# lateral forces on electric drill



## SE18 (Feb 21, 2008)

B&D electric drill with cord, my mainstay for garden RR projects. I don't care for the battery type b/c I've had the batteries lose capacitance and the cost of new battery approaches that of a drill. Side story: have 3 head Norelco razor and replacement blades are $34 but got a new Remington 3-head razor for $27. Sorry for sidetrack.


Here's the story: my nephew was mowing my neighbor's yard for $$$. The mower blades hit the protruding PVC 4" sewer pipe protruding from the lawn.

Went to Lowe's & purchased a cutting bit made to cut PVC pipe from the inside, in order to fix his PVC and to lower mine as well, which was not damaged.

Went well with mine, then cut his PVC and while doing so, I heard the gears grinding and clashing inside the drill. 

It still works but does not take kindly to side pressures like a milling machine would do.

A lot of bits are made for drills that rely on side pressure, such as normal looking bits that have saw tooth edges.

I suppose the drills are made for pushing down pressure and less robust for side to side. 

Maybe, OTOH, construction is cheesy. Got mine from HD or Lowe's can't recall which. I've had tools from there break or go bad almost at the same rate as Harbor Freight.

Sorry for rant

Dave V


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## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

B and D made a tool to compete with Dremel a few years back. The price was right. It lasted me all of 10 minutes. Plastic gears in the Gear Box went. I have purchased other B and D tools before and have had many years of use and obuse.....I am just carful of some of thier products.


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## Jack - Freshwater Models (Feb 17, 2008)

Dave, 

Cheap drills of


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

I generally have good luck with BD drills and wear em out after a long life. 
The key for me is getting them designed for larger chucks, my minimum is 3/8 and presently use a 1/2" chuck and can't complain. I used it when I built the treehouse/fort for my great nephews. I drove Stainless steel screws into 40 yr old cedar planks. 

I'm old school and insist on corded tools too. Besides you can use the cord to pull the drill back up after ya knock it off! 

If you can hear the gears you might want to repack the gearhead with grease. I did that once many years ago and got extended life out of the beastie. 

John


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## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

Posted By Jack - Freshwater Models on 10 Jun 2010 11:13 AM 
Dave, 

Cheap drills of


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## Semper Vaporo (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By John J on 10 Jun 2010 04:16 PM 
Posted By Jack - Freshwater Models on 10 Jun 2010 11:13 AM 
Dave, 

Cheap drills of


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## Madman (Jan 5, 2008)

Keyless chucks come in two types. Cheap and expensive. I have had good cordless drills with not so good keyless chucks. Most of the major cordless drill manufacturers make high end drills, and they usually are equipped with very good chucks. I have found on most high end drills, that the chuck can be tightened without turning the drill armature. Some drills turn when you try to tighten the chuck. These cannot be tightened as much as they should. And as the tool ages, the bit in the chuck slips more. 

All of this talk about cordless, and keyless, is making me mindless.


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## Richard Weatherby (Jan 3, 2008)

Check the B&D website for a sevice center. They can fix the tools for a reasonable price. I have mostly the DeWalt versions and can't live without them. Some of the newer bits have a 3 sided shank which allows it to seat well in a 3 jaw chuck. You need to grab it tight when locking a keyless chuck. It is the other end of the bit I ave a problem with. Most can barely cut wood let alone metal. 

Who knows where B&D will go now that Stanley bought it all....B&D, DeWalt, Porter Cable, Delta, plus other stuff. Just another home town company swallowed up.


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## Pete Chimney (Jan 12, 2008)

My favorite tool is my Porte Cabler eaft-handed circular saw. Most circular saws are designed to be held in the right hand but for us lefties this poses a problem as we are more adept at using the other sinistral hand. Potrer Cable solved this problem with their left handed saw. In fact I have two, forgot to takeby first PC saw up to Wyoming towork on our cabin and needed a circular saw so went out and bought a second Porter-Cable circular saw.


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## Semper Vaporo (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By Richard Weatherby on 10 Jun 2010 07:50 PM 
Check the B&D website for a sevice center. They can fix the tools for a reasonable price. I have mostly the DeWalt versions and can't live without them. Some of the newer bits have a 3 sided shank which allows it to seat well in a 3 jaw chuck. You need to grab it tight when locking a keyless chuck. It is the other end of the bit I ave a problem with. *Most can barely cut wood let alone metal*. 

Who knows where B&D will go now that Stanley bought it all....B&D, DeWalt, Porter Cable, Delta, plus other stuff. Just another home town company swallowed up. 

Been there!!!!

I, too, am fed up with the drill bits (seemingly made out of solder) that I was getting from the hardware store. One year at the Midwest Old Settler's and Thresher's Reunion at Mt. Pleasant, IA, I stopped at the "Winters Drill Bit City" display and watched as the vendor drilled holes in car bumpers, axles, hardend bolts and leaf springs. But I was skeptical because I figured that vendors at places like this were probably hucksters of some sort, selling junk using trickery in the demos.

But since I had just split some PINE (ruining a project!) trying to drill a 1/4 inch hole, I bought the smallest set he had for sale... it was expensive!

Before I had a chance to really try them out on wood or metal, I was trying to drill a hole in my concrete porch to mount a weather vane ornament. I was using a brand new hardware store Masonry bit and hit something about 1.5 inchs in and could not go further. I figured I had hit a re-rod so I moved over an inch to left and one inch down and started again hoping to miss anymore re-rods. And again, I got stopped at 1.5 inchs. So I went and got the 1/4 inch bit from the set I had purchased and it went though what ever it was like a hot knife through butter.

The only problem is that it pretty much ruined the bit!

Just for fun, I took that bit to Thresher's the next year to "complain" to the vendor if he was there again. He was, so I handed him the bit and just asked what he thought about it. He looked at it, then did a double-take and asked, "What have you been drilling?" I said, "Concrete." He said, "Well, I cannot replace a bit that you have been drilling in concrete with. They won't take that." I told him that I was not asking him to replace it, I wanted to buy a bigger set, "'cuz, I really like your drill bits!"

That year I could only afford a middlin' set of bits (not the 128 bit set), but I have since gone back in the following years and purchased small sets for my 2 sons and son-in-law as Christmas presents, and a set of numbered bits for me (which makes my 2 sets almost equivalent to the 128 bit sit).

I will never buy another bit at the hardware store! And as good as these bits are I may never buy another one anyway. Well... I may buy some metric bits this year, and some Masonry bits, too.

I have no financial interest in this place but if you want his phone number you can find it on their (nearly useless) web site (no sales, no catalog, just the phone number and mailing address): http://www.wintersdrillbitcity.com/

I DO recommend the bits he sells!


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## Richard Weatherby (Jan 3, 2008)

You guys are great! I will definately check these out. A left hand circular saw and high strength drill bits made in the USA. What more could you want. Thanks


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

I'm using a 30 year old set of Sargent Drills HHS, 1 -80, decimal. I resharpen as needed. 

Dressing the cutting edge rally can improve the drill. File marks and grinding scratches weaken the metal so I polish them out with a 12.000 grit wet n dry paper. I mount the sand paper on the side of my grinding wheel, 3M makes a self adhering paper, actually it's plastic. My wheel is a rubberised grinder for non ferrous metals. I don't know if the sandpaper will stick to stone. 

John


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## Chris Scott (Jan 2, 2008)

Ok, I'll jump in with 2-cents...


I have 3 cordless drills, would not buy a cord drill again. Have had the first one for maybe 15 years. Bought last one 3-4 years ago. In the market for a new one.
Keyless chuck only - very rarely have a problem with bit grip/slipping. (set torque to highest, turn on drill and hold on real tight.)


My, make sure, formula:
Philosophy; You get what you pay for. The most expensive tool you ever buy is a cheap tool. Cheap tools are dangerous. Same for blades or drills, any cutting device.


Specs:
18V or 24V 
LI batteries only (Nicad's memory problems; newer ones come with drain/charge smart chargers - reviews say big improvement.)
Two Speed (min. two)
Variable Speed (for different materials) and High Torque 
Hammer Drill - rarely use feature, but drills seems better built and take hard work better.
Kit with 2 batteries - Always! need a spare battery.


Brands: High End - Milwaukee; Bosch; PC; (some) DeWalt. (skip low end priced) (Milwaukee used to come with reversible battery - great feature)
Avoid: BD; Ryboi; Any store brand (particularly Craftsman); cheap; 3, 4 or 5 tool kits.


Expect to pay: ~$250-$350+







(2 battery kit prices) 


Have always followed Consumer Reports reviews. Buy one of top 1-3 rated models - have never, never been disappointed.


Quality Drills and ALWAYS Sharp. SAFTY! Make a big difference - my experience. Always sharp - sharpen or throw away and buy a new one. 


Use a cutting lubricant (liberally) for blade & drill bits, any cutting tool. Reapply every few cuts. 
- I use Boeshield T-9 or DriCote's Blade&Bit cutting lubricant. Makes cutting easier, safer - particularly in hardwoods. 
Apply lubricant and wipe down drill or blade before you put them away. Store properly
Use the right/recommended drill speed and drill for the material. Don't force the drill - let the bit do the cutting. If the bit is not cutting get another type of bit for the material or use heavery duty drill. Remember, some bits or cutting tools just have a bad day.









- - Very Important: Tools and Machinery have feelings and personalities. All are looked after by the God of Tools and Machinery. Abuse a tool or machine and you will have problems with any of them for a long, long time. if not forever. The Gods do not take lightly to their children being abused. I believe in more than one God, it's just to complicated for one.












Just one guy's formula, experience and opinion.


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## Tom Bray (Jan 20, 2009)

I'll throw in my two cents on this. 

For the record, hand drills and drill presses are not milling machines. They are designed to apply force parallel to the drill bit. I have found that using a hand drill with a sanding pad kills the bearings pretty quickly. A cheap angle grinder or sander does much better. 

For a long time I had been admiring Panasonic cordless drills. When I killed the Porter Cable cordless while working on my Airstream camper I decided to finally break down and get one. For the last 2 years it has taken all the drilling abuse I can give it. The batteries seem to last a long time between charges and it will charge up a dead one in about 15 minutes. You do have to be a bit careful with the drill with a fresh battery on low speed because if the bit grabs it will try to spin your arm around. I think it is a 14V model ... I can't see any reason for a higher voltage one. I've used it to drill 4" diameter holes through plywood without any problems, other than a sore wrist when I was done. 

As far as drill bits go, I have a set of Bosch ones that seem to be OK but the HSS set I built from one of the commercial machine tool stores is measurably better. I have gone through a number of HSS drills whenever I would hit a stainless screw or something that was hardened. 

I also have a drill doctor that is several years old. I have been able to sharpen some bits successfully, others, especially the smaller ones, not so good. I haven't quite figured out which work and which don't. Of course the titanium tipped ones don't really resharpen. 

Tom


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