After a drill for putting up shelves and general household diy stuff…… Any deals or offers knocking about?

What money are you after spending?

Dewalt 18 volt ones are great. But not cheap. I had a black a decker for many years and it was batteries that eventually failed.

Batteries failed after many years you say…..who wud have thunk it!!

Makita or Dewalt from screwfix

Do not buy cheap ones. For years I bought the large DIY store home branded ones and they were useless beyond words and have been regular sources of frustration with poor battery life and lacking “grunt” for masonry.

A couple of years back I bought a 18V LI-ION batteried DeWalt hammer drill and what the 18V generic would simply not drill through this cuts like butter. The time it’s saved and the neater holes it’s drilled together with the massively better battery life has paid the price difference 3x over in my mind. On top of which you can get spares and replacement batteries etc with minimal fuss. Not saying you should go for DeWalt specifically (I was lucky to have a friend who lent me his identical one and really like it so went for the same).

I got mine on offer from Screwfix at the time.

Depends what you want to do with it.

A bit like saying “I need a bike for riding” 😉

I’ve got a Hitachi li-on battery job, it’s good, light, fast charging which is important for DIY as its not in constant use. The only draw back is that when the battery is on its arse, the drill stops, rather than just gradually starting to slow.

There is a nice makita at £100 from screwfix or one with a bigger battery for £150.

I’ve got a Makita 18V Li-ion one for general handiness and it is absolutely brilliant. Think it was about £160. I also bought a 200pc bit set from Makita too for about £30 which was well worth it.
Only slight fault is that the variable speed trigger is a bit non-variable which can be annoying if you’re trying to slowly screw something fragile in.

think it’s this one, but mines white 8)

Makita or Bosch both the blue ones, and mains ,lots more power,portable battery stuff only if you spend a bit and want to charge it up a lot.

Avoiid dewalt it feels and looks cheap, and unbalanced.

For general home stuff, the Bosch green range is good, and then spending a bit more gets you a (base) Makita.

I use a makita and it’s fantastic.

Had it with a two battery and 100 piece tool kit from B and Q for 99.99 a couple of years back and its still in top condition.

We’ve got the one brakes has pictured. Was well worth the money

Might be worth considering a corded drill if you don’t mind the limiting of mobility, plenty of power for you quids.

I must’ve got the same Dewalt deal at Screwfix as Garage-dweller got.
It’s been ok for me.
We’ve got Makitas at work, the chucks are pooh.
Edit. I’ve got a Bosch mains drill that I’ve had for about 20 years. That’ll do the business if the Dewalt fails. 8)

For the last 6 mths I’ve been using a Milwaukee 18v Lithium with 2x1Ah and 1x4Ah batteries. Seems ok so far. If I had had the money at the time I would of bought the Hitachi DV18DSDL. Metal chuck and the highest torque in its class. Milwaukee and Maura are now using Brushless motor technology but these are quite expensive.

For DIY use some of the best deals are on a trade quality drill selling with just one battery. The Li-Ion batteries last plenty of time and recharge in the time it takes to make a cup of tea and scratch your head (and boggle at the damage you’ve just done to your lovely home)

Makita seem to be the ones most commonly offered with a single battery.

Batteries failed after many years you say…..who wud have thunk it!!

What kills DIY user’s drills is lack of use, even the best quality batteries (in fact especially the best ones) will be killed through long periods of non use.

I have that Makita LXT above. £100 for the kit with loads of bits from Screwfix.

It’s OK. I’m not convinced the chuck is going to last, and it struggles with masonry beyond soft brickwork. I have some curtain rails to put up and it’s not going to happen until I can borrow something with a bit of go.

So depending on need, corded might be the way to go.

For home DIY milwalke stuff is good value and it lasts, also worth looking at Ryobi,,, ive had one for many years now and its still going strong. dewalt, makita are great but very expensive IMOP 🙂

I bought one of these years ago and it’s done me fine for DIY numerous times:
http://www.diy.com/nav/fix/power-tools/drilling-screwdriving/drilling/Performance-Power-Hammer-Drill-710W-12389423?skuId=12910127

Not sure you need to be spending £100+ if it’s for the odd shelf/job.

A cheap one. With a power cord. You are doing DIY. How many holes can you drill in a house? I bought a Black and Decker corded one about 10 years ago. Still going strong.I’ve also got a cheap cordless for lightweight work.

Of course, this being STW the more expensive, niche and over-specc’d the better. 8)

http://www.diy.com/nav/fix/power-tools/drilling-screwdriving/drilling/cordless/Bosch-18v-Li-Combi-Drill-2-Batteries-11227751

cordless hammer drill + 2 Li-ion batteries included (some places only sell it with one)

I have a Makita – bought it from Screwfix.

Great drill but started to have occasional problems with the chuck – which eventually failed completely. Contacted screwfix who gave me a number to call and the drill was picked up from my doorstep the following morning. 48 hours later it was back, cleaned and repaired. Bloody excellent service.

A cheap one. With a power cord. You are doing DIY. How many holes can you drill in a house? I bought a Black and Decker corded one about 10 years ago. Still going strong.I’ve also got a cheap cordless for lightweight work.

Of course, this being STW the more expensive, niche and over-specc’d the better.

😆

I’m keeping out of this one… 8)

£100 Makita from Screwfix – works fine for all DIY activities.

Makita or Bosch both the blue ones, and mains ,lots more power

This +1 but Bosch blue in particular

If you need 2 batteries then this offer is very good: http://www.diy.com/nav/fix/power-tools/drilling-screwdriving/drilling/cordless/Bosch-18v-Li-Combi-Drill-2-Batteries-11227751

(Bosch green with 2x 18V li-ion batteries for £99).

I have the 14V version I picked up for £50 for general drilling and screwdrivering of wooden frames etc (have an SDS for other stuff) and I was amazed by how good it is and I’ve been using it for brickwork, concrete etc. tbh you just need to make sure you have decent drills bits.

I normally go for Bosch blue or Makita stuff and yes it’s not as tough or built to last but for occasional home use then don’t be put of bosch green.

If I was buying another I would probably go for the makita li ion on screwfix (or a bosch blue) for around £150 but my use justifies it.

Avoid nicad and don’t dismiss mains power if you are not going to benefit from battery.

I’ve had two £30 corded drills for my ~3yrs of home renovation. I’d like a cordless, but just know it’ll go wrong. Mains corded drills have much more power for masonry stuff.

Another vote for cheapish corded one with hammer action. Spend a little extra over the cheapest and get a keyless chuck. Your money is much better spent on decent masonry bits, but for what you’re after you shouldn’t need to go beyond the £22 one in screwfix. If you get into renovations in a big way, or do something like screwing plasterboard or decking where you are doing loads of screws at one time and moving around as you work, then cordless is worth it’s weight in gold, but not for putting up the shelves and picture rails.

I’ve got this one (and about 5 others). Been brilliant so far and it’s had a good use building the workshop.

My latest purchase was this one, but a bit beefy for normal DIY: