New Drill for Christmas

15 years ago

I want to replace my hubby's old Makita drill with a newer model/brand due to the poor battery performance.

Is there anything in particular I should look for when buying? Best brand for battery life/weight/number of batteries that come with the unit?

He uses the old one all the time and the batteries only seem to work for a few minutes before giving out. I don't want to replace the batteries at this time due to the age of the drill and the high battery cost.

Thanks for any suggestions.

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Comments (6)

User
15 years ago
newer Makita's in 14.4v do fine. So do Bosch and DeWalt. Milwaukee is also a good choice.

I have used 14.4v DeWalts in a commercial business for five years---also used on Saturdays on HfH houses. The batteries lasted four years in heavy use. I could drive any screw that the folks using 18v or 24v DeWalts could---and the 14.4v is lighter.
bobismyuncle
15 years ago
On "Black Friday", Home Depot is running a $99.99 special on their Ridgid drill. While not a top performer and I'm not a big fan of HD, they have a lifetime service agreement on replacement parts, including batteries.

Here is a link that might be useful: black friday ad
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linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
15 years ago
If you are not a pro and just a weekend warrior, what would be a good model? We have an ancient corded drill but could use a new cordless.
aidan_m
15 years ago
The batteries are always the first thing to go, whether you use it every day or once in a while. If HD really offers lifetime guarantees on the batteries, get the Rigid.
bobismyuncle
15 years ago
WHAT IS COVERED UNDER THE LIFETIME SERVICE AGREEMENT

The Lifetime Service Agreement on RIDGIDÂ® Hand Held Power Tools, Stationary Power Tools and Pneumatic Tools covers all worn parts in properly maintained tools, including normal wear items such as brushes, chucks, motors, switches, gears and even cordless batteries in your qualifying RIDGIDÂ®Brand hand held and stationary power tools; and replacement rings, driver blades and bumpers on RIDGIDÂ® Brand pneumatic tools for the lifetime of the original owner. This Lifetime Service Agreement does not apply to other RIDGIDÂ® Brand products.

Here is a link that might be useful: full agreement
bobismyuncle
15 years ago
I attended a presentation a couple of weeks ago by a battery technician from Batteries Plus, a franchised, independent supplier and rebuilder of batteries. His comment was as vendors tried to reach price points, there was only some much fat to trim from the tools and most of the cost is in the batteries, so they tend to suffer the most from low end tools.