Cordless Drill/Driver

JimFiore

Silver Member
Is anyone using a cordless screwdriver or drill with a lug bit to speed up head changes? I am curious whether it is as quick a solution as it is made out to be. Also, any recommendations on the driver? I'd think a regular drill would be overkill and pretty bulky as we'll, but I'm a little leery of those little cordless screwdrivers.

Thanks
 
Is anyone using a cordless screwdriver or drill with a lug bit to speed up head changes? I am curious whether it is as quick a solution as it is made out to be. Also, any recommendations on the driver? I'd think a regular drill would be overkill and pretty bulky as we'll, but I'm a little leery of those little cordless screwdrivers.

Thanks

I do and I love it. I went to Home Depot and picked up a small-ish Black & Decker cordless drill (it's meant for around the house work, so it's not really heavy on the torque) for about $30, outfitted it with those Evans bits and it's been a handy tool to have. Of course, I only use it to remove rods and install them, I never let it actually torque down for tension. I still do that with a drum key. But just having the one has sped up head changing so much. I would avoid a big drill because of that torque/speed issue. I don't think the tension rod inserts are designed to take really high speeds, so I stayed small and slower. It's still a better option than doing it by hand.

I was debating getting two of the handheld cordless screwdriver type (instead of the gun-shaped drill) because that would make things even faster by using both hands.

I wouldn't be leery of the little cordless machines. For this purpose they're great. But like any cordless device, to maintain a good battery life, just charge it up, and use it until it dies. Then charge it up again. I don't care what anyone says about new battery technology that has no 'memory effect' - they all still do! I work with cordless handtools everyday and when things are left in their chargers, over time their lifespan just gets shorter and shorter!
 
I use two keys, one for each hand. I fine tune with one.
 
... and you can share it with guitar player to do 'Poundcake' :)

Seriously, if you go this route it is probably a good idea to make sure your drill has adjustable torque so you can get to only finger tight.
 
I've had expensive cordless drills and inexpensive cordless drills. The inexpensive ones do just as good a job as the expensive ones, so it's Ryobi for me. I use an electric drill in my studio, because I have a surplus of them. I ONLY use it in reverse, and I always check the direction before depressing the trigger. Big time saver. A cordless would work fine. I don't bother with drills at gigs though.

On the odd chance I rip a bass drum head at a gig, I keep one of those clear plastic laminating sheets within reach for a quick repair, provided the rip isn't bigger than 8 x 11.

I just peel the backing off, and slap a plastic laminating sheet over the rip. It gets me through till break time. I had one actually last me 2 weeks before it ripped. Use 2 or 3 if you are a real heavy hitter or bury the beater.

If I rip a snare head, I'll use my spare snare. Toms I would wait till break, but I don't think I ever broke a tom head, ever. I break bass drum heads more than snare heads. Odd.
 
I do and I love it. I went to Home Depot and picked up a small-ish Black & Decker cordless drill (it's meant for around the house work, so it's not really heavy on the torque) for about $30, outfitted it with those Evans bits and it's been a handy tool to have. Of course, I only use it to remove rods and install them, I never let it actually torque down for tension. I still do that with a drum key.


I do believe I have the same little drill. Actually, it was my roommate's Christmas present, but he will literally never use it, so I have been using it.

But, yes, I use it with the Evans bit and just to get the rods threaded and to the hoop. Then I make sure to evenly tension everything and tune with a regular key. It's really great for head changing, especially if you're as impatient as I am

I wouldn't be leery of the little cordless machines.

They really are great to have around the house for little miscellanenous repairs and such. I love the little thing.
 
Here's mine, it works well:
 

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I use one of these Skills for dismantling drums but not for head changes. The battery stays charged for a very long time and it has a light next to the bit so you can see what you are about to mess up.
For head changes I use 2 of these Tama keys at the same time. I think I can do it quicker with the two keys. They have the little nubs on top which help to spin them easily.
 

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I've been through a couple of drivers. This current one has been around for about 5 years. :

bosch-ixo-3-400x400-imadhmh8vdgejupz.jpeg
 
I have a small Black and Decker and I use it with out any bit. The chuck is a great fit on the lug screws. It may be a bit sloppy but since I don't use it to loosen or tighten the screws, just run them the length, It doesn't hurt the lug screws.
 

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I have a 17-year-old Milwaukee cordless drill that I'm about to retire when I can no longer purchase replacement batteries for it. The most likely replacement will be a Makita 18-volt compact lithium kit. Big plus is lithium batteries are generally lighter weight and more compact than their Ni-Cd counterparts and typically run longer and accept more charges over the lifetime of the battery. There are some drawbacks to lithium batteries, most notably they cost substantially more to replace than Ni-Cd batteries.
 
Thanks for all of the feedback. I'm putting a cordless driver on my birthday list.
 
I have one of those Evans bits and use a two-speed Dewalt 14.4v Li-Ion drill set on the slower speed and the lowest torque setting.
 
Exactly. Tools are not birthday presents. You want a birthday present. You need a tool. And you need it now :)

I explained my wife I needed a ride (my birthday is not before October). It took some convincing.
A cordless driver should be easier to justify. :)

I do find Li batteries much more fatigue resistant than NiCd. I have had a Li driven Bosch driver for many years that I don't use for several months and then 2 or 3 days in a row the whole day and it has always had and still has great stamina and torque. Highly recommended.
 
Yeah but my birthday is only a few weeks away. I can wait!
 
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