Best Cheap Cordless Drill
- Thread starter Fordiesel69
- Start date
IMHO, if you have more cordless tools you may want to stick with the same 'system' where batteries are interchangeable.
Personally, I got Milwaukee 12V hammer drill from Home Depot when it was on sale since I already had Milwaukee 12V stubby impact wrench and charger and wanted to get a ratchet too, so I stayed with 12V line which is working perfectly for my needs. I see my purchases as investment as well as I plan on keeping and using those tools for many years.
Personally, I got Milwaukee 12V hammer drill from Home Depot when it was on sale since I already had Milwaukee 12V stubby impact wrench and charger and wanted to get a ratchet too, so I stayed with 12V line which is working perfectly for my needs. I see my purchases as investment as well as I plan on keeping and using those tools for many years.
^this
If cheap is your game, get the Hyper Tough kit from Walmart that is on special right now for $20. Much better than the Amazon stuff.
I agree. Can’t go wrong.
For that, this will be fine. $10 more.
BLACK+DECKER 20V MAX Cordless Drill / Driver, 3/8-Inch (LDX120C) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005NNF0YU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_XNZN0JVC5MZWBSGJ50AK
I may have missed it somewhere in previous posts, but are you planning to use this unit primarily as a drill or driver? If you will be driving screws more than drilling, I highly recommend getting a 1/4" impact driver instead of a drill. This will make your life much easier! In fact, I rarely do anything with screwdrivers any more unless the impact driver won't fit the location. And you can get cheap hex-base bits in case you need to drill a few holes.
I bought a drill from Harbor Freight to get me by a few years back. It's the one that comes with the flashlight. I used it quite a bit during the pandemic on some jobs I was surprised it handled. Of course, another identical drill may have been a dud which is the problem with low budget tools.
The set pictured in Ryan's post has what appears to be the same drill as mine but rebranded for Walmart. I would get that since it has the additional tools and bits. The Ryobi set in Wolf359's post is not a bad price and may have better quality control.
The set pictured in Ryan's post has what appears to be the same drill as mine but rebranded for Walmart. I would get that since it has the additional tools and bits. The Ryobi set in Wolf359's post is not a bad price and may have better quality control.
I actually bought my Ryobi's years ago and they're still going. I think they're fine for regular home owner type stuff. Actually the company that owns Ryobi also owns Milwaukee so the Ryobi line is more homeowner grade and Milwaukee more professional. I like the 4 amp hour batteries, they basically last forever. I use their tire inflator tool the most, basically just leave it in the car along with the drill. Tire inflator tool is like $20-$30, beats hunting around for a gas station that's going to charge you $1+ for air anyway or waiting in line at the free air gas station.
I don't know of any that are made elsewhere. "Made in China" products are not inherently bad, but the quality standards vary greatly across importers/companies/product lines.
This is close to being true! Milwaukee/Ryobi is a Chinese company (TTI), some of my Makita (Japan) tools are made in China. I think DeWalt might have some US made stuff? Hard to say.
That said the same way a top of the line iPhone and the cheapest Xiaomi or whatever are of vastly different quality, the same holds true of the good brands vs. generic copies for power tools.
Some of the DeWalt is assembled in USA however components maybe be manufactured offshore.
I've the the DeWalt 20v set and a few adapters to use Ryobi and Milwaukee tools. More of an outlay cash wise, but most of these tools will last a life time. I've only burnt out a DeWalt 20 hammer drill, drilling through my foundation to run a power line to my shed.
Everything else is going strong including batteries from 2011.
If you want to save money, then buy a Ryobi set. Battery style has not changed and you should be good +10 years from now if you need to buy new batteries.
borrowing from a friend is cheapest...
My girlfriend, but now wife bought me that kit probably 7 years ago. A woman buys you tools you better use and appreciate them regardless of the quality. She was a poor college student at the time.
Drill still works for honey-do list stuff and the flash light is used daily for taking the dogs out.
It didn’t do well on some YouTube tool channel torture test, but I don’t care. I have better stuff for bigger jobs.
Rigid drills on sale with the lifetime warranty including battery is best value/$ IMO. Depends how old you are I guess but 20+ years of decent drill use is worth something. I have a 1/2" hammer drill from ~2005 and got a new set of lithium batteries and a smart charger to replace the nicads in ~2012 for free. Still going now running a impact driver attachment and a HD drill water pump to flood the 1/4 acre pond rink with nearly 100% duty cycle for two full batteries. I'd try another brand but no one else warranties their batteries so I guess I never will.
OP, if you have a Menards near you they will almost certainly have something in your price range.
And they are usually very accommodating regarding returns if you decide later you don't like your choice.
And they are usually very accommodating regarding returns if you decide later you don't like your choice.
I got a Skil 1/2" 20v/2Ah at Menards on close out, $55 minus the perma 11% off!!!!!
It takes the same kind of battery as the 3/8 Black and Decker from WalMart which had a 20v/1.5Ah. Probably came from the same sweat shop.
I have the 20V max hex driver and it's been really good. These are American made too and perfect for an amateur mechanic like me.
I suppose that it all depends on what you get for it.
On old drills, whose batteries are long gone, I add 12 gauge wiring and power it with a small 18 or 22 AH AGM 12v battery.
The 9.6v craftsman drill has crazy torque at 12v.
My 19.2v porter cable drill is perfectly usable at 12v. a little slow but still good torque available, but when a put my portable 12v batteries in series, for nearly 26 volts, it becomes insanely fast and wrist breaking powerful.
So far I've only used it with a wire wheel, but the 19.2v motor did not seem to mind the near 26 volts.
While they are corded, I consider it corded portable, as no grid connection is required, and the comparatively huge capacity of the AGM batteries means no recharging necessary during the task at hand.
My 19.2v makita batteries are basically now nearly worthless. I've not yet hooked 12 awg to them to see how they behave at 12 and 24v, and am not sure what I am going to replace them with for a true cordless drill/ driver. SO far most tasks I can just drag the craftsman and one 12v AGM battery and have all the torque and speed, and battery capacity I need for the task at hand.
The 9.6v craftsman drill has crazy torque at 12v.
My 19.2v porter cable drill is perfectly usable at 12v. a little slow but still good torque available, but when a put my portable 12v batteries in series, for nearly 26 volts, it becomes insanely fast and wrist breaking powerful.
So far I've only used it with a wire wheel, but the 19.2v motor did not seem to mind the near 26 volts.
While they are corded, I consider it corded portable, as no grid connection is required, and the comparatively huge capacity of the AGM batteries means no recharging necessary during the task at hand.
My 19.2v makita batteries are basically now nearly worthless. I've not yet hooked 12 awg to them to see how they behave at 12 and 24v, and am not sure what I am going to replace them with for a true cordless drill/ driver. SO far most tasks I can just drag the craftsman and one 12v AGM battery and have all the torque and speed, and battery capacity I need for the task at hand.
