Cordless Drill Question

[Charliey]

I got an 18v Black & Decker Firestorm cordless drill for christmas, but im trying to decide if i want to keep it or not.

the problem with it, is it has a 3 hour charger.

i am thinking of replacing it with a 14.4v DeWalt with a 1 hour charger. Its less powerful, but it will recharge alot faster. The DeWalt is $100 more.

any advice?

im just going to be using it around the house, and for stage work, building sets, etc. nothing really heavy duty, but i want something that can work really hard when i need it to.

[archie]

An idea ... how about keeping the cordless one you got as a gift and also getting a corded Black & Decker for about $40 that'll be ready when you're ready ... and possibly getting a second battery for the cordless B&D.
BTW, between the DeWalt and the cordless B&D, would one hold the charge longer? ... seing that there is such a big dif in recharge time.

[old dog]

I think I read somewhere that DeWalt is a division of Black & Decker. I have the DeWalt 12V W/2 batteries and the quick charger. Love it. Plenty of power. Just remember that more powerfull batteries = more weight = arm strain = more ADVIL. A co-worker let me borrow his 18V drill so I wouldn't have to go to the truck for mine. I used it for about an half hour and went out to get my 12V, much lighter and less bulk. Just my personal observations.

[Charliey]

Yeah, B&D drills are built for home use, or light work, where as DeWalt are made for constant heavy usage. One of the differences that ive read about is that the DeWalt has an all Metal motor, and the B&D has some plastic parts in it.

[morriswindgate]

Get the Dewalt, much heavier construction aand more torque.

[PMich]

A couple of things to note. Don't count out Makita. They make a quality product and seem to be a bit more reasonably priced than DeWalt.

I know several contractors and none of them own anything more than a 14.4V because of weight and/or cost of battery issues. I have a hard time believing that the average user needs an 18V drill. I really think that anything over 12V for the average consumer is overkill.

As far as the B&D/DeWalt relationship is concerned, unless B&D has purchased DeWalt recently then they are separate companies. To be honest, the quality of B&D cordless products has risen sharply in the last 2 to 3 years so they may have purchased DeWalt.

I am pretty sure that most manufacturers produce an array of chargers some of which may give a full charge in 15-30 min.

As a final note, keep in mind versatility issues. A few years ago when I bought my first Makita 9.6V there were other products such as electric staplers, small circular saws, etc. that used the same battery but all came with their own battery and charger. This resulting in me owning four batteries and three chargers. I had more than enough juice to do whatever I wanted to.

[LawyerRon]

For projects around the home, the B&D is fine. Dewalt if for heavy duty use as is Makita and Milwaukee. These last three brands are required for folks who use them on the job day in and day out.

I've got a 15 year old Makita 9.6v Driver/Drill that still works like the day it was new. I still have a corded drill though, as the cordless drills aren't for every job.