Cordless Lithium Drill

Pat , I did a review on this set that I am now using.
I still like it a lot.

http://lumberjocks.com/reviews/product/541

-- A mind, like a home, is furnished by its owner

I have the Makita LCT200W 18V Lithium-ion drill and impact driver kit. The kit sells for about $250 (Home Depot, Amazon, etc.) and comes with the 1/2” Drill, Impact Driver, two 1.5 AH batteries, charger and padded case. You can get the larger 3.0 AH batteries. I got a couple extra of the larger batteries for my shop, but I tend to use the smaller batteries. The tool is light, compact and ergonomically balanced. It also has an LED light that lights where you are drilling or driving. This is very helpful when drilling or screwing in tight places, like installing drawer slides in a cabinet. I love these drills. They have plenty of power, torque and the batteries last a long time. They get great reviews. I think that Fine Woodworking or Fine Homebuilding rated them the best choice.

I bought the Makita shown here http://www.homedepot.com/Tools-Hardware-Power-Tools-Drills/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1xr5Zaqxh/R-100588408/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

I know it’s a bit more than you want to spend but I love mine and it’s light weight. The best thing is the battery. Makita batteries are manufactured for makita by Sony, Panisonic makes their own but are fairly expensive but are the top of the line. All other cordless drills manufacturers batteries have their batteries made by the lowest bidder. This is not to say that they aren’t good drills but the biggest weakness in cordless tools are the batteries. This is the second Makita I’ve owned, the first is 11 years old with fairly heavy usage but the batteries are at the end of their life.

-- Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines! Mike D.

I bought the Hitachi kit with drill and impact driver. I bought them at Lowes. They are great.

The review is here

I still love them. Light weight for a 18 Volt and easy to use. I’ve busted about 3 screw tips with the impact driver. The screw inserts were not made for impacting I guess.

I buried 4” screws with the impact.

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

I just bought a Makita BDF452HW 18V Lithium Drill from Tools-Plus. It was $189 but you got an extra battery besides the two that came with the drill. This is my second Makita drill and I think they are one of the best drills on the market. I also have some smaller Bosch drills that I like real well. Thanks for asking.

God Bless
tom

-- Mc Bridge Cabinets, Iowa

I got the makita compact 18v drill/impact set when it first came out. Wonderful tool. Light, super powerful, quick recharge, and reliable. Pricey though. I bought it and didn’t look back. Very happy with it and it’s been a couple years now at least.

-- Laziness - Apathy = Efficiency

I bought the Milwaukee 12V Lith-Ion Driver to use at work (I’m a commercial HVAC/R Technician). I broke 2 of them. At about the same time the 12V Impact Driver came out and I tried that. Could not be happier. Tons of torque and very light weight. Battery life is excellent as is recharge time.

Thanks everyone, I’ve looked at all of these on line but it’s great to get real world oppinions, I LOVE THIS SITE. Not sure what I’m getting but I’ll let everyone know when it happens.

-- Pat>>> A Man Don't Learn a Lesson Unless It Costs Him Blood or Money!!!!!

Every contractor I have ever worked for had either Makita, Dewalt, Hitachi, or Ridgid. Now which is better is up to you but each has their own ups and downs.

Thanks again to everyone that responded. I got the Makita LCT200W 18-Volt Compact Lithium-Ion Cordless 2-Piece Combo Kit. http://www.cpomakita.com/combo_kits/18_volt_combo_kits/lct200w.html

-- Pat>>> A Man Don't Learn a Lesson Unless It Costs Him Blood or Money!!!!!

Good choice! You’ll be happy with it!

-- Scott, South Carolina