Drill/driver features usefulness?

[Ken Platt]

Folks - I'm in need of a new drill/driver, first new one in about 10 years, and I had some questions on feature usefulness. I already have an impact driver (love that thing!) so this will be only used for drilling, both for shop and home uses. My questions:

First, when I got my current Dewalt, one of the things I looked for was a chuck that could be easily tightened by my somewhat stiff hands and gripped well. At that time, the makita I had required a death grip to tighten the chuck down. The Dewalt had (and, it appears, some of the models still have) a ratchet mechanism that I found a lot easier. So, I'd appreciate hearing about how easy (or not) different models of drill/drivers are to tighten the chuck.

Second, some of the models now come with battery charge gauges. This seems like a good idea, but I'm wondering how useful it is in practice for your average hobbiest/diyer like me. For those with this feature, is it something you end up using a lot? Or do you just run each battery until it doesn't drive too well? Does it help with battery life to know it's running low before it craps out?

Lastly, a Tools of the Trade article said that most manufacturers have 2 models, one lighter/less sturdy model, one more pro-oriented. The lesser models mostly have a plastic chuck, the pro models an all-metal. Anyone found it makes a difference in homeowner/hobbiest usage?

If anyone has a link to a recent drill roundup test, I'd appreciate it. I have a 2009 one in FWW (which doesn't mention either of the above features), and there's one at Tools of the Trade, which talks about the battery gauge but not the chuck grab issue.


Thanks all - all comments and thoughts appreciated -

Ken

[Andrew Fleck]

I got the Bosch lithium ion drill a couple of years ago and have no complaints. It works much better than my old Dewalt I had before that. I'm not sure about the internals of the chuck, but it has held up well for shop and home use. It also has a built in light which I find very useful.

There is no battery charge gauge, but these lithium ion batteries really last a long time compared to whatever drills used to have. Another thing I like about them is that the drill runs full power and then just sort of dies really quickly when it's time to recharge.

[Mike Henderson]

I have the DeWalt 12V drill and love it. Light and certainly strong enough to do everything I need to do. Good chuck with a ratchet for tightening on the bit.

Mike

[Harvey Melvin Richards]

One thing that I really like with a keyless chuck is a spindle lock when the drill is off.

[Bill Huber]

I have the Milwaukee M12 3/8" drill, it has a metal key-less chuck, a battery gauge and a light. It does a very good job and I like the RPM speeds, 0-400 and 0-1500. It has a 5 year warranty and is only 2.5 lb. I use the smaller battery in it most of the time but I also have the larger one when I am doing a whole lot of drilling.

At one point I had Bosch, DeWalt, Ridgid and Craftsman cordless tools, I now have sold all of them and just have the Milwaukee M12. It is nice to have one battery that runs all your cordless tools plus I have a bunch of charges to keep all the batteries charged.

http://www.milwaukeetool.com/power-t...rdless/2407-22

[glenn bradley]

I tend to stick to corded drills for holes. When I am drilling in the shop I am usually drilling smaller holes and want faster speeds than most cordless drills provide. Don't get me wrong, I have a few cordless drill motors and I do use them for making holes. When I want proper speeds and require clean predictable results (as in, it will show) I use a corded drill that runs up to 2500 rpm. I have probably missed a model or two but, many corded drills are around 1500 rpm with some "really fast" ones making 2000 rpm. Plenty fast for most things.

drill speeds.JPG

As to chucks, I would recommend a trip to the tools store(s) to actually lay your hands on them. I do like the ratcheting DeWalt chucks. My small Ridgid's have similar chucks with a large diameter for an easy grip. Both are rubber covered. The downside to the easy grip is the fat chuck can run into things in tight spots but, that's what extenders are for ;-)

[Rick Potter]

Got the 18V Makita set which is fantastic. That being said, I also have the M12 Milwaukee kit. I use the M12 most all the time as it is lighter and plenty powerful for 90% of what I do. It has the fuel gage, which I think is handy. At the very least, you know when to put the extra battery in your pocket, for later. The Lithium batteries don't give much warning when going dead, like the old NiCad. It will drive a screw, then slow on the next one, and it's time to grab the extra battery you put in that pocket.

There are several really nice models out there now. Like it says above, get one that feels right for you.

Rick Potter

[David Gutierrez]

I have the 12volt bosch li ion drill and impact driver love them for work in the shop and around the house. they fit in the apron and are plenty for small work. if I am driving a large amounts of work like building a deck I switch to the 18v Dewalt. The chuck on the drill is rubber and easy to use. I have a bit arthritis in my hands that makes the large Dewalt hard on my grip.

[John Coloccia]

I think pretty much all of the chucks these days are pretty easy to close. My main criteria, in order, are:

1) chuck runs true....it's surprising how many don't
2) decent trigger control
3) weight
4) battery life

That's about it for me. Everything else is either available on every drill anyway, or is unimportant enough to me that I'll just live with however it comes. #4 isn't even that important to me in the shop setting. Whatever it is, it is. If I can choose longer battery life without sacrificing #1 and #2, I do it.

[Kent A Bathurst]

I've got Makita. Out of town, don't recall the models.

Couple HD - the green. Couple lightweight - the black & gray. Pretty sure John C has/had the black and gray driver - I remember him talking about it when I was in the process of buying mine. I got that one as an add-on, based on his comments about performance v weight.

They are everything I had hoped for. My antique Old Mill started dying, so I bought them all at the same time, with a few chargers and plenty of extra batts.

Don't know that the Makita's are better or worse than the other brands mentioned - I don't have comparison experience. But - I'm a happy customer after 2 - 3 [4?] years.

BTW - Best thing ever in this tool product family was the impact driver. I dunno what i was thinking that I did not have one sooner.

[Chad Helme]

I work on new construction and remodeling job sites every day, see and use lots of different cordless kits. Most everything we use is 18v. Smaller tools (12v, 14v,etc) are okay at driving screws and drilling a few pilot holes, but for driving lag screws and drilling with paddle bits, the 18volt models are the only way to go.

My experience is that the value of all the different sets is in the batteries. Most of the brands have a shorter run time battery set and a longer, more powerful running set. Often its a 1.5 amp/hr vs 3.0 amp/hr and the difference is $100 or more. The good news is that the lithium batteries can be charged anytime, and don't need to be fully discharged so you just run one, and plug the other into the charger. For me, the tools with the battery gauge are just a gimmick. Use it till its gone, then grab the fresh one. The Dewault and Makita are the stand outs in my opinion. Chucks are easy to operate and seem to operate properly, month after month. Batteries are still the weakest link, and will likely fail before any other part of the tool. Spend good money on a nice Makita or Dewault and you will get another 10 years out of your new too.

Hope this helps.

[Sam Murdoch]

Occasionally Milwaukee will run a promotion in which they will accept a trade of another battery drill/driver and give you $ 100.00 off on their tool.
Their 18V li ion "fuel" tools are exceptional. The impact or the drill/driver. I bought the drill/driver with the hammer drill feature - why not - except for a bit more weight. Really - really - long battery charge time and very impressive power. They have fuel gauges and variable speed and torque options. These replaced my long time use Panasonics and there is no looking back. Milwaukee has a veryyyyyyy extensive product line so if you choose to go this route study the model numbers carefully. They are not all equal and very easy to confuse.

[Chad Helme]

...study the model numbers carefully. They are not all equal and very easy to confuse.

Very true with all the manufacturers. Two combo kits that look almost identical in their packaging, and even "in hand" often have very different performance specs.

[Steve Rozmiarek]

I think the difference between the different drills has really narrowed. The major brands all offer good tools, just see which one fits your hands best. I personally use 18 volt Dewalt for everything, because it fits everything else. Oh, they are good drills too, but pretty big. I haven't been impressed with my Bosch 18 volt lithium's battery life, about half of the Dewalts.

[Ole Anderson]

I still have an old Makita 9.6V stick battery drill, replacement battery still good, but it never gets used. My next cordless is a 14.4 v DeWalt XRP, the real thing, although I just dropped off two dead batteries to the HD battery bin. Had it in for service once. Chuck and clutch work very nicely. My current go-to combo is the 18 v Porter cable Lithium set. Much lighter than the XRP, although they have the smaller batteries. But I have issues with the chuck on the drill loosening do to the slam-it-stopped brake and the adjustable clutch is not on a par with the XRP. Still it has plenty of power to spin an 18" long 9/16" auger bit thru multiple studs when doing electrical work. And the impact driver gets the most use. My son has an older 18V Milwaukee, it is a heavy beast, even bigger than the XRP. With the bigger NiCad battery, it probably weighs twice that of the PC drill. Edit: Forgot about the 14.4 v NiCad Ryobi that is now relegated to the motorhome. Obviously a lesser drill compared to the others, but has come in handy many times while travelling.