Absolute Best Electric Drill

Flute Maker

New User
Mike
I am looking for the best drill I can get… In the past few years I have had 3 to die on me way before they had been used much at all..These didn’t die from overuse….They had been used very little!!!!

Bearings or the switch has been the case on them.

I want something I don’t have to work on…But want something to work with….Let me know what you have had good experiences with.

Thanks a bunch!!!!
 
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Mike Davis

Mike
Corporate Member
I’ve had very good performance from Bosch, but I have to say the ‘very best’ would possible be Festool even though I would never own one due to the extreme cost of the tool, the accessories, and my belief that you should be able to easily replace any tool you own.
 

FredP

Fred
Corporate Member
I've never had a corded millwalkee die from use. Lost, stolen,run over but not from use. Not sure if the new ones are still good.
 

Flute Maker

New User
Mike
I've never had a corded millwalkee die from use. Lost, stolen,run over but not from use. Not sure if the new ones are still good.
My Milwaukee cordless one needs a chuck….just need to get a chuck
It didn’t die from use.

My DeWalt corded one needs a switch probably

I am a flutemaker and woodturner. I’m just drilling holes in a flute but sometimes have other projects requiring a hole in metal but nothing real holey so to speak!

Then last night I was using a practically unused corded blue drill sold by a wood Turner company and it sounds like something is going on with the chuck….
 
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Warren

Warren
Corporate Member
1/2" Bosh hammer drill. Also the old B&D Professional (30 years and still going)
 

Wilsoncb

Williemakeit
Corporate Member
I have a Milwaukee corded and cordless, both have had zero problems. I believe the cordless one is the higher end version Fuel. (Look for an all metal chuck). The corded is over 40 years old, still going strong. I’ve also used a Makita cordless and found it to be on par with the Milwaukee, perhaps even a bit smoother.
 

Oka

Casey
Corporate Member
My longest lasting drill I own is a Milwaukee 1/2 variable speed drill I bought in 1972

(it was made in 1964-5). Still runs. The cordless I prefer are the DeWalt as I still have all the drills from 2012-13 I bought back then, they still work and I still have a couple of battery packs that still hold a charge from the same era.

If you want a slower more controlled cordless get the Milwaukee 12v

On all drills the chuck are removable you can just swap out any for keyless or other.
 
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Melinapex

Mark
Corporate Member
Makita has been good to me for decades. Just recently upgraded from 12v nicad that I had for 20 years to the brushless li-ion. I also have a corded drill and circ saw that are over 30 years old and are as good as they were when new….
 

Graywolf

Board of Directors, President
Richard
Staff member
Corporate Member
Please bear in mind that I do cabinet installations 50 weeks out of the year. Over the past 15 years I have used Dewalt cordless 20v drills. I carry 4 drills all dedicated for purpose. The 2 at the heart of things are cordless drill/drivers. One for drilling pilot holes, one for driving screws. The other two are for hole saws to drill for plumbing/wiring. One out of the four is twenty years old, the other three are 15. I haven’t had any issues other than battery replacement.
 

charlessenf

(;harles
Senior User
I am looking for the best drill I can get… In the past few years I have had 3 to die on me way before they had been used much at all. Bearings or the switch has been the case on them.
Unfortunately, few of us have owned several drills simultaneously. My tool boxes, for instance contain maybe a dozen different units acquired over five decades or so. I've bought an HFT Hammer Drill for a project (still have it) and currently rely upon Craftsman C-3 compatible tools (recently turning to an adapter for the 20VDC Batteries) as well as a Metabo Drill Driver and an a 1/4" Impact driver (Such a deal! Closeout. Each came with two batteries and a charger. $25 each). I've a drywall screwdriver that must be thirty years old. A couple (maybe three) AC Powered Craftsmen drills. I can't recall a specific failure, though I know one of the AC powered drills, having languished abandoned at the bottom of one toolbox was a bit cranky and in need of lubrication the last time I put it to use.

Quality control varies somewhat. And, since nothing nor no one is perfect and even the machines we make to make stuff inherit the condition, we have to expect a tale of how the absolute best drill ever manufactured "failed on me two days after the warranty expired." As with the (defunct magazine) "That's life."

As so many things available to us are actually manufactured in the same plants with identical parts we can't see and cosmetic bits and pieces and branding we can, by the lowest cost labor on earth in order to provide a return on investment sufficient to justify some dumb guy's earning millions while our 'brand name' tools fail apace.

What is it you are doing with your drills? Manufacturing something very holey? And lots of 'em? I d recall when I was manufacturing my Bulletproof Locksafes that I replaced a spindle bearing on my Made in China 5/8" Bench Drill Press (I was cutting a 1.25", a three inch and four 3/8" holes in each steel plate). I carried that drill from place to place, finally selling it to a neighbor last year since it was sitting in a corner taking up space and too heavy for me to lift up onto the heavy steel table I'd built for it.

"Bearings or switch" Well, I've replaced a trigger switch on a tool, and the electric cords (Hint, you can purchase an 'extension cord' as much as four times the length of the cord the drill (or similar tool) came with for about the same money or less than the OEM replacements). You cut it to desired length and wind up with a nice cord with a molded plug and a length of extension cord that only wants a female end (flea market, Restore or Harbor Freight tools sale). It seems to me that one comfortable with electric drills is most likely able to R&R a switch or a bearing. Likely there's a YouTube or a neighbor to help. I've never tried to order a bearing for a (hand held) drill, but I have seen folks who take these drills apart to make something else with them and the bearings looked to be accessible. Did you ever try finding replacement parts?

Another approach that I've employed successfully over the years is the well crafted complaint. For all their ills, these large corporations (with the notable exception of HFT) appear to have a dedicate customer service arm in the habit of pacifying irate, or potentially irate, recipients of the QC failures that made it to the retail outlets that stock their products. From Kodak, Sears, Lowes, Home Depot, KFC, Dunkin Donuts, DeWalt, Betty Crocker, you name it, I've gotten cameras, film, cabinet doors, chain saws, coupons, chicken and cake mix along with sincere apologies. From the Kitchen Faucet folks, I've gotten new ceramic valves and one from the shower folks as well - love that lifetime guaranty!

Good luck!
 

tvrgeek

Scott
Corporate Member
I have a 1/2 corded Makita, 40 years old. It will pick you up and turn you around the bit.
OK, for 12V, I am very happy with my Milwaukee. For 18 volt, ( and 20V, actually the same) I go Makita. Bosch is supposed to be good, but I was not happy with the right-angle one I had. Maybe DeWalt, but I have hated every one I have had. All the chucks on "prosumer" drills stink. Once upon a time, Ridgid stood behind their warrantee but not it is a joke as they make you not be able to use it. Someone may chime in with Festool. No comment.

Stay away from the handyman, Roybi, Heart, B&D, Porter Cable, Kobalt, Craftsman, etc. Not tools to trust your business on.

Do be aware than not only are there both good and bad aftermarket batteries, but now we have just plain fakes so be careful where you buy.

Do realize there are only a couple actual manufacturers. They OEM to all the brands. How good depends on what the brand pays for. Makita actually makes tools. I think Bosch and Hilti do.
 

mpeele

michael
User
I have 4 working Bosch cordless drills now. One is about 12 years old and the other 3 are 6 years old. Three are drills and one is a hammer driver for 1/2" sockets and 1/4" hex bits.

My original Bosch drill had NiCad batteries. I replaced the batteries several times (about every 7 or 8 years) but if I had a working battery I would still be using it today. It's about 30 years old.

Today I would consider a Ryobi because I have several of the 18V batteries.

I will never be without a hammer driver now but if I could only have one drill it would be a Festool.

I think I paid about $100 for each of the Bosch drills and driver. I really like them because the heads are small (probably because they are brushless) and their balance is perfect for my hand. I tried most of the other brands but the Bosch felt best to me.
 

Raymond

Raymond
Staff member
Corporate Member
I have had Craftsman and Bosch. The Craftsman died after only a couple of years and I then bought a Bosch 1/2 inch corded drill/hammer - it's still working after 15 years. I also have a Bosch 18V and it is still going strong after 8 years.
 

peltona

New User
Andrew
I am looking for the best drill I can get… In the past few years I have had 3 to die on me way before they had been used much at all..These didn’t die from overuse….They had been used very little!!!!

Bearings or the switch has been the case on them.

I want something I don’t have to work on…But want something to work with….Let me know what you have had good experiences with.

Thanks a bunch!!!!
As you probably already know, no one drill does everything well. Brand advise I'm seeing from others I agree with (you tend to get what you pay for). Small tasks around my shop, I tend to grab my Dewalt 12V kit. Plenty of power for drilling small holes in wood and driving smaller screws. If I'm drilling larger holes or driving larger screws I go with my Dewalt 20V tools. Milwakee and Bosch are also great tools, but one charger charges both my 12v and 20V Dewalt batteries and once you buy in to a battery system, the bare tools seem reasonable enough to continue expanding. For drilling holes, having the right bits matched with right feeds and speeds is way underrated. Variable speed trigger is a must IMHO. Smoke is usually the life leaving the bit (or tool).
 

tvrgeek

Scott
Corporate Member
You did not mention if you were looking corded or battery, what size and what use. For bearings to fail, even on a Black & Decker seems very odd if used as a drill.
 

ashmatash

Ash
Senior User
I've had my lithium Makita drill and driver for more than 15 years. Wouldn't part with them...unless it was a couple of free Milwaukee drills
 

Canuck

Wayne
Corporate Member
+1 for the white Makita 18V lithium ion drill and impact driver. Not once of trouble over 12 years of use. I also swear by my Skill corded variable speed/hammer drill purchased in 1981 and still runs strong!!! Great for drilling holes in concrete or brick too.

Wayne
 

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