Which to choose?????

[Plowboy]

I'm in the market for an 18v cordless drill. I think I've narrowed it down to a deWalt (3 speed\hammer) or a Millwakee. Both have 1/2" keyless chucks. Also saw a Ryobi combo pack for about the same price as the single drills. I'm thinking you get what you pay for. Anybody own one of these? Any feedback would be welcome. I do need a good quality, long runtime/charge drill, and drill thru some steel for brackets and such things.

 

[CumminsAholic]

I own them all, except the milwakee. The ryobi 18v pack, the dewalt 18v pack, and 2 other dewalt 18v saws and 2 other 18v drills. If you want a set that's going to last a long time and handle a lot of abuse get the dewalt or milwakee. I'd say the dewalt. The ryobi has worked good so far, but I've only had it for a few months, so I dunno how it's going to last. Everything works good so far and it does have the 18v power like it should (so does the dewalt) some of the other drills I've tried that are 18v made our old 12v drills look like powerhouses, But like I said, I dunno how it'll last... maybe it'll be as long as the others, maybe half the time. We also have corded milwakee drills, they're a great drill. So I guess it all depends on what you're going to be doing with it. If it's just for using once and a while in the shop then I'd say go with the ryobi, it's REALLY handy to have a cordless sawzall. If you're like us, use it everyday (carpentry), get one of the other 2 that are already proven to be good and will hold up to some abuse.

Corey

 

[emarsh]

I have the Milwaukee and love it; bought the whole set at Home Depot for $479. I use the flashlight all the time, the "hatchet" for cutting out old exhaust pipes, and the drill frequently also. Never used the circular saw yet. The drill has an unmisteakable smoothness to it, plus a great keyless chuck. In the 1970's I was in power tool repair business and Milwaukee drills have always stood for quality. There are cheaper tools out there, but I doubt if they will outlast the Milwaukee,

Oh yeah, there was a German lady salesperson who worked for the company that had legs that went,,,, well, she was tall and built to last too! But that is another story!

 

[LSMITH]

Plowboy, I have owned the Miwaukee and used the DeWalt extensively. The DeWalt is way more tool than the Milwaukee will ever hope to be. It has more power and battery life than the Milwaukee and is tougher to boot. I compared the Dewalt to a Milwaukee that I owned, so I was a little biased coming in but the DeWalt won hands down. The Milwaukee has one feature that the competition should take note of though, and that it the battery going on from either direction. I have found instances that the Milwaukee would fit and nothing else would. The Milwaukee also has the most comfortable grip in the industry to me. All that said my money is on DeWalt now. Hope this helps.

 

[Scollins]

I had a Ryobi a few years ago. It turned out to be a piece of crap. I've now got an 18v Dewalt drill/hammerdrill with the 1/2" chuck. This thing ROCKS! I bought mine through Harbor Freight as a manufacturer reconditioned model. It still came with a one year warranty. That was 3 years ago, and it is still going strong.



BUT! Why buy the 18v when DeWalt makes a 24v!!!! Come on! Make the Tim "The Tool Man" Taylor happy! If I could sell my 18v and get the 24v, I'd do it in a heartbeat. My wife complains about the weight of the 18v, and the 24v is heavier. The good news in that is she wouldn't be abusing my drill!!

 

[DieselB59]

I've got the Dewalt 18V drill/hammer drill. Mine was brand new in August, and it came with a ratcheting style chuck, which makes bit clamping much, much better than my last 18V Dewalt, which died after about five hard years of abuse. I'd buy another over again if I had to.

 

[illflem]

I've both the Milwaukee and DeWalt , like the red one better. The DeWalt worked good for about five years before the gear box went out, Milwaukee replaced it. The Milwaukee is more comfortable, better balanced and the forward/reverse is easier to use. Both are good, get the one that's on sale and you won't go wrong. Makita is good also but too expensive.

 

[Cummins Corvette]

I can't really tell you about the cordless stuff, but I do have some input on the Milwakee/DeWalt decision. I have always liked the way the DeWalt felt in my hand, and I needed a new hammer drill (120 volt). I went to Home Depot and bought a DeWalt 1/2" hammer drill. The first time I used it, I could tell that it just wasn't up to the task of putting holes in concrete. I looked at the exploded diagram of the drill while I had it just as I always do when it is there. I am just the curious type I guess, I have to know how everything works. Anyway, I noticed that the entire transmission in that thing used brass bushings. The only ball bearings were on the ends of the armature in the motor. When I took it back, I looked at an owner's manual for a Milwaukee and saw that there were no bushings in the Milwaukee. They only use roller bearings in the transmission, and ball bearings in the motor. I don't need to guess at which one is going to last longer. The Milwaukee also went through the concrete much better. The hammering action from the Milwaukee was harder than that from the DeWalt. At one of the places I used to work, we had an ancient Milwaukee drill that worked like new. Milwuakees are made in Germany, and I have great respect for and good experiences with German engineering.

 

[Neal Cassady]

Milwaukee

Plowboy,



Get the red one, mine has survived two years off severe service and still works well.



Dave

 

[jjdiesel]

hardware?

Should'nt this go in the "Hardware Forum?"

 

[Jetpilot]

I would get the Milwaukee! I have owned their 12V model for several years and it has always worked great.

 

[Mark_Kendrick]

If you're buyin corded, get Porter Cable.



CORDLESS-- DEWALT is the only way to go.

 

[HiPerf360]

For the corded hammer drill I would go with the Bosch or Hilti, they are a little more pricey but worth it. And for the cordless I would highly recommend the 18v DeWalt, I have several of them and they are wonderful products. I also have a Hitachi cordless hammer drill that is at least 10 years old that is still going strong and has plenty of power and a good feel, but it was around 2,000 when new.

 

[scott4glamis]

i have had a 9v makita for over ten years , just had to replace the original battery, love the quality and to me the case is very important. plastic is ok but metal is better. just a thought! if i had to do it again i would buy a makita or a milwaukee. who makes dewalt,black and decker?

 

[QRTRHRS]

I have a Dewault 18 volt and a Porter Cable 19. 2 volt. The PC has more "moxie" than the Dewault, feels better balanced in the hand and the battery pack is by far easier to swap out. I have large hands but the pack on the Dewault gives me fits. I have to unsnap on side at a time. Perhaps it is just the one I got.



In the case of "bigger,better,faster" with 24 volt it may not be true. First of all, I don't have a 24 volt anything. I have read though that the trade off with present technology is reduced battery life due to heat. And, the batteries cost more.



Of course, Milwaukee is always a good choice too. I had a 12 volt that worked well. Gave it away when the battery died and went to the Dewault.



On hammer drills, one mistake I made was to buy a corded Milwaukee with a keyless chuck. Hammer drill/keyless, duh?



Latest battery tool is a Lincoln gease gun. Gotta have it

 

[tgbol]

I don't know about the hammer drills, but I have used both of the Milwaukee and De Walt 18 volt 1/2 inch drills. Being a Cummins owner I am sure that you will apreciate that the De Walt seems to have more torque. My De Walt has three speeds instead of two and battery life is amazing.

 

[Briar Hopper]

My personal 18V cordless is a DeWalt. The batteries seem to retain their charge quite well, when it gets left alone and unused.

I've never had to recharge in the middle of drilling anyone's exhaust manifold.

My maintenance department at the 3M factory where I work, has a Milwaukee 14V that has seen more heavy, hard, nasty use in the 4 years we've had it, than a 5-dollar ho in 6 years at the Mustang Ranch. (Can't vouch for that comparision, personally )and it's still going strong! I used it over the weekend, and it drilled 4 3/8 " holes in 3/8" steel plate, plus 2 more in 1/4" plate, without running down.

Oh yeah, about the hammer drills. I own both a Bosch Bulldog Rotary Hammer with the SDS shank system, and a Hilti TE-55 Rotary Hammer with the SDS-plus shank system. Both are great, but the Hilti is made to go the distance. It's for sale, BTW, if anyone wants it, drop me a line. I'll email price & pics. Brand new, used once.

 

[jman]

I have a Porter Cable 19. 2 set and all I have to say is you better hold on with both hands. Everyone else has Dewalt and it is kind of humorous that everytime we need to use a big bit everyone starts looking for the PC. Not knocking DeWalt at all, but the PC will twist your arm into a pretzel if you think you can hold on with one hand.

 

[1tuffram]

Say guys what's your opinion on the Makita 12v or 14v drills. Been looking for awhile and narrowed it down to either Makita or Dewalt. I like the feel and balance of the Makita's and the Makita motor sounds like it's higher quality (reminds me of how a corded drill sounds). I'm mainly looking at durability, longevity and quality. Cost doesn't really matter, I'll pay extra for something that's going to last. Do the Makita's hold up to heavy use? How about battery life expectancy? I want this to be my first and last cordless drill I will have to buy, please help me get it right the first time.

 

[LSMITH]

tuffram, I have had about every cordless drill on the market in 14V and a few 18V drills too. Over the last year and a half I have been through 5 Makita 14V drills. I have been through 5 because they last longer than any other 14V and are easily and cheaply repaired. It seems that the NiMH (black ones) batteries are too much for the drill, it produces more torque than the body of the drill and the transmission can handle. The body case of the drill flexes and the transmission starts to come out of gear, about twice through this evolution and the high gear is stripped bald. Low gear has on one broken the body of the drill open, but low gear functions untill the motor makes almost one revolution in the drill body pulling the wires off of the motor When used responsibly or exclusively with the standard batteries (orange ones) I have had no problems. The last one was stolen, so I am down to one Makita 14V and 4 batteries now. When I buy another it will be a DeWalt 18V. I used one belonging to a co-worker extensively and did not break it. The DW 18V is the first drill I have ever used a lot corded or not that I have not broken in some way. I dearly love my Makita tools and have several, but the 14V drill will not stand up to the abuse I require.



EDIT: I have had 2 Makita 14V drills rebuilt 3 times and 2 repacements by the warranty, I did not buy 5 drills.



Now for the disclaimer: I am EXTREMELY hard on tools. Seems that I can break just about anything. I went through 3 brand new Milwaukee 1/2" holeshooters in one morning before getting a refund and finishing the job with my Makita cordless. There are no two ways about it, I abuse the tools and my results are not normal, but I do know what will last and what won't Proper engineering can and will make a power tool that can operate at 100% of its capacity with no breakage, but sometimes you can go through a few different brands finding that out. Hope this helps.