Drill Guide: Powerful and For Different MaterialsTo many DIY lovers, their power drill is their most treasured possession. This little (or not so little) piece of kit opens up new vistas for home improvement and craftsmanship. It lets you work with wood, plastics and metals, and provides a handy tool when repairs need to be made. In short, drills make life that little bit easier, and here’s how to buy the right one for your needs.
Drills have been in existence for thousands of years, but the power drill is a relatively recent invention. The very first electric power drill was patented in Australia in 1889, followed by the first mobile power drill a few years later in Germany, then the first Black & Decker drill in 1917. Nowadays, you can purchase cordless and cabled drills, drivers, combis, SDS drills, hammer drills and specialist drills for different materials or confined spaces. Whatever application you need it for, these days you should find a drill to suit your needs.
Power drills have a number of functions. Obviously the most important is drilling holes in materials as diverse as wood, plastic, metals, and stone. However, drills can also remove screws, apply nails and screws during assembly jobs and cut larger holes into wood using hole saw attachments. They can also be customised to create different sizes and shapes of holes through the use of special drill bits, and most power drill owners also maintain a healthy collection of bits to cover all eventualities. Basically, if you are planning to do any woodwork or stone cutting, a power drill will quickly become your new best friend, and no home should be without one. And they aren’t just for DIY fanatics. Artists usually have a couple of drills lying around their studios to help with their creations, while medical practitioners often rely on them during operations (although they tend not to use Black & Deckers for those purposes).
Major power drill manufacturers to look out for include Black & Decker, Philips, Makita, Titan, Hitachi, Hilti and Bosch, but there are plenty of lesser known brands as well. All of these manufacturers make a range of corded and cordless drills. Not all of them are as well respected as these big names, so go for a well-known brand if you have the chance. You may pay extra (but not necessarily, with the discounts at HotUKDeals) but the difference in quality and reliability will easily noticeable.
Now, let’s think about the kinds of drill that you’ll be choosing from:
Drill drivers – The most basic kind of power drill, but still very useful; drill drivers combine drilling functions with “Driving” screws into and out of surfaces. They are lightweight, easy to hold, cheaper than more powerful models, and come with a range of speeds and torque settings.
Combi drills – A step up from drill drivers, combi drills add an extra element to the mix – a disc behind the drill featuring two metal gears that propel the drill bit forwards with added power.
SDS drills – Much more powerful (and larger) than combi drills and drill drivers, SDS drills (or rotary hammers) include an internal “Hammer” that makes the drill work even harder, allowing it to penetrate harder, denser materials like granite or limestone. With good SDS drills, you can modulate the hammer to restore it to the same sort of power as combi drills, or even turn the rotation off and use it to chisel away at plaster or stone.
Hammer drills – The most powerful variant of power drill, hammer drills don’t rely on rotation. Instead, they simply propel the drill bit forwards with percussive blows, hence their alternative name – percussion drills.
Before you purchase your power drill, there are plenty of things to take into consideration. It might seem simple, but the humble power drill can have many variations, and getting the decision wrong can ruin your DIY plans. For one thing, you’ll need to decide whether to go for a cordless or a corded drill. Cordless drills are almost always lighter and more mobile. They are great for outdoor work, but come with a big drawback: the need to charge and be recharged regularly. So, if you do go for a cordless drill, it’s probably a good idea to buy a replacement battery to go along with your purchase. That way, you can avoid any wasted downtime.
It’s also worth noting that corded drills tend to be more powerful than their cordless cousins. And, even though the cord will hamper your mobility, you can purchase extension cables to get around your home or garage with ease, so it’s not a fatal problem.
All drills have a wide variety of charging times. Look for ones that charge relatively quickly (30 minutes is normal). This won’t supply the longest amount of operation without needing to recharge, but it should be sufficient for most day-to-day drilling jobs. 
Look out for the voltage as well. Cordless drills that are rated between 4V and 8V will be less powerful, but will be fine for most household carpentry or assembly tasks. However, to be sure that your drill will have the power you need, go for one rated between 12V and 18V.
Another key specification to check is the size of the drill chuck. This is the clamp that holds the drill bit in place, and the larger the chuck size, the wider the maximum size of drill bit that the drill will accommodate. Typical diameters will be 0.25 inches, 0.375 inches and 0.5 inches. If you go for the smallest chuck size, you’ll be well setup to deal with thinner, lighter materials and your drill will probably be easy to handle, energy efficient and cheap to run. But it might struggle when handling hardwood, and it won’t be able to drill broader holes. Then again, most home owners won’t find a need for a 0.5-inch drill. Larger drills are fine for technicians, builders or artists, but for putting together sofas and tables, a lighter drill will do fine.
Drill speed is another consideration. All drills can rotate at different speeds, and different materials need to be drilled at the right speed to penetrate them efficiently. For instance, stone is suited to lower drill speeds, while plastics can be drilled at high speeds. Generally, the lower the speed, the more torque the drill applies, and not all drills are capable of catering for low speed, high torque applications. If you know that you’ll be dealing with heavy materials, go for a high torque model. Accessibility is another factor. Many industrial or professional drills make it slightly harder to access the chuck, requiring a key to loosen and change the bit. Smaller consumer drills often do away with the lock and allow you to quickly change the bit by hand. If you want to rapidly move between bits, you won’t need a locked chuck. However, if you are concerned about safety, having a lock can help to avoid accidents and often holds the bit in place more securely at high torque levels.
There are other issues that come into play when buying a drill. For instance, do you want to spend extra to go for a model with a brushed motor? Brushed motors are quieter, more efficient, last longer, and are more powerful, but they aren’t cheap. Do you need extra features like lights or built-in levels? Will you benefit from a high-grip side handle to stabilise the drill?
All of these factors are worth thinking about. It may be that you can’t find the perfect power drill, but bringing these issues into the mix will make it much easier to find one that meets your requirements.
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You don’t have to restrict yourself to the familiar form of a Black & Decker or Bosch handheld drill. For example, in some cases buyers might be better off going for a table mounted drill press instead. Drill presses are very different to handheld drills. Instead of moving the drill to the material and then engaging the bit, users pass the material underneath the press and then engage the motor, which drives the bit downwards.
You’ll find presses with varying specifications. Some have tilted work surfaces, permitting a much wider range of operations. Many have clutch guards and automatic shut-offs to prevent accidental operation (so they may well be safer than handheld power drills). As with handhelds, they have different voltages and speeds as well.
Why would you go for a drill press over a cordless drill? Well, the advantages are actually quite dramatic in some situations. With a drill press, you can achieve much more precise, reliable results and ensure that materials are squared off properly. With a handheld, getting the angles right is always tough. A press lets you pass thinner materials over the work surface and get a clean result every time.
However, there’s another accessory to add into the mix here. If you are worried about the stability of your handheld drill, you can always mount it on a drill stand, which fixes the drill in place and sets the bit on a linear trajectory. They usually work by clamping the power drill in place with the bit facing vertically downwards. Essentially, this mimics the operation of a drill press without having to buy the whole piece of kit. 
So, if you are taking on some casework or machining flat pieces of wood for furniture, a drill press might not be needed. Mounting a reliable handheld drill to a drill stand could be just as effective and a lot cheaper.
If you do choose to go for a drill stand, buying a reputable brand is important. Remember, you’ll be using a high powered, potentially hazardous piece of equipment, and poorly made equipment can be extremely dangerous. Go for products made by companies like Clarke, Peugeot, Garden Mile or Tooltime. If you opt for a drill press, Silverline, Sealey, Clarke and Dremel are all good brands to opt for.
So, you’ve now got to choose between cordless and corded power drills or drill presses and drill stands. As we noted before, power drills are surprisingly complicated when you get down to it.
For many people, the choice will boil down to a decision between corded and cordless power drills. If that’s where you’ve got to, here’s what to bear in mind when you think about making a purchase:
Cordless drills don’t have a cable, which makes them slightly safer (as you can’t trip over a non-existent cord).
Cordless drills provide much more mobility, which can be very handy.
That extra mobility can make it easier to access tight spots, particularly during outdoor work.
Cordless drills rely on batteries to function, which counts against them. Although you can buy replacement batteries to fill in when your drill goes dead, it’s still an inconvenience that corded drills never offer.
Cordless drills can also have worse weight distribution than corded drills because of the need for the battery pack. If you want a streamlined, lightweight model a corded drill could be ideal.
There’s no magic formula when buying a drill. Above all, take the drill in your hand before buying and notice how it feels. If you know that you will be able to handle it in comfort and move it into position with ease, it could be just right for your physique and technique.
Drills aren’t much used on their own. At their most basic, all they are is a handle and a motor. Until they have a bit mounted in the chuck, drills won’t do anything useful, so buying the right bits is extremely important.
If you haven’t bought drill bits before, take care. The bits you buy must be properly suited to the drill you use. Choose bits that are the right size for the chuck on your drill, or they may not be usable in your model.
You’ll also need to choose the right bit material for the job in hand. Steel bits tend to be excellent for boring into wood. Cobalt bits are specialist bits for metal drilling due to their extreme hardness. Titanium-coated or black oxide drill bits are more general purpose (and more durable than simple steel).
Cost is another thing to think about. General purpose, hard and durable bits sound great, but they come with a higher price tag than steel. If you only want to use your drill every now and then, there’s no point in spending extra.
Finally, the shape of the drill bit is really important. For most applications, standard twist drill bits will do fine. However, if you are drilling into aluminium or plastic, you might consider buying step drill bits which help to avoid congesting the drill with shards of material. For other metals, you may need to have spotting drill bits to start your bore, as well as core bits to finish the drilling. There are also specialist wood drill bits including spoon, Forstner and auger bits, along with bits for masonry and even glass drilling.
Most people will want to build a collection of bits to store in their toolkit. When you do so, don’t overbuy. Stick to what you know you will need.
Now that you’ve chosen your power drill, your drill bits and anything else that goes along with the purchase, where is the best place to actually seal the deal? Well, one place to look are the online stores of major drill manufacturers. You can order drills at the Bosch UK shop, Black & Decker and plenty of other sites.
It´s always a good thing to physically handle the drill first to find out how it feels. Therefore you could choose from some of the big high street names like Argos, Homebase and B&Q. When you’ve handled the drill, you can then purchase it in store when they have drills for sale or from online retailers like Amazon, Toolstation or UK ToolMart.
To save even more, you should wait for the big shopping events of the year where retailers traditionally lower the prices on Black Friday and Cyber Monday in November/December, in the run up to Christmas and the January Sales.
Whether you need to assemble a sofa bed, fix a gazebo roof or attach a new door hinge, power drills are an essential part of everyday life, and no home is complete without one. Find the latest drill sale on the world’s leading manufacturers by bookmarking the HotUKDeals listings.
