OK.... so after making an enquiry for suggestions for a decent new cordless drill/driver the other week, and after undertaking a bit of online research I made my decision and have pounced.
The brief was for a reasonably priced ( under £100 ) 18v cordless hammer action drill/driver for general occasional duties around the house and garden after my 18 year old non hammer action DeWalt although still working fine understandably started struggling on the battery holding a charge front and I noticed that it was only a 12v model anyway.
The DeWalt had been a faithful servant over these years for lightweight drilling duties, though when having to drill into masonry whilst installing central heating systems I had always used my bog standard cabled 850W £30 B&Q MacAllister drill which has always handled with ease everything it had ever been asked to do and will be brought back out as and when required. Luckily I had only ever had to work on building sites a handful of times during my working career and on each occasion mains power was already available in the house carcasses, meaning that I had never really needed an expensive high quality cordless drill as used by other trades on site relying on generators or working off ladders.
One of my usual traits is that when I start out looking at a cheap or reasonably priced non essential item that I fancy buying I quite often get a little carried away and end up stretching the bank to get something just that bit better than I really require and after considering some of the many suggestions offered by contributors to my original enquiry upped my budget to £120 -£130 plus, given my big fear that a cheaper model might not measure up power wise as I would like something that had a bit of guts to power into masonry without having to dig out my corded drill every single time I want to attach or drill into something.
The fear of course being that the drill would have to be purchased first before finding out if the power disappointed or was adequate.
I don't know why the likes of B&Q don't have a few bricks hanging about with charged up batteries for their comprehensive number of display models so that potential customers can test before buying, it might well encourage sales if the browsing public were able to allay their lack of power and grunt fears on certain models.
I suppose that this could also cause someone to plump for a cheaper model if they find out that a less heralded cheaper make and model does a more than adequate job for their anticipated needs.
So here was what I eventually plumped for after scaling back my initial thoughts to go a touch overboard compared to my actual anticipated future need........
A Black and Decker 18v brushless drill driver with an impressive 54 N/M torque rating.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Hammer-Dr...+bl188gb+drill.
Whilst I possibly detect the collective groans around the country from the top of the range power tool enthusiasts it's worth pointing out again my occasional use of such a drill.
I took the current Groupon £59 deal and have to say that my first impressions are of a very solid well made piece of kit, and having tested it on several brick and concrete surfaces am even more impressed as it drove a 10mm bit through both surfaces like a knife through butter ( well almost ) it is fair to say that it just powered through them as effectively as I would expect of a corded drill.
Having also tested it's screwdriving and removal capabilities in undrilled wood with some pretty hefty sized woodscrews I have also knocked on the head my fancy for investing in an impact driver as I'm struggling to see why I would need one given the power and performance of this new drill/driver.
I've given it a fair old testing and the, on the face of it, fairly limited 1.5Ah capacity battery is still holding strong on the same initial charge, however the price paid reflects the fact that only one battery was supplied with the drill, I'll hang fire befoire deciding whether to invest in another which would add about another £25 to the price bringing the package up to £85, however at present with no major projects in the pipeline see no immediate need for an additional battery.
Obviously I can't vouch for longevity or how the drill or battery will stand up to periods of hard continuous use or a bit of a bashing, but with a two year guarantee I should have plenty of time for recourse to the guarantee if unfortunately needed.
On first impressions and without the benefit of a year or so of use I would thoroughly recommend this make and model as a reasonably priced, light but solid feel DIY round the house and garden hammer drill/driver if anyone is looking to replace or upgrade an older or less powerful model.
And thank you for all your suggestions