Recommend a high torque cordless drill/hammer

I would like to buy a high torque, relatively well made cordless drill with high speed and low speed settings. I have a 120V DeWALT drill that I owned for many years, it is a hammer drill with a extra handle, with two speeds, high and low. I would like to, ideally, buy something similar. There are dewalts sold for about $250, which seems to be excessive. On the other end, there are $25 "24v drills" sold on ebay, most likely junk.

Is there something that is good that's in the middle?

thanks

i
Reply to
Ignoramus32065
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Not in my experience. My personal favorite has come to be the Milwaukee

18v Lok-Tor Driver/Drill at about $240. Gobs of power and they just run, and run, and run...
Reply to
Jim Levie

Thanks. I looked at 18V stuff, whereas before I looked at only 24V stuff. I saw a 18V dewalt for $124 on ebay, that's something I could see myself paying. Delivers enough torque. The hammer capacity I do not care for, as much. All metal gearbox, etc.

Do you know if in those higher end drills, I can leave the battery in the charger forever? (like in a smart AA battery charger)

i
Reply to
Ignoramus32065

I use the 18V DeWalt stuff. Don't buy their "hammer drill". And do *not* buy one without a battery! (Those batteries are expensive!)

Grant

Ignoramus32065 wrote:

Reply to
Grant Erwin

I've never had a problem with leaving a battery in a charger for extended periods with my Makita, Porter Cable, or Milwaukee tools.

In terms of quality of construction and lifetime I've been a bit underwhelmed by the DeWalt tools. The price isn't too bad and they look good, but the few that I've had haven't been that well made and didn't last very long. On the other hand the I've got Porter Cable and Milwaukee tools that are over 20 years old and are still going strong (and yes, they get used quite a bit).

The only DeWalt tool I've still got is one of their laminate trimmers. And its bearings went out after a couple of hundred hours of operation. Hopefully the better grade bearings I put in it will last a reasonable amount of time. In contrast the PC trimmer that I also have is still running its original bearings after 15 years and whole lot more than 200 hours of operation.

With respect to tools, you pretty much get what you pay for. A more expensive tool will probably outlast its brethern by a wide margin. And in the end it will prove to be the less expensive option.

Reply to
Jim Levie

Thanks to all, good points about batteries noted!

i
Reply to
Ignoramus32065

Yes I do too, almost 8 hrs a day for over a year I abused my 18 volt hammer drill I and I would not buy a non hammer model and here is why... Although the hammer drill feature is a joke ( and I'm all most sure that it is no better on other brands of cordless hammer drills), it's slow and pathetic. Well I guess it is useful for small holes, like for small tapcons etc... but, for larger holes forget it. However, the hammer drill has a MUCH better keyless chuck on it, than does the non-hammer model. The price difference is only about 15-20 more depending on who you get one from so, get it for the better chuck and if you HAVE to use it to hammer just don't hold you breath while waiting for it to drill:-) Another nice feature of the Dewalt drill is it spins faster than most other model drills, and for my use that made it the only way to go for driving the many thousands of self drilling/tapping metal screws in.

William...

Reply to
William

I like my Bosch. Don't buy the Ryoby from Home Depot. It's for Amateurs. Cheap batteries and the reverse switch broke on my old one. Karl

Reply to
Karl Vorwerk

If it's used you won't know what the condition of the battery is. It might "work fine", but have limited run time on a charge. Bob

Reply to
Bob Engelhardt

I've got a couple of the DeWalt 18 volt tools and have been happy with them. The drill is a non-hammer type but has enough torque to pull it out of my hand if I'm not careful with the larger bits. The batteries seem to work fine with constant charging.

Reply to
Mike Henry

Exactly what I need. Thanks. I need a lot of torque because I will use this drill to start up my electric generator. (a hard starting diesel that needs to be spun up fast to start). Obviously, I will also use this drill for other, more regular, purposes.

Awesome. Thanks.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus29889

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