Find Me a Good Quality Drill (Bosch, Makita, Dewalt, Milwaukee etc)

tanksinatra on 15/03/2015 - 15:38
Last edited 15/03/2015 - 16:44

Hey guys I'm looking for a good quality cordless drill for occasional (?weekly) use.

I was using a newish black & decker 18v lithium drill the other day to assemble a bench. All I had to do was screw some batten screws through predrilled hardwood. Should be a easy job I thought…

The first screw went in fine but by the second one the drill was slowing down and starting to smell. Halfway along the third screw the drill had stalled and was smoking. To add insult to injury, when I plugged the battery into charger it indicated it had overheated and refused to charge. Needless to say I was left sitting in the sun with an allen key swearing I'd never buy black & decker again. Seems like the drill couldn't sustain the torque and they must have used low quality cells with a high internal resistance/low C-rating.

So I've had enough of cheap drills and want something decent. I've seen people recommend professional drills such as Bosch (Blue), professional Makita, Milwaukee, DeWalt etc. Any good deals around? I note that Masters has 10% off next week but most of their stuff is pretty low quality. I'm looking for a drill, two batteries and charger.

Find Me A Bargain

Comments

  • dylanando on 15/03/2015 - 16:00

    by 'goodless' you're after a crappy drill?

  • Islund on 15/03/2015 - 17:06

    Aldi had a 24v for $90odd on Saturday

    • tanksinatra on 15/03/2015 - 20:11

      Interesting… three year warranty. 24v should give it heaps of grunt.

      • [Deactivated] on 15/03/2015 - 22:53
        +1

        No real substitute for those extra 6 volts, at least according to Choice.

        Some of the other (18V) drills - like the Hitachi - no doubt better internally in at least some respects, but Choice's test from last year placed Aldi's $90 (then, as well) 'Taurus Titanium 44624' as best overall…

        'Excellent torque'; 'excellent all-round performance, best in test'…

        Unlike almost all of the other drills, it only comes with one battery, but the whole kit/caboodle (plus that 3 year warranty) is only half the price of some of the other drills.
        Pretty compelling. When my Metabo dies, I reckon I might buy one.

        I feel your pain, by the way. Roof over my head built (without doubt) by somebody who lived through a cyclone.
        All beams, along with the entire trellis, are hardwood - easily (some ridiculously heavy little offcuts around) 3 to 4 times the weight and density of radiata pine. Walls built to cope with the weight.
        All a nightmare to drill with a cordless. One very slightly bigger pilot-hole drill after another in order to get anything done.

  • Islund on 15/03/2015 - 17:34

    Aldi had a 24v for $90odd on Saturday

  • sleepy120 on 15/03/2015 - 18:20

    For screwing i understand you want an impact driver.
    Currently the new thing is brushless motors and lithium batteries.
    I guess i'll have to wait afew years for the price to come down to my price-point on those!

  • nowlan on 15/03/2015 - 19:07

    Drill?
    You want drill driver for doing screws in existing holes. Else impact driver for making holes for screws.

    • tanksinatra on 15/03/2015 - 19:59

      Yeah I've just done some reading on the topic - it seems like an impact driver is what I need!

  • boonanza on 15/03/2015 - 21:12

    If you want a drill with balls then get a Makita

  • srhardy on 16/03/2015 - 09:51
    +1

    Im a self confessed tool guy. Here is what i know (condensed)

    A cheap Bunninings corded imapct/drill/driver will always have the best bang for buck, just have an extension corded ready and a power point handy.

    If your looking cordless then you have 10-12v , 24v in brushed or the newer unbrushed drills. Brushed ware out, spark and get hot (a drills enemy).. 12V is for mums around the house draw tightener, go 24V

    Brushless is the new standard, they run longer, cooler and have MORE TORQUE! I highly reocmend them as a tool you get the best bang for buck over your lifetime!

    Bunnininings have BRUSHLESS AGV, MAKITA & DEWALT. Makita has the largest rage of intergangable parts with the battery (this is always a huge plus)

    I prefer buying the latest brushless kits with heaps of tools as they work out cheaper, here is the best deal on the best brushless parts MILWAUKEE
    http://www.totaltools.com.au/milwaukee-m18-fuel-6-piece-5-0a… $1399

    Yes, this is OZB and you can always use a sharpened spoon, yes its a lot (but severla years ago the first brushless drill with old NiCad batts cost as much as this kit) but when you use almost all the bits inc and divide the cost its the best deal around!

    • tanksinatra on 19/03/2015 - 10:05

      I didn't even realise that drills were still brushed but I guess it makes sense from a cost perspective.

      I'm well versed in the benefits of brushless motors. Yeah thats totally something to look out for. No brushes to wear out, greater efficency and less noise. I see you can buy brushless skins for around the $170 mark but most of the kits are very expensive.

  • ramshead on 16/03/2015 - 09:52

    I have an AEG impact driver. It has 2 x 3.ah lithium bats. Kit was older model and sold for $179 at Bunnings. Probably none left now but you could ring around. Massive grunt.
    Newer kits have the bushless motor and 4.ah bats, but about $500.

  • skillet on 16/03/2015 - 11:07
    +1

    FYI not all new brushless tools are higher torque than their brushed motor siblings. For example the new brushless Bosch GSR10.8-VEC-HX tops out at only 20Nm of torque while the older brushed GSR10.8-LI do 30Nm. They are just longer battery life.

    http://www.bosch-professional.com/gb/en/gsr-10-8-li-33303-oc…
    http://www.bosch-professional.com/gb/en/gsr-10-8-v-ec-hx-343…

    I find the lightweight 10V/12V tools fine for home use. They have enough torque but very slow on first gear. The 18V is heavier but does things faster.

    Don't expect Lithium Ion cells made for high current application to lasts as long as low current laptop or mobile phone batteries. The cordless drill batteries start to lose capacity after about 300 cycles so they don't last for years.

    Black Decker used to be big but I haven't seen much builders with it pass decade. If you wish to support B&D then buy Dewalt tools which is own by B&D.

    Below are popular tools brands in Australia and their 'relations'
    Owner Techtronic Industries
    Milwaukee
    AEG
    Ryobi

    Owner Bosch
    Dremel
    Skil
    Vermont American

    Owner Black & Decker
    Dewalt
    Stanley
    Sidchrome

    Oh guess who Techtronic Industries are… for those who rave about how AEG is related to Germany… same case as Milwaukee but they are good stuff.

    The corded tools with a 25M extension cable is the way of OzB.

  • slowmo on 17/03/2015 - 02:22

    i got myself a set of these… for around the house and ikea furnitures and fixing a new lock on a door and frame (cutting holes as well). since 2012 and still going strong.

    http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-CLPK27-120-12-Volt-Lithium-Ion-B…

    when you say newish, your B&D should still be under warranty right?

    • Geewhizz on 18/03/2015 - 07:46

      What sort of transformer would you need for those?

    • tanksinatra on 19/03/2015 - 10:08

      I think the B&D is just outside of its warranty period. But regardless, it still drills fine! It just overheats quickly when screwing into hardwood. I continue to use it for other things.

      I don't think a 12v system would have enough grunt.

      • slowmo on 19/03/2015 - 15:34

        Rather than looking at the voltage look at the torque. That's the thing you want. ..perhaps hardwood requires different tools. I use the impact driver for screwing into wood. Might be doing it wrong but works for me.

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