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Login to post Forums » Off-topic discussion » Good Starter Drills?

March 17, 2010 10:09 p.m. Salanis UberDork

Okay. I need to bite the bullet and finally buy myself a cordless electric drill, instead of going over to friends'/family's to use theirs'. Any suggestions on good, affordable brands I should look for or avoid? Am I best off finding something good but used?

I went by Home Depot, and they had some good deals on Ryobi drills. Very inexpensive, but I wonder if that also means they're really... cheap.

Craftsman seems to have some inexpensive drills too. Those higher quality? I can't find what the warranty on them.
March 17, 2010 10:36 p.m. Toyman01 Dork

Ryobi > cheap, but not by much. I have one as a back up drill in my work truck. For homeowner/workshop use they are perfect. They have good power and get the job done. The batteries are cheap to replace when they go dead from sitting. I bought one of the packages on sale with the saw, flashlight, drill, charger and two batteries for $80. It has been worth every penny. I would get the Ryobi before I bought a HF or Northern set.

If you want a really good drill, look into the Hitachi or Makita brands. Expect to pay close to $200 for a top of the line 18V drill with charger and two batteries. Personally I would not get a De Walt. Their chucks are junk, and the transmissions die with regularity. My last De Walt took a swan dive off a 12' step ladder after fighting the chuck most of the morning. I rather enjoyed watching it explode on impact. A Hitachi replaced it during lunch. A Makita just replaced a three year old Hitachi that smoked while running a 3" hole saw in 1/4 steel plate. The Lithium batteries don't last as long as the Ni-cads in the Hitachi, but with a 15 minuet recharge time it really doesn't matter. The Lithium drills also weigh about half of the Ni-cad drills.

In your shoes, I would probably go with the Ryobi.

Edited for clarity, not that it helped much
March 17, 2010 10:37 p.m. VanillaSky Reader

The contractors around here use Ridgid. I use a FireStorm. I've had mine for about 2 years and it works every bit as well as the day I brought it home.

The biggest question you need to ask is what you're using it for. Just basic screw driving and a few holes here and there, or is this going to be a portable drill press? If the former, don't bother with something really nice unless you just want to spend a lot. If the latter, you really do need to consider buying something of a more "industrial" grade.
March 17, 2010 11:49 p.m. Salanis UberDork

VanillaSky wrote:

The biggest question you need to ask is what you're using it for. Just basic screw driving and a few holes here and there, or is this going to be a portable drill press? If the former, don't bother with something really nice unless you just want to spend a lot. If the latter, you really do need to consider buying something of a more "industrial" grade.

Mostly a hole here and there. I don't use a drill that often. Ever now and then, I figure I need to put a hole throw some metal in the car, or would like to drive a screw or bolt a bit more efficiently than I could do by hand.
March 18, 2010 6:29 a.m. 924guy Dork

funny, i was just searching for lithium ion batteries to replace the crap ni cad units in my horror freight 18v tools, i think im going to try and rebuild my battery packs. the drill and impact units i have are fine for what i need, but the pack chargers don't have timers and if you leave em plugged in, kills the batteries. figured that out too late... but i figure if i can find a cheap lithium charger and buy the cells to rebuild the packs with , they should work better and last ...
March 18, 2010 6:35 a.m. Toyman01 Dork

The Ryobi chargers are automatic. I haven't used their Lithium batteries, but their Ni-cads work pretty good. What usually kills the batteries is lack of use, but overcharging them will kill them even faster.
March 18, 2010 6:42 a.m. foxtrapper UltraDork

I've been using the Craftsman 19.2 volt line for years now.

Something to consider is how many tools are in the battery line. I started with just a drill. But then I got a circular saw, then a jig saw, and a big reciprocating saw, then a right angle drill, etc. It grows, because decent cordless tools are highly addictive. Having the battery in common between them all is darn handy and usefull.
March 18, 2010 7:08 a.m. 4cylndrfury SuperDork

+125615616581641 on the Craftsman 19v

I have drywalled with it, bored into hardened cromoly, sideloaded the bit ...pretty hard, built a dog ear privacy fence with it, mixed cement with it -basically beat up on it. Mine is 6 years old now, and still kicks as much ass as it did new. I can finish a good days work in most cases on a single charge, but eventually all rechargeable batteries require replacement.
March 18, 2010 7:15 a.m. Ian F Dork

I went through a series of cheap cordless drills before finally buying a 9.6V Makita, which has been my main drill ever since. That was in 1992. I've since added a 18V DeWalt (actually my g/f's that her father found well-used at an auction; I got 2 new batteries for it), a 1/2" corded DeWalt (biggest one they sell) and a Bosch SDS hammer-drill (that I really bought to use as a jack-hammer).

FWIW, for general cordless work, I prefer a 9.6V. It weighs less than 12V and a lot less than 18V models. Something to think about if you think you'll be doing a lot of overhead work. I chuck a torx bit into it and use it to spin off/on the 10 screws that hold the belly pan under my TDI when I change the oil.

Were I starting from zero, I'd probably get the biggest combo kit I can afford. Really the best bang-for-buck nowadays. I am biased towards DeWalt for a couple of reasons. One - I already have batterie, and two, there is such a huge variety of 18V tools. I keep dreaming of the big combo kit northerntool.com sells for $1000.
March 18, 2010 7:33 a.m. JThw8 SuperDork

I've been abusing a home depot special Ryobi for over 12 years now, and I do mean abusing. It has held up fine. Its starting to get a little worn at this point but it just made a buncha holes in 1/4 inch steel last night so it still gets the job done.

There are certainly better ones out there for alot more money but for your described needs I dont think you'll be dissapointed by the Ryobi.
March 18, 2010 8:45 a.m. tuna55 HalfDork

Toyman01 wrote:

Ryobi > cheap, but not by much. I have one as a back up drill in my work truck. For homeowner/workshop use they are perfect. They have good power and get the job done. The batteries are cheap to replace when they go dead from sitting. I bought one of the packages on sale with the saw, flashlight, drill, charger and two batteries for $80. It has been worth every penny. I would get the Ryobi before I bought a HF or Northern set.

If you want a really good drill, look into the Hitachi or Makita brands. Expect to pay close to $200 for a top of the line 18V drill with charger and two batteries. Personally I would not get a De Walt. Their chucks are junk, and the transmissions die with regularity. My last De Walt took a swan dive off a 12' step ladder after fighting the chuck most of the morning. I rather enjoyed watching it explode on impact. A Hitachi replaced it during lunch. A Makita just replaced a three year old Hitachi that smoked while running a 3" hole saw in 1/4 steel plate. The Lithium batteries don't last as long as the Ni-cads in the Hitachi, but with a 15 minuet recharge time it really doesn't matter. The Lithium drills also weigh about half of the Ni-cad drills.

In your shoes, I would probably go with the Ryobi.

Edited for clarity, not that it helped much

I've always been a Makita fan, but my last corded drill let me down in a big way. First off, the chuck started to fail very early on, but worked OK if you used the "drill on, gloved hand holding the chuck" approach to tighten it. Last weekend, working on the deck (stinking wood screws and a few 5/8" holes with a spade bit) the thing started making a tremendous clicking noise whenever it was pressed against something AT ALL. It was then that I noticed the label.

"Makita, japan. made in china"

I don't know whether to chuck it (get it?) or fix it.
March 18, 2010 9:12 a.m. Timeormoney New Reader

When I worked at the Illustrious Home Despot, I had a long talk with a machinist about power drills and here is what he said:

Milwaukee

Bosch

Hitachi

De Walt used to be good, but black and decker started "value engineering" them and cut out most of the great parts

Makita is the new De Walt

Rigid is like the volvo of power drills, boxy, heavy but pretty good

Ryobi, random quality for this brand. Some models are good, some models are bad

Other Crap

BTW if you only use it occasionally, you can get a MUCH better corded drill for the same price as a crappy cordless drill.

If you are getting serious about drills it generally comes down to the bearings; if it has good bearing then it probably has good everything else.

Finally, if you are going to cut metal, get bits for cutting metal; it makes a crap drill acceptable.
March 18, 2010 9:13 a.m. mw Reader

When I read the title, I thought you were going to use a drill to start an engine. It might work for a go kart...
March 18, 2010 11:42 a.m. jimbbski New Reader

I bought a Bosch drill at Menards. Can handle 1/2 drills, and I love it. The drill itself is built to last, it weights more then my plug in drill which is twice the size. Battery packs hold plenty of power. I was able to scuff down my 16 ft. open car trailer to prep for paint using the two included battery packs.
March 18, 2010 11:54 a.m. cwh SuperDork

I also really like Bosch power tools. I have several, but not wireless. Funny, in my industry, CCTV, their product is crap. When somebody asks me about a Bosch recorder, I just say they make great power tools.
March 18, 2010 12:11 p.m. intrepid New Reader

I really like the cheap Harbor Freight 18 v. drills for around the house work. I've got two of them, and they have really served me well. I used to have a Craftsman (18v.) and a Skil (9.6) and in both cases batteries died way too soon in my opinion. New batteries were almost as expensive as a new drill. The Harbor Freight drills have served me just as well as the Craftsman/Skil and have actually lasted longer...

-Chris R.
March 18, 2010 1:08 p.m. Jake HalfDork

I've been beating up on my Craftsman 19.2V drill for at least 6 years at this point (4 years in this house, 2 in the one prior). I'm a fairly involved remodeler. Have drilled tons of holes, run in hundreds of screws, hung a ton of drywall, mixed grout, stirred paint, and generally never had to give the drill a second thought. Go grab the second battery off the charger and I'm good the rest of the day, easy. Between the drill and a cordless reciprocating saw, I use it pretty regularly. If I could just find a #2 phillips bit that didn't suck, I'd be in good shape.

I highly, highly recommend it- they have every cordless tool you could want in the line at this point, anyway, and they are very reasonably priced.
March 18, 2010 1:59 p.m. slantvaliant HalfDork

Every home should at least have a 3/8" variable speed reversible corded drill, and a good set of bits. Store them together.

Mine happen to be Black and Decker, and have lasted long enough to be good values.

Professionals lean toward bigger, heavier versions that might be too much when Suzy Homemaker just wants to start a cup hook.

Cordless drills are great and a good step up, but do keep the 110V version as reserve. The power company is more reliable than your batteries.
March 18, 2010 2:19 p.m. Salanis UberDork

A line of tools that will let me use common power packs is a big thing for me. I would ideally like to have something with a decent impact wrench in the line for efficiently swapping out wheels at the track.

I do want cordless, because I need to be able to use it in an apartment parking lot, or at the track, where plugs are not readily available.
March 18, 2010 2:43 p.m. 914Driver UltraDork

You ever drill a hole in shiny metal and have the drill bit walk down your nice paint? That's why they invented starter drills, the tip is a bit different and doesn't allow that.

Otherwise I'm no help at all...
March 18, 2010 5:55 p.m. Toyman01 Dork

Jake wrote:

If I could just find a #2 phillips bit that didn't suck, I'd be in good shape.

The best I have found are Bosch. Lowes carries them. Set the clutch on your drill, they are hard as old peoples toe nails and will snap if the screw bottoms out. The Ace brands run a close second.
March 18, 2010 6:51 p.m. ansonivan Reader

My wife bought one of the new Bosch lithium ion drills, thing has been fantastic so far. Much smaller lighter than the Ni-Cad drills and the battery is reported to have a much longer lifespan.

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