Priceless Cordless (NuTool NPT18 Cordless Drill Kit)

Member Name: gryphon

Product:	NuTool NPT18 Cordless Drill Kit
Date:	06/04/01 (2098 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: price, price, price

Disadvantages: none so far

When you come to the end of your tether, [or rather your cable], it’s time to reach for the cordless, and carry on.

A fine sentiment, if only the drill will actually do the job, and not cost the earth. Until recently, to buy a halfway decent cordless hammer drill [essential if going into bricks or concrete], you’d have to budget the thick end of two hundred pounds, so it has remained on my wish list until now as I didn’t want to waste money on a cheap tool that wouldn’t do the job.

I’ve just found an 18 volt hammer drill:
nutool NPT181
for only £29.99 + vat = £35.24 from makro

At that price, I am not going to worry overmuch about durability, as it will pay for itself inside two or three jobs through the time it saves driving screws and sorting out cables, after which, it’s a bonus. The manufacturers give a two year guarantee, so I have hope.

The drill itself comes in a blow moulded case with a selection of metric twist drills, screwdriver bits, and quarter inch drive sockets for nut spinning.
It has a 10mm capacity keyless chuck, that’s really quick to change bits in, and an adjustable collar to vary the torque setting [how hard the drill tightens/turns before a clutch slips. This helps stop you stripping screws, or driving them too far in].

The Hammer on/off selector is just behind the chuck; nutool rate the drill as capable of drilling up to 8mm in masonry- I’ve already found a couple of jobs to do, [purely from a research point of view, you understand, not playing] and concur with them. This is great for inserting wallplugs for screws up to size 12 which is plenty for most fixings on the outside of buildings.

The tool has an onboard clip to hold a double ended screwdriver bit,
and is well balanced with a soft grip handle. The trigger is progressive, so you can easily regulate your speed, and there is a simple push switch for forward, reverse,
or lock.
If you have small hands you may find it a little cumbersome, but still eminently usable.

The battery has a test button and a string of indicator lights to give you an idea of how much power you have left: the supplied charger only takes one hour from exhausted [rather like me at lunch].

I’m very happy to find this, as I have a couple of jobs up ladders to do, and it’s much easier with no trailing cable, it has worked very well on the bits I’ve done so far- I’ll update when I’ve had a chance to use it further.

21st April:
I have now been using the drill on and off for quite a few jobs, including fitting some gutter and downpipe, and haven't had any cause for complaint- there has been plenty of power, and the battery life is good: I find the indicator lights on the battery useful to reassure me that I won't get stuck with a half done job.

I've also found that by setting the torque to just shy of fully on for drilling, the clutch slip makes the drill act like an air hammer to tighten/release stubborn nuts and screws- just remember to keep plenty of pressure on the rear of it.

Again, I'll try and remember to update in 3 months or so to report on the longevity of the drill

6th July:
It's even cheaper now!! [spit spit] MAKRO have it on special at the moment for £6 less than before. [mustn't complain- it's already earned back it's cost three or four times in the short while I've had it]

So far the longevity looks fine- I've drilled bunches of holes in masonry with no trouble- although it's relatively slow, this is an advantage when drilling through tiles [you did remember to turn the hammer action off first, didn't you?].

I've also assembled large wooden structures - glued and screwed for longevity, the battery only complained and needed recharging when asked to drive a series of 4 inch twelves-
I suspect my wrists would have complained as well :-}

So the verdict remains- plenty of power for most things: I just need to watch how long before the battery won't hold a charge and needs replacing, then I'll report back.

Summary: