Drill: Cord or Cordless?

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’m about to embark on a bit of a furniture-building kick. A bookshelf first, since I’m tired of stacks of books on the floor since my books finally made their way back here from Ontario. Then probably a bike rack (this will be the third time for this particular item - I keep leaving them behind when I move - and I’ve got the design down very nicely, if I do say so myself). And finally a computer table/desk sort of thing, which will be an innovative new design and has only taken nebulous shape in my mind so far. :cool:

Anyways, construction will be from pine for the bookshelf and desk, probably just spruce for the bike rack, and will involve a lot of wood screws. And so, I’ve decided it’s time to get me a drill. I mean, here I am, 33 years old, and I’ve never owned a drill. It’s shameful. However, the drill budget is very limited. Much as I’d like a 14.4v DeWalt, it’s just not going to happen. I don’t like buying cheap tools, but the combination of my discretionary income and the amount I’m going to use this thing just don’t justify spending more than, say, Cdn$75. So I was at Home Depot today, and the options look to be as follows:

$50 Basic corded 3/8" variable speed reversible, in a B&D, Skil, or Ryobi
$60 for a corded Ryobi as above with a clutch

or a low end cordless - there was a B&D 14.4v for 60 bucks, with only one battery pack, appeared to be bottom end, below the Firestorm models, and, a Ryobi for a bit more, two battery packs, but was, if memory serves, just a 9.6v.

Now, I’m leaning heavily towards a cord, since the projects I have planned won’t require so much as an extension cord. But in the longer term, a cordless is more versatile, and I’m curious if anyone has anything positive to say about lower end cordless drills. I’m also curious if a clutch is worth 10 bucks. I don’t have much experience with them, and haven’t ever had much trouble driving screws to the depth I want without one, but I can see how it might be handy.

2

Gotta go with cordless. It’s just more convenient to not have to drag the power cable through your project, especially when things don’t each easily.

Make it a good cordless though, with a hefty battery. And buy a second battery so you can have one charged while you work with the other one.

The only time you should need a corded drill is if you’re doing something that requires very very high tork. Shouldn’t be a problem for making a bookshelf and desk.

3

Err. And which part of “However, the drill budget is very limited. Much as I’d like a 14.4v DeWalt, it’s just not going to happen.” didn’t you understand, exactly?

4

Gorsnak,
The B&D cordless drill from Home Depot is a good buy and if you ask they probably have an extra battery for sale. I’ve used the same one for two years and if you’ve never really owned a drill, this one is for you.

5

Gorsnak,
The B&D cordless drill from Home Depot is a good buy and if you ask they probably have an extra battery for sale. I’ve used the same one for two years and if you’ve never really owned a drill, this one is for you.

6

If your building anything heavy, or need a lot of power, or have to drive lots of screws/drill holes, the budget cordless will let you down. You’ll get half way through and the thing will be turning at a snail’s pace.

My buddy has a DeWalt 9.6V and we built a platform with it. Many pilot holes and screws. I was dreaming of my corded drill a quarter of the way through the project. Unless you’re going on top of your roof, there’s almost always room for an extension cord, you can also use a very light cord since a drill doesn’t pull too many amps.

On top of it all… my corded drill is lighter, faster and more powerful than just about any cordless. Craftsman 3/8 inch, 1/3 HP.

7

You’ve pretty much answered your own question. Budget trumps convenience. If you can either get a good quality corded drill (e.g. the Dewalt 3/8 VSR corded with keyless chuck ) or a bottom-of-the-line cordless, I’d have to go with the better quality tool.

If you were doing serious remodeling or using the drill constantly, it would be a different story.

I’ve never found the chuck feature to be particularly useful, but then I haven’t built a deck either.

8

Ryobi’s cordless stuff is good. The battery life and the torque don’t seem to match up to my DeWalts, though. Could be a bias on my part…
The clutch is worth it. Especially for what you’re doing. Keeps you from stripping screw heads. For max turning power, you can always set it to the “drill” setting. It then acts as though no clutch.

Enjoy your projects!

9

BTW, there is a difference between a chuck and a clutch.

A clutch disengages the drill head from the motor when it meets a certain amount of resistance.

A keyless chuck allows quick bit changes.

Just FYI

10

[hijack]
When I was buying a drill, the guy at the store kept insisting that if I just paid a little extra for the model with the built-in leveling bulb, I’d be better off. Being an easy sale, I went for it. Boy, was he right. If you can swing it, I’d say having a built-in level trumps the corded/cordless decision.

(The thing is, with the level you can guarantee that you’re drilling either directly down or directly sideways, a fact that I only appreciated after I actually started using it.)
[/hijack]

11

I’ve sold off 90% of my tools and I kept the Porter Cable 12v cordless drill. In retropsect I wish I had kept my Milwaukee 3/8" corded instead as almost all of the drilling tasks I do are within easy reach of a plug.

If I buy another drill it will absolutely be a Porter Cable or Milwaukee corded 3/8" drill, they are both fantastic but the DeWalt is fine as well ( I am just not a fan of the bright yellow :))

Built in level? gimmick IMHO. If you need it, fine, but in any case where you need to be plumb or level, a jig is the only way to go; I would not rely on my arm to keep it level.

And keyless chucks rock! I still have an old all metal Jacobs keyless chuck, one of the originals from back in like 90-91 that I have used on a couple drills and keep in a box for my next med duty drill.

12

Cord.

I’d never charge the batteries on a cordless ( that’s assuming I didn’t lose it first).

13

ahem

If you can get as lucky as I got, then it’s nice. The newer one has the leveling-thingy, and it is occasionally useful, but I could get by without it. We use these drills all the time; both came with two batteries, so we can always have extras. Bottom line, I recommend going cordless.

14

Oh yeah, and the clutch is definitely helpful, as stated by other posters.

15

My rule number whatever; buy the best you can afford.
If you can’t afford a really good quality cordless, buy a good quality corded, and buy a good cordless later, if you decide you need one.

16

Cord. I have both, and the small cordless are great for small, quick fixes and such. But for actually working projects as you mention, you definitely want a corded. Personally speaking, I can’t stand not having an uninterupted, consistent source of power in doing anything more than a few minutes. There will too many other problems that usually arise. :eek:

17

I’ll second the cordless suggestion. If you’re doing any serious work, you’ll be setting up, prepping, taking down, and cleaning up anyway. Plugging your tools in really doesn’t add any to that, now does it?

I have no opinion on the clutch thing. In fact, I had never heard of the concept until just now… My drill obviously doesn’t have one, so I just bought a really good screwdriver with a big triangular-ish grip, and wear gloves, and figure it strengthens my forearms for climbing season :slight_smile:

But yeah, if you’re just starting to accumulate tools, save money by avoiding gimmicks like cordlessness, and spend it on a work mate and a bunch of clamps. But don’t save money by buying cheap stuff.

18

D’OH!!! What the heck am I typing? I meant to second the CORDED suggestion, as should be clear from the rest of my post…

19

Well, see, when serious tools are needed, one just drives out to the farm, which is equipped with just about anything I’d want except a thickness planer. Though it seems to me one of the neighbours has one of those, and since his daughter’s married to my brother… :slight_smile:

The clutch is a mechanism that causes the chuck to stop turning when the torque reaches a certain level. Cordless drills all have one these days, but they’re not real common on corded drills except for the dedicated drywall guns. In theory, you set the clutch to the right setting, then just pull the trigger, and the drill will stop by itself once the screw is in as tight as you want. I’m not convinced I’ll be stripping out any screws without one, though. It’s pretty hard to strip a Robertson head, and I’m not silly enough to buy any Phillips head wood screws.

I thank you all for the comments. Basically, I wanted to know if anyone had a budget cordless and thought it stood up, and it appears that my skepticism about their value has been supported. I shall tie myself to the wall, in a manner of speaking.

20

Sears has a corded drill with a clutch, but it isn’t cheap. I’d go with a Skil or B&D corded. These aren’t too expensive, and will work better and last longer than almost any cordless.

Also, check your yellow pages for any factory service centers in your area. If you call at the right times, they may have a factory reconditioned drill available for less than the cost of new and in just as good shape and with the same warranty you’d get if you bought new. The cost will be about 20 to 30 percent less.