We love that you can turn on the integrated light without starting the drill and found it quite effective in tight, dark spaces. It provides decent illumination, with only a shadow above the drill bit. We alternated between driving in 16, 3-inch wood screws through to full depth in stacked 2×12 boards and drilling 3, 1-inch holes using a spade bit for our side-by-side usage comparison. We started each drill in high gear, shifting down to the lower gear if the drill was struggling with either task.
1969
brought the first of many innovations that changed the whole of the
construction industry (and therefore the world) with the first rechargeable
power tool, the 6500D battery powered drill. While not entirely cordless (it
had a short cord connecting it to the battery pack), it did free it from the
constraints of being attached to the wall for its power. Our last metric for these drills rated and ranked their overall user-friendliness and ease of use.
Other features include an all-metal ½” self-ratcheting chuck for improved bit-gripping strength, L.E.D. lights, and a rubberized soft grip for increased comfort. You can still
get batteries for these cordless
drills; my dad makita angle grinder even still has one in his shop which is a good place for it, in a home shop. While being fine for the
home user, these early model cordless drills lacked the power and run time to
be much use in a professionals hands.
In these cases, we turn to mid-level power, such as in the Makita XPH16 Hammer Drill. We’re looking at how this tool rounds out Makita’s 18V hammer drill lineup by providing a middle ground between performance and size. Our main complaint was the battery dying during our 5-inch hole saw test, but we found very little to take issue with besides that.
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It has an efficient brushless motor with two speed settings and dual LED lights to illuminate the work area. Long, it is a compact drilling and driving solution with superior comfort and handling. Includes (1) 18V LXT 1.5 Ah battery, (1) battery charger, and (1) tool bag. If I’m understanding all of this correctly, it would mean that, with this new 18V cordless drill, Makita’s advertised “max torque” spec of 970 in-lbs is around 50.7% higher than its maximum fastening torque value. Makita’s 18V brushless compact hammer drill delivers a maximum lock torque of 60 Nm (~531 in-lbs) and maximum hard tightening torque of 54 Nm (~478 in-lbs).
For this metric, we used 5-inch long, ½-inch lag screws and standard wood screws, scoring each tool on the ease and speed at which it drove the different screws in. The Makita XFD14Z did exceptionally well, earning one of the best scores of the entire group. Unfortunately, we found the performance of the Makita XFD14Z plummeted with the large hole saw compared to other top-ranked drills. This drill did manage to achieve the full depth of the hole saw but struggled in its higher gear. It did better when dropped to the lower gear, taking around 20 seconds to complete the task, but we found the battery depleted after just the one hole, significantly hurting our opinion of this tool. Ace welcomes your feedback, comments, and suggestions regarding the Beta Test Program and potential improvements to the Beta Test Program (collectively, “Feedback”).