Help me find new power tools

Before someone makes the joke about me being recently married and surely not in need of such things, I’ll get there first.

I have a 14.4V Makita 6228D cordless drill but its battery is on the way out. And I think I need something better for my van conversion project, which is going to involve a bunch of drilling metal and wood, and putting screws into wood. It would be a nice bonus to be able to do things like drill into my brick garage walls to put up shelves – my current drill isn’t really up to that.

I’ve got a not-cordless angle grinder and a jig-saw, so I wouldn’t need either of them, but I’m not opposed to having other useful tools in kits if it’s a good deal.

So, maybe I need an impact driver, and a new drill. Or maybe just an impact driver and a new battery for the Makita. Or maybe an impact drill and not an impact driver? I’m vaguely inclined towards a nice new set of something that would give me plenty of options to swap and charge batteries between them. In the spirit of a) never do anything without asking the Forum and b) links to good deals are good for the STW coffers, what has anyone got, or what good deals have you spotted?

Got one of these…

Erbauer

Had it a couple of years and it has put holes into everything that I have tried it with so far, including decking, sheet metal and brickwork. It struggles a bit with concrete, but I suspect that the drill bits weren’t the best.

As an occasional DIYer and full time tight wad I give it 5 stars.

Effectively it comes down to Makita or DeWalt and who has the best offer at Screwfix or Toolstation. Whilst a new battery might appear cost effective, most stuff is 18 or even 36 volt and higher capacity batteries – maybe heavier but more grunt plus you’re pretty limited by what other 14.4V tools are available as it’s been phased out for at least 10 years.

I regret not buying into the Makita 18V ecosystem as they now do garden tools (hedgetrimmer and chainsaw) that take the same batteries, which would be perfect for trail maintenance work.

Having an impact driver AND a drill is the way to go.  It’s often the case I find, that you’ll be drilling pilot holes, then screwing into them. Repeatedly swapping drill bits for screwdriver bits on one tool gets old pretty quickly. And if you ever have to drive screws into tough material, an impact driver is just much better at it. Dewalt and others often do sets of  18V drill and driver for reasonable money. You can then add things like an oscillating multitool, jigsaw or whatever later.  I’ve been helping my daughter with her VW Caddy van conversion recently. My Dewalt 18V tools got a lot of use!

Yep as above, I have 18v Makita drill and impact driver, great combo for lots of pilot holes and screwing. Also bought a couple of 5ah batteries. The drill came with 1.5 ah batteries but the bigger batteries are great.

Also bought a makita circular saw that uses the same batteries, but the impact driver is one of the best things I’ve ever purchased. Sucha good bit of kit, and was only £50 I think, without batteries.

I have renovated whole house and recently fitted kitchen and odd models here and there for tools, but have gradually been replacing everything with Toolstation’s Einhell tools, been fantastic, not quite as spendy as DeWalt/Makita/Milwaukee but have never let me down, and nearly always have batteries included, this is the drill and impact driver set:

https://www.toolstation.com/einhell-pxc-18v-cordless-combi-drill-impact-driver-twin-pack/p41436

We have a very wide range of both battery and wired drills and other tools and all get used at various points. I think our main toolset is now Milaukee (because we were given a set  and it grew from there), but we have AEG and Ryobi too.

Anything that needs a lot of power gets the corded treatment, but sometimes (as people have said) having two cordless drills is a godsend. You can also buy QR bits and holders if you have many different types of screw, but you’ll still be glad you have a second drill with drill bit in.

I regret not buying into the Makita 18V ecosystem as they now do garden tools (hedgetrimmer and chainsaw) that take the same batteries, which would be perfect for trail maintenance work.

Don’t have to. The adaptors work grand. I use Bosch blue tools. not the same range of tools as DeWalt and Makita – but also less junk made.

Have a Makita hedgecutter and strimmer running off Bosch 5ah batteries

I sell many of these at work. Unfortunately you really do get what you pay for. The big 3 are much of a muchness. Milwalkee, Dewalt and Makita
. The Einhell range looks to be good middle ground. Then Erbaur. Wouldn’t use it on site but for 5 times a year diy jobs they are perfect.
Go 18v, mix of 3ah amd 5ah batteries. Avoid pissy 1.5ah batteries ad the dont last 5 mins. Investigate Warrenty as well, Dewalt is 3yr currently.
Makita do the biggest range on lxt batteries, coffee machine, radio etc plus have a slightly better quality feel to them. brushless motor weigh less, and produce more power.

For your van project and many  jobs an 18v  drill is a heavy cumbersome  tool .

look for a quality 10.8v /12v compact quality tool with things like right angle adaptors

Festool CXS  , Bosch GSB  – Makita Milwaukee M12   etc

For drilling holes in walls use an sds corded.

Most any popular brand will have a drill/impact set that will do what the OP wants, it therefore comes down to budget and available of other battery powered items they want. E.g. both Ryobi and Makita do a wide range of cordless lawnmowers, but Milwaukee only do massive ones.

Makita 18v here, no complaints other than it becomes addictive buying new tools! Impact driver, drill and oscillating multi-tool are great, plus I have a couple of fake angle grinders which are very useful so you can have multiple discs on the go.

i have a bosch drill, but 18v Makita have much better prices for impact drivers and other tools to go with it. Everybody uses them
Also (avoid)the Aldi 20v stuff looks useful and cheap,but i dont believe theyre in the same league as bosch and makita

I’m a dyed in the wool Makita fan so always recommend them.
I mean they really do have an amazing range of bare tools that you can add on later so are a great power base to get into.

I’ve got loads of bare tools that I use for work but then also some fun play tools for home, like a chainsaw and a hedge trimmer for trail maintenance.
All running off 18v batteries.

I also have a little adaptor that fits on a battery which you can then plug two usb devices into which is great for camping trips.

A while back I bought this kit from Screwfix for keeping at home, but when it was on offer mind.
Great quality and does everything I need.
It’s a great set.

Personally I think Makita are the best colour too. DeWalt yellow is brash and Milwaukee red makes you angry.
Makita colour is calming and helps you do a better job .
Science innit.

I should also add – if you’re actually planning to use them, not just look at the boxes in the shed or cellar, don’t buy DIY quality stuff. Lifespan IME is usually measured in days.

I have makita lxt and cxt.  don’t knock the smaller battery tools they are still very useful.  my cxt drill is my most used.  have 3 drills (and a sds) means you can really speed up jobs by not having to swap around bits all the time.

ffx usually has good deals.  sometimes you can a grab a bargain on ebay when they do there % discount and you get in there before all the prices go up

You have a van to convert and need power tools? I think Worx should confiscate that huge haul of power tools they gave Blake Samson for his van build and give them to you, see if you manage to complete the project (unlike Blake). What does everyone else think you beautiful people? 😀

I’ve bought a few Erbaur things recently and they seem really good.

Circular saw, paddle mixer, something else I forget what.

Maybe not pro level but I (as a somewhat heavy DIYer) can’t tell much difference from the DeWalt stuff I occasionally borrow. Bit heavier maybe? Good quality though. Certainly not nearly enough difference to warrant the price difference!

That said, my impact driver / combi drill set is Makita, simply because I got that as a gift 🙂 (they’re great)

Edit: Slight PSA (might be obvious) as Erbauer is a B&Q own brand – get from Screwfix instead if possible, it’s usually cheaper! Though not all tools seem to be sold by both B&Q and Screwfix.

I should also add – if you’re actually planning to use them, not just look at the boxes in the shed or cellar, don’t buy DIY quality stuff. Lifespan IME is usually measured in days.

I really don’t agree with this – I have a Bosch drill with Power4All batteries that I bought at least 10 years ago (if not more). It’s done a house renovation, various DIY projects including a big decking project, fencing, raised beds etc etc etc and it’s still going strong on the original batteries. I now also have a compatible strimmer and hedge trimmer too and, having a large garden, they get hammered too.

Also for occasional use, the Lidl tools (Parkside?) can be actually quite good. A bit hit and miss, but often surprisingly good.

I regret not buying into the Makita 18V ecosystem as they now do garden tools (hedgetrimmer and chainsaw) that take the same batteries, which would be perfect for trail maintenance work.

Battery adaptors!

You can use pretty much any make battery on any make tool.

They’re a bit bulky, but they mean you can buy any tool from any range and still keep your existing battery system.

johndoh

I really don’t agree with this – I have a Bosch drill with Power4All batteries that I bought at least 10 years ago (if not more). It’s done a house renovation, various DIY projects including a big decking project, fencing, raised beds etc etc etc and it’s still going strong on the original batteries. I now also have a compatible strimmer and hedge trimmer too and, having a large garden, they get hammered too.

Same here, also check out the warranties

Bosch 3 yr
Ryobi 3 yr
Festool 3 yr
Dewalt 2/3 yr
Makita 3 yr

Your have to go to Milwaukee level before you get to 5 yr warranties.

I’ve still got a bunch of cheap tools of various brands i bought when renovating my house 8 years ago that I knew would get wrecked as the floor and all the plaster had to come off so it was very dusty. I intended to replace with Makita to match my ‘nice tools’ when they went wrong, but the bastards wont die.

Even my Parkside drill which had some of the magic smoke come out when driving long screws into some hardwood posts early in its life is still going strong and that cost me about two buttons and a bit of string from Lidl.

Agree with finishthat, with the exception of specific jobs such as trying to put a 60mm holesaw through the floor, a more compact set such as the Makita 10.8v drill driver and impact driver combo are perfect for van conversions and general DIY.

For heavier occasional work such as drilling brick, cordless is less of an advantage so it just comes down to budget and whether you want to go corded or 18v.

Like others, I chose Makita as they have stuff like lawnmowers, chainsaws and strimmers and vehicle stuff like impact drivers.  They even do an espresso machine but the reviews are fairly mixed.

Remembered what my other Erbaur thing is!

SDS drill, ERH750. s’awesome.

Einhell +1

Bloke who fitted my garage door kept using it instead of his pro stuff cos it worked so well. I’ve got the chainsaw and strimmer too. Decent stuff.
Pro tip (from him, not me) You need 2 drills – one for the holes the other for the screws (madam), so you don’t have to keep swapping bits over.

my green bosch power 4 all was underpowered from new and caught fire in the end.

Not even remotely close to a brushless unit in operation.

Been cover above but if we’re offering screening tips: Just because you have an impact driver doesn’t mean you need to use it for everything sometimes it’s better to use a drill driver or even a hand powered screwdriver

Makita end off.

Well not really, Milwaukee is great for working in -1 outside in the pitch black.

DeWalt make some nice power tools 110v stuff.

We are currently running a few Einhell tools for odd stuff chainsaw being one as the Makita was out of stock the charger is slow on big batteries but the chainsaw is on par with the single battery Makita one.

Until Bosch start using proper chucks they can do one.

So Makita

Oh and Makita do proper fridge cooler now not just a coolbox but an actual fridge I mean what’s not to like

Been cover above but if we’re offering screening tips: Just because you have an impact driver doesn’t mean you need to use it for everything sometimes it’s better to use a drill driver or even a hand powered screwdriver

Indeed – it’s tempting but often overkill! Easy to end up with stripped threads or screws smashed through some delicate wood 🤦‍♂️

The clutch function on a normal combi drill is really useful for screws that you DON’T want too tight.

If buying top end I’d probably go Makita.

But as a middle ground option I also went Einhell for number of reasons:

1. Not a shop own brand (eg Erbauer) so available from a number of sources (Toolstation, Wickes, Machine Mart plus local independents).
2. You can get spares and a reasonably quick response from a human at Einhell UK.
3. Each product is available at a number of levels (basic brushed, brushless, often a higher end brushless etc).
4. Big range of garden stuff. As above we got a higher end twin battery lawnmower which is powerful and long lasting, and the battery deal it came with gave us 2x chargers and 2x batteries for use in other products.
5.  You can sometimes find cheap grey import Ozito models which are Australian Einhell version (got a higher end leafblower from a UK shop for half the Einhell price).

I’d avoid the Lidl / Aldi stuff. You get locked in their battery system, but if you suddenly want a specific product you are stuffed waiting months for the next time they actually decide to stock it.

I’ve been very impressed with my milwaukee m12 kit, does everything I’ve ever used my bosch 18v system for (and more) while being smaller and lighter. The range of m12 kit is also very impressive covering everything from construction and diy to mechanics and metalwork. The m12 compressor and inspection lamps are also ace too. In most situations where I need more power it is also a situation where having a power cord isn’t an issue (plus corded tools are still cheaper and you can buy the best tool rather than the one that you have batteries for).

Trade here using Makita 18v, all excellent. Get a good combi & impact deal and take it from there.

We have a combo of battery and corded. If you want to hammer all day then corded is the way, otherwise battery will suffice

I don’t really like impacts, ymmv but I just have a small drill that I use as a driver, much prefer it.

I’m in the Makita LXT Tribe, there are better tools out there but they generally do “good enough to do the job and not stupidly expensive” well. I just wore out the basic drill, frinstance, but it’s years old and it’s been fairly abused.

A plus of makita that isn’t always mentioned is the “third party” ie knockoffs. I wouldn’t buy the chargers or the batteries- cheap ones you never know what you’re going to get, expensive ones aren’t cheap enough- but the tools, that’s a bonus. I buy genuine makita for the hard work and cheap chinese makita-battery-compatibles for light duty. So I have a wee cheap strimmer, reciprocating saw and leaf blower that are dead handy in the garden and for trail clearing, which cost pennies, I’d never have bought the genuine ones as they’re too expensive but cheap tool + good battery = good combo.

I’ve burnt out a lot of cordless drills over the years, but my Makita LXT is still going strong, although it did struggle a bit driving 6” concrete screws. Best tool I’ve got is a Makita 5” circular saw – will cut to 2” depth, but not so overpowered that you can use it one-handed if needed.

Just having MAkita or Dewalt or Bosch on it doesn’t always make it a top quality tool, up for anything. There are different levels.

EG.

You can get a pair of Makita drills, usually a combi drill/driver and an impact drill/driver with 2x 2 or even 4 A/h batteries for under £100, or about £120 at the 4a/h

But you can also buy a single Makita combi drill, with a couple of 5 or 5a/h for £320. The difference is these dual kits are usually light duty, and the single more expensive heavy duty, which can encompass greater torque or full metal gear box and metal chuck. The cheaper only get a plastic chuck.

How much you decide to spend depends on how much work you expect to do with it. So if you are going to be using the drill/driver/etc a lot, maybe continuously over the day for several weeks, you’d be far better getting the more expensive one.

Of course picking other bare tools in the range you dont need to use the same criteria of robustness. A simple cordless angle grinder or whatever uses the same batteries/charger. It just really depends on how much work you’re going to subject it to.

I just impulse-bought a Bosch cordless drill with two batteries for like £40 on Amazon’s Prime day.

There’s probably better options but… well, it was forty quid.

Been covered above but if we’re offering screening tips: Just because you have an impact driver doesn’t mean you need to use it for everything sometimes it’s better to use a drill driver or even a hand powered screwdriver

Like everything, it’s a case of learning how to use and control a tool, developing feel and finesse.

I use my impact driver for any screw, but then I’ve practiced and learned the control you need to reign in the capabilities of the tool. They can actually be used without impact if you go gently on an ‘easy screw’.

Much like you don’t get in your car and slam your foot to the floor for every situation, everywhere, all of the time, you can get really nice and fine control with an impact driver if you practise.

The worst sound in the world is someone blasting an impact driver until the screw is buried and still carrying on as the bit cams out of the screw and grinds itself away to a nub 😳

It’s quite satisfying when you can slow a screw down just enough to isolate single clicks on the impact. 🙂
You feather the trigger just as you feather your brakes on a downhill.

But yeah, the torque setting on a combi drill can be handy if you want to be sure you don’t go too far.

Makita 18v black edition impact driver and drill

Supplied with 2ah batteries

As others have said, on occasion, big 5ah batteries are useful. But after I built 2 medium sized sheds in a day using 2ah batteries, the lighter overall weight was appreciated when drilling hundreds of screws

@dyna-ti very true, the best tool in the world also won’t be any good if you don’t use it properly as kayak said.

Those cheap versions aren’t bad though, the Bosch 55 is commonly flung into bundles, has a full metal chuck and is near as damn it the same as my 65 minus the Bluetooth module capability.

Some of the “basic” versions are also the old top or only models for the range, the 120 jigsaw was the only one until the 150 turned up, for most folk 120mm is plenty of capacity.

Oh, and for anyone in the Bosch ecosystem, pro Thursdays is worth a watch, currently 20% off all 18V tools which puts them well below the resellers.

https://www.bosch-professional.com/gb/en/pro-thursdays/

And mind pro deals for bonus extras

https://www.bosch-professional.com/gb/en/pro360/prodeals/