You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
I bought my dad a Bosch cordless drill a while back as all his drills are heavy duty jobs with european plugs and heavy leads etc and I thought it would be useful for him for light work around the house. He's currently building a tree house for my niece and I thought the cordless would be handy for that too, but it's just not up to real work at all, as it's lacking in speed and torque. It's okay for drilling small holes in very soft wood, that's about it tbh.
[url= http://www.diy.com/departments/bosch-cordless-18v-ni-cd-drill-driver-2-batteries/184616_BQ.prd?gclid=CjwKEAjwr6ipBRCM7oqrj6O30jUSJACff2WH0tnvO2sEx3h_BLXkdheyc0l5mVrJorRQde_fgk7nThoCYubw_wcB&ecamp=SEAPLA184616_BQ&ef_id=VPiS5AAAAQG3RWoD:20150412094212:s ]This[/url] is the drill I bought him. Could someone explain to me what kind of specs I should be looking for in a cordless drill that's up to real work? IE something a tradesman would be happy to use on a building site day in day out, something that would be capable of quickly and easily driving in 60/80mm screws all day long and not labouring.
Not worried about branding, just curious to know what's a proper spec to buy. Thanks
Not Ni/cad these days.. go li ion
Id have thought the 18v bosch would put screws in ok though??
Makita or Dewalt is what id go for.
I've got this one http://www.homebase.co.uk/en/homebaseuk/hitachi-dv18dcl2jc-18v-li-ion-combi-drill-273274
which has coped with every job I've needed it for, the only thing I will fault on it is the plastic chuck.
For drilling masonry and lintels though I will use a corded for the extra power.
Recently got a Bosch Drill and impact driver pair with two batteries for under £200+vat from screw fix last month. can't see the offer now. It's the blue stuff you need if your buying Bosch not the green.
We already have a few of the same range at work so it makes sense to stick with the same battery type for us, they are very good.
I've got the 14V lithium Bosch Green which I bought for doing lightweight work, decking, etc. It must be abut 6 years old now (cost £50 on sale) and has coped (along side a corded SDS) with shed builds, decking and a complete flat renovation and the battery is still in excellent condition.
Only thing it struggles with is large (6mm dia, 70mm long) cheap wood screws direct into timber without a pilot hole as it doesnt have the torque to pull joints really tight like an 18V one I borrowed.
For drilling a decent drill bit is critical. Use cheap drills and you will be there all day. Buy a decent drill, especially one for cordless drills and no problem. It's obviously slower than the SDS for drilling into concrete but it will get there and a lot easier to handle.
TheDTs It's the blue stuff you need if your buying Bosch not the green.
Well, I guess that's a simple as you can put it, thanks.
Got the 18 v li ion bosch got to admit very dissapointed in it.ok for driving in screw but for drilling into walls in our house have to revert to the corded drill not enough grunt and the hammer action hardly makes any difference. The adverts for these are very misleading.
As above -green Bosch for easy DIY, blue Bosch for professional. 18v 4ah at work-great stuff
If you've got the cash then Bosch Blue or Makita in the £100-200 range. That is all I buy for most of my tools with the exception of the green drill above which was bought years ago as I was fed up screwing timber by hand and it's surpassed all my expectations and been well used over the last 6 years. I hadn't used it from early December until last week and it still had pretty much full charge. Only weakness is the chuck which now needs a double check. Hammer action works fine for a 14V cordless.
If you want something in the £50-75 range then I would go with Bosch green over something cheap and nasty like Titan, Silverline etc. Just avoid nicad ones.
RustyNissanPrairie - MemberAs above -green Bosch for easy DIY, blue Bosch for professional. 18v 4ah at work-great stuff
So I am guessing its amp rating as opposed to volts that make the difference?
Amp/hours is the the amount of work you'll get between charges. Its a figure with Li-ion that only matters if you're completely away from a mains supply as you'll always be able to charge a Li-ion battery quicker than you can run it flat.
The type of battery chemistry is irrelevant as to whether the drill is able to drill a hole of a certain size or not - whether the existing battery is in good condition would be the question really.
Your 18v drill shouldn't have difficulty drilling a hole if the battery is healthy and has been charged properly. Nicad and NIMH batteries need a certain amount of discipline in how they're charged and cared for but if the battery is good then an 18v of nicad is the same as 18v of Li-ion
Li-ion brings convenience of quick and partial charging over older technology - BUT only if paired with a good charger, cheapo Li-ion kits can still be slow to charge.
The figures that matter are the ones that are usually in the small print and thats the torque - thats the combination of the battery, the motor and the gearing. One drill of a given voltage can have more useful power than another depending on those specifications.
Your link helpfully doesn't list that but from the spec [url= http://cpc.farnell.com/1/1/42499-drill-driver-18v-2xbatt-battery-capacity-1-5ah-battery-voltage-18v-chuck-size-10mm-drilling-capacity-steel-13mm-drilling-capacity-wood-30mm-plug-type-uk-svhc-no-svhc-16-jun-2014-torque-max-30n-m-battery-type-nicd-chuck-type-keyless-masonry-psr-18-2-bat-bosch.html ]here[/url] it should have 30nm max (that will be on a full, healthy battery at the slowest speed. (To make the point - 14v Nicad Makitas drill drivers have 36nm max and a 10v impact driver can manage 90nm so its the whole package, not the voltage)
My makita 18v li-ion is 46nm and will happily drive big screws all day, including big m8 120mm coach screws.
So if you're looking for an alternative drill - find that torque figure and see how if compares to what you've got. But the one you've got should be able to drill a decent hole so I expect theres something wrong with the batteries.
I've had a cheap ish Black & Decker cordless drill for years. It coped with many jobs although the torque was limited which meant it struggled on occasion.
It started to smell of electrical burning (still worked), so I decided to replace it and got a Makita cordless drill for about £100. The difference is night and day...the Makita is significantly better quality, more torque.
I haven't used the hammer function on masonry, as I have a corded Bosch SDS drill too which is more suited to that job.
+1 larger capacity batteries for all day work - ie serious trade use or working somewhere where there is no power - otherwise not worth the extra cost.
For driving screws an impact driver is so much better than a drill/driver,
the gearing and hammer action remove the strain on your arm/wrist from holding a
twisting drill - the more powerful/heavy the drill the worse it gets. Also working with a drill/impact avoids tedious swapping of bits, both tools get recovery time and last longer.
So - any big make blue bosch/Makita/DeWalt etc - if you can stretch to a combo kit with drill and impact driver its worth it.
It is also worth investing in decent driver bits for the impact to avoid breakage.
the 4ah as above just means it lasts longer which is important if theres a big breakdown in the factory. We also have the 650nm blue Bosch impact driver and again its great.
For simple diy the hitachi 18v cordless are pretty good and come with 2 batteries that charge in an hour so shouldn't ever run out really.
I suspect there could be a very heavy duty drill going free if you can find the right wheelie bin.
So - any big make blue bosch/Makita/DeWalt etc
If you're shopping at B&Q be wary of their 18v makitas - read the box carefully. For some reason B&Q stock a spec of makita unavailable anywhere else that uses different batteries that can't be swapped/replaced with standard makita ones. If/when they batteries give up you'll not be able to get replacements.
Makita lxt. Hard to beat. Only need one battery as it takes 20 mins to charge. Nice and light but plenty of power.
Impact driver has become indispensable when putting up my new fence.
It's a £90 erbauer from Screwfix with 2 batteries. Effortless. Noisey beggar though
Noisey beggar though
Indeed - that novelly wears off pretty quickly. 🙂 I sold mine in the end
Makita LXT is really good. 18v Lithium batteries and you can buy naked tools once you have the batteries for very reasonable money. Have a look at FFX or Toolstop.
I've been using dewalt 18v lithium drills for years. I use them for everything and while a corded drill may be better they're good enough. You're looking at over £200 though.
Impact driver along with a drill for the win. I bought both for my house renovation and now won't be without either. The impact driver was a revelation and can bang 3" external screws in with ease all day long.
Good point about the B&Q Makita - look tempting
At least the tell you :
"The 18V batteries supplied are not compatible with the Makita LXT range"
This is a good kit:
[url= http://www.ffx.co.uk/tools/product/Makita%20Dlx2012%208838100074919%2018V%20Combi%20And%20Impact%20Twin%20Kit%202%20X%203.0Ah%20Li%20Ion ]Makita driver and drill[/url]
I'll give another vote for the Hitachi 18v drill linked to above.
I've had mine for 5 years and its brilliant.
Makita lxt are the ones to buy in my opinion. Bare units are really good value once you have a few btys
My Dad has that exact drill as OP works fine screwing in to wood. Use it in to brick too the other day, and it struggled but was ok.
The good news with that bosch there, is that either the charger or the battery will probably stop working pretty quickly, they're crap. And then, get your money back.
FunkyDunc - MemberMy Dad has that exact drill as OP works fine screwing in to wood. Use it in to brick too the other day, and it struggled but was ok.
I'm not saying it absolutely won't drill or screw into wood, but say for example you need to tie two pieces together so you have pilot holes and want to really countersink some big screws to hold something structural together it simply won't really. It'll just bog down, whereas a proper drill will slam some 80mm screws in there with speed and ease and tie the whole thing up.
If thats the case and the batteries are generally giving a decent amount of work per charge then rather than replace it with another drill driver I'd keep it and add an impact driver. Even one of the little handbag-size 10.8v ones have 3 time the torque of the one you've got, but an impact is best paired with regular driver.
You'd need to shop around a bit to find an impact driver with battery and charger from one of the 3 big names as they either tend to be sold bare or in a two-pack with a regular driver. You might find a few on ebay. Alternatively [url= http://www.its.co.uk ]ITS[/url] don't have a very good website but their print catalogue is great for pretty much every conceivable combo of tool/battery/charger
Thanks mccruiskeen, I'll look into that as an idea.
Dont forget to add the VAT on when using the ITS catalogue. They're then suddenly not that cheap. Good shout with the impact driver. Im currently using Milwaukee Li Ion combi drill/ drivers. Have a look at the Hitachi DV18DSDL 90Nm torque and a metal chuck.
As above. Makita lxt combi and erbauer impact driver. Get de Walt bits and magnetic holders, a screwfix titan rotary hammer and you can do anything.