Best cordless drill combo

[JeremyD]

I have DeWalt corded stuff and have been very happy with them - drill, palm, finish, sanders, recripocating saw, etc. have a few things on the DeWalt side in the the cordless realm and have been less than satisfied.

So, I am thinking of replacing the drill and get set up for the future. Right now I have the 14.4 v DeWalt - is that enough or should I go to 18v? How about the drill / torque wrench combo? What's the best for removing - reinstalling track wheels.

[JeremyD]

That's the one I've looking at too! Thanks!

[HardDrive]

I have a Milwaukee cordless 18v that rocks.

[Dantilla]

Fine Homebuilding magazine just compared several cordless tool kits. Rated things like power, battery endurance, ergonomics, yada yada... Their choices were:

Best Overall- Milwaukee

Best Value- De Walt.

[vash]

you know, i was working side by side with my buddy. he had the milwaukee, and i was dewalt. my batteries out lasted him by a long shot. both 18V. but his batteries were easier to change out with gloves on. my drill is 10 years old easy, and is still kicking butt. i want a bosch cordless, impact driver bad!

[kach22i]

Makita 18v drill rocks - cordless.

Milwaukee circular saw - cord.

Bosch belt sander - cord.

Good tools are a joy.

Note: I did not like the balance and weight of the De Walt when I looked at it nine years ago, not much has changed since then - nice color though.

[Superman]

The construction guys I've talked with seem to prefer the DeWalt over the venerable Makita. Vash says his batteries lasted longer. On the jobsite the guys let the drills wrestle each other. They'll hook them up to the same hex shaft and see which one is strongest. Boys will be boys.

recently, someone asked me when was the first car race. At first I thought "Gosh, I don't really know." Then I thought about it. My answer was "The first car race happened the first time two different models were located near each other." But really, it was probably on the occasion of when the second car was built.

[JeremyD]

I have a DeWalt Random Orbital 5" sander - awesome
DeWalt Finish palm sander - awesome too
Skill Belt Sander - great for removing brake pad material...
Bosch Corded jigsaw that is great
DeWalt corded recriprocating saw - veery nice

When I was rebuilding my boat I went through a bunch of tools - burned up up - the corded DeWalts I have been very happy with.

The cordless - less than stellar.
DeWalt 14.4 Cordless drill - on my 4th battery
DeWalt cordless screwdriver - can't do much with it
DeWalt cordless flashlight - Doesn't last long either

I just upgraded to the 14.4 v XLR battery for my cordless screwdriver - hopefully that will help me get a few more minutes out of it...

[RickM]

I have a many year old Dewalt 14.4 and it's still going strong with the two original batteries.

[legion]

I have the Craftsman 19.2 on my Christmas list. I have a B&D 12V, but I usually run the batteries out or it doesn't have enough torque to finish a job.

[Jims5543]

I have the Makita but have used my bro in laws Milwaukee and the Milwaukee is a much nicer drill. Make sure to get the hammer drill it is very affective when drilling into concrete.


On a car related note, I got this last year and love it. Awesome at track days and autocrosses. Its the Sears Craftsman 18.0 Volt 1/2" drive impact driver.
http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=00926825000&subcat=Drills

[klaucke]

I prefer Milwaukee tools, and it's mostly what I buy. Although I haven't bought a good cordless drill yet, I did have the pleasure of using an 18v Milwaukee to drill out some brake rotors (they were seized to the hub- Chevy truck), and on that tough steel, that drill didnt' skip a beat. It completely changed the way I think about cordless tools. I vote Milwaukee, it was far and away the best cordless tool I've ever used.

[Bill Verburg]

For personal use I have several 18v DeWalts(drill and impact) they are great . At the boat shop it's mostly Makita, we have hundreds of them and needed to standardize, they also are great.

There is a new generation of Li batteries that is coming slowly to the market, they will all have them eventually. Milwaukee is the only brand available w/ it as of today(AFAIK)

[Rot 911]

No matter what you get, make sure you get more than one battery. I have a Dewalt cordless circular saw that the battery is going bad after just two years. A new battery is $80.00!!!!!!!

[RickM]

Originally posted by Kurt V
No matter what you get, make sure you get more than one battery. I have a Dewalt cordless circular saw that the battery is going bad after just two years. A new battery is $80.00!!!!!!!

Kurt, When the pack is totally dead carefully take it apart and rebuild with new batteries. Many use off-the-shelf tabbed, rechargable batteries. You merely solder in the same configuration.

[JeremyD]

Originally posted by RickM
Kurt, When the pack is totally dead carefully take it apart and rebuild with new batteries. Many use off-the-shelf tabbed, rechargable batteries. You merely solder in the same configuration.

Can you elaborate more on this? I have three worthless DeWalt Batteries that are sitting on my shelf - TIA

[dd74]

DeWalt.

[Jared at Pelican Parts]

Milwaukee

You wont find a better one. hands down was worth it

I also have a Makita I bought 10 years ago and still use for everyday repair.

My Milwaukee Sawzall was passed down, got to be at least 20 years old and that thing will not die, ever.

[Joeaksa]

Originally posted by JeremyD
Can you elaborate more on this? I have three worthless DeWalt Batteries that are sitting on my shelf - TIA

Take the puppy to a Batteries Plus store if there is one in the area, or just take it apart. The batteries have tabs spot welded to them that are then soldered to the other batteries or wires going/coming to the drill.

Its not hard to solder them to new batteries yourself but you need to be very careful with the heat or you can damage the battery. Best left to a shop who has the spot welding machine but you can overhaul a battery pack with new cells for a lot less.

They usually also have more power as the amp ratings of the cells usually goes up over the course of a year or so since they were first used in that pack.


Joe

[JeremyD]

Thanks Joe!