18V vs. 14V Tools

[jseklund]

I was going to post this on another thread, but didn't want to hijack the thread. My question is this- in a lot of the threads on here I've noticed that when people buy cordless tools they seem adverse towards buying 18V batteries. I know the 18V battery tools cost more and are heavier, but...they last longer and have more power!!! Maybe it's just me, but I'm a power guy....

I know a lot of us will agree that you should buy the best tool you can afford when you buy. My logic has always been that if I save $50 today and get a lesser too- I will wind up spending $200-300 all over again when I come across an instance where I need more power or a special feature that the lesser tool won't do and I have to buy the "better" item.

So, what is your logic when you buy cordless tools?

[Hellrazor]

I have all 18v drills at home, but a lot of people complain about the weight. My rule is: Buy the tool you want, not the tool everyone else wants you to buy. You have the live with the choice.

[jackellis]

I'm a weekend warrior and am doing quite well using some old, beat up 9.6V Makita cordless drills with half dead batteries. Picked 'em up for about $15 apiece. If I really needed power, I'd use a corded drill.

Mike's right. Get what you want.

[RodKirby]

IMHO (and obviously based on my needs) -

I wonder how many on this forum, NEED the power to drive 3" screws into hardwood. The only time I drive a screw without a pilot hole is into pine - and I only do that where I'm not too concerned about precision.

I have avoided 18V drills (and 12V), simply because of the weight, (I'm little & fat!).

14.4V Li-ion batteries have answered my prayers

ALL the power I could want, torque up the wazoo, high speed, fast charge, virtually no discharge just sitting - and SO light weight.

I no longer have any Ni-xxx powered tools.

[TheRic]

I have used 9.6V, 12V, 14.4V, and 18V. I'm basically a weekend warrior, on the heavy side.
Generally speaking.....

Less voltage: Lighter the tool/motor/battery, less power, battery will last longer (longer power, not longer life), cheaper $$, smaller size, less weight.

More voltage: Opposite of the above (duh).

Now that the obvious is spelled out.

It come down to how / what you use it for. If you only use it to hang a picture, tighten a screw, put kids toys together, and once a year drive 30 screws in 1 day, and every 3 years spend a weekend driving 100, 3" screws in hard wood then a 9.6V is good enough.

If you put decks in for a living, build houses, regularly drive 100+ screws a day then the 18V is what you need.

I currently have a Ridgid 18V set. I am giving it serious thought to getting a smaller drill/driver for the smaller jobs. The bigger items are TOO big, heavy, powerful at times. At times I which I had a 12V set (or smaller), other times I'm glad I have the 18V set.

[sweensdv]

"...................I know the 18V battery tools cost more and are heavier, but...they last longer..............."

Run time yes but a 14.4V tool itself shouldn't have any less of a life expectancy than an 18V. I have a 9.6V DeWalt drill thats been around so long I can't remember when I bought it.

[Thalermade]

My logic was actually based in my projected needs. At first I thought I only needed to replace my 14.4 drill/driver after I dopped it off the ladder during my basement finishing a couple years.

So I thought about any possible needs and I am glad I did. My MIL was planning on moving and I knew I would be doing repair work up there (3 1/2 hrs away). I do the maintenance on my Moms house (1/2 hr away). It is nice to be able to pack up the tools I need in one carry bag. The only outlet I need is for the charger.
At the time the Bosch 18v set had a price reduction, and also included a mail away for the jig saw (and being able to do a price match provided an additional discount that tipped the scale for me). I did invest in a 3rd battery.

May have been more money up front, but certainly worked out very well in the end.

Russ

[jAngiel]

I have the 18v ryobi and it has done everything I needed. BUT it is a little heavy for doing small chores in the house so the one I reallllly want is the little 10.8 lithium one from bosch. From what I've read it should handle about 80% of what I need a drill/driver for around the house. I agree with others, get what you want....

[jseklund]

"...................I know the 18V battery tools cost more and are heavier, but...they last longer..............."

Run time yes but a 14.4V tool itself shouldn't have any less of a life expectancy than an 18V. I have a 9.6V DeWalt drill thats been around so long I can't remember when I bought it.

Yes, I meant that they have a longer run time. However, maybe they don't if you are using them for lighter duty "stuff". Since lighter duty tools will draw less power than a heavy duty tool when it comes to the lighter work. Under heavy work, I'd assume the heavy power drain of a heavier job would kill a small battery FAST.

I just find this interesting....and I didn't mean to limit it to drills. Even things like a sawsall have been recommended in the 14V version...

[LinuxRandal]

Weekend warrior

Chiming in

I have and use a couple of Makita 9.6 old style, for anything light, or where I will need them to be light. Switch to a corded for anything big (boring a bunch of holes for plumbing/electrical runs, drilling out stripped screws etc). Then have used 18v when building decks, working around new construction with no electrical yet. Each has their purpose in my book, and not having to use a heavy tool, where it will get dropped, or a light tool, where you will kill the battery with one drilling, has greatly extended their lives for me.

[HarmsWay]

I'll continue buying 12 volt drills because so far lack of torque hasn't been an issue. It's lighter, cheaper, better for cramped quarters work and probably more likely to survive a fall when dropped (I've managed to drop mine many times). There are fewer 12v drills now than there were a few years ago, so I may be forced to get a 14v one or when the lithium ion drills get more affordable I may try one of those. But something about the weight of my Dewalt 12v is about as heavy a drill as I want to hang on my tool belt.

[BigguyZ]

If a lower voltage drill won't really have a drastic impact on the power, could I go with something like this for drilling through joists/ studs when running electrical?

http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-PS10-2-L...7?ie=UTF8&s=hi

[HarmsWay]

The driver is able to get enough torque from 10 volts by gearing it down a lot. I would not expect it to spin fast enough to be very good at drilling. It's about the same speed as the low setting on a 2 range drill. Bosch says the drill setting is for small bore holes.

[Uncle Hook]

I recently bought a new Milwaulkee 14.4 volt cordless drill and impact driver and I am delighted with my choice. The weight, balance and feel of the tools I looked at were big factors to me in my buying decision. The 18 volt drills I looked at seemed too heavy and bulky. I do not own an 18 volt drill.

I own a 9.6 volt Dewalt and I am disappointed with it, as it is too underpowered and runs out of juice too fast.

One of the woodworking magazines recently recommended 12 volt drills as being adequate for most wodworking tasks. This makes sense to me. The advantage is gained in having better contol with a smaller and lighter weight tool.

I own a 14.4 black & decker firestorm drill, circular saw and recipricating saw. They all use the same battery pack. The circular saw is terrible (drains the battery in a hurry), the recipricating saw works ok, and I have been pretty pleased with the drill. I would reluctant to buy another cordless circular saw of any power.

[sbs]

I know a lot of us will agree that you should buy the best tool you can afford when you buy. My logic has always been that if I save $50 today and get a lesser too- I will wind up spending $200-300 all over again when I come across an instance where I need more power or a special feature that the lesser tool won't do and I have to buy the "better" item.

By the same logic we should all be using $5k table saws and driving Rolls Royces.

I buy the cheapest tool that meets my expected needs. Once in a while my needs grow unexpectedly, or the tool I bought turns out to fall short of expectations, and I need to upgrade, but I still spend a whole lot less than if I bought a Rolls Royce everything.

I have a 6V cordless drill/driver that does most of what I need around the house. For real drilling I usa a corded drill and a floor drill press.

A few years ago I bought some cordless drills for my workplace. I looked at what was available in a certain price range, and chose to go with lower-voltage drills from a higher-quality manufacturer.