The battery on my Makita cordless drill is dying. I've been using my
40 year old Craftsman corded, which is still working, but it's not reversible. Both of them use a chuck key.
I'm trying to decide whether to get a new battery for the Makita ($40 from Makita) or buy a new corded drill to replace the old Craftsman. I really don't need a cordless drill and I use it so seldom that I always have to charge the battery. A corded drill is always ready to go.
I haven't bought a drill in 20 years. Any suggestions?
I have a 1/2" Milwaukee Hole Shooter, nice little drill, fits my hand. Like most Milwaukee corded power tools, the cord is easily replaceable because it has a bayonet connection at the tool handle.
Guess it depends what you want to do with it. I have a cheap cordless B&D but it has two batteries and is always usable. With the hand tightening chuck which can be popped off for attachments that pop in easily, its great for drilling a pilot hole then switching to put in screw. OTOH it is too weak for heavy jobs and I have to go to corded drill.
I've purchased a few of those "replacement" batteries. They are a fraction of the cost of brand name batteries, but also lower quality. Some were DOA. If I can get 5-10 knock-offs for the price of one original, they are probably cheaper on a cost/battery life basis, but more of a hassle.
I've got a 3/8 VSR drill from Harbor Freight. It was about $12 or so, on sale. It's not great quality, but it's served me well. I've done some drilling, and some spinning zip screws into metal.
For about $25 on sale you can get a 1/2 VSR drill.
If you don't really need the cordless, then it's a waste of money. From the sounds of your description, a plug-in drill works well for you. No nicads to throw away every couple years.
1st off, I am a fan of cordless stuff, however, if you seldom use it, it's probably better to go with corded. As for rebuilding the battery, I've just been through that. I found that you can get brand new, name brand batteries with a 2010 date code for about the same as rebuilding, on ebay. I bought a 2 pack of Dewalt 18 volts batteries for $97 with shipping. For a rebuild, by the time you add the shipping, you are definitely over that price. But, if you get the cells and do it yourself, you could save. That said, if you really want a good battery drill, I would recommend the Bosch 18 volt. Not cheap, but it's what I like. It's super powerful and it has a 1 hand chuck for quickly changing bits. YRMV.
I'd base my choice on what purpose I will use the drill motor for. For large holes, 1/2" corded with key chuck. Small holes, like for modeling or electronics work, 1/4" corded key chuck. General, 3/8" vari-speed key chuck. You're on your own for choices in battery and hand chucks. I finally bought one, but don't see much advantage unless you need the portability (farm, large yard, etc) or are jes plain lazy, as am I. The whole hand chuck thing is for quick changing hex shaft bits for screws and for general handyman drilling, like drilling through wood or sheetrock, etc.
Admittedly, for this around-the-house roll, battery drills are very handy. I use mine all the time. OTOH, if you are going to be bearing down on metals, especially steel, you will need the power, bit size specific speeds, and jaw tightening strength of a key chuck corded drill. I like my battery drill a lot, but I also have a collection of chorded drills for more specialized applications. A battery drill would be, and was, my last choice.
If you use a cordless drill so often that you can state what you did about how seldom you use it, buy a corded. Most people like the portability of cordless, yet have both.
There are lots of good ones. Just stick with a major brand and watch for sales. Perhaps others here can make some comments on the reliability of top sellers, as they change all the time in quality due to corporate merges and reduction of the quality of their goods. Some of the old ones are bulletproof. I had a Skil that hurt my shoulder a couple of times it had so much torque. Probably $10 at a yard sale or pawn shop if you could find one today in good shape.
Steve
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Hitachi 3/8" with lithium ion batteries for around the house use. I have the 14.4volt model and love it. If you are going to use it for work I would suggest a DeWalt 1/2 inch 18volt with rapid charger. I've seen one in action and was impressed.
I just gave the battery for the Makita a full 24 hour charge to see if that made any difference. The drill will run about half speed in forward but not at all in reverse. Is this typical for a weak battery or is it likely that the drill itself is dsmaged? I'd hate to buy a new/rebuilt battery only to find that the drill is broke.
My 18 volt Ryobi Ni-Cd 3/8" cordless is still going strong. I have had it for years and is the first drill I pick up when something has to be drilled or screwed. There is always one battery in the drill and one in the charger, so I'm ready to go at any time. I also have an 18 volt Makita Li-On 3/8" cordless hammer drill. I also have a corded 3/8" Craftsman VSR, and a corded Craftsman 1/2" VSR. The one bad thing about corded drills is that in about 90% of the time, if the job is not in the workshop, you have to bring an extension cord to the job site. A couple of years ago when Ryobi went to Li-On batteries, HD was selling the older 2 per pack One+ (One Plus) Ni-Cd batteries for less than half price and I bought a set.
I've had three batteries rebuilt by them. In every case, they used cells with a higher AH rating. IIRC, I want from 1000 mAH to 1300 mAH
In your case, some of the cells may be dead and not holding a charge at all, thus the half speed. Don't know why no reverse though.
From their web site: Standard capacity packs: They are usually sold in pairs, in kits with do-everything attachments. They were made at minimum cost, with small size cells, that provide little operating time. These batteries often spend more time in the charger, than they do in the tools. The batteries are usually only 1.0 AH cells, we rebuild them with the highest available capacity. (depending of the model the upgrade can be 1.3 AH or higher. The result is usually a 25 to 35% increase in run time.
Same situation with me. I tossed about $200 in cordless drills because they were never ready when I needed them. They were gifts in the first place, and got little use. Got pissed when both batteries I had for a Craftsman 12v wouldn't hold or take a charge when I needed it. Had to use my VSR 1/2" hammer drill to drill some 1/8" holes. None of my cordless drills were high quality, but I just decided it was easier to plug a drill in than deal with batteries. I'm not a contractor and don't need cordless.
Bought a corded 3/8" Craftsman for $39 (keyless chuck VSR) Now if I want to drill and screw I just chuck the drill in the 3/8" and the driver in the 1/2". No problem tangling cords or anything. The Craftsman is fine - lots of torque - but I'm no drill connoisseur. Probably most will do. If you go Sears, you might wait for sales.
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