Come to think of it, I could probably use some help with what’s implied by my double-entendre thread title, too!
But this is about buying a hammer-drill / driver. I’ve already bought and returned three different DeWalt combo kits this week. I returned the first two because I couldn’t get them to drive a screw into wood very well. After trying a third kit (with an impact driver) I know now that the problem is me—not the drills.
That’s why I’m returning the third kit too—I bought progressively more expensive tools to try to solve the screwing issue. When I realized it was my technique, not the tools, I figured a cheaper (but still good) drill would be fine.
So now I’m trying to find a hammer-drill that also does a good job driving screws into wood (I need a hammer-drill because at a later date I’ll need to drive fasteners into concrete and brick). For now though, I just need to drill some pilot holes and drive screws into pine 2x4’s.
To hopefully save some money and also to have more power I’m considering corded drills but the corded hammer-drills don’t seem to be made to drive screws, too. But I don’t know that for sure—that’s why I need help.
I’m totally open to cordless drills too… but they’re pretty expensive when you want to buy a kit that includes two decent batteries.
I can provide more information about specifics, I just didn’t want to bog the OP down in TL;DR. (too late, huh?)
I suspect you are having problems lining up the driver bit with the screw, maybe you should switch from a Philips head to a torx( spelled wrong) type head screw or a square drive screw. Thy are easier to line up. If you are attempting to put screws into hardwood or using large screws you may need to pre drill the wholes to the proper size before installing the screw.
Thanks for your reply. Yes I suspect something like what you mention is the problem. I am using #8 Philips head wood screws. I have some good #2 Philips head bit I am using. I think I’m not lining up the screw exactly straight and / or using the wrong torque setting.
That thing is though, I’ve driven hundreds of screws with a drill /driver before, but not for 5-10 years. Maybe I’m just rusty… but I drilled lots of practice screws and still had the problem.
Nut I have to work that out myself. My real issue right now is which hammer-drill / driver to buy.
For example, this drill looks like it would be good for hammer-drilling and “regular” drilling into to wood and other softer materials. But can it do a good job driving a screw into wood? Does it have variable torque? Does it even need to?
ETA: The wood is not hard. Regular pine 2x4. I am drilling pilot holes.
Another thing that could be an issue is “chuck wobble”… meaning the drill bit is never totally straight.
I have the current drill packed away for returning right now or I’d check but I seem to remember the driver bit wobbling a lot. That certainly won’t make for a good screwing experience.
In reading various reviews and comments about DeWalt drill / drivers online there are a lot of complaints about chuck wobble for various models.
I guess I have to ask if you’re turning off the hammer function when you try to drill/drive. If you’re just driving a screw, that drill you linked to should have no problem with them, though it may simply be overpowered. If the drill is just spinning too fast for the screw to keep up, that’s likely your problem. You need a drill that can turn slowly, get up to speed, and stop quickly.
The kit with the impact driver should have worked, if you used the drill for the pilot holes and the impact driver on the screws. That’s what impact drivers are supposed to be best at, driving screws.
ETA, yes the bit must be straight or you will have lots of problems.
In general the cordless drills are more versatile for controlling torque and speed. Particularly for driving screws. DC motors stop, where AC motors run out. There are more specialized AC tools with clutches or brakes to account for that, drywall guns are a good example, but you pay more for it.
The newer generations of cordless tools are also impressive in the torque department as they can pull more wattage at once from a battery than you can get out of an outlet. You see that a lot more often in impact drivers.
That said, there is no reason you can’t manage any household project with a corded tool. The one you linked can hammer drill and drill. It is variable speed. What it doesn’t have is a clutched chuck so you do risk stripping out more screws.
You didn’t explain the actual problem you having so I can’t really tell you what you are doing wrong.
Simple pointers are predrill your holes and on longer screws or lag bolts use parifin wax or bar soap on the threads.
Impact drivers are significantly better at driving screws.
Multi-function hammer drills are mediocre at drilling concrete.
SDS drills are really good at drilling concrete aren’t good for much else.
I had the hammer function off. I know how a hammer-drill feels when it’s hammering and I would have noticed it if that had been the issue.
Yes the bit has to be straight for sure. The more I think about it, the more I think ALL the drills had a significant chuck wobble. I’m looking into this online and it seems to be, unfortunately, a common complaint for newer cordless (and some corded) drills.
I’ve done a lot of research on cordless dills already. But as I look more into getting a corded hammer-drill, it seems like they have too much power, and not enough control for screwing. Even if they are variable-speed.
RE: Impact drivers-- I had never used one before so after reading that they are specialists in driving screws I was really thrown when I had no better luck with the impact driver than I had with the cordless hammer-drill / drivers.
I’m so frustrated at the apparent state of cordless drills / batteries!
After I started this thread I went back to the ol’ intertubez and continued looking at seemingly every drill in existence.
I know you have to take customer reviews with a big grain of salt but… almost every drill I look at has complaints about chuck wobble, bad batteries that can’t hold a charge. or both!
This is killing me! Is it so hard to find a decent drill /driver? I was willing to pay a hefty price for a quality tool but now I’m wondering if there is even that much difference. I fear that all the manufacturers are getting their components from the same place and that the quality of the transmission is just very bad. Same with the batteries. This is driving me mad!!
I’d recommend a real SDS Rotary Hammer for drilling concrete or brick. All the “hammer drills” do is add some small impact to the bit. If you’ve ever used a real rotary hammer you’d quickly see the difference.
An impact driver is what I always use for driving screws into wood. Battery power for convenience.
Normally it should be very easy to drive a Phillips screw into wood with a cordless impact driver. That’s precisely what they’re designed to do. Perhaps you did not have the battery fully-charged? Also, are you using the right bits? Some impact drivers have a specific collet profile which won’t properly grip screwdriver bits that are designed for drill chucks.
(Note also that impact drivers and hammer drills are not the same thing. A hammer drill hammers the screw down; an impact driver impacts the fastener perpendicularly to its shaft, like a wrench.)
Hammer drills (with a good masonry bit) are great for drilling into concrete, but should not be used for driving fasteners into wood.
friedo, the battery was fully charged. The impact driver had PLENTY of power. The screw just bogged down. I’m really thinking is was a wobble–either the chuck or just bad driving on my part.
I would never use the hammer function to drive a screw, I was just hoping to find a combo drill that had a hammer feature and a good driving feature.
Screw bogged down? Where are you getting your information for pilot hole size? There are charts online for soft and hard wood hole sizes for each screw size. For example a #7 American wood screw in pine ought to have a 1/16" pilot hole. That and a corded drill should prevent bogging. The drill I have was under $60 when new, iirc.
I got the info for pilot hole size on the box the screws came in. They are #8 screws and I think it said 5/64" for soft wood and 3/32" for harder wood (I don’t have it handy at this minute).
The type screws are used was #8 Philips head wood screws (mostly round-head). I thought it might be the screws too until I tried some really good #8s I already had for practice and had some problems with them too.
And HoneyBadger, yes, I’m afraid it might be me, too. Thing is–I’ve driven a hell of a lot of screws in my life, not for a few years, but still… I’m perfectly willing to take the blame but I still think there seemed to be a lot of chuck wobble or runout.
You shouldn’t need a pilot hole with a good screwgun or drill.
I installed six box’s of decking screws and certainty didn’t mess with pilot holes. I didn’t have the handy extension. So I spent a full day on my knees driving screws and securing my new deck boards.
I’m baffled. This isn’t even a remotely challenging problem for any modern cordless drill. I have three different Dewalts and regularly use them to drive screws without pilot holes. Once you’ve drilled the pilot holes, you’re switching to the low speed, high torque setting, right?
Mind you, Phillips screws are the devil and my preference is to use square drive (Robertson) screws.
