A Guide to Cordless Drills

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By Martina Mercer

Nothing gives a man, or perhaps a woman for that matter in an era of sexual equality, a better feeling that to have power tools in hand and cordless drills would top most lists for sheer excitement, making any DIY job an enjoyable experience. Few would turn their nose up at receiving a cordless drill as a Christmas or birthday present.

In performance levels, cordless drills are no different to a corded drill – unless you forget to charge the rechargeable battery – whether you are actually drilling or requiring the screwdriver facility that some cordless drills boast. But what they do provide is much more flexibility in terms of where you can use them, quite handy whether you are a novice using it for jobs around the house or a professional using it on a daily basis.

Knowing what to do with a cordless drill is crucial of course, but with three types of cordless drill – the Impact Driver, the Drill Driver and the Combi Drill – it is even more essential to know which one is right for your requirements of the power tool. Do you need a multi-purpose drill or are you looking for one to drill and screw into everyday surfaces.

Impact driver cordless drills, such as those produced by DeWalt, Makita and Bosch amongst many other manufacturers, are designed to generate high turning power (high torque if you are au fait with the technical terms) of the drill and a high impact of force (as the name might suggest) to help drive large screws into tough metal and wood surfaces without any problems, perhaps suiting the more professional of us despite being the cheapest of the variety of drills.

Usual the high turning power is down to the drill work from a higher voltage battery, the top end being a drill that is capable of 1000rpm (revolutions per minute) although 800rpm is more typical on good quality drills. Low-end or cheaper drills may be capable of only 300rpm.

Drill driver cordless drills serve two purposes, one being to act as the drill you might expect it to – to put holes into materials. But products, such as those on offer from Worx, DeWalt and Bosch, also feature a driving function to enable it to act as a screwdriver and tighten and loosen screws, making it more of an all-rounder and ideal for those looking for a drill capable of providing the solution to a number of scenarios or DIY problems.

Combi drill cordless drills, such as those produced by DeWalt, Makita and Hitachi, also offer two options if required, one being to act like an impact driver cordless drill and hammer drill holes into the most solid of materials like walls, metals and wood and the other to act as a traditional drill and screwdriver on more ‘softer’ surfaces. The downside from a purchasing point-of-view, however, is that the combi drill cordless drills are the most expensive of the trio of varieties with a high-end price in excess of £500.

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