14.4V Cordless Drills

[Rutabagared]

I need to replace my cordless drill.  I would like to keep the cost below $150.  Any advice on a good kit would be appreciated.  Thanks.

Joe

 

[Holzhacker]

Hate Dewalt, big, heavy, shit batteries
Ridgid, heavy and awkward
Bosch, love'em batteries not so great
Makita, not a big fan in the past ... checked them out last week and they almost beat out a T15. I think Makita is back in the game
Ryobi, great cheap tool, they really last no matter how hard I beat them
Panasonic, great feel and ergos for me, not cheap though
Milwaukee and PC, just don't like'em anymore, feel cheap and crappy
Hope that helps Joe
Markus

 

[butzla]

I was on the same boat as you.  I wanted a good drill but didn't want to spend the serious coin on a Festool.  I did a lot of research and went with what Fine Woodworking's Tool Guide recommended, the Panasonic 15.6v NiMH Drill.  It's little pricier than you want to spend, but well worth it.  It's light, has great battery life and plenty of power.  
My only complaint is the lack of bit storage.  I added this item and it solved the problem.

 

[Jesse Cloud]

Joe,
If your old drill works for you, except for bad batteries, they can be rebuilt cheaper than buying a new drill...  If you are interested, PM me and I'll send you info on the guy I use.

The other advice, is to wait a while if you can.  Cordless drills are popular Christmas gifts and some good sales will be coming in a few weeks.

As far as brands go, besides Festool, I also have Bosch and Makita.  I like them all, just too darn many chargers in the shop.

Jess

 

[tbellemare]

Joe:

Calling the manufacturer some times works, though not always.

Tom

 

[Greg_R]

Probably late with this post  [embarassed]

Look at refurb'd drills.  These are often bought, used for a day, and then returned to the store.  The company then completely goes over the drill and fixes any issues and then sells it for ~60%-70% of the 'new' price.

 

[kev carpenter]

i would use a 12 volt dewalt and a corded gun if on a budget but i liked the 18v ryobi impact but only good for rough stuff and the standard ryobi is to long like a machine gun

sorry to say but the only guns realy any good are the t-12 15 and panasonc
im on my 5th cordless in 8 months and the latest is the t-15 but thats stronger than a 18v so the t-12 will be about an 18v so if you strech your budget go for it  remember 3 year warentee any dewalt etc want last 3 years due to batteries after a year my 2 batteries went up in smoke on the same dat after about 13 months