Best Cordless Drill

I just learned that Tim Ferriss’ new book is available for pre-order on Amazon.  It’s called The 4-Hour Chef and you can read his post about the book here.  You may be wondering why I’m posting about this book on a cordless tool blog.  Well, I’m a big fan of Tim Ferriss.  Even so I wouldn’t write about the book here if it was just a cookbook.  The book is really about how to learn any skill effectively.  Cooking is the vehicle Tim uses to teach learning skills.  I’m sure this book will be great just like Tim’s last two books.

I have come up with at least one idea for a DIY Christmas gift for my son.  As I previously mentioned I made my son a “cubby house” last year.  We had some cardboard tubes from carpet rolls and set them up for him to run trains down those tubes.  He loved it.  I guess he could do this anywhere and not just in a cubby house, but I do think it’s more fun for him to climb up in the cubby house and look out the porthole, then run his train down the tube.  At least that’s the way I see it and I need to justify building that cubby house.

That gave me the idea to install some transparent tubes in the house.  Ideally these would twist and turn in all sorts of cool patterns, entering on one level and exiting on another.  I reality, I’m not sure what material is going to allow me to accomplish that.  I’m figuring I can get transparent rigid pipe, which won’t allow the types of spirals and turns I want.  I know I can get a flexible transparent tube from Lowe’s.  The problem with the tubing I know about is I don’t think the bottom will be uniform enough to allow a toy car or train to run well over it.  If the toys get stuck in the tubing that will just be annoying.  Although, perhaps if the tubing is flexible enough, I could flatten out the bottom by attaching it to a strip of wood?

As you can tell, this project is still in the brainstorming phase.  There’s also the problem of how to attach the tubes/pipes to the cubby house.  Right now I’m thinking clamps will be the way to go.

I’m still open to suggestions, so post ‘em below.

Saws are an indispensable tool for light construction.  There’s no doubt about that.  This site is about cordless drills, namely finding the best cordless drill.  But I have to admit that choice seems easy compared to deciding which saw to take with you to a job.

When selecting a drill you usually don’t have to obsess over which type of drill you’re going to take.  That’s usually clear.  But with saws you first have to decide on a circular, table or miter saw, then electric or cordless, then which specific model you want.  We’ve had cordless circular saws for quite a while now, but I think it’s only recently that batteries have gotten good enough to make them a viable choice for regular use.

Of course, the main question is portability versus versatility.  The electric vs. battery question is straight forward.  How much power do you need?  Is there electricity at the job site.  With today’s batteries there are several drills out that will cut 2×4′s easily.  So you can leave the extension cord behind.  Keep in mind that if you have a lot of cutting to do, you’ll probably need to chard the batteries.  But you can do this with a power inverter in your truck instead of having to take generator along.

As for versatility.  I’ve seen people that are pretty handy with a circular saw.  For me, if I need a cut that’s “right on” I’d rather have a table saw.  They are much bulkier, but they’re more exact no matter who you are.  And then there’s the miter saw.  They’re good at cutting any kind of angle you can imagine.  I’ve never seen anyone imitate a miter saw with a circular saw.  If you have, I’d like to hear about it.  Hopefully you know what you’re getting into before you head out to the job site.  Although I’m sure there are some stories out there of people going to help someone with a job that a circular saw could easily handle and then they’re asked to do trim.  But apart from that, you probably know if you need a miter saw.  And there are cordless miter saws now.

I’m just trying to get the discussion started here.  Mostly I’m wondering what you guys take with you when you don’t know what you’re getting to.  And do you have any tips for handling situations you’re not exactly prepare for.  Tell us in the comments.

Also, you can read more about the different types of circular saws at the Wikipedia page for them.

It’s getting close to that time of year, the best time of the year , and I’ve started to think about what I can make my son for Christmas.  Last year I made him a “cubby house.”  It’s 3 levels, made of plywood, and mostly covered in carpet.  He used it some last year, but it’s the kind of thing you use in the winter when you can’t go outside.  We’ll see how much he uses it this winter.

I have mixed feelings about the project.  It takes up a lot of room in our basement and I felt like he didn’t use it that much.  On the other hand, we’ve already had some good times in it and I think there are more good times to come.  And I’m proud that I made it for him.

So what to make this year?  Someone showed me this cool video of an 8x8x8 LED cube.  That’s 512 LEDs hooked up to a controller that runs various programs to switch the LEDs on and off.  Check out the video at the link.  It’s much cooler than it sounds in text.  But still, I’m not sure how much use my 3 year old would get out of it.  I’ve thought about some modifications to make it interactive.  Perhaps he could push a button and it would show a character he likes and play an audio clip from that character.

I want it to be something he has fun with as well as inspires him.  Anyone have any ideas?

It’s time to start finding gifts for everyone on your list.  I know it can be tough to find gifts for some people, especially if you know what their hobbies are, but you yourself know little about those hobbies.

If you’re in this situation with someone who likes cordless drills, then I’m here to help.

$10

Makita Shorty 3-1/8-Inch Bit Tip Holder with 12-Bit Tip Assortment

This bit tip holder is as handy as a pocket on a shirt.  It allows you to quickly change bits and a magnet holds them in place.  The short size means you’re less likely to have to remove it because you can’t fit into a tight spot.

$25

Dewalt 14-Piece Cobalt Pilot Point Twist Drill Bit

Drill bits are always wearing out.  That’s why it pays to get a good quality set.  If you do your research you’ll find that cobalt is the way to go for general purpose.  Get this set and they’ll last for a long time.

Father’s Day is fast approaching (June 20th in 2010) and if you haven’t figured out what to get your dad yet you should get cracking. If you think your dad might enjoy a new cordless drill, I’ll show you the best in each category. If your dad already has a good cordless drill there are some great accessories he should enjoy.

Around $75

This is what most people will be looking to spend on a drill for a Father’s Day gift.  You may think you can’t get a quality cordless drill at this price point, but Hitachi makes just such a creature.  The Hitachi 12V Ni-Cad Cordless Drill is lightweight but powerful enough for most jobs around the house.  It also comes with a light and bit set, making it a great gift for dear ol’ dad.

Under $200

Many of the great cordless drills you’ve seen on TV and in the hands of contractors live in this space because manufacturers want to come in under $200 with their most popular drills.  If you want to get your dad a top-of-the-line cordless drill, this is where you should look.  We’ve compared all of the top brands and the best one to get your dad is the Makita 18V Li-ion Compact Cordless.  This drill also happens to be our choice (read here to find out why we chose this drill) for the best overall 18V drill.

Drills for smaller budgets

If you’re on a tight budget and your dad doesn’t currently have a cordless drill it is possible to pick one up cheap.  We have two recommendations on our cheap cordless drill page and the Ryobi there is a great choice.  But you’ll want to check your local brick and mortar stores to see what deals they have.  Many times retailers use decent but cheap drills as loss leaders to get you in the store.

Accessories

One of the most handy accessories for a cordless drill is a bit set holder.  This particular set from Makita has a magnet so the bits are held securely, but you can change them out quickly without loosening then tightening the chuck.

But the holder also has a sleeve you can pull down over a screw to hold it steady and on the bit while you get the screw started.  This saves time and frustration.  And the set can be had for around $12, making it an affordable gift.  Check out the Makita Shorty 3-1/8-Inch Bit Tip Holder with 12 Bits at Amazon.

I’ve been through many sets of cheap drill bits and learned it pays to get a set of GOOD bits.  Black oxide/HSS (High Speed Steel) is decent stuff and TiN (titanium nitride) is an improvement over that, but the best drill bits are cobalt.  Dewalt makes a good set for under $20.  Check out the Dewalt 14 Piece Cobalt Drill Bit Set at Amazon.

This is one that tends to confuse people, so I decided to address it early on.

A few years ago, before Lithium-ion batteries became prevalent, most power tools used either a Nickel-metal hydride battery (NiMH) or a Nickel-cadmium battery(NiCd).  There are still many power tools (and many other devices) that use one of these two batteries.  And the characteristics of these batteries differ enough that it’s useful to know their differences.

The biggest difference between a NiMH and NiCd is that NiCd batteries have a memory affect.  If you consistently drain a NiCd battery to 50% and recharge, then the battery will “remember”  that point and will suffer a voltage drop there in subsequent cycles.  You can avoid this by completely discharging the batter every so often.  Note: you don’t need to do this every cycle.  Once every 5 to 10 cycles is enough.

One point in favor of NiCd’s is they have a lower self-discharge rate.  This is how much the batter depletes itself when not in use.  NiMH’s are about 30%/month and NiCd’s are about 20%/month.  NiCd’s also have a more constant voltage of about 1.2V per cell.  NiMH’s start around 1.4V, quickly drop to 1.25V, then drop to .8 to 1.0V around 20% capacity.  For comparison, an alkaline battery starts at 1.5V and slowly falls to 1V over the life of the battery.

NiCd’s don’t perform well when they get hot, so if you have one you want to keep it cool.  But NiCd’s can have a higher discharge rate, meaning you can draw a lot of power from them very quickly (though NiMH’s perform fairly well too).

We will probably see NiCd’s fade from use.  The cadmium is bad for the environment and the cost of NiMH batteries are falling.  So for most uses, the NiMH will be the economical choice.  If you need a battery with low self-discharge lithium-ion will be the way to go.