cordless drills, power difference between cheap and half decent?

I have a Skil 12 V cordless drill purchased for about $50 (US) a few years ago. I guess it doesn't even have a part number, it just says Variable Speed 12 Volts. It has seven torque settings plus the drill setting. Besides foreword, stop, and reverse, there are no other functions.

I'm wondering how much more powerful is a Makita 14.4 volt 6337DWDE MFORCE driver?

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the Makita 14.4 volt 6935FDWDE cordless impact driver more or less powerful than that when not using the hammer function?

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they rate hammer tools, I think they include the instantaneous torque with every pulse, but I'm interested in the persistent twisting force.

Thank you for any answers.

Reply to
John Doe
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quality tools perform better than cheaper tools of equal voltage. I Own the 12 volt version of the Makita you are looking at and am pleased with it.

option of not using this tool in a non impact setting. That said however it spins freely when there is no load. However once a load is encountered the hammering action immediately begins. IMHO this tool DOES NOT replace a clutched drill driver. It is much easier to break a screw if you are not careful with the trigger and do not stop driving then the screw stops going in.

That may be a tough force to measure. If you hold a bit with your fingers and pull the trigger the driver immediately goes into hammer action to over come your slight grip. This tool works like the typical air impact wrench. It spins freely and quickly until any slight amount of resistance is met.

Reply to
Leon

Most of my experience is with the Makita 14.4. I have had one of the older ones for probably 10 years (it was purchased during a Builder's Square going out of business sale). Everything except the batteries did well until a year or two ago when batteries started failing (not bad, actually). By that time the drill itself looked like an old, beat-up stock-car - pretty well used. Not wanting to invest heavily in a motor that might die I bought one aftermarket battery. My wife got me a new 14.4 set with drill motor and impact screwdriver for Christmas last year. The batteries are interchangeable but the old charger has a problem with new batteries.

BTW - The impact driver is great. We built about 225 feet of fence and arbor this summer and the driver has driven more than 3,000 screws in a fairly short period.

On the other hand, my brother-in-law keeps a couple of the 18v Skil's on the farm and they, too look like stock cars but work fine. They feel pretty much like my Makita but the motor/gear noise is a little different. Not bad, just different.

RonB

Reply to
RonB

Oh, okay. Is that how most/all work?

Thanks for the warning.

Reply to
John Doe

John Doe wrote in news:a_XJg.23005$gY6.12354 @newssvr11.news.prodigy.com:

That's how my Bosch impact driver works. Don't use cheap screws.

This tool makes driving construction screws 3" long do-able. Well spent money. But Leon is right. The drill drivers are still used all of the time for everything else. I use DeWalt, if that means anything.

Patriarch

Reply to
Patriarch

Just a new battery can make a lot of difference. There has been a lot of forward progress in the arena of cordless tools over the last few years. I think I would shop for 18 or 19 volt unless you have some great deal set up.

Steve

Reply to
support

I can't speak to the comparative powers, other than recommending you look at Amazon or try to download the product manuals. IMO, what you're really getting when you upgrade from Skil to Makita (or any of the other "real" brands - Dewalt, Bosch, Porter Cable, etc...) is more metal parts instead of plastic, better quality batteries (that should last longer per charge and longer lifetime), better service, better chance of getting replacement parts in 10 years, better durability, better tolerances (less wiggling/slipping), etc. Of course there are always exceptions and you'll always find someone who has had bad experiences with any given brand, but overall, the "real" tools should last longer and work better than their "homeowner-grade" counterparts. Again, these are my opinions and experiences; take them for what they're worth. Good luck, Andy

Reply to
Andy

I have that Makita & I like it. Previous drill was a Skil "Top Gun" 12 volt model, about 10 years old, which served me well until the battery crapped out. I rebuilt the pack with much better cells & bought a $40 "high tech" charger for it. Then the damned charger crapped out after about 6 months & only a few uses & the a-hole I bought it from

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avoid like the plague) refused to replace it or assist me in any way. Simply said "You buy new one". His exact words. I'd say the Makita is more powerful, but not massively. Besides torque though you also have charge life, how long the tool will run on a given charge. They test this in the mags by driving deck screws until the battery gives up, then compare how many were driven. I'd say the Makita wins this against my old Skil, original battery or the rebuild. Problem with these drills (once you get above the obvious junk) seems more the batteries than the drill itself. Seems a shame to have to toss a perfectly good tool because the battery dies or can't be fed.

Dan

Reply to
Dan

So where is the technology in these products? Batteries and chargers, for the most part. And that's where the money is for the business, as well.

Ten years is a _long_ time for a high tech tool. How old is your computer? How much of the 'old one' was really dead when you replaced it last time?

Patriarch

Reply to
Patriarch

So you should think "upgrade path".

That's why I went with 18 V like Steve suggested. I need the power. If necessary, I can save up for an 18 V impact driver.

Thanks to all of the replies.

Reply to
John Doe

Both the original & the replacement cells were nicad, only difference was capacity. I agree there have been technological changes in these cells, but to compare it to what has taken place with computers in the same period is way overblown.

Dan

Reply to
Dan

Dan wrote in news:urmdnX9_2MxLD2XZnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:

But the thought got your attention, didn't it? Look more closely at what has happened with battery life, charge cycles, and importantly, weight requirements.

You're on Usenet, so you are at least some level of computer geek. ;-)

I bought 12v tools, because they work well for me, and were much less expensive for the same levels of build quality. Very seldom do the batteries need recharging before I do. And I do these things for the fun of it...

Patriarch

Reply to
Patriarch

I'm still not sure price point for price point the drills of today offer that much functional superiority over those of a decade ago, not that I've done an A B comparison (if such a test exists, I'm sure someone here will point it out) but the nickel metal hydride cells at least remove a source of toxic cadmium from landfills. NiMH cells do have greater capacity size for size, I just think most makers use such crappy cells to start with to save $$$ (and reap $$$ selling replacement cells), it may not amount to much in actual use. Also they don't tend to use the best charging technology. The charger for my old Skil, as with most nicad units, relied on the temperature of the pack to determine a full charge, a crude method that's hard on the cells. I haven't taken the cover off my Makita charger, but I'd be surprised if it was all that much more sophisticated. We can agree on a preference for the lower voltages. One reason I like my new 14.4v Makita is it's small & (especially) relatively LIGHT! The heft of those 18 & 24 volt monsters 'bout breaks my arm, especially with my "painter's elbow" (same thing as tennis elbow, only I got it PAINTING! ;-/ )

Dan

Reply to
Dan

You're not just waiting for the new 60 volt drills? They'll come complete with backpack to carry the batteries.

Reply to
CW

BACKPACK! Why that's absurd! All they have to do is have the batteries in a convenient CARRYING CASE, then run a nice CORD to the drill, that way you'd...

Hey, wait a minute!!!!

;-)

Dan

Reply to
Dan

LOL!

Reply to
CW

Apparently lithium-ion batteries are okay too.

Apparently that's the rule for lots of manufactured cordless devices. The only common retail NiMHs are 1.2 V AA batteries, the larger namebrand C and D NiMH cells are just padded AAs.

Nickel metal hydrides aren't hazardous, they hold lots more electricity, and they don't have memory effects like NiCads. The AA NiMHs you can buy locally are still rapidly improving. Duracell just started selling 2650 milliamp hour AA rechargeable NiMHs, that's about double the capacity of when they first came on the market.

Apparently lithium-ion batteries can be recharged twice as many times as NiCad or NiMH, and do not fade near the end of their charge.

Hmm. I thought current and/or voltage monitoring was common.

The lithium-ion chargers are more sophisticated, maybe because they can blow up if not handled with care.

Have fun.

Reply to
John Doe

Keep in mind that a 12 volt impact driver will beat the pants off of a 24 volt driver/drill when it comes to sinking screws. I finally went to 12 volt 2 years ago after using 9.6 volt since the early 90's. I prefer a drill that can be used all day long and not wear me out.

Reply to
Leon

12V is plenty for what most of us do. I have no use for the 18V and larger. Love my Panasonic 15.6V as it handles better than my old cheap 14.4V. Voltage roughly translates to power, but other factors come in play for a good tool. How smooth it is when you pull the trigger? Is the chuck easy to lock? Does it keep the speed constant? Does it feel good in your hands?
Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

Yup, the 18 V MXT is heavy ($206 total from Tools Plus). But my secondary purpose is modular drive for a recreational device and I wanted as much torque as I could afford (hopefully 560 inch pounds is enough). Otherwise I would have grabbed that Makita "buy one get the other free" 14.4 V impact/driver offer (6935FDWDEX, $195 total from Amazon).

I really like all of the features my old Skil doesn't have... gearing, easily replaceable brushes, single sleeve chuck, and a switch to lock out the clutch for drilling. That's a bunch of improvement, also available on other models. All I need is a quick change chuck attachment and arms like Arnold Schwarzenegger, and it will practically work itself.

Reply to
John Doe

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