Recommendations for Corded Drills, Please!

[Dan Mages]

I am in need of a good, strong drill to replace my old Black and Decker. The main function will be heavy duty jobs, such as mixing thinset, putting holes in concrete, and other tough jobs. I prefer a corded drill for these applications due to budget constraints and performance issues. My budget is $100, but I would prefer to keep it around $75.

Dan

[Robert Parrish]

I just bought this one last week and used it to drill 30-40 holes in my pool deck and it worked great. It replaced my old PC drill which bit the dust!

Bosch 1199VSRK 8.5 Amp 1/2-Inch Hammer Drill

[Chuck Saunders]

Milwaukee 0299-20 Magnum 8 Amp 1/2-Inch Drill (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00007FPIN/ref=ord_cart_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance) currently $107 with free shipping at Amazon. This is not a hammer drill but it is one tough son of a gun.

[phil harold]

Milwaukee 0299-20 Magnum 8 Amp 1/2-Inch Drill (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00007FPIN/ref=ord_cart_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance) currently $107 with free shipping at Amazon. This is not a hammer drill but it is one tough son of a gun.
+1 on Milwaukee hole shooters

If your are looking to mix thinset alot i would use a Milwaukee Hole Hawg, it will survive the abuse of mixing, but it sure costs more

you get what you pay for

[Ed Labadie]

This http://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-0234-6-Magnum-2-Inch-Drill/dp/B0000223HF/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1256216967&sr=1-1
is a better choice in the Milwaukee line. It's standard by which all others are judged.

Ed

[Dave Sweeney]

This http://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-0234-6-Magnum-2-Inch-Drill/dp/B0000223HF/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1256216967&sr=1-1
is a better choice in the Milwaukee line. It's standard by which all others are judged.

Ed

+1 If you know going in that your new drill will see harder than normal usage why scrimp on quality? You will be replacing that $75 drill in no time and then you'll have to spend another $75 to replace it. Spend $114 now and get years of usage with the Milwaukee. My 0234 doesn't see the heavy usage you put a drill through but after 34 years mine is still going strong.

[Jeff Duncan]

Problem is your trying to use 1 drill for 3 very different jobs.
Drilling holes in concrete is always best accomplished with a hammer drill. Using a regular drill may, if your lucky, work for 1 or 2 small holes, other than that you will be greatly disappointed.

Mixing thinset and the like goes much better IMHO with a HD slow speed 800+/- RPM drill. Again a normal drill may get you by a couple times, but not the best choice for the job.

Lastly of course would be a general purpose corded drill. Invaluable for countless tasks. For my shop I have a variety of drills for different tasks including a Porter Cable 3/8" corded drill that's been in use for a couple decades now. At home however, I bought one drill for stuff around the house, I know some guys will scoff, but I picked up a Ryobi corded drill with clutch from the local box store for short money. I wouldn't recommend it for heavy use, I started a deck with it this summer and it got pretty hot doing 'real' work. But it does 90% of what I need around the house. Anything else I just bring something home from the shop;)

good luck,
JeffD

[Brian Walter]

If you want an inexpensive drill for mixing thinset I'd suggest this HF drill: http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=47991. My brother bought one of these to screw his log cabin together. I don't know how may hundred 12" screws he used this on, but it was lots and it never failed to worked. I dropped it off the roof once (it was either me or the drill) and broke the screw in handle off, but a quick trip back to HF produced another handle, no questions asked. I agree it's not the best, but it's far better than a lot of the other cheap drills out there. It has more than enough torque to spin your around if/when the bit gets stuck in something.

Brian Walter

[Will Boulware]

I've got the same Milwaukee drill mentioned previously. My dad also has one that's about 30 years old. We're not contractors by any means, but these tools have been used a lot, often in less-than-favorable conditions. I won't go so far as calling them bulletproof, as I haven't had reason to take a shot at one yet, but they are definitely worth the money.

As a side note, a friend of mine just bought one used on craigslist for $45. So far, it's been used to cut roll cage tubing with a hole saw, punched some holes in concrete for wall hangers (batteries died in his cordless hammer drill), and done rudimentary things like drilling holes in wood and grinding/cleaning welds. It hasn't given him any trouble. Don't rule out the used market if you're stuck on 75 bucks.

[Matt Schuman]

+1 What Jeff Duncan said. Mixing thinset and drilling concrete require 2 very different drills. I've tried doing both with the wrong drill and neither was pleasant.

[Chris Tsutsui]

You know what's exactly $75 right now at Lowes that used to be $150? Bosch 11258VSR.

Plus you can use a 10% off coupon or project starter coupon if you have one to lower the price more.

It's called the SDS-plus Bosch 11258VSR Drill
It has two settings, regular drill, and then the rottary hammer mode for concrete.

Includes 3 bits and carrying case 4.8A 0-1700RPM/0-4400BPM ,2 mode selector rotation only to rottary hammer,varible speed trigger,at 4.8 pounds

They had two of these in boxes at Lowes when I went there Sunday. I didn't buy one because I have enough drills as it is, but sure enough I'm already seeing them on Craigslist selling for $120 because people want to make $40 reselling it.

[Chuck Saunders]

Ed is absolutely correct the 0234 is a great drill and I have one that I just bought recently. Only had to buy a replacement because my original got stolen. I am not quite sure what the difference is between them except the 299 has a higher amp motor. I have a driver in the new style and I have had no complaints. I like the removable cord on the 0234

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

Milwaukee. I have their 3/8" hole shooter the half inch angle drill and the half inch impact drill. I have beat them all for coming on 30 years and they still run strong.

By way of what I mean by "beat": I built a 20'x40' outdoor recreational wood deck. I screwed all frame members and the decking down with 3"long phillips galv screws. The 3/8" hole shooter was the driver.

I have used that same drill to screw thousands of square feet of flooring sub down and as the driver for a ton of other construction screwing jobs.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

I agree with Jeff also. You need 3 drills, hammer, low speed hi torque and the cordless for everything else. If you get 1 drill for everything, you may have to buy 3 drills anyway, after burning them up.

Just my $.02.

[Joe Jensen]

This http://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-0234-6-Magnum-2-Inch-Drill/dp/B0000223HF/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1256216967&sr=1-1
is a better choice in the Milwaukee line. It's standard by which all others are judged.

Ed

I've owned a Black & Decker Industrial 3/8" I since I bought it new in 1975 when I was 13. Great old heavily built drill. I recently bought the Milwaukee above when I read the reviews and found it was still manufactured in the USA. WOW. Amazingly well built and solid drill. I've really been using cordless for so long that I forgot how solid a good corded drill is. Used it last night to drill six 3/8" holes in 1/8" thick steel. Sharp bit and no matter how hard I pushed it didn't slow at all.

I also have a Bosch imact drill that's like 8amps. I swear the 5.5Amp Milwaukee is stronger. It's over your budget, but WOW.

[Peter Quinn]

I mix thin set with an old Miller Falls slow speed 1/2" drill, which is basically a hand held drill press.:D I don't like to whip air into mortar, and the slow speed hi torque format will give you years of performance. I have a Milwaukee combo 3/8" drill that will do both hammer and straight drilling functions, but it won't hammer much past a 5/16" hole and its a bit light for mixing any quantity of thinset on a regular basis. Its still one heck of a useful tool.

For spinning big bits in wood, there is pretty much Milwaukee and something less. For hammer drills, there are lots of options, though my two favorites are anything by Hilti or a Bosch bulldog. Neither is available in your price range or even close. I think Hilti has a few models that will work as either percussion drills or standard drills, and also as light chipping hammers, Bosch may as well. SDS chucks are great on both.

I think a drill is one of those tools that you really get what you pay for, so if this is something you will be using a lot, go buy a good one. If not, renting a good one is a good option I have used in the past. Owning or using a poor quality drill is an exercise in frustration I would prefer not experience again.

[Josiah Bartlett]

I have a HF 93632 500 rpm drill. Its a real monster, I use it for hole saws. It has enough torque to rip your arms off. I got it on sale for $35 about a year ago. It actually runs fairly smoothly. Its great for screws, too, although its pretty heavy so I wouldn't want to do a whole deck with it.

[Dan Mages]

Thanks everyone. I will have to look into that Milwaukee drill and seek approval from SWMBO for funds.

Dan