Corded drill

[grim_d]

On the hunt for a new corded drill after my performance power (b&q special) gave up spectacularly right after I had replaced the carbon brushes, sigh.

Looking for something a bit more substantial, with manufacturer spares support.

It will primarily be used with wire wheels to remove rust that the grinder and brush cup cant deal with so will need a sturdy chuck on it, surprisingly the Performance power one had a very good chuck, preferably keyless. Occasionally used perhaps for drilling masonry so hammer function would be handy too.

Variable speed via the trigger is a must but a dual speed gearbox isn't so important as we have a Makita cordless for actual drilling. Reverse drive is essential.

Previous drill was 850w and I rarely managed to slow it down, but I don't know if a higher quality brand would be able to provide the same torque for less power? The extreme circumstances black and decker 450w one we have is absolutely useless.

Have been looking at Bosch blues but they are at the very top end of the budget even for the cheaper ones, are Bosch green worth a look in? my grinder is a green and has been brilliant. Makita and Dewalt in my price range seem a bit underpowered, and a bit pants to be honest, like they may be re-branded rubbish.

Any recommendations or suggestions of brands I should be looking at? Or even if there is a more effective tool I can stick a wire wheel on?

Budget is up to about £120. Usage is heavy hobby.

Cheers!

 

[ronan]

I bought a bosch last year and got about 10 minutes use out of it before something in it broke , the motor runs fine but the drive to the chuck is gone, wouldn't buy another, i have a massive hitachi 110 volt drill i got out of work years ago and its a beast , but heavy, never gave me a bit of trouble.
If you go to builders or engineers suppliers you get better value than you get in diy chain shops, if they get to know you they might forget to charge the vat.

 

[GeorgiePorgie]

Thing about powertools is if they're used daily and under strenuous use without longish breaks in between then they will fail regardless of make at some point.

Sounds to me like thats what you're doing with the drill?

I have a cheapo JCB 850w drill,can't remember where I bought but it was several years ago and I have had good use out of it,have not even changed the brushes in that length of time although I should check em now as its been hammered but left to cool down at intervals of its usage.

My advice is buy two decent drills amounting £60 each and use them alternatively daily if they're going under heavy usage,that way they will last longer providing you check the brushes after 6 months or so?

No powertool is robust.

 

[rtbcomp]

My advice is buy two decent drills amounting £60 each and use them alternatively daily if they're going under heavy usage,that way they will last longer providing you check the brushes after 6 months or so?

And that way if one fails you've got the other so you can still get on with your work, and you've got breathing space to replace it.

 

[steveo3002]

keep the £120 in a tin and buy a £10 asda one and run it till it breaks ...mines lasted a few years of abuse and you get the years warrenty anyway

 

[pedrobedro]

I had a Wickes drill for 20+ years but the brushes went and the reverse lever broke so I just replaced it with a £12.99 Aldi drill which is 850 watt and does everything you ask. One thing I do with my power tools that are kept in the shed nowadays is spin the chuck or disc by hand before plugging in and starting up as I had a grinder that broke chunks off the brushes after standing for ages.

 

[BillFarworth]

g.d from my experience the most of the make now days fail in this stuff, as everything is been made in a low budget,mostly in China.
I have an old B&D,part plastic part steel body and except some brushes it hasn't ask for something more, 20 years now! Saying that I own a metabo drill that I will not change for nothing and I will recommend.Well it is not cheap those days (5-6 years ago) cost me something like £200.00 .
Another Brand I will recommend is the Kress with German made stuff .Unfortunatly not in the budget of £120.00.
All the other makes like Makita,Dewalt,Hitachi... you really take your chances these days .
Look in places like ebay and there is chances for these stuff, to buy something second hand in good price.Trust me it will last more than the budget type drills.

 

[Hitch]

I'd like to see a 10 Tesco value drill with a 20mm twist drill in it!

Bosch ones are pretty good, except the mechanism that hold the chuck still while tightening, that's broke on every one I have ever used.

I've got a D handle Hitachi, nice drill, proper metal handle and such.
If I were looking for a smaller drill, Hitachi
D13vf is what I would choose.
Geared low, ideal for metalwork.

 

[grim_d]

A lot of good info and ideas here.

Definitely will not be going down the £10 drill route, have tried it and the chucks collapse almost instantly the way I use them. It would end up costing more in petrol to keep returning them.

The two drill idea has been discussed previously and we are definitely up for that provided the manufacturer can offer spares, primarily brushes, which is the hard part! Maybe worth looking at black and decker.

I loved the cheapo drill I had but suspect that the brushes I managed to source for it were the cause of its demise and unfortunately the brushes in the cheaper stuff last no time at all.

Looks like bosch is out of the question...the hitachi stuff has been on the edge of my radar for a while, seems like its worth a look in then.

 

[BillFarworth]

Totally agree with Hitch regarding your budget.
Hitachi stuff is more respectable for me .Personally cannot come any near to Metabo stuff, that I prefer but we speak about big difference in terms of price!
Really like the aluminium case that the Hitachi
D13vf have!
If I was you I will go for that g.d!
Good Luck to you

 

[PTvor]

If you are using a drill for wire brushing, it tends to put sideways pressure in the bearings that they are not generally designed to take.

Whatever you buy, check the price and availability of the kind spares you are likely to need, bearings, brushes and so on. Blue Bosch and Makita have good spares support and generally, they are reasonably priced, apart from rotors and stators. I don't know about Hitachi, but it's easy enough to check on the web.

The cheaper stuff doesn't have any spares support, maybe apart from brushes. As you say, the brushes in some of the low priced tools don't seem to last long. I think a lot of the makers of the cheapies rely on people losing the receipt or not being bothered to take it back. I'd guess most buyers of those things don't give them much use; put up a set of shelves, six months later put up a curtain rail, six months after that, drill a few holes in wood, stir some paint....... If it takes five years of that sort of use, they think they've had a bargain.

 

[eil]

Another vote for the Hitachi D13VF, if you are using without a handle on it just watch your thumb.

 

[printcom]

For whats its worth I've had a few drills over the past 7 years and 3 house builds. Mainly Dewalt and Makita but the surprise purchase was an Erbauer 6kg SDS corded drill from Screwfix. I needed a drill to put 64 30mm holes in 200mm concrete for a barn 7 years ago. It was cheap £70 ish and came with a two year warranty, well it did that job fine and I have been abusing it ever since. It just goes to show that cheap is not always nasty, and I have been told that Screwfix do not quibble about their warranty.

 

[steveo3002]

i was thinking the same about the sideways load..isnt there a elec die grinder that would be more suited?

 

[GeorgiePorgie]

black and decker.

Now you're being silly.

Erbauer,Ryobi,Hitachi.....got no faith in Bosch.

 

[GeorgiePorgie]

The cheaper stuff doesn't have any spares support,

Disagree,you just need to find where.......
http://www.einhelltools.co.uk/product-list.php?pg1-cid47.html

There are at least another 2 sites to which I can link you to if needed?

 

[grim_d]

Now you're being silly.

Erbauer,Ryobi,Hitachi.....got no faith in Bosch.

It pained me to say it as much as it did for you to read it, can't you tell I'm desperate. Like so many others they did used to be a decent budget brand though, before china got in on the action.

Disagree,you just need to find where.......
http://www.einhelltools.co.uk/product-list.php?pg1-cid47.html

There are at least another 2 sites to which I can link you to if needed?

It depends I guess but they don't have spares for the drill I currently would require spares for, nor Erbauer by the looks of it which is what I'm now considering.

Initially spares can be available but 2 years down the line when the warranty runs out they probably wont be, for instance, the lack of chainsaw spares under parkside.

I'll take the links to the other sites you recommend though

 

[PTvor]

Disagree,you just need to find where.......
http://www.einhelltools.co.uk/product-list.php?pg1-cid47.html

There are at least another 2 sites to which I can link you to if needed?

OK then, patchy spares support. Lots of exploded diagrams, only a few listed spares on there and often things like sanding belts and diamond discs, which are consumables.

Go to somewhere like Miles and look up something like a Makita jigsaw, and they have full spares support and they've even got some spares for really old items. You can get spares for Stihl equipment made 20 years ago. I guess part of it is that a 20 year old Stihl chainsaw is worth spending money to fix, but a 5 year old B&Q cheapie just isn't.

As for that Hitachi drill, I've no doubt it's a good drill but I'd wonder whether 850rpm was fast enough for wire brushing.

 

[grim_d]

As for that Hitachi drill, I've no doubt it's a good drill but I'd wonder whether 850rpm was fast enough for wire brushing.

I hadn't noticed that. That's pretty poor IMO.

currently have my eye on this, http://www.screwfix.com/p/erbauer-erb1127-1080w-percussion-drill/44869 , I know it's jumping in the same old boat but it does still seem to be the way to go and if it does have a 2 year warranty then maybe the total lack of spares can be overlooked.

Why must everything be so complicated!

 

[PTvor]

I hadn't noticed that. That's pretty poor IMO.

I'd guess that if you want a drill for drilling holes in wood and steel, that drill's excellent and would take years of heavy use. You'd be buying it with a particular limited purpose in mind though.

It doesn't have a two speed gear box, hammer action etc.

There are also little drills intended for woodworkers, only about 400W and quite dear, not much of a buy for most people who want a drill, but probably the business in a joinery shop.

I've seen a couple of £25 1000W drills fail after a few hours use refurbishing a house. In one case the bearings were worn out and in another case the brushes wore out in no time. He'd have been better off feeling the pain and putting £50 towards a good drill.

I think with all power tools it's a question of the running hours you are going to put on them and the amount you are prepared to pay. If you want something good for industrial use, it's expensive.

How about the Wickes own brand drills?