# Another New Drill Advice Request!



## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

Asking a lot of a drill that will do all those different jobs for that low a price.
Things like mixing mud, drilling larger holes, drilling anything bigger then about 3/8" into metal is best done with a high Torque lower speed drill.
100% faster and less stress on the tool, no bit slipping and coming out of the chuck if you use an SDS when drilling with a hammer drill.
Asking what brand you like is like asking what's better Ford or Chevy. It has a lot to do with what brand someone happens to own and feels comfortable with.
All my bigger HD drills are Milwaukee.
I own the Hole Hawg, and the 1/2" right angle. Both have been used commercially for anything from drilling through 12" thick 100 + year old beams, mixing mud, 1/2" holes in steel plate, building dozen of decks for the past 15 years and all still work perfect.
For tile removal, med. duty hammer drilling, light demo work I use A Bosch Bulldog.
http://www.cpooutlets.com/milwaukee...ls,default,sc.html?prefn1=voltage&prefv1=120V


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

Joe nailed it----Milwaukee Hole Hog---good for drilling and mixing---

A good chipping hammer/hammer drill--Bosch---

For screws? Use your battery drill or buy a screw gun----

As you get more advanced in your skills and complexity of tasks,you will find that tools that specialize are what you need----I have a mud mixer--

Good drills are not cheap, but pay for themselves quickly---


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## raylo32 (Nov 25, 2006)

Another thing... many of the newer Li-ion 18v systems have fast chargers that charge the smaller batteries in 15 minutes and the larger batteries in 30 minutes. So if you have 2 of the larger batteries and don't drain one in less than 30 minutes you won't have any downtime.


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## ratherbefishing (Jan 13, 2011)

Last I heard, Makita was making more power tools in the USA than anyone else.


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## Scottg (Nov 5, 2012)

Yup... I understand the brand thing for tools is almost like arguing politics / religion. But this is helping me clarify things. I don't need the highest end. For example, I did use my DeWalt DC725 for some tough jobs, but I won't do really tough jobs that often. It's more so that I don't abuse it for the occasional masonry holes I need to make or mixing. (The DeWalt mixed up some mortar nicely for some tuckpointing, but that really trashed the batteries quickly.) And I've been doing more furniture wood working lately, so maybe I'd use the corded more powerful one for drilling and the other for screws. Pocket hole drilling is one application I notice drains batteries fast as well, but also doesn't require crazy power. And getting something too heavy for doing a ton of pocket holes would be tiring.

Great idea on considering if I can get fast charging batteries. Even though a fast charger and battery is almost the price of a whole new drill.

So I'm focusing on stuff like the following, which are kind of 'in between' That is, tougher than the cordless I've got now, but not quite the super manly man building a parking garage type stuff. (One day, when I'm a big kid maybe I'll get there.)

Bosch HD21-2 Speed Hammer Drill
Bosch HD19-2B 1/2-Inch 2-Speed Hammer Drill
Bosch 1191VSRK 120-Volt 1/2-Inch Single-Speed Hammer Drill
DEWALT DW235G 7.8amp 1/2-Inch VSR Drill
DeWalt DW511 1/2" (13mm) 7.8 Amp VSR Hammerdrill
Makita HP1641K 5/8-Inch Hammer Drill Kit
Milwaukee 5380-21 1/2-Inch 9-AMP Heavy Duty Hammer Drill (bit pricey over $200)

For some of these, when comparing specs, it's damn hard to tell what the difference even is. For example, the Bosch drills listed have only slight difference in Amps. If these are all kind of the same, then I suppose it will be about price; maybe wait for a good sale or a reburb is all. (I could use something painted invisible as well; so wife doesn't see yet another tool popping up somewhere.)


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## raylo32 (Nov 25, 2006)

Makitas at least come with the fast charger. The cheaper LCT sets come with drill/driver and impact driver with 2 small batteries and the higher end LXT sets have 2 large batteries and the fast charger. Some of the other brands come with fast chargers, also.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

makita curretnly has over 70 tools in their 18v lineup and i believe they will be releasing another 5-10 by mid 2014 with more on the way.. most of the new ones coming out are brushless versions of existing tools such as hammer drills, rotary hammers, the new 36 v 7 1/4" circ saw and what not


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

I am a Makita fan as well.


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## Scottg (Nov 5, 2012)

For what it's worth...

Ended up going for the Bosch 1191VSRK 120-Volt 1/2-Inch Single-Speed Hammer Drill.

$99 at HD. Probably can be had a little cheaper and there's some refurbs that are much less at CPO. Bottom line is the last corded drill I'd had was my dad's; which was made out of shiny bright solid steel or something, was probably built in the 60s and made sparks.

Amazing difference in power. It's got drill and hammer modes, but only speed variation is with the trigger. Can't wait to start using this for real projects. No more running out of battery power while doing 100 pocket holes, etc.

The weight is reasonable for the kind of work I want to do. The next model up is a bit too heavy for that; probably great for a lot of masonry or mud mixing, but this one seems fine for mostly wood drilling, occasional masonry drilling, and rare mud mixing.

Now I just have to do the usual scuffing it up so when wife happens to notice it, she won't ask, "This looks new? When did you get yet another tool?"


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