Cordless Drills

[Dr.Al]

Save yourself a load of aggro and just buy some proper tools:

https://www.powertoolworld.co.uk/ma...MIjefJh-T76AIV2YBQBh0NuAdMEAQYAiABEgIkDfD_BwE

Makita 5ah batteries hit that perfect price-to-performance ratio. My brother and I have 10 between us, for various tools.

The DHP458 is a solid performer as well, a true workman's drill, not the best in the world but I guarantee it will do everything you want.

Yeah, having spent a while last night reading lots of reviews on line and looking at the ranges of tools, I think I'll probably go for one of the combi kits: either Makita or Dewalt (just because Milwaukee doesn't seem to have as good a range readily available in the UK and I needed *some* reason to choose a brand!). I must admit I'm rather impressed with the sheer range of stuff Makita has, although how much of it I'm ever likely to buy is debatable.

Too much choice!

 

[armalites]

Annoying that so many try to profit from reselling, but nice that I could buy them year round... I didnt know there was a chainsaw! www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=%28lidl%2Cparkside%2C20v+team%29+battery&_sacat=0

It's only annoying if you buy them, a massive proportion of business profits by reselling as that's what their business is all about.

If someone goes into Lidl/Aldi and buys a load of stuff then sits on it for a few months then fair play to them. Supply and demand, if something isn't comonly available then you have to pay more.

 

[Kram]

Often means there is none in store for anyone actually wanting them, and no warranty if you do.

 

[Munkul]

Supply and demand... obviously there's a demand for lidl tools from resellers, therefore they'll continue to buy out stock when they can.

If you really don't like it, then buy something else... parkside gear is still cheap and nasty!

 

[minimutly]

This thread should be titled "cordless batteries and chargers" since they are mostly the weakest link.

 

[Feet 'n Inches]

I would buy into a brand which suits your needs.

Exactly what I've done. As light user, I keep an aging Bosch 18v drill/driver down in my workshop (has a spare battery). The battery life doesn't seem to have worsened appreciably over the years. I also have a Parkside 18v drill/driver in the house which is ideal for the amount of work I do; the battery life is excellent.

 

[Fraserb]

I really cant fault my ryobi drills, or any of it to be fair. Have 2 drills, grinder, circular saw, impact driver, sander, hedge cutter and lawn mower, along with 7 batteries and 3 chargers. One of the drills I bought with 2 batteries to get me started, the other drill came in a kit along with the grinder, impact and saw. The drill from the kit is noticeably lighter and doesnt have the power of the other one but there's nothing actually wrong with it. The impact driver takes some serious abuse when putting tek screws in and seems to be holding up well after a few years use.

 

[SierraV6]

What I might do is buy a decent brand 5 Ah cordless drill and then experiment with converting the old Ryobi one into a corded drill (or just chuck it on the freebies board, who knows?!)

Has anyone got recommendations for decent brands and how they compare? I don't mind spending a bit of money as it's a tool I'll use a lot, but a lot of reviews go along the lines of "the brand I bought into are the best" rather than a good comparison. Reviews online are very very variable in quality and I'd be more open to advice from the esteemed members of this forum!

I have one of these, I only bought it because the GF has a 4ah battery and charger that I requisition as required (she has a Makita hedge trimmer incase you’re wondering!):

https://www.tools4trade.co.uk/makit...MIv8zH24z-6AIVm-vtCh28XQidEAQYAyABEgK2ivD_BwE

It’s a good drill, not spendy but feels solid and I’ve had no issues with it. The hammer function is decent too.

I also have a Bosch professional one that was ex-display and came in a case with two batteries and a charger for £70. It hasn’t let me down but it isn’t as well made as the Makita, it feels more ‘plasticky’ and the speed switch likes to jam for some reason. To be fair I suspect it was the entry level model at the time but then the Makita is one of their cheapest models as well.

I hope that’s of some use.

 

[Craig-SM]

I’m probably repeating what others have said. I came from the same point as yourself having had Corded tools for proper jobs and for smaller ones cordless Ryobi drill, impact driver and Sawzall. Same experience of batteries being dead and having to charge them for a couple of hours and then the battery wasn’t great.
I needed an impact gun and went the route of Milwaukee brushless 18v and decided to change my drill and impact driver at the same time. I was amazed at the power, compact size, battery life and quickly they charged. The corded tools were replaced with more cordless and don’t regret it. It’s easier to get a tool out, slap a battery in and away you go than getting extensions out and then working around the cord. Most of the tools have increased power over the corded ones they’ve replaced and because they’re lighter and more compact they’re less tiring to use.
I’ve also got some of the Milwaukee 12v tools and they’re very compact and surprisingly powerful, more than the 18v Ryobi ones.

 

[Revs1972]

If you really want a quality cordless with a chuck that won’t slip you really need a Hilti SF 8M - A22. Beast of a drill. As happy to mix concrete in a bucket as it is to drilling holes in thick metal. The chuck self tightens to eliminate slipping.
I’m a Milwaukee fanboy, but IMO they can’t touch Hilti on the drill side ( especially the sds)

Biggest issue I have with some of them is that the drills are getting so powerful and the electric brakes so fierce the inertia of stopping actually loosens the chuck when you take your finger off the trigger quickly.

yeah , you can certainly feel that inertia when it stops.

 

[Wallace]

I picked up my old Ryobi cordless drill yesterday, even without the chuck and battery it's a hefty lump and feels better then the newer one. At the time it was new on the market none of the more expensive drills could match the top speed 0-370/750/2200 RPM, just a shame the speed controller is no longer available as I would still be using it.

@Dr.Al I looked at the current range of Ryobi drills and most have the plastic chuck, only one I could see has a full metal chuck. If you are looking at Makita be careful of the kit bundles, my stepson wanted a Makita saw and I had seen a kit available in Costco so I did a comparison of the saw he wanted and the one in the kit. The kit saw had less features than the one he was looking at and was very basic despite looking identical, a budget version for retail kits.

 

[Kram]

I picked up my old Ryobi cordless drill yesterday, even without the chuck and battery it's a hefty lump and feels better then the newer one. At the time it was new on the market none of the more expensive drills could match the top speed 0-370/750/2200 RPM, just a shame the speed controller is no longer available as I would still be using it.

Sounds like it is worth fixing. If its brushed the cheap replacement controllers work well, I have 4 that I have used on old drills and big motors and lathe motor with 24v lipo packs.

 

[Onoff]

Don't think I'll buy anymore Lidl/Aldi st

I must admit I'm rather impressed with the sheer range of stuff Makita has

They certainly have/did:

https://www.makita.co.nz/products/model/BBY180

 

[Dr.Al]

Well, I've bitten the bullet and ordered a Makita drill & driver kit. I might have also got carried away and ordered a cordless angle grinder while I was on the site.

@Dr.AlIf you are looking at Makita be careful of the kit bundles, my stepson wanted a Makita saw and I had seen a kit available in Costco so I did a comparison of the saw he wanted and the one in the kit. The kit saw had less features than the one he was looking at and was very basic despite looking identical, a budget version for retail kits.

Thanks for the warning. Having read that I checked the kit descriptions very carefully and made sure I ordered one that said it included the specific drill model number I'd been looking at. Hopefully it'll all work out alright. There might be a post on "Today I acquired" soon...

 

[Craig-SM]

You’ll be in for a pleasant surprise in how cordless tools and their batteries have progressed. I’m sure you’ve saved some jobs to try them out with.

 

[Dr.Al]

You’ll be in for a pleasant surprise in how cordless tools and their batteries have progressed. I’m sure you’ve saved some jobs to try them out with.

I've saved LOADS of jobs and yes, sure, I did it so I could try out the new tools. Yes, definitely.

 

[chris pruteanu]

I have a milwaukee m28 cordless drill and also their m18 brushless cordless drill. The m28 has been upgraded to 28v 5Ah batteries and it does work better than the m18 brushless but it doesn't have the same torque as the newer gear. I Have 9 Ah batteries on the 18v line up and it's the best setup although their batteries cases are somewhat rubbish and snap if dropped from anything more than a couple of cm. Makita does some quality gear, their 5Ah batteries are the longest lasting in the business but they fail if left for too long- one cell keeps getting drained by the electronic balancing board and the smart charger dooms it as broken never to be charged again.
All in all you will be pleased with newer cordless/brushless gear, certainly packs a punch!

 

[Ashley Burton]

Let my brother use my drill & grinder yesterday. He seemed surprised on how good they were, Best keep my eye on them before they go walkabout

 

[mdr]

Ryobi drills feel cheap. The impact drivers are too bulky for tighter spots. The cordless angle grinder can manage a flap disc only. The cordless reciprocating saw was reasonable when I was pruning a tree high up .

The only brilliant thing I have from Ryobi is this...



Cordless glue gun. Bl**dy amazing. For most glue guns the cord is the master of the gun because the gun doesn't weight anything so the gun is always tipping over or being dragged off the bench by the cord.

Cordless glue guns are a genius idea!

 

[Dogruffracing]

I have two ryobi drills and the batteries are 12 years old and still going strong, the thing I dislike about ryobi is they are to heavy for the size.

I have Milwaukee impact wrenches and cant fault them, if I ever kill the ryobi Milwaukee will be the replacement.