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Tool hounds, I have a question about my Ridgid Drill.

strigamort

Bronze Contributor
Member For 2 Years
Member For 1 Year
So I just bought a 2100rpm brushless that cost $159.

I'm back at the store and the price went down 30 bucks. According to the guy I asked (who didn't seem confident about anything I asked, including a few flat "I don't knows") I can return the drill for the difference.

Only thing is the Hammer Drill is now the same price as what I paid for mine. So, I need to know if I'd be better off buying the HD or just taking the cash. Does a hammer drill act differently? Are they louder? Because that would be a deal breaker since my drill absolutely screams.

While we are talking drills I noticed there was an inexpensive Ryobi that has 3 gears and goes north of 3000rpm. I don't see needing that kind of speed aside from running de-core claptons.

Is my big tough brushless like serious overkill for no load running? I mean I did hang a really heavy front door the other day, but truthfully my typical need for a drill (aside from coil making of course) is not much. I'm pretty sure I bought this because I'm a man and couldn't help myself from getting the overkill tool. Gonna be really hard to step down... but I'll consider it.

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ScReWbALL

Silver Contributor
Member For 4 Years
I haven’t had a whole lot of experience with Hammer Drills except for tinkering around with our display models at work...yes, I’m one of the Orange apron wearing folks, but I sell Doors and Windows and don’t have a whole lot of knowledge of the more specialized power tools, but I was under the impression that they are quite loud and just a quick reference research showed an article that explains it a bit:
https://www.thewoodwhisperer.com/articles/drills-vs-hammer-drills-vs-impact-drivers/

Which states-

“A hammer drill pretty much looks like a regular drill, which can create some confusion. In fact, you can find a number of models out there that have both a regular and a hammer setting. So what does the hammer setting actually do? Imagine while you’re drilling, someone is smacking the back of the drill with a hammer to help drive the bit further into the work. This is pretty much what is happening when you use a hammer drill, only the hammer hits are fast and furious. This type of drill is very loud and feels like a little jackhammer in your hands. Believe it or not, I thought the drill was broken the first time I fired one up! These drills excel at plowing through concrete and other masonry. So if you do a lot of work with masonry, this is definitely a drill that should be in your collection. From the standpoint of a shop woodworker, you won’t really have much use for a hammer drill except the occasional DIY job.”
Next time I’m at work Friday night I’d be more than happy to ask our hardware guys or a couple of the contractors that are in there daily to get some more info, because I’m actually still in the market for a new drill myself and would like the info to give for Christmas present ideas. If no one more knowledgeable has responded to your post by the time I get the info for myself Friday, I’ll post the info I get back here.


You're not drinking water are you?! You realize that stuff is found in antifreeze!?!
 

JuicyLucy

My name is Lucy and I am a squonkaholic
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So I just bought a 2100rpm brushless that cost $159.

I'm back at the store and the price went down 30 bucks. According to the guy I asked (who didn't seem confident about anything I asked, including a few flat "I don't knows") I can return the drill for the difference.

Only thing is the Hammer Drill is now the same price as what I paid for mine. So, I need to know if I'd be better off buying the HD or just taking the cash. Does a hammer drill act differently? Are they louder? Because that would be a deal breaker since my drill absolutely screams.

While we are talking drills I noticed there was an inexpensive Ryobi that has 3 gears and goes north of 3000rpm. I don't see needing that kind of speed aside from running de-core claptons.

Is my big tough brushless like serious overkill for no load running? I mean I did hang a really heavy front door the other day, but truthfully my typical need for a drill (aside from coil making of course) is not much. I'm pretty sure I bought this because I'm a man and couldn't help myself from getting the overkill tool. Gonna be really hard to step down... but I'll consider it.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using Tapatalk

Why would you want a tool to drill with that isn't Ridgid ???
 

strigamort

Bronze Contributor
Member For 2 Years
Member For 1 Year
Screwball, so I have a question for an orange apron. They told me (after I posted) that I can't get the refund because it'll be a day late tomorrow. Seems a little bullshit, but then I'm fairly disagreeable when it comes to stupid rules. I know today that I'd like the refund. They know I know that I would please like to have some of my money back, but because their systems make it too difficult to deal with I get fucked.

So! What's to stop me from taking it back for a regular refund (I presume the return period extends beyond a week) and turning around and buying a new one. A new one, might I add, that includes the bit driver my box was supposed to include but didn't. I don't really give a shit, I bought a nice Dewalt kit anyway, but it's still ever so slightly irritating.

Oh, pm me if you want. I work in the corporate world (for the absolute Satan of stores no less) and would probably still not like slander or anti-company advice out there with my name on it. Especially since Walmart probably does look for shit like this. Did I say that out loud? Oops!

(I do, however, give a shit about the forums, so if the above is a no-no a mod or I can delete it. Otherwise seriously fuck you Walmart.)

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BigNasty

Diamond Contributor
Member For 4 Years
ECF Refugee
I went cheap.
Harbor freight, 25 buck combo pack with flash light.
Sorry could not justify 100+ for a coiling drill.
 

strigamort

Bronze Contributor
Member For 2 Years
Member For 1 Year
I went cheap.
Harbor freight, 25 buck combo pack with flash light.
Sorry could not justify 100+ for a coiling drill.
You know, the funny thing about that is that I've been using that HF pos tonight and I love how quiet it is. Far more quiet than the Ridgid. I did finally tape some cardboard to the bottom of the battery in order to level the thing. Why is it that the cheap drills all seem to be chucked at a weird angle? 100% Ghetto, but the poor thing was fugly to begin with.

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ScReWbALL

Silver Contributor
Member For 4 Years
We had a Makita Impact Drill set up for people to “Try before you buy” at work last week, and it was practically silent compared to any other power tool I’ve heard...it also gave off a nice breeze through the ventilation slits. Then I happened to see it on the Clearance shelf for sale and I got all excited until I realized the drawback of it not having a chuck (or at least not a chuck similar in any regards to a standard drill) - hence, no way to use it for coil building. It’s possible there is an adaptor that you can pop in it to give it a regular chuck, but I don’t know all that much about impact drills. I don’t know if all impact drills are so quiet or if it was the fact that it was Makita or what, but I was definitely impressed with that aspect of it.


You're not drinking water are you?! You realize that stuff is found in antifreeze!?!
 

Synphul

Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
Unless you have a need for a hammer drill, no reason to get it. Not worthwhile for coil building, it has a 'thud' similar to an impact under load. Used for things like masonry bits when drilling into concrete. It's like having a mini jackhammer in the drill. You won't hear the hammer action until it's under load with pressure against it most of the time, just like with an impact driver you'll only hear a faint clicking until it's actually working. Starts with a 'tick tick tick' then as it goes under load applying pressure in the case with a hammer drill or tightening/loosening a bolt with some torque it'll ramp up to a 'TACK TACK TACK' sound and you'll definitely feel it.

Most if not all (all the ones I've used anyway) hammer drills have a selector to turn it on or off, on mine I leave them off 99% of the time. For coil winding you want smooth and since you won't be putting pressure like you would with a drill bit against a surface it won't likely engage anyway even in hammer mode.

My makita's at an odd angle, raised slightly upward if sitting flat on the battery pack. It's not a design flaw, for a lot of drilling operations that slight angle moves the drill body away from the work giving the hand a little more clearance so the handle grip is swept back rather than perpendicular to the work. I'm with BigNasty though, would find it hard to recommend an expensive premium drill for people who just want to wind coils. Although they usually do have better builds, higher quality bearings, less wobble at the chuck, brushless motors generally live longer etc.
 

BigNasty

Diamond Contributor
Member For 4 Years
ECF Refugee
You know, the funny thing about that is that I've been using that HF pos tonight and I love how quiet it is. Far more quiet than the Ridgid. I did finally tape some cardboard to the bottom of the battery in order to level the thing. Why is it that the cheap drills all seem to be chucked at a weird angle? 100% Ghetto, but the poor thing was fugly to begin with.

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I needed a flash light anyways so it is a win win
 

pulsevape

Diamond Contributor
Member For 4 Years
The only use for a hammer drill is using masonary bits to drill into concrete, stuff like anchor bolts into foundations.....something most homeowners will never do....and something most proffesional builders go out and buy a tool that is nothing but a hammer drill for.
61j97VQWtmL._SX355_.jpg
 

strigamort

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Member For 2 Years
Member For 1 Year
Alright, so consensus is to just grab my ching and gtfo? Last chance to recommend I buy a more expensive... I mean less expensive model, or a totally different brand/type.

So to be clear, I'd love to have extreme rpms for running long de-core claptons, but that high rpm comes with the Impact Driver and this won't work well for coil building. Correct?

Btw, they definitely have traditional chucks that snap into the quick change chuck on an impact driver.

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pulsevape

Diamond Contributor
Member For 4 Years
Alright, so consensus is to just grab my ching and gtfo? Last chance to recommend I buy a more expensive... I mean less expensive model, or a totally different brand/type.

So to be clear, I'd love to have extreme rpms for running long de-core claptons, but that high rpm comes with the Impact Driver and this won't work well for coil building. Correct?

Btw, they definitely have traditional chucks that snap into the quick change chuck on an impact driver.

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oh as for brand ..Rigid tools are shit...but then if it's not a tool you use alot or just a homeowner light wieght drill ...it'll probablly be suffecient.....but there is a reason Rigid's tools are cheap....
 

Synphul

Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
Impact drivers are handy if you have a need, things like smaller bolts/nuts. Where the torque may be rough on a drill and bog it down impacts have an advantage. Also the fricken bees knees when running down deck screws with a torx drive, no slippage and plenty of ass to drive wood screws or lag bolts. If it's free speed you want (for coil wraps this would apply) some impacts have an advantage. For instance the kit I bought, the drill has a max speed of 1500rpm, the impact driver on the other hand has a top speed of 2300rpm.

Maybe I'm wrong or it's just my lack of coil building skill, the drill's max speed is plenty fast. At 50% more rpm I'd think the impact would quickly get out of control, god forbid the wraps backtrack on the core shit would be everywhere. If the impact were to engage for some reason rather than smoothly free wheeling I'm pretty certain that jerking action with tension on the core would snap it.

Not sure about newer ridgid stuff, it's been ok but not what I'd consider 'high end' as a brand. Given the pricetag is so close to $200 it puts it right up there with dewalt so between those I'd probably opt for the dewalt. Taking a peek at amazon there are less expensive options for porter cable, they have a drill and 1/4" driver combo with two li-ion batteries and charger with case for like $128. Don't know much about their cordless, usually they were involved with air tools, compressors and stuff.

Still hard to recommend a high(er) end drill for mainly coils, it's a bit overkill. I've got a lot of oil filter wrenches for a whole variety of vehicles/applications which was great working in a shop where it was needed. Not so much for the person who wants to change their oil at home once every few months.
 

strigamort

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Member For 2 Years
Member For 1 Year
Prices are all over the place. They had a fairly comparable Dewalt for $99. The drill was very similar spec wise, but it came with one, instead of two batteries. A hair slower too, but still $30 cheaper.

So I got what I got. Wait for it!

The same drill! :) I spent a whole lot of time over the last two days agonizing over what to get. At some points I was convinced I'd pocket the cash and just use my old drill (uh suuuure), and I was convinced that a kit with two drivers was best. A sub-compact 12v would make perfect sense. But those Ryobis have pretty sweet incentives (but that color? Oh hell no) and on and on. In the end I decided that I was very happy with the Ridgid. I don't care for the noise it makes, seriously, it drives people in the house crazy even when I'm in the garage, but other than that I like it quite a lot.

As for the brand, well I don't have any loyalties with power tools, mostly because I've always had good hand tools. I'd never have considered buying a Ridgid hand tool. I'd either buy/cry once and get what I wanted or been all pissy and grab a tosser from Harbor Freight. In any case, as the way most things go, Ridgid tools aren't made in a factory with Home Depot on the front. The power tools are manufactured by

Techtronic Industries AEG - power tools

Dirt Devil (Vacuums)

HOMELITE - handheld outdoor power equipment

Hoover (vacuums)

MILWAUKEE

RYOBI

VAX (Floor care)

So if you're a Milwaukee fan, you might also like Ridgid. Or not. Who cares.

Anyway, thanks for the help guys. While this is primarily for coil building that is only the case because it'll spend most of its time doing exactly that. I will definitely give it the occasional opportunity to stretch its legs though. Hopefully something devilish that would break my other drill (which I still love, of course).

Speaking of other drills, I really wanted to pick up a hand drill but I can't find one locally. Until I order one I got one of those pocket sized cordless screwdrivers that runs under 200rpm. I want to try it with staggered staple fused claptons. I find it difficult to keep the wrap placement perfect. Only thing is, it doesn't have a drill chuck. It has a chuck similar to an impact driver, only its magnetized and isn't a quick connect. I'm sure I'll come up with a way to clamp wire down, but if you guys have any ideas that'll save me some headache I reckon.

Edit- shout out to screwball. Thanks for the advice bud.

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F0G M4CH1N3

Member For 4 Years
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Member For 2 Years
YUCK! thoses responses are terrible no offense intended guys just hate bad information. im no expert but id say either be a yellow fellow or go makita. people whos whole toolbox is yellow with dewalt are on the right track... i love makita tho personally. that said unless you plan on doing any carpentry and know how to take care of your tools id say just get a crappy corded drill for coils and save that $$$ cuz there is a huge gap in price between a real tool and something that spins and you dont need to pay for the former for this.
 

pulsevape

Diamond Contributor
Member For 4 Years
YUCK! thoses responses are terrible no offense intended guys just hate bad information. im no expert but id say either be a yellow fellow or go makita. people whos whole toolbox is yellow with dewalt are on the right track... i love makita tho personally.
Milwakee makes as good if not better drills than De Walt ...Makita is hard to beat so is Bosch. There is not alot that De Walt makes that impresses me.
 

F0G M4CH1N3

Member For 4 Years
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hahahaha ive used ancient craftsmen and dewalt products that had been so badly mistreated and still worked better than any tool made in the last 20 years. that said craftsmen is like playing the lottery with insurance, kinda cool and i hate the color yellow. bosch is solid on what they solid on, one of the scariest experiences ive ever had was a bosch jigsaw coming apart in my hand im just glad the difference between a hammer drill and an impact driver was made clear cuz that hurt my soul a little.
 

ScReWbALL

Silver Contributor
Member For 4 Years
Just had to make a comment of the irony of my situation at this exact moment standing at Work (wearing my orange apron) unpacking pallets of doors with an old school ryobi drill (back when they were blue instead of the neon green shit they slap on it nowadays). Just thought it was funny to be standing in a hardware store working and reading about hardware store merchandise while using hardware store merchandise...a trifecta, as it were!
a2f11b741791ca29de17c8434b990839.jpg


Edit: The drill is an absolute POS by the way...the chuck has broken loose and tossed this bit 3 times while pulling out 10 screws, so far.

You're not drinking water are you?! You realize that stuff is found in antifreeze!?!
 
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F0G M4CH1N3

Member For 4 Years
Member For 3 Years
Member For 2 Years
ay srewball that makita driver you mentioned earlier would be a great investment. a. they make driver chucks b. while it will get noisier itll also come in immensely handy when you wanna toenail a 4 inch screw through 2x4s in a way where they hold flush. then again if youre not the kinda dude who thinks hey i could use a shelf... oh i do gotta catch myself, i never said otherwise but milwuakee has definately earned their credit pulse. but to take it down to the simpler stuff and go from there their utility knives have a ton of play and for that reason i tend to look other places when i need a new tool.
 
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Synphul

Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
I don't buy too much into tool brand loyalty only because tools change over the years. Some improve, some go downhill but sport the name brand that justifies the price. A lot of older tools were decent and that's how they got the name recognition. Comparing a brand new off the shelf brand xyz to the one from 20 or 30yrs ago that dad used to use is difficult since it's apples and oranges. Not always, but sometimes. I've also found that brand xyz may make a great drill and a shitty saw.

I'm with others where it depends on what it's used for. For me a cheap skil saw for $45-50 works, I do projects from time to time ranging from simple cuts to light construction. If I were a home builder using it day in and day out with 1000's of hours on it vs 100's then I might opt for a nicer tool. Something with a stronger motor, more durable gears etc. For my needs it's 'good enough', I don't need a festool wormdrive to build a birdhouse.

Same with coil building, a lot of the drill differences are grip, torque, motor design/durability, accessibility and cost of replacement batteries. Most of which likely won't matter for coils where they might for a professional cabinet installer/builder. If someone just wanted to assemble something from ikea once or twice I'd probably suggest a $20 HF special over a $180 dewalt unobtanium brushless drive deal.
 

Ishkabibble

Gotta eat the lettuce
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Unless you have a need for a hammer drill, no reason to get it. Not worthwhile for coil building, it has a 'thud' similar to an impact under load. Used for things like masonry bits when drilling into concrete. It's like having a mini jackhammer in the drill. You won't hear the hammer action until it's under load with pressure against it most of the time, just like with an impact driver you'll only hear a faint clicking until it's actually working. Starts with a 'tick tick tick' then as it goes under load applying pressure in the case with a hammer drill or tightening/loosening a bolt with some torque it'll ramp up to a 'TACK TACK TACK' sound and you'll definitely feel it.

Most if not all (all the ones I've used anyway) hammer drills have a selector to turn it on or off, on mine I leave them off 99% of the time. For coil winding you want smooth and since you won't be putting pressure like you would with a drill bit against a surface it won't likely engage anyway even in hammer mode.

My makita's at an odd angle, raised slightly upward if sitting flat on the battery pack. It's not a design flaw, for a lot of drilling operations that slight angle moves the drill body away from the work giving the hand a little more clearance so the handle grip is swept back rather than perpendicular to the work. I'm with BigNasty though, would find it hard to recommend an expensive premium drill for people who just want to wind coils. Although they usually do have better builds, higher quality bearings, less wobble at the chuck, brushless motors generally live longer etc.

I agree, wouldn't the "thuds" just add tremors in the wire and make things not as consistent?
 

Synphul

Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
I have just encountered the same situation. tell me how you were able to solve this problem?
Not sure what this is in response to, what problem are you having? Or what situation are you in that you're trying to solve?

SteveS45 is right, hammer drills are meant for masonry and things. Or at least that function if it's a variable drill. Different drills have different features. Some are single speed, variable speed but 1 gear, some have switchable gears to split the speed/power range between slower and higher rpm's coupled with a variable (speed sensitive) trigger. Some have a switch or setting you engage to put into hammer mode where it impacts with a masonry bit to drill/chisel through hard materials like brick or concrete. I imagine some are hammer feature only especially if you get into larger application specific drills and those typically are bigger units with side handles for double handed operation.
 

Just Frank

Platinum Contributor
Member For 5 Years
I ordered a $15 cordless drill from Harbor Freight and bought a regular corded drill from Walmart for about the same price. I've used the cordless drill a few times but prefer the other one. It has like a belt clip on top of it. I used that to strap it down to a board (piece of a 2x6) so my drill is always in an upside down position. I used some tie wire on other parts of it so it's really sturdy on the board. It doesn't look pretty but does the job I want.

Before I start spinning my line, I have both ends clamped to my table. The swivel side is clamped stationary at all times. The drill side gets pushed away from the swivel side until I get my desired tension. When it's where I want it, I clamp the board my drill is fastened to down to the table. I like it a lot better that way. All I do with that hand is squeeze the trigger. I don't even know what brand my drill is lol. There's no need to spend a hundred a sixty bucks to make nice coils. I do wish it had a slower speed setting sometimes but for the most part it goes faster the more you squeeze the trigger.
 

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