Cordless drill recommendation

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ThrilledOne

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Miami, Florida
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Starting electrician
Hi everyone, I usually was reading some threads but a couple of days ago had to hang a lighting fixture and realized I have no drill. So if you guys have something decent in your toolset could you advise me, please. Thought about de volt V20 MAX after reading some reviews, but decided to ask a real opinion first.
 
All the major brands are great, I don think color matters much. What I would think about is size/platform. The Milwaukee M12 system is real nice, powerful and light. I have the M18 which is also nice but kinda Overkill 99% of the time.
 
Rigid has decent stuff , I believe 3 year warranty with lifetime service agreement.
I have Milwaukee hole hog and sawsalls.
I still own Ryobi pistol drill and impact from 8 years ago.
 
At work we're all in on the Milwaukee platform. We use the Milwaukee M18 hammer drills, impact guns, sawzall's, band saws, KO sets, you name it. The entire platform uses the same battery which is great because if you have a few tools with you can always swap a good battery for a dead one. At home I have older DeWalt cordless tools but given a choice I would choose the Milwaukee system.
 
Have 10 or so battery drills, everything from 7.2 V Makita to 18V Makita, Ryobi, DeWalt, and Bosch.

Main problem (other than battery life) with any of them is eventual corrosion of the battery to drill tabs. The DeWalt 18 V (either NiMh or Li-ion) I have has given the fewest problems there. e.g fewest times needing to clean terminals.
I'd guess the DeWalt have a bit heavier or better material plating on the terminals.

I do not hae any Milwaukee cordless drills, but all the corded Milwaukee tools I have are good (except the router, which broke the chuck shaft)
 
I have two. Both Black&Decker. Not a premium brand but they have done just fine.
 
I have owned/used Milwaukee, Ridgid, and Bosch. All have been fine.
I have a friend who is a bricklayer and he always uses Ryobi. He beat the crap out of them screwing brick ties to walls, often dropping them off of high scaffolding. They held up well and he always said they were so cheap he didn’t care if he destroyed one.
 
junkhound said:
Have 10 or so battery drills, everything from 7.2 V Makita to 18V Makita, Ryobi, DeWalt, and Bosch.

Main problem (other than battery life) with any of them is eventual corrosion of the battery to drill tabs. The DeWalt 18 V (either NiMh or Li-ion) I have has given the fewest problems there. e.g fewest times needing to clean terminals.
I'd guess the DeWalt have a bit heavier or better material plating on the terminals.

I do not hae any Milwaukee cordless drills, but all the corded Milwaukee tools I have are good (except the router, which broke the chuck shaft)
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Yeah, a staff member at Lowes advised me De Walt, too.
 
I have been happy with a Milwaukee drill along with a couple of M18 batteries. I agree with electrofelon that they're overkill for small stuff.
One thing to look out for is the quality of the chuck because some of the cheap ones out there are junk.
 
Besoeker3 said:
I have two. Both Black&Decker. Not a premium brand but they have done just fine.
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Black & Decker (Bleak & Dorker) ruined their reputation so badly that they took the name from their well regarded radial arm saw, DeWalt, to this day I still do not own any Dewalt tools, unless you count a branded box for bits & stuff. :D
 
infinity said:
At work we're all in on the Milwaukee platform. We use the Milwaukee M18 hammer drills, impact guns, sawzall's, band saws, KO sets, you name it. The entire platform uses the same battery which is great because if you have a few tools with you can always swap a good battery for a dead one. At home I have older DeWalt cordless tools but given a choice I would choose the Milwaukee system.
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Agreed. We are also
 
I've used DeWalt tools for a few years now and I'm liking their brand. They make reliable drills. My friend recommended that I give Milwaukee a chance. That's probably my next choice when I buy another drill.
 
I have had Dewalt mostly from the older heavy batteries to their newer Lithium battery. I have also had Bosch 18V drill and impact driver very powerful but they were stolen.

All of the major brands are good as long as you take care of them. My new Dewalt set is about 6 years old still going strong because I don't abuse them.
 
I run DeWalt. If I had to pick a new platform, I think I would go with Milwaukee. Not because they're better, because they have a better selection of tools. I wish Dewalt would develop a ratchet/torque wrench!!!
 
I think you have to take three major things in to consideration. Battery quality, durability of the tools and expansion. The main reason Dewalt and Milwaukee can charge more is the quality of their batteries. Easy enough. If you don't care as much then Ryobi or even the Harbor Freight brands are sufficient. If you are using the all day every day, the a higher brand. Durability usually also means bulk and/or weight. Again if you are using infrequently this means less. Frankly Dewalt. Ridgid and Milwaukee are the only two that I feel have passed the drop tests. I had Bosch and it had plastic gears, first drop form an eight foot ladder and no drill. Last is expansion. What other things may you want to own. DeWalt and Milwaukee have the best line of tools for the electrician. With Milwaukee probably topping out. Dewalt, especially with the flex volt has almost as good, but their line of other tools like what you may want around the house is larger, especially when you include their Flex volt stuff.
 
ThrilledOne said:
Hi everyone, I usually was reading some threads but a couple of days ago had to hang a lighting fixture and realized I have no drill. So if you guys have something decent in your toolset could you advise me, please. Thought about de volt V20 MAX after reading some reviews, but decided to ask a real opinion first.
Click to expand...
I've used those but my preference for reliability/durability as well other tools available for the trade I like milwaukee, got the m12 and m18 platforms. I like the m12 for working off a ladder for its power and weight ratio as well as its balance in hand, way better than the DeW. Hitachi Makita and Bosch also have decent tools but lack the variety of other tools in the platforms.
I've also found DeW has 2 lines of quality one for big box and another for everywhere else. Big box had Plastic gearing like @Strathead said of Bosch. Might account for the much lower price than other stores on some DeW items, while other DeW tools were more in line for expected bulk buying by the big box.
 
Kinda like asking which car to buy.....

A consideration is how much replacement batteries cost and whether they're rebuild-able. Last I looked, Ryobi 18v packs were about $30 + $15 shipping (both ways) to rebuild vs maybe $45 new on a xmas sale. (I could rebuild myself, but it's not worth the bother right now.)

A couple of carpenters I know use ryobi because they're not expensive and readily available; cheap(er) and easy to replace when broken or stolen.
 
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