Need recommendations for a new drill

Kashkai

My trusty Bosch hammer action drill bit the dust this morning after 15 years of service so it doesn't owe me a thing I suppose.

Now before I run off to spend the hard earned, can someone recommend a good drill for a better than average DIYer like me. While I don't want to spend a fortune as it will be for DIY projects only, I want something that is powerful enough to tackle all likely jobs in and around the house and of course is reliable.

My cousin who was in the building trade, says he'd only use DeWalt drills as they are the best but they seem very pricey. I never had a battery powered drill before and while the thoughts of not having to run an extension cable when drilling round the house is appealing, would a battery powered drill be as powerful as a mains one??

I have a few jobs lined up around the house that need doing to keep herself happy so I need to get a new drill fairly sharpish.

So once again, can anyone recommend a good, powerful and reliable drill (cordless or otherwise).

time lord

Prosperous Dave wrote: »

My trusty Bosch hammer action drill bit the dust this morning after 15 years of service so it doesn't owe me a thing I suppose.

Now before I run off to spend the hard earned, can someone recommend a good drill for a better than average DIYer like me. While I don't want to spend a fortune as it will be for DIY projects only, I want something that is powerful enough to tackle all likely jobs in and around the house and of course is reliable.

My cousin who was in the building trade, says he'd only use DeWalt drills as they are the best but they seem very pricey. I never had a battery powered drill before and while the thoughts of not having to run an extension cable when drilling round the house is appealing, would a battery powered drill be as powerful as a mains one??

I have a few jobs lined up around the house that need doing to keep herself happy so I need to get a new drill fairly sharpish.

So once again, can anyone recommend a good, powerful and reliable drill (cordless or otherwise).

Keep it easy and buy a known brand (eg makita) say in b&q type store with all the features you want. If its for your own diy a mains drill for hammer action is my suggestion. Cheaper to buy and as it may not be used for a week or two it is always ready to work.

slavetothegrind

Hi Dave,

A good battery powered sds is every bit as good as a mains powered drill.
I have a Hilti TE6a, it will drill 16mm holes in mass concrete no bother.
At €800 probably too much for DIY:(

Bosch have a 24v sds battery powered drill at around the 450 mark i think?

But if you are going for only occasional use i have to admit that the cheap and cheerful B&Q or Draper 850w sds drill is excellent value. I have had one and i got my €60 worth out of it in spades before i killed it.
It is also capable of use as a a chisel which can be very handy for the odd chase ( though i hope you are over those problems)

If you are spending a few bob try newbridge hire, and remember to haggle!

demanufactured

Go with what you know....a bosch hammer action drill , i have one and it has gone trough mass concrete and thick steel no problem , 70 euro in b&q

jack of all

If it were me I'd buy a nice Makita 12 or 14 volt cordless drill/ driver from Axminster (probably around €120) and a green Bosch hammer drill for around €80 in your local hardware/ DIY store. If you have the money buy a nice SDS rotary hammer drill with chisel function instead (Bosch or Makita) from Axminster for under €150 or so. I've no particular affinity with Axminster other than I find their power tools very competetively priced. I wouldn't buy a cheap cordless drill- you might only get 1 battery and at that it won't have the lifespan of a proper trade tool. A good SDS drill is an investment and will last many years if looked after.

k123456

Wurth do Bosch and makita, they often have promotions on

Kashkai

Are there any particular advantages in buying an SDS drill over a conventional drill apart from the quick change chuck? I was looking at a few in B & Q and the Bosch corded drills have a couple of SDS models for €140 and upwards. I don't know if I would need the chisel function (at least I hope not but if you knew the history of my house, you wouldn't be sure either :mad:).

I'm dubious about buying cheap or no-name drills as I feel they will be next to useless and will not last any length of time thats why I'd be prepared to spend around the €150 mark.

I'm still unsure of the cordless drills even though I have a Bosch cordless screwdriver that I took out to use yesterday for the first time in months (and hasn't been charged at all in that time) and it worked perfectly for about an hours worth of drilling screws while I was putting down a new plywood floor in my shed so this lithium ion battery didn't lose its charge which is a plus.

So to decide:
Makita, Bosch, De Walt
cordless or no?
and where to buy

I plan on doing a deck this summer (if we have one) so a powerful drill driver (that also has hammer action) would be required.

voxpop

I went for a Worx corded drill - goes through concrete like butter. I then got a decent (and light) 18v cordless drill. The cordless is used for most stuff around the house - with the Worx only brought out for the big jobs.

Both together cost less that some of those all-in-one massive cordless drills

CJhaughey

Have a look at tooled-up.com, they have some of the best prices I have seen.

Darth Maul

Prosperous Dave wrote: »

Are there any particular advantages in buying an SDS drill over a conventional drill apart from the quick change chuck? I was looking at a few in B & Q and the Bosch corded drills have a couple of SDS models for €140 and upwards. I don't know if I would need the chisel function (at least I hope not but if you knew the history of my house, you wouldn't be sure either :mad:).

SDS drills deliver alot more powerful hammer action than a hammer drill with a conventional chuck, The hammer actually hits the top of the bit.

I would go for a good cordless drill/driver and the cheap less than €50 sds drills that you can use and abuse, they more than payback for themselves. I always have one of the cheap one for jobs that I wouldn't like to use my cordless Makita sds such as chiseling or when the batteries die mid job,

http://www.diyfaq.org.uk/powertools/sds.htm

JohnButler

check out parfix.ie

Carlow52

Prosperous Dave wrote: »

Are there any particular advantages in buying an SDS drill over a conventional drill apart from the quick change chuck? I was looking at a few in B & Q and the Bosch corded drills have a couple of SDS models for €140 and upwards. I don't know if I would need the chisel function (at least I hope not but if you knew the history of my house, you wouldn't be sure either :mad:).

I'm dubious about buying cheap or no-name drills as I feel they will be next to useless and will not last any length of time thats why I'd be prepared to spend around the €150 mark.

I'm still unsure of the cordless drills even though I have a Bosch cordless screwdriver that I took out to use yesterday for the first time in months (and hasn't been charged at all in that time) and it worked perfectly for about an hours worth of drilling screws while I was putting down a new plywood floor in my shed so this lithium ion battery didn't lose its charge which is a plus.

So to decide:
Makita, Bosch, De Walt
cordless or no?
and where to buy

I plan on doing a deck this summer (if we have one) so a powerful drill driver (that also has hammer action) would be required.

PD: SDS is the only way to go for drilling masonry: no question about that.

What u can get is an SDS chuck that will then allow normal timber and steel bits but no hammer action.

If buying a branded product such as Makita or DeWalt only do so from a recognized store as there is loads of c/feit DeW and M around

Ps dont bin the bosch yet: have u considered a repair?

Kashkai

I think my trusty 15 year old Bosch is well and truly dead as it went up in a massive plume of acrid smoke. I was trying to drill a 32mm hole through a wall for a waste pipe when it went. It then only cost me €15 to hire a large kango hammer that did the job in 30 seconds and thus I could have saved the Bosch's life :rolleyes: The kango was an SDS drill and it did indeed punch through the wall in no time whatsoever. As all the walls in my house are block built, I suppose I could use such a function (it was so much easier drilling holes in my last house with plasterboard everywhere).