Is this Combi Drill any good? 18V Brushless Makita

[houserenovator]

Hello, I'm just completing on a bungalow that needs everything doing to it, full replumb, kitchen, 2 bathrooms, underfloor heating, loft conversion, moving windows, knocking down walls. I will be doing everything except installing the new boiler and electrics. I have extensive DIY experience however normally use friends tools so don't have much. I'm looking for a set of tools that will allow all these jobs to be completed in a timely manor. I want to buy once and keep these tools for a good while as I fancy maybe selling this house and repeating in the future.

I have a budget of around 2K for tools.

I have my eye on the following combi drill, does anyone use this day to day, what's people opinions on this kit.

Makita DHP481RMJ 18V Brushless Combi Drill LXT 2 x 4.0ah for £311

and pairing it with


Makita DTD152Z 18V LXT Impact Driver Bare Unit for £62


My hope is these along with a cheap 4KG Titan SDS drill from Screwfix would be all my drilling and screwing needs sorted. Whats everyone's thoughts on this kit, is it worth it?

Sorry for the long question just want honest opinions as I'm sinking the best part of £400 in this kit.

 

[Jay The Plumber]

I didnt look at them link but.. if you get a decent brushless drill, impact driver and cordless SDS from any of the major brands (makita, dewalt, milwaukee etc) you will be ok..
most of these bits of kit will see you through 100 bungalows

 

[gmartine]

I'd add a smaller SDS, either a makita 18v or mains powered.

Perhaps find somewhere that'll bundle a Makita 18v combi, impact and SDS with say 3 or 4 x 3amp bats that'll cover all your needs.

Edit: Brushless is great but if comes down to budget I wouldn't be that bothered with it unless you're using them almost professionally day in day out when you'd really notice the difference in performance and longevity. Jay is completely correct in that most branded kit from the major players should easily last you.

 

[Phil]

Forget the impact driver, they are no quicker screwing than a combi and the noise is deafening. Spend the money on a circular saw or jigsaw.

 

[Best]

Impact drivers excel where you need to screw in really long screws into heavy timber, (due to having enormous torque) or for to remove seized screws, (impact action) or to drive in masonry or coach bolts. They also are very compact for awkward places. But as Phil said, normally not needed for most work and are noisy under load.
To the OP, I would recommend also get an sds cordless. The bare bodies on the smaller range of cordless bodies are very cheap even on professional tools, so worth getting as you can afford.

 

[houserenovator]

Thanks for the feedback so far.

I was thinking the impact driver as there will be a lot of stud work, also building dormer window, installing stair case, for inside kitchen cabinets, getting in between joists to batten for insulation for the UFH. The smaller size of the impact was my main draw along with I can have the combi set up for drilling and not need to keep switching bits.

I'll add a smaller SDS from makita, the titan 4KG's going to be used for breaking down walls, removing tiles, drilling waste holes.

Is Makita 18V the best system to invest in, will probably be buying more cordless once I have a think of what I need and want to just be buying bare units, maybe have a stock of 4 batteries between whatever I end up with.

Other tools I'm thinking are;

Evolution miter saw - cheap and cheerful will be ideal for stud work, will check quality of cuts and maybe get something better for skirting.
Bosh corded grinder
Makita Corded circular saw & Jig Saw

Swithering about a multi tool, they seem expense when the job can probably be done with a combination of the above tools.

Want to get the best tools for the job as this is going to become my full time job, going to be working on the house 9-5 each day for a month or so.

 

[Best]

If you do buy an impact driver, my advice would be only buy the model that has selectable speed/torque settings. The cheaper models of various brands that have only one power - full only, are too powerful and no control when putting in light screws or more delicate work.
I don't know much about mitre saws, but a builder/joiner bloke told me recently that the Makita is more accurate.
Re the multi tools, - if you are unsure if you will need one much, just buy the Lidl multitool for £30 when it is available. It comes with set of blades and will be okay for small jobs. I have it and the expensive Fein multitool and the Fein is no doubt the best and has a lever operated quick change blade release, but the Lidl does the same jobs.
Bosch blue 240volt tools are probably good, but I would also advise you look at Metabo angle grinder.

 

[tamz]

I could say buy everything Hilti cos they are the best but i live in the real world. I have a few hilti's but also slots of others that do the job as well or better for much less cash.
Impact driver get a 10.?v whatever impact dewalt, metabo, makita, bosch or whatever. Best screw gun you will ever get and will knock in 3" 12's for fun without overkill on 3/4" 6's Somethng like this http://www.NoLinkingToThis/p/dewalt-dcf813d2-gb-10-8v-2-0ah-li-ion-xr-cordless-impact-wrench/6139j or for an extra 10er another drill Dewalt DCK211D2T 10.8V Cordless Li-ion Compact Drill Driver and Impact Driver Twin Pack (2 x 2Ah Batteries) (DCK-211-D2T)
Cordless sds you don't need so save your cash. Plug ins are much better anyway.

However you will need a decent 18v+ cordless drill driver (pi sh for driving unless you like rounded screws) for drilling holes in timber or the odd hole in a wall. Brushless is just the new fad. No better (that you will notice) than old tech brushed and tbh lith ion is no better than Nicad, just lighter and more expensive cos the batteries die (as in dead) quicker. I still have an old makita 9.6v gun that is 25 years old and still takes and holds a charge and have 20+ others under 10 years old that don't!

Any decent rotor stop corded sds. Bosch, dewalt, makita,. hilti, milwalkee whatever. Go for a high joule something like Hitachi DH26PX SDS+ Rotary Hammer Drill 26mm 240V (DH-26-PX) Names mean nothing unless you collect batteries. These are plug ins.

The Evolution chop saw is good enough for most things Put a good 64 tooth blade in and it will cut as good as any saw but they are not 100% accurate so if you need accurate mitres or angles you need to set them up. Not a big deal for a 400 quid saving over a dewalt. (The old Elu flip saws were the dogs if you scout ebay. Dewalt bought them out but never improved)

SDS max. Buy one from ebay or expect to pay at least 500 for anything decent. Min 12 j bump . Depends what you want to do with it something like this Makita HR4511C SDS Max Rotary Demolition Hammer Drill with AVT 110V (HR-4511-C)

A roughing nail gun http://www.NoLinkingToThis/p/paslode-im350-90mm-6v-1-2ah-ni-cd-first-fix-gas-framing-nailer/29064 you won't need the higher amp/hr .

I could go on and on but thats cos i'm a tool pig. I must honestly have over 100k of tools and i've put them in my will to my lassie just to **** my boy off

Think smart and buy to your needs or if you get carried away buy everything you fancy.
Look up Spit btw. Excellent tools not well known. (they own paslode) older ones have sspecific tooling ie tri drive

 

[gmartine]

Forget the impact driver, they are no quicker screwing than a combi and the noise is deafening. Spend the money on a circular saw or jigsaw.

...except you don't get cam out because you don't have to pressure the screw head so it's easier on you but I agree it's a mare for your ears if you're next to it all day. As mentioned consider a 10.8v kit, I do most of my work with a Milwaukee M12 kit, plenty power for 95% of the work I do and far less noise. It's been mentioned, if you go for 18v idriver get one with selectable torque settings as 160 - 170Nm is far too excessive for most applications.

 

[Phil]

Ridgid do a much quieter hydraulic impact driver.

I had to laugh the other day, I'm fitting the bathrooms in a big 7 bed house and all morning I could here distant SDS chiseling in the house..bbbbbbrrrr.....bbbbbbrrrrrrr all fecking morning, I genuinly though the sparky was doing back boxes but it was just a guy fitting roller blinds who wanted to use his new toy, why the hell would you bother with an impact for such small delicate screws into plasterboard?

 

[gmartine]

I suppose some tradesman just buy an 18v impact driver and combi and try and work it for everything irrespective of how appropriate, for small work I have a Milwaukee M12 screwdriver that can cope with most screws up to 2" and it only chucks out about 10Nm.