wingless' DeWALT DCD991 20V Max XR ½" Drill Kit

[wingless]

wingless' DeWALT DCD991P2 20V Max XR ½" Drill Kit - Includes: 20V MAX XR DCD991 ½" Drill; two DCB205 5Ah Battery Packs; a DCB115 4A Charger; a N433408 side handle; a N268241 belt hook w/ mounting screw and a N200697 hard tool box.

 

This DeWALT DCD991 Type 1 20V Max XR ½" drill kit is to retire my 30-year-old Milwaukee 0224-1 3/8" Magnum corded drill.

 

The tool weighs 4lbs, 8oz, w/ a 5.0Ah battery pack and the included belt clip. The top/bottom balance is nice and appropriate. The tool is "made in the USA with global materials". These two DCB205 20V 5.0Ah100Wh battery packs are made in Korea. This DCB115 4.0A output charger base is made in China. The tool includes a N433408 side handle.

 

After many months working w/ my daughter and her cordless tools, that reaffirmed my conviction that I am a troglodyte in my views on corded versus battery powered tools, leading me to investigate then select this cordless drill. My plan is to use this as my primary tool and the Milwaukee as a back-up.

 

The rated no load speeds are 0-450/0-1,300/0-2,000 rpm.

 

The DeWALT DCD991 has plenty of power, with plenty of torque. The three-speed transmission permits selection of the correct / maximum torque for the application. This is a great feature, enabling versatility for one drill to serve three applications, low/medium/high speed or torque.

 

The DCD991 drill has a rotary adjustment collar with 1 through 11 clutch setting detent positions, for fastener driving and also has a drill detent position, for drilling w/o the clutch function.

 

The automatic 3-function LED illumination is handy and intuitive. The low and medium intensity modes turn off automatically after 20 seconds. The high / spotlight mode runs for 20 minutes.

My preference has always been for a keyed chuck, but those are also gone the way of the dinosaur. I hate when a chuck / drill bit slips and there is no way to get it any tighter. So far I like this keyless chuck. The audible / felt clicks when hand tightening appear sufficient. IMO, the instructions go waaay overboard "disconnect tool from power source when changing accessories". I put the Forward / Reverse switch in the center off position, instead of removing / replacing the battery pack whenever I need to swap a bit.

 

The wobbly / sloppy fit between the battery pack and tool is not great, but I knew about that deficiency before purchase. IMO, DeWALT should improve this part of their design.

 

The hard case is a useful feature of the kit. I prefer the protection it affords and everything having a place. The cover rib contacts the tool when closing, requiring either extra force to fully close, or pulling the top handle away from the hinge so the top cover internal rib clears the tool, so it may close. (Not a major issue, but should / could be improved). The other hard case improvement I would love is for additional room within the case for accessories. I would love to also store my drill bit index, plus other drill accessories within the case. This hard case doesn't have room for other stuff. All I could fit within the case is a small 13-bit drill index case, near the charger base. It would be great if some of those cool DeWALT bit cases had a dedicated location in the drill case.

 

The battery must be snapped into the charger, not just slid until the light changes, or it won't charge the battery pack.

 

 

 

 

 

[ToolBane]

Your daughter having cordless tools before you reminds me a little too much of the old couple mocking my flip phone

 

-sent by my iPhone

[Babysaw]

Is this an amazon review? 

 

Just jokes. Glad you like your drill dude 

[wingless]

On 11/1/2018 at 9:59 PM, wingless said:

My preference has always been for a keyed chuck, but those are also gone the way of the dinosaur. I hate when a chuck / drill bit slips and there is no way to get it any tighter. So far I like this keyless chuck. The audible / felt clicks when hand tightening appear sufficient.

 

I put the Forward / Reverse switch in the center off position, instead of removing / replacing the battery pack whenever I need to swap a bit.

This keyless chuck is very secure. I've been using this tool lots, with frequent drill bit exchanges and in every case the chuck has been very secure, without any drill bit slip.

 

The chuck makes a ratcheting sound / feel when the outer collar is rotated by hand when the forward / reverse switch is in the center off position.

[Thandler]

I have a terrible time with my drill bits slipping in my new Dewalt keyless chuck.  I buy Dewalt bits so 1/4" and larger have flats on the shank however the smaller ones do not.  I'm tired of tossing bits because the shanks are so galled.  Trying to tighten the chuck further is just burning up my gloves and doesn't help.  This drill is less than a year old and the chuck started slipping almost immediately. Its a fatal flaw as far as I'm concerned.  A new chuck should not slip!