occasion but the battery performance is night and day (they are nicad). My biggest complaint with Craftsman drills is their chucks.....you have to tignten and retighten the chucks or you loose bits.

Hope this helps.

1/2" huh? Seems like that would be a bigger drill. No issues with tight spaces in the cabinet work you are doing?

[Brad Wood]

The Sears Craftsman line is the same as the Ryobi units sold at Home Depot but in a 19.2 volt.

I own a Ryobi 14.4 volt and like it very much. I like it better than my Porter Cable. If I were doing over I would get the 18volt (not available when I purchased the 14.4} You can buy the 18 volt tools without batteries, just use the one that came with your drill kit.
We have an 18 volt Ryobi at work (retail setting) and it has held up very well over the years.

As far as volt goes. I used a 12 volt for years and it worked very well. Got hard to find 12 volt as the "bigger is better" crowd won that battle.

A magazine review once said that 12 volt was all you needed to do woodworking. They were only reviewing drills.

you know, I've never had an issue with Ryobi... mostly because I use them within the niche they are designed for. Is that 12v you speak of a compact unit or full size?

[Dave Lehnert]

you know, I've never had an issue with Ryobi... mostly because I use them within the niche they are designed for. Is that 12v you speak of a compact unit or full size?

The old 12 volt I had was an old Skil Top Gun. One of the top rated drills at it's time. But that has been 15- 20 years ago

[James Waters]

1/2" huh? Seems like that would be a bigger drill. No issues with tight spaces in the cabinet work you are doing?

I have a craftsman right angle cordless that I had to use on the hinges of a 12" cabinet for the screws. Other than that I did not have any problem with any of the others.

I see what you are saying as far as size....i was really referring to overall quality and performance.

[Jay Allen]

I work in a commercial cabinet shop, so anything I have gets used constantly. I am not hard on my stuff, it is well taken care of, but constant. I have owned a few brands and styles over the years and borrowed most of the others at one time or another.
Now to sound completely rediculous, I have 6 that I use every day.
2 Makita 18v impact crivers
1 Makita 18v drill
1 Bosch 12v pocket driver
1 Bosch 12v impactor
1 Bosch 12v drill

All of these plus the I-driver and the rest of the Makita 5 piece set are kept powered by 2 chargers that take very little space on my back-bench.
I have both 3.0amp/hr and 1.5amp/hr models, but the both work in the same charger.
Each has a specific use which may be a simple as a certian bit that stays in them all of the time. Since they all get use every day, the best thing for me is the smallest/lightest unit that will do the job and be able to do it all day. The Lithium Ion batteries have been a terrific advancement toward this. I started out with NiCad and mis-matched stuff years ago. This took a whole line of chargers and I had to use them much more often back then.

For a regular guy/home owner, I would look into one of the 2 piece kits with a drill and driver and lithium ion batteries. The L/ion batteries stay charged in periods of non-use, so they are great at waiting for you. The compact units are great for 99% of home owner stuff and if you need to get really serious, get out the corded drill and be done with it. There is no need for dealing with that big clunky thing for that 1% of the time where you "might" need it.

[Brad Schafer]

brad (nice name btw)- i'm in the same boat ... non-pro wondering what the heck. i've had a 9V Makita drill that's wired 2 houses, built a house, and eaten thru 4 batteries in the process and still works fine. so i haven't been pressed hard into getting a new one.

had a chance a couple years ago when working on a school stage to use 3 different cordless units - a ridgid, a makita, and a dewalt (think they were 14V units ... memory escapes).

the ridgid belonged to a pro - said it was hands down the best drill he'd ever had.

the makita was astoundingly light; the dewalt was heavy; the ridgid was in between. all were very powerful. the makita fit my hand the best. guess which one i used most of the time? as such, my advice would be to not get axle-wrapped on specs, but go see which one fits your hand.

[Steve Griffin]

I'm a little drill kind of guy. I have no interest in hauling around a small motorcycle battery on my drill just to save a 7 second trip to the charger.

Have a pair of makita 9.6 volts, a cute small bosch lithium fellow and 2-12v drills. The bigger 12 volts drills are the least used.

If I need more power, such as drilling 50 pocket holes in hickory, I plug in a $60 power drill. Especially for shop work, how hard is it to find an outlet close by? In my shop, easy.

It's common to question the manhood of someone who likes little drills, but I find I can make up for it in other ways. (like preferring a heavy framing hammer).

-Steve