| Review by sry | posted 143 days ago | 302 views | 0 times favorited | 7 comments | ![]() |
- Milwaukee 0299-20 1/2" Magnum Drill
- Brand: Milwaukee | Category: Drill-Drivers

(pic from the Milwaukee tools website)
As I continue my home improvement adventures and transition into woodworking as well, it seems logical to try to share as much info as possible. So this review I guess is my official end to lurking and beginning of contributing to the community.
My motivation for buying this drill was that I burned out my old Dewalt 3/8” drill trying to mix some thinset for tiling. The Dewalt drill was great, but clearly not geared for this kind of work. So its replacement had to be plenty powerful and able to handle mixing mortar, grout, etc. I’m not too worried about driving screws and such, that’s what the cordless tools are for. This is for power. Purchased for $89.99 on sale from the orange big box store, which was the same price as the comparable Dewalts, Ridgids, etc that I looked at. I bought it because it advertised the biggest amperage (8.0) and RPM range (0-800) that I saw.
In use, it’s done everything I’ve asked of it so far, including a 5 gallon bucket full of mortar and drilling a 2 1/2” hole in an old door like it’s balsa. The keyed chuck holds very well, and closes tightly (not that I ever see myself using a super small drill bit in this drill, but still nice to see). For the applications I’m planning for this drill, I like the added holding power of the keyed chuck. The chuck key attaches nicely to the rubber cord, which is handy. I do wish the cord were a bit longer, I think it’s 8’ right now. No case, but as luck would have it my now empty DeWalt case holds this perfectly with plenty of room for the removable handle.
All in all this is a nice powerful drill that’s doing a great job in my tool kit.
-- Steve -- Cleveland area, Ohio
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7 comments so far
GaryK
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8565 posts in 528 days
posted 143 days ago
I’ve had the hammerdrill version for years. It’s a great drill with more than enough power.
-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.
tenontim
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962 posts in 284 days
posted 143 days ago
I have this drill and I’ll agree, it’s a work horse. I had a Milwaukee 3/8” drill for about 15 years and abused it regularly and it was still working when I got this one. These are good tools.
-- Tim -- http://tmuli.com
EdC
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427 posts in 380 days
posted 143 days ago
I bought the same drill 15 years ago for mixing drywall mud when I was building a nursery for our son. I still have it and it still runs fine. It’s a tough drill.
-- Ed Collinge- Edmonds, WA.
toolman
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5 posts in 143 days
posted 143 days ago
We just did a review of the Milwaukee 0302-20. Which is also a 1/2” drill. These Milwaukee drill are awesome. They have a lot of power and still have a good weight.
-- Toolman - http://www.professional-power-tool-guide.com
Wooder
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163 posts in 726 days
posted 141 days ago
You just convinced me. Been gonna pick up a new 1/2 drill. I have a Milwaukee circurlar saw that is solid a tool as I’ve ever seen. So this should be no surprise. Thanks
Jimmy
-- Jimmy
Festool4
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64 posts in 318 days
posted 141 days ago
Like Gary, I have the hammerdrill version – what a monster…
-- Festool4
sry
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30 posts in 148 days
posted 141 days ago
Sounds like I need to come up with a project to justify the hammerdrill version as well :o)
-- Steve -- Cleveland area, Ohio