Choosing a drill

[propertydev83]

I'm looking for a little help with deciding which drill to purchase. At the moment I'm looking at the following:

Ryobi:
EID-750RS - 750w - 2800 rpm
EID-1100RS - 1100w - 1200 / 3200 rpm

Bosch:
PSB 750 RCE - 750w - 3000 rpm

Einhell:
RT-ID105 - 1050w - 1100 / 3000 rpm

Draper:
45808 Expert - 1050w - 1100 / 3000 rpm

Also, from the advice of my father, I've been looking at SDS drills too, for the advantage of having the additional chisel function which would be useful for channeling masonry for conduit, and other purposes...

Einhell:
RT-RH32 - 1250w - 800 rpm - Safety Chuck

GMC:
920405 MRHD1500 - 1500w - 270-780 rpm - Safety Chuck
920152 CRHD950CF - 950w - 1000 rpm - Safety Chuck

Bosch:
PBH 2000 - 2300 rpm

Hitachi:
DH24PB3 - 800w - 1050 rpm

I'd be interested in any opinions of those drills, or general advice and recommendations. Thanks.

 

[big-all]

trade or diy ??

 

[propertydev83]

Trade really, I guess. It will be used while working on homes that need total refurb, rather than just the odd job now and then.

It will be getting a lot of regular usage, so I was looking at those with a more powerful motor and so should also have a more robust build, as I want something that's not going to wear out quickly or be constantly pushed to its limit. Obviously the brand matters a lot too but I don't have experience with most of those brands.

 

[alumni]

Personally, i'd push the boat out and go battery. You are limiting yourself with cabled units. On refurbs, it may be you have no power, then what?

With battery, worst case scenario you could get a converter and recharge from the van.

If you really want cabled. Could be wiser to go for 110v units. That way, if you end up on a site where 240v not allowed, you're covered.

 

[propertydev83]

Good points. Although it won't be a problem with corded right now, in the future it could very well be.

 

[big-all]

you need to look a trade tools like bosch blue ,makita. dewalt .hitachi

ryobi and bosh green are diy , light to medium trade

and as said above battery

 

[alumni]

Good points. Although it won't be a problem with corded right now, in the future it could very well be.

It really would be a better investment to go 'upmarket' and battery. Corded can be so restrictive. Once you've done it, you'll wonder how you ever coped.

 

[propertydev83]

Judging by what I've seen so far, I'd be looking at more than double the price to go SDS cordless. This is the cheapest I've found so far:

£200 - Hitachi DH24DVC

I'm prepared to go the extra cost though for a better long-term investment on such a fundamental tool.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Trade really, I guess. It will be used while working on homes that need total refurb, rather than just the odd job now and then.

It will be getting a lot of regular usage, so I was looking at those with a more powerful motor and so should also have a more robust build, as I want something that's not going to wear out quickly or be constantly pushed to its limit.

I'd avoid the impact drills completely - they drill a lot more slowly into masonry than an SDS does and as your father has surmised they won't do chiselling/chasing. Oddly, power isn't everything in SDS drills - I have a 3kg class machine which has a "paltry" 750 watt motor and it drills faster than any impact drill I've ever used, including some of the 1000 watt monsters - instead look for impact energy, expressed in joules (J). I'd also forget about going for a "non-industrial" brand such as GMC, Draper or green Bosch (blue Bosch are the industrial ones) - they simply don't last and when they break you often can't get spares. Even if you are used to them big SDS drills like the Einhell RT-RH32 are very heavy on the shoulders - too heavy, in fact, for the majority of drilling you'll ever do. So I'm actually rejecting most of the selections you've made.....

What I'd suggest instead is to look for what is callled a 2kg class 3-function SDS drill. In that class there are some excellent tools like:

Bosch GBH2400

and

Makita HR2470

At around £100 I'd recommend either (I've used the Makitas frequently on site; I own that Bosch and my previous blue Bosch did more than 20 years). I'd also suggest getting a reasonable quality cordless drill/driver to drive screws as SDS drills are a bit bulky and heavy for that

 

[propertydev83]

Thanks for the suggestions. In line with what big-all posted too, I'm going to avoid the non-industrial and only look at the trade brands. Those drills are good for the price, but what about if going for cordless?

I do like the additional specific screwdriver functionality of some drills, but to be honest, any old cheap drill can do that and I have one which should be fine for that simple task and easier than using these bulky heavier duty tools. More important is the chiselling, hammer and rotary functions.

I've worked with a lot of heavy tools before (used to be self-employed landscaper), and I know the strain that it brings and would definitely appreciate having something lighter as you suggested.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Thanks for the suggestions. In line with what big-all posted too, I'm going to avoid the non-industrial and only look at the trade brands. Those drills are good for the price, but what about if going for cordless?

I also have and regularly use a Makita BHR202 18 volt cordless SDS drill. The choice for me was easy because I decided a while back to standardise on Makita 18 volt lithium kit.

Pros: uses existing batteries (so could be bought bare, a major cost saving), similar impact strength to a smaller corded SDS drill (1.9J) - makes it powerful enough to do most of the tasks I'd do with a 2kg corded drill, similar size and weight to equivalent corded SDS drill, freedom from cables and transformer (pick-up a 3KVA transformer and you'll get my drift).

Cons: battery life isn't tremendous, especially if chiselling (yes it can do light chiselling).

I've had a Bosch 24 volt unit in the past - very heavy and expensive but at one time the only game in town - the new generation of lightweight cordless tools is way better IMHO. Despite this I still need a corded tool for jobs where I'll be chiselling for half an hour or more or where I'll have to drill 200 holes to put a chemical dpm in. A corded tool can also drive smaller core drills (at a pinch), larger auger bits (for mortising, beam drilling, etc) and mix screed if required - so long as you buy a chuck for it. Given the choice I'd still go corded first, then cordless.

 

[propertydev83]

The only downside of going for cordless in my mind has been the battery life, and extra expense for the same performance.

I don't know whether I should consider corded now, and purchase cordless at a later date in addition. That way I have both available depending on the circumstances, and because I don't believe I will have a need for a cordless drill until the more distant future (at which point making another drill purchase won't be so damaging to my funds anyway).

With this in mind it surely would be better to get 110V and a transformer when going for the corded, so that it will still always be suitable in the future too if 240V is ever not an option.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

With this in mind it surely would be better to get 110V and a transformer when going for the corded, so that it will still always be suitable in the future too if 240V is ever not an option.

I'd agree with you, there. 110 volt used to be optional; more and more it's becoming a requirement because the insurers insist on it. If you work on somebody else's job then they'll normally supply the transformer. Of course if you are working on your own job you'll have to carry the cost of the transformer (and I'd suggest at least one 15 metre extension cable)

 

[propertydev83]

When working on my own project indoors, will any old 110v transformer be suitable? (As opposed to purchasing the big heavy expensive ones).

 

[Monkeh]

When working on my own project indoors, will any old 110v transformer be suitable? (As opposed to purchasing the big heavy expensive ones).

Unless you want molten copper on your floor, big heavy and expensive is the only way to go for transformers. Remember they're nothing more than a large chunk of iron with lots of copper wrapped around it. They cost and there's no avoiding it. They also don't fail if you treat them decently, so you only have to buy them once.

If you buy one of these, it's the only one you'll ever need: http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/SDTR3000slash2.html

You can go a step smaller for simple drills though.