Cordless drill recommendations

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1687 posts

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#2308277 30-Aug-2019 09:57

I love Makita, but IMO for the home handyman it's possibly a little expensive/unnecessary.

If I was buying 18v tools again, i would go Ryobi1+. Good enough for home use, good price, and a massive range of tools.

but using something like a Makita DHP481 is just a lovely experience. 😅 I know a few builders who went Milwaukee and would change to Makita if they had their time again.

CokemonZ

1051 posts

Uber Geek

#2308301 30-Aug-2019 10:37

Yeah - I've gotten locked into the Ryobi One+ tools.

They are solid enough handyman tools. The brushless tools seem to be a decent step up in both performance and price.

I particularly like all the gardening stuff you can get as well using the same batteries - hedge trimmer and weed whacker are decent enough.

Really, nowadays it's about the ecosystem rather than the individual tool.

CokemonZ

1051 posts

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#2308306 30-Aug-2019 10:40

Also - be careful with the kitsets. All brands are guilty of doing a cheap set of tools which go in the kitset, rather than the individual tools.

Check out this guy calls out a dewalt set: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMW4RIRanC8

dt

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#2308383 30-Aug-2019 11:27

CokemonZ:

Also - be careful with the kitsets. All brands are guilty of doing a cheap set of tools which go in the kitset, rather than the individual tools.

Check out this guy calls out a dewalt set: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMW4RIRanC8

Yeah good point, take note of the models in the kit and do a little research first.

I was gutted when I bought my kit when I saw a special come up weeks later where I could have got more gear for a cheaper price but after I looked into it, the drills that came in mine turned out to be superior models.

One thing I like about the dewalt battery charger as well is that it charges my 5.0mah batteries up bloody quick

RickW

298 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2308392 30-Aug-2019 11:57

We have a combo of 18v tools (drills, impact drivers, impact wrenches, grinders, recipro saws, chainsaws, hammer drills and shears) from makita, dewalt and Milwaukee and find makita to be the best in terms of performance, longevity, range of tools and battery charge time. i think Milwaukee has just launched their version of a quick charger that’s pretty close to makitas but I’m not sure if it’s out here and it will be an extra purchase where makitas fast charger is standard.

I have personally dropped a makita impact driver, I’m pretty sure it was the 154z from over 12m onto concrete and was still fine and in use. Our tools have a hard life. They are used daily and are used in all kinda of weather conditions including rain and we average 4 years for a battery and 5-6 for a drill.

Having said that, I’d say that the above brands would be a little overkill for a home user tho and something like the ryobi 18v stuff from Bunnings would be my pick if you are after something for home use.

Lias

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#2308434 30-Aug-2019 12:49

Just to piggyback on this wealth of drill related knowledge.

I use my corded drill maybe once a month.. I'm probably the definition of light user.. I'd like a cordless for convenience but can't help but feeling that anything cheap won't have battery longevity and anything pricier just doesn't stack up with my low usage. Anyone got any recommendations for something that's going to have a battery that lasts 5-10 years of being used 5 minutes every few weeks and doesn't break the bank?

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SirHumphreyAppleby

2847 posts

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#2308437 30-Aug-2019 12:57

Lias:

Just to piggyback on this wealth of drill related knowledge.

I use my corded drill maybe once a month.. I'm probably the definition of light user.. I'd like a cordless for convenience but can't help but feeling that anything cheap won't have battery longevity and anything pricier just doesn't stack up with my low usage. Anyone got any recommendations for something that's going to have a battery that lasts 5-10 years of being used 5 minutes every few weeks and doesn't break the bank?

I don't think you could go too wrong with a cheap Ozito. They offer a 5 year warranty, and if you need an impact driver (which I use a lot more than the drill), they have promotional kit on sale at the moment for $129 that comes with both. Only one 3Ah battery though, and fast charger. I picked up one myself this morning even though I already have the impact driver. It's only $30 more than the drill kit I was going to buy anyway.

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kotuku4

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#2308442 30-Aug-2019 13:08

Ryobi Brushless drill driver with 5ah and 2.5ah batteries and charger has been great for three years or more.

Added circular saw, brushless chainsaw, brushless line trimer, air inflator (drill style). I will get more tools in time.

Used drill driver and saw of recent decking job, no issues except could have used another 5ah battery.

May get some batteries from Aliexpress in future, but original ones are fine for now.

shrub

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#2308491 30-Aug-2019 15:53

AEG Brushless 5 trade year warranty at bunnings ya cant go wrong.

richms

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#2308555 30-Aug-2019 17:03

The non bottom end ryobis are great drills, and have the advantage that the ryobi packs are protected. many other brands have no protection in the pack like black and decker, and if you leave a battery on one of their "smart" drills then it can overdischarge it because the standby load on those drills is a few 100 microamps, so a flat pack on them can quickly go under voltage and then they refuse to charge.

Also all tools I have had have not done a balance charge, just the whole pack with a per cell protection resulting in the end of charge. So things go out of balance over time and then the pack has a stupidly short runtime even tho the cells are good, just unbalanced. Fixed a couple of my ryobi packs just charging each cell up to 4.2v on its own rather than use the ryobi charger.

Richard rich.ms

raytaylor

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#2308557 30-Aug-2019 17:08

Brunzy:

Unfortunately we are totally ripped off here , the pic above is an example what you can get in the US, I drool every time I going to Home Depot -;)

Parallel imports available on trademe

Ray Taylor

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epr

260 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2308562 30-Aug-2019 17:29

shrub:
AEG Brushless 5 trade year warranty at bunnings ya cant go wrong.

Yes a 5 year trade warranty means they can live a pretty hard life and get repaired/replaced if they fail with little problem.

Stu1

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#2308568 30-Aug-2019 17:42

Lias:
Just to piggyback on this wealth of drill related knowledge.

I use my corded drill maybe once a month.. I'm probably the definition of light user.. I'd like a cordless for convenience but can't help but feeling that anything cheap won't have battery longevity and anything pricier just doesn't stack up with my low usage. Anyone got any recommendations for something that's going to have a battery that lasts 5-10 years of being used 5 minutes every few weeks and doesn't break the bank?

After years of buying crap drills I brought a Makita 6 years Soo far both battery packs work and good charge perfect for around home and house renos. Would buy the same again if it ever breaks

insane

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#2308666 30-Aug-2019 23:37

Lias:

Just to piggyback on this wealth of drill related knowledge.

I use my corded drill maybe once a month.. I'm probably the definition of light user.. I'd like a cordless for convenience but can't help but feeling that anything cheap won't have battery longevity and anything pricier just doesn't stack up with my low usage. Anyone got any recommendations for something that's going to have a battery that lasts 5-10 years of being used 5 minutes every few weeks and doesn't break the bank?

Lithium-ion batteries don't like being left fully charged, so as long as you keep some juice in them they'll last a long long time, longer than NiMh from what I've experienced so far. I'd only use mine a few times a month now and I've forgotten when I last charged them - probably months ago. Personally I've found 3AH batteries to be perfect for the drill and driver, not too heavy and lasts long enough. If you're going to run a ripsaw, then get one HUGE battery as I'm amazed at how much juice one uses.

Brunzy

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#2308676 31-Aug-2019 03:39

raytaylor:
Brunzy:

Unfortunately we are totally ripped off here , the pic above is an example what you can get in the US, I drool every time I going to Home Depot -;)

Parallel imports available on trademe

I know all about iTools and other sites, I still don’t think they compare.
NZD $899 for a drill & impact driver,
equivalent in HDepot USD $179.
The issue here is apart from the weight , it’s getting the batteries back. US post won’t accept them.

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