can't decide!

[c2500]

Added: By the way, the jingle is usually the result of what's known as "throwing solder", because the armature winding leads are soldered to the commutator segments, and overheating melts the solder.

Thanks for letting me know. It still works, so I'll deal with the jingling

 

[cadpoint]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the safe work practices of changing from a 12 to 18 volt or a 18 to 36 volt.

For goodness sake, the first time you hammer with the new larger drill pay attention! :roll:

 

[George Stolz]

I have the 18 volt Hitachi (not from a box store). It really is an awesome drill.

I just bought it. I'll give my review soon.

 

[76nemo]

I use that one too....thought it was a good drill cause Milwakuee is good right?...the drill sucks...dies super fast but it is still less than a year old so...i guess it will do

BESIDES the batteries, I think the 18V Milwaukee's are relentless. I've worked at a shop where they were shared, abused, and left for dead. Those drills are hardcore. I like the dual positioning of the battery. Well, I guess to each their own. Maybe I just have been lucky, but the Milwaukee's that's been in my hands have been much tougher than me.

 

[George Stolz]

...Maybe I just have been lucky, but the Milwaukee's that's been in my hands have been much tougher than me.

Not in my experience. Four years ago I bought the Milwaukee fat pack with an 18v hammerdrill, sawzall (hatchet), flashlight, circular saw, radio.

The radio is sitting under my desk at the moment, as my computer speakers. The circular saw is still good, but I never hardly use it so no big surprises there. The flashlight croaked PDQ after buying the kit. The sawzall I use on a regular basis, and has held up very well, no complaints with that.

The drill was stronger than it's case or transmission could handle. I used that drill for about two years, and it spent a few weeks at the repair shop in that time. I am fairly gentle with my tools, and it couldn't handle me.

Today I went to use a coworker's 18v Li-Ion sawzall, and it was dead. He grumbled about the battery life in it, said he'd never buy another again. Of course, if my sawzall is any indication, that saw is going to bother him until he leaves the trade.

 

[quogueelectric]

BESIDES the batteries, I think the 18V Milwaukee's are relentless. I've worked at a shop where they were shared, abused, and left for dead. Those drills are hardcore. I like the dual positioning of the battery. Well, I guess to each their own. Maybe I just have been lucky, but the Milwaukee's that's been in my hands have been much tougher than me.

I just bought the Milwaukee 18v li drill/driver combo and I love it. I havent pushed it through its paces yet but I have always have good results with Milwaukee products. It drives screws like into butter.

 

[76nemo]

Not in my experience. Four years ago I bought the Milwaukee fat pack with an 18v hammerdrill, sawzall (hatchet), flashlight, circular saw, radio.

The radio is sitting under my desk at the moment, as my computer speakers. The circular saw is still good, but I never hardly use it so no big surprises there. The flashlight croaked PDQ after buying the kit. The sawzall I use on a regular basis, and has held up very well, no complaints with that.

The drill was stronger than it's case or transmission could handle. I used that drill for about two years, and it spent a few weeks at the repair shop in that time. I am fairly gentle with my tools, and it couldn't handle me.

Today I went to use a coworker's 18v Li-Ion sawzall, and it was dead. He grumbled about the battery life in it, said he'd never buy another again. Of course, if my sawzall is any indication, that saw is going to bother him until he leaves the trade.

This is very interesting. I have sworn by Milwaukee. I took one upside the head from a 3' drop and I thought nothing was harder than my head. :grin:

I love these forums for the different opinions. I have heard of guys burning up Dewalt's, but never Milwaukee's, there again, maybe I have just been lucky:wink:

 

[quogueelectric]

This is very interesting. I have sworn by Milwaukee. I took one upside the head from a 3' drop and I thought nothing was harder than my head. :grin:

I love these forums for the different opinions. I have heard of guys burning up Dewalt's, but never Milwaukee's, there again, maybe I have just been lucky:wink:

I have smoked a couple of 14.4s but that is totally because I was abusing the tool to drill out way more than it was intended for. The drills never stopped working but were seriously damaged by pushing the limits and did not have the torque anymore. I love my 18 v li and I still only have the small bats I am waiting to buy the hammer drill which has 2 oversized li bats with it and annother impact gun with it.

 

[76nemo]

I see alot of construction guys starting to carry Hitachi, any opinions there? Never used one

 

[Fulthrotl]

I see alot of construction guys starting to carry Hitachi, any opinions there? Never used one

i had a hitatchi compressor... it lasted 14 months. i take care of my tools.
no more hitatchi for me.

 

[BMacky]

I've been using Milwaukee products for years. the other day I used a Makita 18V LI driver and it was like a feather in my hand with all the power of the Milwaukee. However, I then had an opportunity to use a Hilti 14V LI driver. Compact, lots of torque, actually just as much as the Makita and at 14 volts.

Just tossing it out there. It's not apples to apples. I've heard good and bad about all the major brands. Agree with all others on the cheaper models sold in the big box stores.

Hilti's are made (I believe) in Austria. Batteries are made elsewhere (Canada?).

 

[hardworkingstiff]

I have DeWalt and Ryobi drills. They both perform well. I actually have a Ryobi that I purchased in 1996 (still working). Looks like crap, but keeps on ticking.

IMO, on a cost/performance basis, Ryobi is hard to beat.

 

[fireryan]

we ave ryobi at work and the batterys dont hold up. i personally have ridgid at home and they work great. they also have free battery replacement

 

[quogueelectric]

we ave ryobi at work and the batterys dont hold up. i personally have ridgid at home and they work great. they also have free battery replacement

I have heard that the battery replacement is a one trick pony.

 

[Mr. Wizard]

Now, some input from me:

Have you considered Sears? Craftsman is a well known name brand. I don't know who is making their drills now. It used to be B&D. However, Craftsman drills are pretty cheap, and you can buy an extended warranty.
Overall, they are a pretty good drill... and my buddy bought the warranty... the extended warranty will cover it if you knock your drill off a 30' lift, it splits into 30 pieces...
You bring it back in pieces, and they give you a new drill!
You can't beat a warranty like that!

When my Milwaukee 28V set finally dies, I'm going to Sears. You see, Craftsman is really a good name. No one on the jobsite has their stuff (hand tools or electric) which helps with theft reduction, and the person behind the sales counter is NOT ALLOWED TO ASK why you are bringing your broken tool in... even when there are electrical marks all over it!

Have a great day!

Not a lot of people on job sites use Craftsman, which makes a thief less likely to steal the batteries while they're charging. Right now I use DeWalt, I'm with Greg on the thought of replacing mine with Craftsman as they die out, too.

 

[daleuger]

don't buy dewalt from home cheapo or blowe's. They use plastic parts in their drill that they sell at those stores - go to grainger or a store like that to buy dewalt - they are more expensive for a reason.

To this......Amen!

 

[George Stolz]

I see alot of construction guys starting to carry Hitachi, any opinions there? Never used one

I bought the 18V Hitachi hammerdrill last week, and have been using it roughing in the house panel circuits for the 24-plexes I'm working on. I've been mostly drilling 7/8"s holes in 2x8s and stuff like that. The circuiting is spread out enough that it's cumbersome to try to drag a cord around all over the building.

I'm impressed, it does a good job. I took a chance a year or so ago on the gold-colored Li-Ion 18V drill they offered, and the stupid thing would shut itself down whenever you taxed the motor at all, as a safety feature. This drill has the same safety feature, but it's toned back quite a bit - it'll take a chance on your request when you ask too much of it before letting you know you're asking too much.

I haven't had a chance to try out the hammerdrill feature yet.



It's not a replacement for my 12V version, but I think they'll make great companions. I was asking too much out of the 12v roughing in. But I quickly discovered I missed the 12v's smaller size and weight when I slid over to the clubhouse to hang a few ceiling fans that came in late. It's also better for stripping out panels, it's not as clunky when slapping it between your legs while getting the conductors into place.

JMO,

 

[growler]

skip the 18 volt line. i got the 36volt combo kit from dewalt and love it. thats all the tools you need. "power of corded without the cord"

I don't see it that way, sure the 36 volt tools have enough power but they are bigger and heavier. I think that tools should be purchased for the job you intend to use them for.

I have lots of heavy tools but for a normal service call I'm never going to use them so I keep a little 12V drill in the tool bag. I see no reason to carry an elephant gun when I'm only hunting rabbits.

The best way to buy tools is to use one's that will make life easy and not one's that will impress the rubes. I don't even take an expensive meter in on most jobs because I know I'm not going to need that level of accuracy.

On the other hand if you are hunting elephants it crazy to go out there with a 22 caliber rifle. :grin:

 

[DanZ]

I'm not looking at Harbor Freight specials, which you expect to break, and they offer the same extended warranty... "for only $39.99, you can extend this warranty for 2 years, and unlimited replacements."
I know that I will return weekly, if not daily... there is no value there. Just lost time.

Hey, those harbor Freight specials have their place! I know an HVAC contractor that uses them almost religiously when he's working on roof tops that are over 25' high. He knows he's just going to set it down for a second and turn around to do something, only to remember he shouldn't have set it on a sloped standing seam metal roof...:grin:

I have a set of Craftsman 19.2V Ni-Cad tools, and the tools themselves are awesome. I was doing some deck repair, and started snapping bits because I forgot to turn the torque down! The only problem I have had with them is battery life. After 30 minutes of drilling or screwing, the battery dies. They offer a Li-Ion upgrade now, but it's $90 a battery!

 

[dexterg]

Hilti is the best one but expensive