Drill/Drivers

[timmyspicyman]

Thinking of upgrading my basic B&D cordless drill/driver (which is only man enough for driving and drilling wood) to something that is a bit more manly which will hopefully chew into brick and mortar.

Any recommendations?

Thinking along the lines of this

http://www.screwfix.com/p/hitachi-dv18dcl2-ds18dcl-18v-li-ion-combi-drill-driver-twin-pack/25400

So I can have one rigged for drill and one for driver to save arsing around on a job. Any thoughts welcome

[hwntw]

Not a bad deal, but why do you need a non-hammer drill to go with it? I'd be tempted to go with a deal that offered you an impact driver rather than a non-hammer drill. I really like Milwaukee tools, they are top quality, but bloody expensive, Makita are another top make that are a bit cheaper.

[canute]

I use battery drills of various brands every day for work. We have a dynadrill for plugging, but we do have one Dewalt hammer drill that can be used for small jobs. In my experience:

Dewalt make excellent drills. Probably the highest performing straight out of the box that I have used. If you do go for one, make sure you get one that runs on a Li Ion battery as there are still a few of the old ones on sale out there (NiCd???). I have heard that Dewalt can be pretty slow to get any faults or worn parts fixed though.

Makita is also a good brand, although their chucks do tend to slip a bit, even on a brand new drill and they deteriorate with age a little quicker than other brands, requiring more frequent services and/or repairs. Makita are very good at repairing anything that goes wrong if still under the warranty. We tend to get new parts at the drop of a hat and there's no pissing about with them trying to squirm out of it or offer a half-arsed patch-up job, which some other brands do.

For the overall package, I'd highly recommend Panasonic. They are extremely durable, have great batteries and great chucks. Ours are several years older than our Makitas and have been run ragged, but are still going strong. They obviously get a service and the odd new part every now and again, but work brilliantly after the repairs/replacements are done.

Festool do outstanding drills too, but I think they are very pricey. The only one we have is a funky one for drilling round corners and stuff.

We also have Matibo and Bosch drills, which both go fine, but we don't use them as much so I don't know how they match up to the brands above for prolonged usage. Our Bosch dynadrill is very good though.

Regarding Hwntw's suggestion of an impact driver, I'd say it depends what you are going to do with it. An impact driver is slightly better for driving, but you'll have more versatility with a hammer/non-hammer combination than a hammer/impact driver combo. Unless you are going to be doing a sh*tload of driving (I'm talking 100s of screws in row here), I'd go for the extra versatility.

[timmyspicyman]

I've never had an impact driver, always had a drill/driver although I have one terrible Bosch driver that just went at the same speed when on.

It had a couple of torque setting, but what I like about drill/drivers is that the trigger is like an analogue control to give really good speed variability. Do modern impact drivers have this or is it a case of "it's on, or it's off"?

Hwntw, to answer your question, I'd have one rigged for drilling and one rigged for driving on a job. I see your point though, it would be better to have hammers in a perfect world. No point in not, but I guess it will come down to price at the end of the day.

[canute]

I've never had an impact driver, always had a drill/driver although I have one terrible Bosch driver that just went at the same speed when on.

It had a couple of torque setting, but what I like about drill/drivers is that the trigger is like an analogue control to give really good speed variability. Do modern impact drivers have this or is it a case of "it's on, or it's off"?

Hwntw, to answer your question, I'd have one rigged for drilling and one rigged for driving on a job. I see your point though, it would be better to have hammers in a perfect world. No point in not, but I guess it will come down to price at the end of the day.

They are on/off, but they slow down as the screw tightens. It's almost impossible to over-screw with them, unless you really try to. One thing to be aware of, which you may well already know, is that they are bloody noisy.

[KK67]

B+Q are selling lith-ion 18v Makita's for £99 at the moment.

[timmyspicyman]

B+Q are selling lith-ion 18v Makita's for £99 at the moment.

Nice. I'll check them out.

[hwntw]

Generally, the ones you see at B&Q have terrible batteries, the Ah (amp hours) rating gives you an idea of how much charge the battery can hold, IIRC, the B&Q jobs only have 1.3Ah batteries, and the higher the voltage rating of the drill the shorter time that 1.3Ah will last when it's in use, this is why they are cheap. I paid a fair bit for my combi drill, it has two 3Ah Li batteries, they accounted for much of the cost of the set.

[timmyspicyman]

Generally, the ones you see at B&Q have terrible batteries, the Ah (amp hours) rating gives you an idea of how much charge the battery can hold, IIRC, the B&Q jobs only have 1.3Ah batteries, and the higher the voltage rating of the drill the shorter time that 1.3Ah will last when it's in use, this is why they are cheap. I paid a fair bit for my combi drill, it has two 3Ah Li batteries, they accounted for much of the cost of the set.

Annoyingly, it does't say what batteries come with them. I'm driving past it today or tomorrow so will pop in and check them out.

[hwntw]

Annoyingly, it does't say what batteries come with them. I'm driving past it today or tomorrow so will pop in and check them out.

Have a quick google at the difference in price between 1.3Ah and 3Ah replacement batteries for the same drill, it'll give you an idea why some seemingly good brand cordless tools can look like a bargain, on the surface.

[timmyspicyman]

Have a quick google at the difference in price between 1.3Ah and 3Ah replacement batteries for the same drill, it'll give you an idea why some seemingly good brand cordless tools can look like a bargain, on the surface.

Screwfix have got the same drill with 1 x 3Ah batteries for £150.

You're preaching to the converted mate. I want the best battery I can have.

[timmyspicyman]

Screwfix have got the same drill with 1 x 3Ah batteries for £150.

You're preaching to the converted mate. I want the best battery I can have.

You also get a £50 discount on a spare battery which takes it down to £90, so £240 for this with 2 x 3Ah batteries. Not bad.

[timmyspicyman]

This looks OK too

http://www.screwfix.com/p/bosch-gsb-18-2-li-18v-2-6ah-li-ion-cordless-combi-drill/96805

[hwntw]

You also get a £50 discount on a spare battery which takes it down to £90, so £240 for this with 2 x 3Ah batteries. Not bad.

That's a pretty good deal but on that price, you are venturing into Milwaukee territory, IMHO, better quality tools (it's AKG's premier brand) with better a guarantee http://www.toolbox.co.uk/milwaukee-c18pd32-18v-liion-16220-118524?utm_source=GoogleBase&utm_medium=GB&utm_campaign=GoogleBase

[timmyspicyman]

That's a pretty good deal but on that price, you are venturing into Milwaukee territory, IMHO, better quality tools (it's AKG's premier brand) with better a guarantee http://www.toolbox.co.uk/milwaukee-c18pd32-18v-liion-16220-118524?utm_source=GoogleBase&utm_medium=GB&utm_campaign=GoogleBase

That's very decent. I think screwfix have got the same one for almost double the price of that. Cheers, I may well just get that.

[hwntw]

That's very decent. I think screwfix have got the same one for almost double the price of that. Cheers, I may well just get that.

No doubt KK will be along to tell you "it's not site" in a minute, I have found their gear to be top quality, and their guarantee is about the best out there.

[hwntw]

That's very decent. I think screwfix have got the same one for almost double the price of that. Cheers, I may well just get that.

Remember that only comes with one battery though, a spare will cost you around £70.

[timmyspicyman]

Remember that only comes with one battery though, a spare will cost you around £70.

That link you posted comes with 2 batteries. A bargain.

[hwntw]

That link you posted comes with 2 batteries. A bargain.

No, read it again, it's badly written, you'd get one battery and one charger, as per the picture.

[timmyspicyman]

No, read it again, it's badly written, you'd get one battery and one charger, as per the picture.

"Milwaukee C18PD32 18v Li-Ion Combi Drill (2 x 3.0Ah Batteries)"

You sure mate? That looks pretty crystal to me.

Not sure about this bit though "2 x 3.0 Ah Li-ion Battery Charger"

[hwntw]

"Milwaukee C18PD32 18v Li-Ion Combi Drill (2 x 3.0Ah Batteries)"

You sure mate? That looks pretty crystal to me.

Not sure about this bit though "2 x 3.0 Ah Li-ion Battery Charger"

That's the bit that made me think, especially when you look at the picture, I'd phone them first before ordering if I were you.

[KK67]

Good luck getting parts for the Milwaukees....(which you will need eventually).

[hwntw]

Good luck getting parts for the Milwaukees....(which you will need eventually).

I got a replacement battery in 3 days, under guarantee, replacement bushes are stocked at my local distributer (Brighton Tools and Fixings), on mine the chuck is all metal and pretty much indestructible. I've had my drill for 8 years now, it's better than any Makita I've owned, and I've had a couple, they have the best guarantees in the market, and they come out near the top just about every serious review. Have you ever owned any Milwaukee tools?

[Handyosprey]

Milwaukee gear is pretty good , and the guy who repairs plant for us reckons they are better built than most . Close second was dewalt , but dewalt casings aren't that sturdy . Battery life is everything if you only have one battery , not so much bother if you have 2 and a one hour charge . The only thing (as with any non sds battery drill ) is they all struggle with hard brick , and don't like doing lots of heavy drilling in quick succession , as in 25mm flatbar through joists . Worth having a mains drill as back up if you can find a kit with both .

[KK67]

Have you ever owned any Milwaukee tools?

I worked on site with a bloke who swore by them. We mostly swore at them.


Worth having a mains drill as back up

Absofeckinlutely. There are times when only a 120 will get it done.

[hwntw]

I worked on site with a bloke who swore by them. We mostly swore at them.

So basically, you don't like the colour......

[KK67]

So basically, you don't like the colour......

Funnily enough,...I'm currently working for a Garden Design company that's owned by a woman. Her company decals are bright pink with green flowers. The vehicles are all bright pink.
I had to go to Travis Perkins at 07:45 to collect materials on Tuesday......the place was heaving with white transits.

Tough morning,...but I think I got away with it.