I'm looking at buying a corded drill or two. Maybe two, because I
want a regular 3/8" drill for misc around the house jobs, but I think
I also need a 1/2" for drilling 1" holes in my garage studs for the
electrical work I'm doing.
I bought a Skil 3/8" 4.5amp VSR, and was surprised to find it would
not drill my 1" auger bit though my 2x4 pine studs. So I bought a 6
amp 3/8" DeWalt, and was surprised to find it would not do it either
(but did better than the Skil).
So now I'm thinking if that 6 amp DeWalt won't do it, no 3/8" is going
to do it. (The bit is made for a 3/8" drive though).
I'm on a tight budget, so I am looking at the low end of stuff. I'm
thinking about keeping the Skil 3/8" and getting a 1/2" drive DeWalt
on Ebay for around $50. Pretty much any 1/2" DeWalt should drive this
bit, right?
I tought about taking the Skil back and getting a 3/8" DeWalt, too, I
can find a 5.4 amp new DeWalt for less than $50 I think if I look hard
on the net. But I was wondering why all the DeWalts and other more
professional brands have a pistol style drip, while my Skil drill and
many Black & Deckers and similar have more of a T-style case. I
prefer this T-style, it feels better in my hand and it feels like I
have more control of the dril. But am I missing something, is having
the grip farther away, at the very back of the drill, somehow
beneficial?
Thanks for your input.
-Ryan
most electricians I have known, myself included, used (long time ago) a
right angle Milwaukee with a 3/4" auger bit. if you are passing more
wires than will fit in 3/4" then drill 2 holes. the posts that suggest
renting one are the way I would go as i don't have use for a door stop
the rest of the time. they are way too heavy for ordinary use and will
spin you around in a half a second if you hit a nail or knot, so be careful.
drilling too large of a hole can weaken the 2x4 and can place the wire
too close to the surface leading to possible damage by a screw or nail.
please don't start the usual NEC code thread here because nobody will
listen.
BRuce
Ryan wrote:
> I'm looking at buying a corded drill or two. Maybe two, because I
> want a regular 3/8" drill for misc around the house jobs, but I think
> I also need a 1/2" for drilling 1" holes in my garage studs for the
> electrical work I'm doing.
>
> I bought a Skil 3/8" 4.5amp VSR, and was surprised to find it would
> not drill my 1" auger bit though my 2x4 pine studs. So I bought a 6
> amp 3/8" DeWalt, and was surprised to find it would not do it either
> (but did better than the Skil).
>
> So now I'm thinking if that 6 amp DeWalt won't do it, no 3/8" is going
> to do it. (The bit is made for a 3/8" drive though).
>
> I'm on a tight budget, so I am looking at the low end of stuff. I'm
> thinking about keeping the Skil 3/8" and getting a 1/2" drive DeWalt
> on Ebay for around $50. Pretty much any 1/2" DeWalt should drive this
> bit, right?
>
> I tought about taking the Skil back and getting a 3/8" DeWalt, too, I
> can find a 5.4 amp new DeWalt for less than $50 I think if I look hard
> on the net. But I was wondering why all the DeWalts and other more
> professional brands have a pistol style drip, while my Skil drill and
> many Black & Deckers and similar have more of a T-style case. I
> prefer this T-style, it feels better in my hand and it feels like I
> have more control of the dril. But am I missing something, is having
> the grip farther away, at the very back of the drill, somehow
> beneficial?
>
> Thanks for your input.
> -Ryan
--
---
BRuce
Ryan wrote:
> I'm looking at buying a corded drill or two. Maybe two, because I
> want a regular 3/8" drill for misc around the house jobs, but I think
> I also need a 1/2" for drilling 1" holes in my garage studs for the
> electrical work I'm doing.
I'm no expert, so all I can do is share my personal experience. I had a
1/2" Crapsman drill that Dad bought me as a wedding present. It weighed
about, well, I have no idea, but it was quite heavy and unwieldy.
It was also seriously anemic. Driving a 2.5" auger bit to drill holes in
the ground for planting bulbs, the motor would bog down and start to smell
smokey even at a very low speed. The chuck didn't grab very well, and what
would usually happen was that the bit would get stuck, and the drill would
start spinning around the bit, chewing it up. I had to cut the end off and
then grind some flat spots on it to make it a hex shank, which helped with
the spinning, but the motor kept bogging down.
So one day when I had a ton of those stupid holes to drill for SWMBO, and on
one of those rare occasions when I had some money in my pocket, I went to,
yes, Sears, and bought a 7 amp 1/2" Crapsman drill for somewhere in the
neighborhood of $130. Variable speed, and I think the top side is only 800
RPM due to the serious reduction gearing.
The new one is less than 1/3 the size of the old. It's smaller and lighter
than Dad's 3/8" drill. It has a 1/2" Jacobs chuck that can grab bits down
to guitar string size, and it has copious amounts of Tim Taylor power.
It was like I put a supercharged V-8 big block Chevy behind that bulb auger.
It was taking me five minutes to coax the old drill to bore one hole. With
the new one, I drilled about 50 holes in five minutes. I went nuts and
bored holes all over the yard. SWMBO thought we had gopher problems.
So what I'm saying is that this thing is powerful as hell, and yet it's
lighter than any 3/8" drill I've ever used. It's plenty agile enough to be
a daily bit twister, and so perhaps you could buy something like this
instead of two drills.
The only down side is that it has way, way, way too much torque for driving
screws. DAMHIKT.
--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan <[email protected]>
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
Confirmed post number: 17747 Approximate word count: 532410
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/
Ryan wrote:
> I'm looking at buying a corded drill or two. Maybe two, because I
> want a regular 3/8" drill for misc around the house jobs, but I think
> I also need a 1/2" for drilling 1" holes in my garage studs for the
> electrical work I'm doing.
With a limited budget you may want to consider renting a Milwaukee
"Hole-Hog" and drill the electrical runs. A four hour rental should run
under $15.00.
--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA
Your major problem is trying to use an auger bit. Go to a wood boring
bit (Long shaft, flat blade..), you will get through there with no
problem using a 3/8" drill.
The handle position is up to you, the pistol grip seems more natural
to me from years of using that style. I have Craftsman drills
(despite some bad mouthing of that brand here, I have never had any
problem with the better grade ones).
Woodchip
[email protected] (Ryan) wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> I'm looking at buying a corded drill or two. Maybe two, because I
> want a regular 3/8" drill for misc around the house jobs, but I think
> I also need a 1/2" for drilling 1" holes in my garage studs for the
> electrical work I'm doing.
>
> I bought a Skil 3/8" 4.5amp VSR, and was surprised to find it would
> not drill my 1" auger bit though my 2x4 pine studs. So I bought a 6
> amp 3/8" DeWalt, and was surprised to find it would not do it either
> (but did better than the Skil).
>
> So now I'm thinking if that 6 amp DeWalt won't do it, no 3/8" is going
> to do it. (The bit is made for a 3/8" drive though).
>
> I'm on a tight budget, so I am looking at the low end of stuff. I'm
> thinking about keeping the Skil 3/8" and getting a 1/2" drive DeWalt
> on Ebay for around $50. Pretty much any 1/2" DeWalt should drive this
> bit, right?
>
> I tought about taking the Skil back and getting a 3/8" DeWalt, too, I
> can find a 5.4 amp new DeWalt for less than $50 I think if I look hard
> on the net. But I was wondering why all the DeWalts and other more
> professional brands have a pistol style drip, while my Skil drill and
> many Black & Deckers and similar have more of a T-style case. I
> prefer this T-style, it feels better in my hand and it feels like I
> have more control of the dril. But am I missing something, is having
> the grip farther away, at the very back of the drill, somehow
> beneficial?
>
> Thanks for your input.
> -Ryan
On 15 Sep 2003 07:54:09 -0700, [email protected] (Ryan) wrote:
>I'm looking at buying a corded drill or two. Maybe two, because I
>want a regular 3/8" drill for misc around the house jobs, but I think
>I also need a 1/2" for drilling 1" holes in my garage studs for the
>electrical work I'm doing.
>
>I bought a Skil 3/8" 4.5amp VSR, and was surprised to find it would
>not drill my 1" auger bit though my 2x4 pine studs. So I bought a 6
>amp 3/8" DeWalt, and was surprised to find it would not do it either
>(but did better than the Skil).
>
>So now I'm thinking if that 6 amp DeWalt won't do it, no 3/8" is going
>to do it. (The bit is made for a 3/8" drive though).
>
>I'm on a tight budget, so I am looking at the low end of stuff. I'm
>thinking about keeping the Skil 3/8" and getting a 1/2" drive DeWalt
>on Ebay for around $50. Pretty much any 1/2" DeWalt should drive this
>bit, right?
>
>I tought about taking the Skil back and getting a 3/8" DeWalt, too, I
>can find a 5.4 amp new DeWalt for less than $50 I think if I look hard
>on the net. But I was wondering why all the DeWalts and other more
>professional brands have a pistol style drip, while my Skil drill and
>many Black & Deckers and similar have more of a T-style case. I
>prefer this T-style, it feels better in my hand and it feels like I
>have more control of the dril. But am I missing something, is having
>the grip farther away, at the very back of the drill, somehow
>beneficial?
>
>Thanks for your input.
>-Ryan
I am not personally familiar with any of the 3/8" drills that you have referred
to, but would like to comment on bit type. I have wired several houses with my
old Makita 3/8" drill and discovered that the price of an auger bit is worth
every penny. The only time I resort to a 1/2" drill is when I am pushing my 18"
x 1" auger through joist work. The added power of the 1/2" drill helps when you
have longer distances to go through. My 1/2" is also an old Makita.
Bill Waller
New Eagle, PA
[email protected]
[email protected] (Ryan) wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> I'm looking at buying a corded drill or two. Maybe two, because I
> want a regular 3/8" drill for misc around the house jobs, but I think
> I also need a 1/2" for drilling 1" holes in my garage studs for the
> electrical work I'm doing.
I recently did the same thing you want to do. I was drilling 1" holes
in 30 year old, and brand new studs. I also had a problem with
drilling using my craftsman 3/8 drill. I bought a new bit and cut
through the wood like it was soft cheese. Did you try a new bit? I
like the spade bit style rather than the auger style.
"Ryan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
Snip
>
> I'm on a tight budget, so I am looking at the low end of stuff. I'm
> thinking about keeping the Skil 3/8" and getting a 1/2" drive DeWalt
> on Ebay for around $50. Pretty much any 1/2" DeWalt should drive this
> bit, right?
Consider renting a 1/2" drill for this job.
>
> I tought about taking the Skil back and getting a 3/8" DeWalt, too, I
> can find a 5.4 amp new DeWalt for less than $50 I think if I look hard
> on the net. But I was wondering why all the DeWalts and other more
> professional brands have a pistol style drip, while my Skil drill and
> many Black & Deckers and similar have more of a T-style case.
I think you would be happier in the long run with the DeWalt over the Skil
in this instance.
You are mostly going to fint the pistol grip on the better corded drills.
You will find mostly the T handle on the cordless models.