Best cordless drill?

[htroberts]

At the risk of starting a flame-war, anybody have suggestions for the best of the current cordless drills? I have a bunch of Dewalt cordless tools (tried to stay with one brand for battery compatibility, but they're old enough that I'm willing to consider switching) and a couple of Makitas. I've been generally happy with both, but I've been looking at Porter-Cable as well--ratings for the P-C drills are pretty poor on Amazon. I've also noticed that neither Lowes nor home Depot seem to sell much P-C anymore--not sure why, or even whether I think it's a bad thing. I've never been impressed with Milwaukee cordless tools.

I used to try to buy American, but nothing seems to be made here anymore, and in the last couple of years I've bought a few Hitachi and Bosch tools, which have all been excellent, but none of those are cordless...

I want something fairly lightweight for general purpose drilling and screwdriving. It'll be used in a shop, so battery life isn't terribly important, and 3/8" capacity is enough. I don't need a hammer drill. I do want a good clutch and keyless chuck, and a tool that feels right--not sure if that comes mostly from balance or materials or what.

I won't say price isn't an object, but I buy tools for the long-haul, so it's pretty far down on the list of considerations.

Thanks, Heath

[luv2cmwork]

I'm not the professional that others on here are. But I use a cordless drill fairly frquently. I have a Craftsman, as a gift. I actually don't mind it. It's worked pretty well.

I research tools a lot and from everything I've read, there are two that you should consider:

Milwaukee 18 volt Lok-Tor 0622-24 Panasonic 15.6 volt EY6432

This link, will give you some more info:

two, get very good reviews. I hope no one flames you! I rely on places like this, to get good tool advice...not get flamed!

Hope that info helps.

[IBM5081]

I like this combo with the 2.6 Ah NiMH battery packs.

use the impact driver on monthly projects and several of the other guys want one soon after they try it.

[Jim Bailey]

Seems like the talk of the town is Panasonic these days. I've been looking at them myself.

jim

[SonomaProducts.com]

Well... shame you don't like Milwaukee. They have been getting high ratings in the reviews lately. They basicially have the highest torque for the volt size across the catagories. They also have a great chuck. Plus, I think the new ones also have a reverasable battery so it can get into some tight spots easier.

I'd say Milwaukee, Festool or DeWalt. Festool has some cool switchable chucks for offset and right angle, very cool stuff.

[Bob in Oregon]

Bought the panasonic great drill, tight keyless chuck- batteries that last a long time. very light too.

[Upscale]

Have to agree. I've an older 12 volt Milwaukee cordless. I had the batteries rebuilt about a year ago, but aside from that it's always worked great.

[Robatoy]

I'm in the same boat. My 14.4 Milwaukee is 4+ years old, still going strong, but the charges don't seem to last as long anymore. But the service it has given me makes think I would go to them again. BUT! Since I bought it, there have been some strides made by other manufacturers. The big buzz is all about Panasonic these days...however, Milwaukee just raised the stakes with their VERY expensive 28 volt system. Expensive like Festool. I own some Festool gear, but I don't think they're likely to be the best across the board. Their big router has no equal, IMHO, neither does their Rotex sander, but that kind of money for a drill? I own a lot of Milwaukee gear... you can't go wrong with them. (The Milwaukee's 5616 router is the sweetest small router on the planet, IMHO.) IF.. and I repeat IF I am going to drop the big bucks, I'll probably go with something I know.

Cordless drill...mmmmm I will likely swallow deeply and do the 28 volt thing. Unless I get to play with the Panasonic and makes up my mind for me. There is also a good chance that I am missing some stuff from other brands, so we'll see.

Good cordless stuff is expensive...that much I know.

r

[Dave Miller]

[Ken Yee]

"SonomaProducts.com" wrote in news: [e-mail]:

They also just released the first lithium ion batteries for cordless tools (that I know of).

ken

[skeezics]

i have tried em all and honestlt love my panasonic 15.4. use it all day everyday. hard use. 2 years old and the batteries still hold a good charge. they are light weight and well ballanced. not quite as powerfull as some of the others i have used but plenty powerfull for most uses.

skeez

[Mark Cooper]

That's what I'm hearing too...there's a super-high-end tool shop down the street from me that sells several brands of cordless drill/drivers, and the word from them was that you couldn't touch Panasonic these days for quality.

I can't say I agree or disagree 'cause I don't own one myself, but that's an opinion from someone I trust.

[J. Clarke]

Actually, Dremel has that honor--the latest revision of their cordless has lithium-ion and it's been out for at least a year.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

I went to Coastal Tool with the intention of buying a Bosch. Walked out with a 15.6 volt Panasonic. Feels good in the hand, has plenty of power, has a chuck that you can tighten or loosen with one hand. Batteries seem to last forever on a charge.

[S R]

Milwaukee gets my money...

[aswr]

I have 6-- 12.00volt PC units that are four years old that we use everyday here at the school. We use them hard and I have never had any service problems or had to replace any batteries.

Mike from American Sycamore

[Larry Jaques]

On 26 Apr 2005 14:05:28 -0700, the inscrutable " [e-mail]" spake:

I had the chance to try out the Bosch stuff at a Big Blue World Tour event last Saturday which hosted the Bosch tool truck. I played with their 12v and 14.4v impact drills and was extremely impressed by their power. Using the impact meant virtually no pressure against the screw was needed, making driving a lot of long screws MUCH, MUCH easier.

If I'd had a spare $160, I'd have brought one of the 14.4 volters home. (The 18v model didn't have any appreciable difference in battery life but was considerably cha-chingier.) The tool truck had $30-50 off the sale prices at Diamond Home Center. That put them at about half that of Panasonic's gilded prices. I didn't look at model numbers 'cuz I wasn't buying.

You probably can't go wrong with either a Panasonic or Bosch impact drill/driver.

------------------------------------------------------------------- Do. Or do not. * Stylin' Web Design Services There is no try. --Yoda *

[Larry Jaques]

On Tue, 26 Apr 2005 18:31:54 -0400, the inscrutable Robatoy spake:

After playing with 12-18v Bosch Impactors at the tool fest last Saturday, I'd opt for a Bosch 14.4 volter. If you see the Big Blue Truck Tour in your area, go down there. They had $30-50 the sale prices if you bought that day. The one I looked at was $160 after the discounts. Bosch makes damned nice stuff (at about half the price of Panasonic.)

My lone question is: How good are their batteries?

------------------------------------------------------------------- Do. Or do not. * Stylin' Web Design Services There is no try. --Yoda *

[Steve Dunbar]

I got one of the Panasonic 12V Compact Drill/Drivers when Amazon had them on sale for $50. This is a real nice little drill. It doesn't have the power of the bigger cordless drills, but it's light and easy to handle and works fine for driving screws and drilling small holes.

[Woodchuck34]

Heath,

I just bought a Milwaukee last year. First Milwaukee tool I've ever bought and I got to tell you, I love it. I had a PC 14.4 for a little over a year when the motor went. Sent it back to be repaired but the replaced the motor for free. Good service on that one. I was working on a big project though so I went out and bought the Milwuakee 14.4 based on Wood Mag's reviews. The battery is reversible as someone mentioned, which does allow you to get into tight spaces, but it also serves as a counter weight. It sits very comfortably in the hand. Torque in Wood's test was second to none and I can attest to that. Its a beast. Battery life is not the best, also jives with Wood's test. The other thing I love is that the chuck (made of metal by the way) is tightened with one hand to the right torque.

Started with a Black and Deck, graduated to a Craftsman, then got the PC. Used others DeWalt, won't give up the Milwaukee anytime soon.

Just in case it helps. Good luck,

Chuck