John Doe wrote:
I have a Skil 12 V cordless drill purchased for about $50 (US) a few
years ago. I guess it doesn't even have a part number, it just says
Variable Speed 12 Volts. It has seven torque settings plus the drill
setting. Besides foreword, stop, and reverse, there are no other
functions.

I'm wondering how much more powerful is a Makita 14.4 volt 6337DWDE
MFORCE driver?

http://www.makita.com/menu.php?pg=pr...t&tag=6337DWDE


I have that Makita & I like it. Previous drill was a Skil "Top Gun" 12
volt model, about 10 years old, which served me well until the battery
crapped out. I rebuilt the pack with much better cells & bought a $40
"high tech" charger for it. Then the damned charger crapped out after
about 6 months & only a few uses & the a-hole I bought it from
(http://www.batteryspace.com/index.asp, avoid like the plague) refused
to replace it or assist me in any way. Simply said "You buy new one".
His exact words. I'd say the Makita is more powerful, but not
massively. Besides torque though you also have charge life, how long
the tool will run on a given charge. They test this in the mags by
driving deck screws until the battery gives up, then compare how many
were driven. I'd say the Makita wins this against my old Skil, original
battery or the rebuild. Problem with these drills (once you get above
the obvious junk) seems more the batteries than the drill itself. Seems
a shame to have to toss a perfectly good tool because the battery dies
or can't be fed.

Dan