Cordless drills came into the market much later than their corded counterpart.
However, in the few decades they have been use, they have proved to be a savior for both professionals and hobbyists.
The cordless drill is a must-have in your arsenal and even if you do not have other robust tools in your toolbox, you shouldn’t miss out on a cordless drill.
Any woodworking project – DIY or professional – is impossible without a drill, the cordless model being an added advantage.
Building furniture, cabinets, fixing doors, windows, and floor, home improvement jobs – all require a cordless drill for boring holes.
Moreover, cordless drill isn’t only good for drilling. It can be used to drive screws, make wood plugs, saw holes, and cut countersinks.
That’s not the end of it; with the proper accessory, it can also be used for grinding, sanding, abrading, buffing, and rasping wood to obtain the desired finishing.
If this isn’t enough to satisfy you, you may also use it to stir mud and paint to be used on walls. Believe it or not, your drill will do it all without any issue.
Naturally, a cordless drill is favored by one and all, irrespective of the kind of woodworking project at hand.
That said, it is important that you know how to use a cordless drill for wood work for the best results.
The working mechanism of a cordless drill is quite simple and doesn’t involve intricate techniques.
However, you have to do it right to make your wood work project a success. If you are not sure how to go about it:
Work basics
If you have already brought a cordless drill for yourself and are ready to start working on your first woodworking project, then it is essential that you understand how the thing works.
Whatever may be your favorite, all drills have a chuck with three jaws that holds your preferred attachment or drill bit.
You can use your hand(s) to tighten the grip. As you squeeze the drill trigger, the chuck starts rotating.
Most modern drills come with variable speed settings that you can set as per your requirement.
Drills have a selector switch that you can use for the purpose. Low speed is ideal when you have to drill large holes or drive fasteners.
As you switch to high speed, you can use small diameter bits to create small holes.
You can also sand wood with a drill on high speed.
After you have bore holes that you need, you can use the drill to drive in screws. Drills come with an adjustable clutch that controls its torque to avoid overdriving or breaking the screw.
The clutch can be controlled with numbered settings present in the collar behind the chuck.
Choosing your drill bit
The success of your project depends a lot on the correct selection of drill bits for the task. Not all types of drill bits go well with wood.
Following are the types of drill bits that you should use:
- Lip and spur bit
- Masonry bit
- Hole saw
- Step bit
- Spade bit/flat wood bit
If none of the above bit types are available with you, you can use a HSS bit, but at very slow speed.
How to hold a cordless drill?
Once you have chosen the right drill bit, you are ready to start your woodworking project.
But before you do that, you should know how to hold the drill right. Though this isn’t complex, but you should be aware about what is right.
Hold your cordless drill in a way that the side handle is in the vertical “12 o’clock’ position and the trigger handle is at the horizontal “3 o’clock” position.
As the drill bit sticks, your cordless drill will rotate counter clockwise violently, pishing the side handle into your palm so that you can grasp it before releasing the trigger.
If both the handles are kept vertically down, i.e. in the “6 o’clock” position, chances are that the side handle will escape your grip.
This will surely happen if a high power cordless drill is operated without the safety slip chuck.
That said, if you are about to use a cordless drill for the first time, expect to face a heavy jolt at the beginning.
Tips to drill perfect holes in the work piece
Since drilling holes is the primary utility of a cordless drill, you would surely be drilling a lot of holes with it.
To ensure that each hole that you bore is perfect, follow these steps:
- Start with a slow speed. The bigger the drill bit diameter, the slower you must go.
- Do not drill holes at one go. Pull out the drill frequently so as to remove the residue created from drilling the hole. This will ensure that you do not need to apply extra power to bore through the residue material. The drill bit will also face less friction. Thus, you can prevent overloading and overheating. Doing this is essential when you use flat
wood bits as these do not have flutes. - If you have a small work-piece that needs drilling, never hold with your hand. Use a clamp or vice to ensure that the work-piece is secured in its position. This is because the work-piece can move uncontrollably if the drill bit jams. This precaution is not necessary if the work-piece is heavy.
Versatility at your disposal
Cordless drills not only fulfil many of your woodworking needs, but they also add versatility to your workshop.
The battery that you use for your drill can be smoothly used with many other tools, especially if you have a range of 18-/20- V tools.
This, however, is best suited when you have many tools from the same manufacturer that run on the same voltage.
This will save you good money as you can use the same battery and charger for many tools.
Cordless drills are not only essential for woodworking projects, they can add versatility to the type of projects that you can handle.
Put them to best use and see the difference!