What cordless drill should I buy?

[dfsuther]

My 18V NiCad Ryobi just gave up the ghost, and I need to replace it. I'm currently thinking that the Makita BDF452HW is a good choice. But maybe there's something I'm not aware of that would be better.

Advice, anyone?

[Thalermade]

If you can get by with only a 3/8 chuck, check out the new Bosch PS30. I am so satisfied with my Bosch PS20 and PS40, I am waiting on a sale to add the PS30.

http://www.boschtools.com/products/t...px?pid=ps30-2a

have fun deciding,
Russ

[buckeye95]

Not sure what your budget is, but I thought I saw a Makita 18 Volt Lithium Ion Drill / Impact driver combo for around $200 on a recent Home Depot add. I was surprised, becuase it was not much more than the equivalent Li-Ion set from Ryobi.

I know it's a lot of $$, but that would be a nice set to have.

Pete

[Tom Slick]

The makita you are looking at is a very good setup.

What type of work do you do with a drill? do you need the extra power of 18v?

[dfsuther]

It'd be my main handheld drill for 'round the house, for driving screws (both household and woodworking), etc. Not clear that I must have 18v, but that's what I'm used to from my late lamented Ryobi. Amazon sells that Makita for $150; everyone else seems to want $200 for it.

The Drill / Impact driver combo that Buckeye95 mentioned is about $270 everywhere I've looked. It includes the BDF452HW's bigger (and heavier) brother along with an impact driver. Which raises another question: Why would I want an impact driver?

Dean

[JeffG78]

My 4 year old 14.4V DeWalt has one dead battery and one that isn't too far behind, so I looked around and ended up with the 18V Ryobi Li-Ion. It came with a drill, a flashlight, two batteries and the charger for $199. I must say that I like my DeWalt a bit better, but the replacement batteries are too dang expensive. The 18V Li-Ion Ryobi batteries are the same price as the 14.4V Ni-Cad DeWalt batteries and the 18V Ryobi Ni-Cads are about 1/2 the price of the 14.4V DeWalts. I have gone through several drills now and the batteries die long before the drills show any signs of wear. I have only had the Ryobi a few months, but I think it will work out. The chuck isn't as good as the DeWalt's and the overall feel and balance aren't quite as good, but it isn't far behind either. If it fits, I might swap chucks when my last 14.4V battery dies.

You might want to price replacement batteries of the brands you are looking at before you make a final decision. Did your Ryobi drill die, or just the batteries?

[RAV2]

I have the Milwaukee 18V 1/2"" Lithium-Ion Compact Drill/Driver Kit - 2601-22

http://www.google.com/products?q=mil...Products&hl=en

I could not be happier with this drill.

I selected it for its quality, power and features:

* Most important - battery gages on each battery. For an occasional user, being able to determine what the battery charge is an amazing plus. I can select the most charged battery and top off the other battery (in less than 30 minutes from dead) without memory penalty.

* The LED light - I did not originally think this would be valuable. But now that I have used it, I can't believe how handy it has become.

* speed and power.

* Compact size and 400 in-lbs torque.

* 2000 charge cycle warranty - there is a chip in each battery that can be read for warranty purposes.

I looked at all the kits and the larger hammer drills. This drill can't be beat even though there are no sister tools. I bought a cheap 1/2" hammer drill to supplemennt my needs for this option and selected this compact and light drill.

It has met and exceeded my expectations and is of very high quality.

[dfsuther]

My 4 year old 14.4V DeWalt has one dead battery and one that isn't too far behind, so I looked around and ended up with the 18V Ryobi Li-Ion. It came with a drill, a flashlight, two batteries and the charger for $199. I must say that I like my DeWalt a bit better, but the replacement batteries are too dang expensive. The 18V Li-Ion Ryobi batteries are the same price as the 14.4V Ni-Cad DeWalt batteries and the 18V Ryobi Ni-Cads are about 1/2 the price of the 14.4V DeWalts. I have gone through several drills now and the batteries die long before the drills show any signs of wear. I have only had the Ryobi a few months, but I think it will work out. The chuck isn't as good as the DeWalt's and the overall feel and balance aren't quite as good, but it isn't far behind either. If it fits, I might swap chucks when my last 14.4V battery dies.

You might want to price replacement batteries of the brands you are looking at before you make a final decision. Did your Ryobi drill die, or just the batteries?

Actually, the batteries are OK and the drill is dead. However, the NiCads don't hold charge well enough for occasional use and the charger is fairly slow. None of this is notably worse than when it was new; it's just the biggest drawback of the old Ryobi. Second biggest drawback is that my wife says that it's too heavy for her to use. Those two together have me thinking that getting an identical replacement is not a great choice.

Thus, the Makita. Lighter, faster charge, longer shelf-life for charged batteries.

Any more thoughts?

[Tom Slick]

What size screws? small wood screws or 3" deck screws?

If your 18v ryobi fit the bill with no complaints then the makita will be a perfect fit. If it was a little large then a 14.4v or compact like the bosch or new milwaukee might be a better fit.
I use a 14.4v milwaukee and have zero complaints.

[dfsuther]

What size screws? small wood screws or 3" deck screws?

Yes. And everything in between. Plus pocket-hole screws, 4" #12 wood screws, and God knows what else.

If your 18v ryobi fit the bill with no complaints then the makita will be a perfect fit. If it was a little large then a 14.4v or compact like the bosch or new milwaukee might be a better fit.
I use a 14.4v milwaukee and have zero complaints.

The 18v Ryobi fit the bill, except for the weight and charge time. But the Makita is a pound lighter and recharges much faster.

And that Drill+Impact driver is $225 at Amazon. More reading suggests that the Impact driver is basically aimed at lower speed high-torque uses. Like those 3" deck screws, forex. Is that right?

Dean

[jlm]

Why would I want an impact driver?

Because they're freakin' awesome, that's why!

Seriously, if you have to drive a screw longer than about an inch, there's no comparison. The impact drivers will drive all day long without stripping a single screw. I didn't think there would be much difference, but for driving screws, there's no comparison. I don't think I've had a screwdriver bit in my cordless drill even once since I got the impact driver.

Do a search in the forums for "impact driver" - there have been several discussions, and the almost universal opinion seems to be that everyone who has one loves it.

[Tom Slick]

Everything jlm says is true. An impact driver is truly one of those tools that you don't know what you are missing until you try one.

[LinuxRandal]

I wish I had an impact driver that both compared to, and lasted like my drill. I have a Bosch PS40 and a Ridgid Impact driver and am happy with both, EXCEPT for the length of life of the batteries.

When I was looking at drills, I had to judge several factors as do you. My experience came from the old Makita 9.6v drills (which still work and I can still get batteries for, they just don't last so long). I wanted something that had longer use life, as well as longer shelf life. I wanted decent balance, and a reasonable charge time (verses a free Craftsman I was given that took hours). I didn't have any other Ryobi one tools, so battery interchange wasn't needed (and I have experience with a Ryobi at work). I debated between the Bosch (father and friend have, but hard to find batteries locally), The Makita (lithium ion, but price and availability were a problem), and the Panasonic, 15.6v. I ended up with the Panasonic 15.6v, good balance, battery life (use and shelf), battery replacement/rebuildability (nickle metal hyrdrid version).

[conwaygolfer]

Cordless Drill

I had the Ryobi 14 volt drill for years and finally started having trouble with it. I was at the repair shop with it and next to me stood a gentlemen holding a DeWalt. He needed a new chuck. I asked him how he liked it and was told it was the only drill that would hold up to him using it every day. He said he was replacing the chuck after several years of hard work. Needless to say, that was enough info for me. I went out and bought a DeWalt 18 volt hammer drill. Paid way too much for it, but it has been great for over 4 years now. I use it for drilling up to 3 in. holes in wood. Use it for drilling into concrete for tap screws. Never a problem except I have finally had to replace both batteries.
You will not go wrong with the DeWalt drill.

conwaygolfer

[maxparot]

Since the Ryobi fit the bill except for weight and charge time why not replace it with a Ryobi Lithium 18V. The lithium cell weighs less and the new charger is faster. With the old NiCd pack the charger is even faster and that way you have the old cells as a backup.