Battery Drills

[PopinJohn]

Just bought a new lithium-ion battery drill through Amazon.
My Milwaukee 18 volt died today, so it's drill time again.
We've tried Milwaukee, B&D, Ryobi, and Makita. I get about a year out of them, using one day in and day out.
We already have a small LI drill and the battery stays charged really well, but it doesn't have a drill chuck, so I decided to try the bigger drill. I have a new Amazon credit card that came with a $40.00 gift certificate, so I got a new B&D 3/8 LI and a second battery for $50 including tax and shipping.
So I'll see if I can get a year out of this new one. LOL MikeS.

 

[guido]

Hello popinjohn,
Battery operated drills are a popular topic.
You had a few, if all of them were NiCad powered, you may have had more battery issues then drill issues. There are some things you can do to a NiCad pack that will make it come back to some kind of better life.
Guido.

 

[jbordelon]

I've had a Craftsman for 6 or 7 years now that I love. I can't find the exact one on their site. Newer stuff could be crap.

 

[rustyfarmall]

I made the mistake of signing up for the Amazon card for the discounts offered also. In retrospect, it did save me some money, so it wasn't all bad, but that Amazon card is issued through Chase bank, and that immediately put me on their spam list. I only used that card that one time and did NOT renew it, so all is well again.

 

[john *.?-!.* cub owner]

If you use a drill heavy which you apparently do, I would suggest something on the line of the Dewalt 18 volt or new 20 volt series. You can get the LIon batteries and they seem to be pretty sturdy. I have only had mine a few months, but it takes a beating and the batteries last quite well. LIon batteries cost more than the Nicads, but they run longer, and do not run down near as fast while setting. You can get some pretty good deals on them through Amazon.

 

[oliver power]

panasonic is to drills, as metabo is to grinders. I use drills day in, and day out, all day long, 7 days a week. I buy nothing but panasonic. A little pricey but, I run screws all day long, most every day.

 

[504]

I bought a new 20V DeWalt drill/driver combo, I use it two days and took it back, batteries would only last twenty min., I now have a Makita set.

 

[guido]

Hello 504,
My new one is also a Dewalt.Never used it long enough to kill one battery, but it seams strong to the end of the charge. It is the 18V NiCad battery pack.
I have 2 packs that I bought with the drill.
Guido.

 

[Richard from SE AZ]

Just my .02 cents worth. I was working in Alaska driving a tunnel in a mine north if Juneau a few years ago. We had so much water coming out of the back that it was washing out our road faster than we could repair it. We built a roof over the road to direct the water to the ditch on the side of the road out of steel roofing by suspending angle iron and securing the roofing to itself and the angle iron with self tapping screws. The drill drivers we used were Makita. those drills were working under VERY wet conditions, sometimes with water running right on them. They never quit. That is all I buy now.

 

[Brown Green]

I bought a Rigid, and it"s the best thing I ever bought (I hate to think how many others I"ve bought and have died). If you send in the paperwork, it all has a lifetime guarantee, batteries, charger, and drill.