Drill Advice

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tigger

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The batteries on my Craftsman drill are about shot. One lasts about 2 minutes, the other about 15. They are about 8 years old, with below average use.
To upgrade them to Lithium Ion batteries, I am looking at $150 plus for the batteries and a new charger. So at that price, I might as well look at a new one.

These are 3 that I am considering. Wanted to get opinions on these, or recommendations for something better in that price range. I don't need super, ultra extreme, but I want a powerful, light weight unit that will work when I need it.

The Dewalt and Makita have 3 year warranties and the Milwaukee has a 5 year warranty.

Thanks in advance

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product..._act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product...act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A205NGHGNY52SP

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product..._act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

[EDIT 7/12/2016]

Just to follow back up on this, I finally picked this up today on Amazon Prime Day. Had a $30 off deal through my Amazon card so got it for $205. Not too bad of a deal. Thanks for all of the input. It may not be the best, but should be more than adequate for my needs.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
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We had a 20V lithium ion DeWalt (I think it was an older model) and an 18V lithium ion Milwuakee at my summer job. Out of those two I would choose the Milwaukee, because the DeWalt consumed brushes like no other. That being said, I own a NiCAD DeWalt that I use all the time, and have no issues with it whatsoever.
 
I have all Dewalt 18V cordless tools. 1/2" hammer drill, 4 1/2" cutoff saw/grinder, Jig Saw, 1/2" Impact and a 6.5" circular saw. I have used them for years and have not had any problems with them except for the older NiCad's dying after a few years of use.

Last year I bit the bullet and bought 3 Lithium batteries and they have worked great. They are lighter and last way longer per charge.

Yes, I bought most of them from Amazon but got a few open box deals as well.

In the last week I have used every one except the impact so I am a frequent user of my tools.
 
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consider the price of any of the new drills with the 1/2in chuck.

The Mil Fuel package is like close to 300$

Any drill under that is going to suck for most jobs that need power. or the bit you need is 1/2 and won't fit in the smaller drills (under fuel)

I have an old dewalt (picked it up in 2004 new) that is a 14v works great still, and I have a new m12 drill.

the m12 pales in comparison. I would also consider the new dewalt line up as well.
 
The Rigid has a lifetime warranty on the entire product; drill, batteries, and charger. No questions asked either. If your battery life starts declining with it, they exchange it for a new one even 20 years from now.
 
The company I work for buys over 150 cordless drill/ impacts a year.
In the last 5 years we have went through every brand there is, Dr the cheapest to top dollar brands.
I use it many times a day every day, so much so that I kill most 20v in 7 hours, so I use it.
In our environment drills are tested like no one else.
Bosch is the best cordless of any brand
 
I have that Makita kit (plus I bought a few extra batteries and a second drill... handy to have 2 drills when you are fastening screws that require a pilot hole, so you can leave a drill bit in one and a screwdriver bit in the other).

Overall I like it, but I will offer the following feedback:

- The flashlight is bulky the old-fashioned incandescent bulb means the battery won't last long. I prefer my "tactical" LED flashlight (brighter, battery life is a lot longer).
- I have used the impact driver in a few situations but unless you are driving long lag bolts regularly it's not really that handy. It's not strong enough for taking lug nuts off a 4Runner, for instance.

Honestly I have been spending more time recently with my 120V corded drill. I rarely am working very far from an outlet and I just find the extra power of a 120V tool nice, plus they are cheaper and lighter, and you don't have to worry about running out of batteries at an awkward time. If I had to do it all over again I would probably by a nice 120V drill and a cheap / lightweight 12V cordless drill for awkward positions.
 
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I've been buying all Dewalt stuff. I just like the ergonomics of Dewalt stuff. Any of your above are good choices.
 
Dewalt, only because most of the other tools are widely accessible to buy at the big box stores as well as replacement parts are easily attained. Since you have picked the brushless kit it gets my vote.

Milwaukee, probably the most powerful of the three. They have the shortest lasting batteries and parts turnaround for fixes are the longest. Also the least ergonomic friendly IMHO.

Makita, great reliability and would put them ahead of Dewalt if their other cordless products for the lithium batteries were more readily available and weren't so expensive.

Any of the three are years ahead of Craftsman, which based upon the number of people in Sears yesterday, may not be around too much longer.
 
One thing to consider is the line of additional tools you may want to purchase in the future. I have the Milwaukee fuel kit with hammer drill and driver combo. I then bought the torque driver that uses the same batteries and it is powerful enough to do lug nuts plus more.

Here is the torque impact I have. There are a ton of other tools that use the same batteries as well.

http://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-Tor..._UL160_SR160,160_&refRID=1DT3WV51YQ884Q3P5YDJ
 
i bought the 20 v brushless dewalt kit to replace my busted craftsman 19.2 v drill, never looked back, very happy with the size, feel, and power. The batteries also last forever.
 
Dewalt 20v is the way to go IMHO. I use a 20v 3/8" Impact at work and it's amazingly powerful and the handle is the most comfortable I have ever had the pleasure of using.

Started with a 12v years back and never looked back, the new 20v Brushless Drills are great; as I said it's the most comfortable grip I have used. :)
 
Like I said check into Bosch, no one on this site puts cordless tools through the abuse we do, theres a reason a multi million dollar company will only buy Bosch now.
the impacts are the best I have ever used and I have used every brand except the cheaper ones ie ryobi

Theres a reason all these guys have Bosch to use.

Porter Cable, DeWalt, Rigid, Milwaukee, Hilti (Hilti makes good corded tools), Makita cordless tools dont hold up long term
 

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I had a Makita orbital sander die on me today RIP. It vibrated but did not move. After a few seconds it started smoking. Tomorrow a Dewalt will be the replacement after looking at what Lowes carries.

I will add that I have Milwaukee 18V cordless tools for work. They work just as well as the Dewalt ones. I just have what my boss bought me.
 
kersh13 said:
The Rigid has a lifetime warranty on the entire product; drill, batteries, and charger. No questions asked either. If your battery life starts declining with it, they exchange it for a new one even 20 years from now.
Click to expand...

Have you been able to take advantage of the lifetime warranty (it's actually a "service agreement" not a warranty) on a battery? From what I've read, apparently it can be extremely difficult to get a battery from them. I used to have a Rigid drill, and of course the battery died after a few years like clockwork. Apparently they "lost" my warranty registration card. I would have registered online, but it said my serial number was not valid. I didn't even bother trying to get a new battery since it sounded like too much hassle. Apparently Home Depot is not a service place for them, but I didn't ask Home Depot to be sure.

Anyway, I ended up selling the drill without battery, and the charger, separately, for almost as much as I paid for the whole set a few years prior. Not a bad deal, but I'll never buy another one.

Any cordless tool seems like a bad investment if you only use it occasionally because the batteries inevitably die after a few years. If a corded model is not too inconvenient, get that instead and it will last a lot longer.
 
Just my 2 cents. I also started with craftsman and worked over to dewalt then finally to Milwaukee and I must say for the money and power I wouldn't choose anything else. I own several m12 tools and about 15 m18 tools including most of the fuel line and the power is amazing. I have had most of them for a few years and have only had to take them in for service for routine cleanings. The tools don't start losing power when the battery gets low and the tools can take a beating and never lose power. I won't buy anything else.
 
VA_4R said:
Like I said check into Bosch, no one on this site puts cordless tools through the abuse we do, theres a reason a multi million dollar company will only buy Bosch now.
the impacts are the best I have ever used and I have used every brand except the cheaper ones ie ryobi

Theres a reason all these guys have Bosch to use.

Porter Cable, DeWalt, Rigid, Milwaukee, Hilti (Hilti makes good corded tools), Makita cordless tools dont hold up long term
Click to expand...

That's weird since our shop mainly uses Dewalt and they hold up extremely well, the only issue is that the brushes get a bit contaminated on the older ones after a bit. But I started "Refurbishing" them for my coworkers after a lil cleand and a light rub with valve grinding compound on the brushes and armatures. My 20V 3/8" is like new again and still doing great.
 
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