Was thinking of buying B as well. I saw it advertised for $99?

guess i wasnt clear :( yes hammer drills are for drilling concrete, rock (with appropriate bits)

My Milwaukee M12 Hammer drill does double duty (say it 10 time quickly) and can switch between Hammer mode and regular drilling/screwing mode.

90% of homeowners will never use a hammer drill. 80% of statistics are made up on the spot. 60% of the time, it works every time.

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:lawl:

Bump...

Can some of you experienced people recommend me a power drill? I seem to have misplaced my old one.
I figured it would be more easier if I just list what I need it for, and then you guys can recommend me something that fits.

-I just need one to do stuff here and there around the house, DIY projects.
-Probably will use it less than 20x a year.
-Only going to drill through wood, 1" thick at most.
-I'll be working inside my house, so I have no problem with corded if that can cut cost.
-The cheaper the better, I don't need something super fancy.

I'm not sure what role the voltage and amps play... and not sure what is "standard" rpm or torque for power drills.

I need this pretty urgent, and plan to buy one tomorrow night, so thanks in advance for quick responses.

(TL;DR, just read the bolded text. Thanks.)

cheapest corded drill you can find will do that easily for a dirt cheap price $50>

I just did a quick search on Home Depot

RYOBI | RYOBI 3/8 In. VSR Corded Drill | Home Depot Canada
Only $29.99

It's listed as 7.8 lbs though. Seems a bit on the heavy side.

But is this one good??

Yes. More than sufficient for your application. I would, however, go for a cordless drill rather than a corded.

Any corded drill will easily out-power *any* cordless... you never have to worry about pulling it out and finding you forgot to charge the batteries... never have to worry about replacing batteries once they stop taking a charge... go with the corded and just be done with it.

Cambodian Tire has a corded Jobmate (their house "bargain" brand) drill for $20: Jobmate 3.5A Corded Drill/Driver, 3/8-in | Canadian Tire (7.8lbs does sound a bit heavy, the Jobmate one is only 3.3...)

XS Cargo lists a couple corded drills at $20 as well:
Power XT | 5.4 AMP 1/2'' Electric Impact Drill | XT300 | XS Cargo Brand name Close outs- Tools / Hardware | Corded Tools
and
Power XT | 3/8'' Electric Drill | XT170 | XS Cargo Brand name Close outs- Tools / Hardware | Corded Tools

For your needs, I'd suggest the second one of those two - you'll find the keyless chuck more convenient to work with, and you shouldn't need the extra power of the first one.

And there's always Princess Auto... check places like Home Hardware and RONA for deals as well. If you can find a good sale and get a $40 or $50 drill for $20 or $30, go for it - something a little higher-end will definitely last longer.

One other thing: look at picking up a "bit kit" like this: RYOBI | Drilling and Driving Accessory Kit – 60 Bits | Home Depot Canada

http://www.homedepot.ca/wcsstore/Hom..._1_Final_4.jpg

Gives you a basic selection of all the main types of bits you'd use around home: high-speed steel twist bits, spade and auger bits for wood, hole saws, masonry bits (for brick and concrete), and several screwdriver bits and nut drivers (cue Beavis and Butt-head). Doesn't need to be that particular kit; definitely check for something on sale and get a good bargain... but something along those lines that will give you most of what you should need. Here's a couple more, same idea: Jobmate 105-piece Drill Bit Set | Canadian Tire

Mastercraft 61-piece Drill and Drive Accessory Set | Canadian Tire

This one's listed as normally $52, on sale for $21: Mastercraft Drill/Driving Accessory Set, 115-pc | Canadian Tire

I cannot emphasize quality enough.

A while ago, I had bought a cheap hammer drill from CTC...mastercraft brand. I don't do much that requires a hammer drill, but on those rare occasions, its a nice thing to be able to do.

Anyway, I usually just use it as a normal drill.

Well, the other day I was using it to mix mortar for tiling. Now, I freely admit...it was beyond the scope of a normal drill, BUT I had been using an old black and decker for years and it was still good..but the chuck was slipping and the cord was screwed.

I'm mixing away and smoke starts billowing out the back of this thing. I stopped before totally destroying the thing, but its pretty much f'd.

Spend the extra money and buy something with balls.

Hammer drills take the most abuse out of almost any corded tool like that, hilti or nothing

I only ever used the hammer function twice, and it was on cinder block...this was purely overloading the drill because it was weak.

Hammer drills take a different type of abuse though, and most of the design there goes into the chuck and hammer mechanism. Mixing mortar is a whole different type of torture that even most Hilti hammer drills would have trouble with: it puts an extremely heavy load on the motor, causing much higher current draw.

Most likely, the smoke in Gridlock's case came from the brushes, which are made of a fairly soft carbon compound that's designed to wear down. It's like with replaceable plastic parts in cars: they're designed to wear and break first, saving other, more expensive parts. And in the same vein, brushes in motors tend to be fairly cheap and easy to replace (professional tools often make them removable from the outside, so there's no disassembly required).

So between these two kits...

Jobmate 105-piece Drill Bit Set | Canadian Tire

Mastercraft Drill/Driving Accessory Set, 115-pc | Canadian Tire

Almost the same price. But does the Jobmate one include that plastic folding case?
Cause the Mastercraft one seems to just come in that "snap-together" plastic shell. :heckno:

Some drills have variable speeds. Is that the same as "VSR"?
And what does this really mean? Does it mean there is settings to control the speed?
The speed of the drill I used in the past is controlled by the amount of pressure I press down on the trigger.
I would like my drill to operate like that.


I think a hammer drill will be excessive for my needs. Even if it's nice to have something better "just in case".

I'll most likely buy a new drill if I ever have a need to drill through masonary or other things besides wood.

I've used a friends Jobmate drill, it's an absolute and complete waste of money. It's a single speed drill, meaning it will only operate at one speed pre-set by the manufacturer. It's nearly impossible to start drilling or driving anything at the high RPM setting of a single speed drill, making them essentially useless. It wouldn't pay $1 for it.

You're looking for a drill with variable speed control, it will have the capacity for an infinitely variable number of speed settings based on how far you depress the trigger. VSR stands for variable speed reversible, it's a drive system that creates a forward, neutral, and reverse gear.

Both Jobmate and Mastercraft brands of drill bits are probably shit. Although, I do believe Mastercraft has a lifetime warranty of some sort. My co worker just busted a new spade bit when drilling through normal MDF! Piece of shrapnel flying through the air! (One good reason to wear glasses) He got it replaced right away at Canadian Tire with his receipt, no problems.

Another thing I noticed about cheap drill bit sets. For the screw drivers, the Robertson bits are usually the shits when it comes to fitting into the screw heads. I hate stripping screws so I threw all of the cheap screw bits that came with my last set out and got some better ones.

If you don't think you'll need to use a hammer drill, then you probably wont. I rarely ever use mine at work.




Has anyone tried the new Makita brushless motor drills? I'm intrigued, but I don't need a new drill just yet. More toys

So just when I thought I had it all figured out...

So is "variable speed control" different than "variable speed reversible" or just different term? (why would a drill need a neutral gear?)

I assume all drills can rotate both ways?

So based on the Variable speed control, am I now looking at a much more expensive power drill?

And what drill set do you guys recommend??
I'm not going to be using these drills a lot so they don't have to be superior quality or anything.
but stripping screw heads and flying shrapnel sounds uncomfortably dangerous...

Originally you asked for a tool that will just get the job done for you so we recommended the mid 90s Kia Sephia... it has 4 wheels, and engine and gets you around... aka/ Ryobi, Jobmate.

But I don't think you really want that, you probably want something more sturdy and want some peace of mind too. So you're going to have to spend a little more for something a lot better, like a Honda Civic...

these are a little more but A LOT better:
DeWALT Deluxe 7A Corded Drill/Driver, 3/8-in | Canadian Tire

Milwaukee | Milwaukee Tradesman Drill, 7.5 Amp - 3/8 Inches | Home Depot Canada

DEWALT | DeWALT Heavy-Duty 3/8" VSR Pistol Grip Drill with Keyless Chuck | Home Depot Canada

Strictly speaking, not all newly purchased drills have a forward and reverse gear. Drill presses do not always have a reverse gear, but you would be hard pressed to find a hand drill without a reverse gear because there is an obvious need for one.

A Milwaukee, Makita, Dewalt, etc. 3/8 corded drill will only be about $80 new and will last many years with average homeowner use. If you decide you want cordless, the price will vary based on the voltage rating, but expect to pay anywhere from $150-300. If you're looking to keep this a low budget purchase since it won't be used extensively, there's nothing wrong with picking one up from a pawn shop, craigslist, etc., because you'll use it little enough that even if there's existing wear on the components it should last a long time.

I knew what I was going to use it for, but I guess I didn't know what I wanted.

The drill I misplaced was my dad's old drill. And pretty much the only drill I've ever used, so I guess I just assumed that was "standard".
I can't recall what brand or what kind of drill it was, but it was perfect for my needs.

I didn't realize the "varied speed control" was an actual feature, but yeah, I would definitely pay more to get that option.

^We use that Milwaukee corded drill at work. Just imagine how many houses per year x how many holes we drill for every wire. Long 2" bit through 8+ studs, no problem. I like that drill, but I like the heavy old all metal Milwaukee power drills even more. Now, those old things are beasts that can tear off your arms.

Agree with Soundy, if you're only using a drill a handful of times a year than a cordless drill isn't worth it.

Dewalt or Makita or nothing. Seriously if you're going to use it more than 10 times a year spend the extra cash and get something better.

:facepalm:

Those brands have been vastly overtaken by Milwaukee.

I'm still using a Milwaukee electric screwdriver I bought in 1990. It saw 8 years of solid use before the first (Nicad) battery wouldn't hold a charge anymore... three more years before the second one gave out.