Item : B0009HAHDO Customer Reviews CRAP DONT BUY LEARN FROM MY MISTAKE by .. J. Korbett (So.Cal) I bought 3 Crap-tachi drills that came with 6 batteries. After a year and a half 5 of the batteries have gone bad. You think you got this great warranty with it you don't its a joke read the fine print, it only covers the drill it self, so what do you do with a drill with no batteries? I called the customer service line its even worst, The customer service agent told me I should have bough a Makita instead and I would have not had this problem. So I went down to there repair center and talked to the guy about it, he says the all this Hitachi stuff is junk, and they have nothing but problems with it. [...] Best homeowner drill by .. Naseer Siddique (Poughkeepise, NY United States) I upgraded to this when my 12v Black & Decker was unable to unscrew a drywall screw that we inherited with our house. In college, I've had great experiences building large projects with borrowed Dewalt tools, and I was a firm believer in that brand. But now that it's time to buy, I didn't think I could justify the incredibly high cost. So after doing some research on Consumer Reports and on here, I thought I'd give Hitachi a try. The price, at $125 on Amazon, is $100 less than the 18v Dewalt, and I find it performs just as well for my purposes. The construction is not heavy-duty, but it is far better and sturdier than the 12v Black & Decker, and it should be fine as long as you don't plan to drop it or run over it with a truck (I assume this can happen often at a construction site, but will not happen at my house, knock on wood). I am a new firm believer in Hitachi tools and will likely continue to build out my toolset with this brand. Great tools from hitachi by .. Joseph Dapper (Normal, IL USA) First off, my wife bought me their 10" miter saw last year as a present. Love the saw, going to use it to build my deck this summer. I bought the drill and flashlight combo with a bit of this years tax return. I have so far fixed a screen door, drilled some scrap wood and drove some screws as a test. This drill is great for all that and since im only a DIYer i dont expect to put it or my saw through the kind of use a professional would so i think ill be alright with the battery life and parts wearing out. i also picked up the quick change drill bit and screw driver set and havent had a problem with the chuck as far as that goes. So far so good..GO HITACHI! Excellent drill, especially for the price. by .. R. Bergsveinsson (Miami, FL) I bought this drill based on the ergonomics. I picked up and held every drill at the store and this one has perfect ergonomics. The handle is very comfortable and it appears to be perfectly balanced, the weight is perfect, feels light but well made. This drill is the most comfortable to hold by far of any drill I have seen or tested and I looked at every brand in several stores. The drill has a lot of torque and the clutch is great. I use it as a cordless screwdriver most of the time and a drill on occasion. Most chuck less drills have a hard time holding the bits, but you can use the DeWalt drill bits that have a hexagonal base and it solves the problem completely. The batteries last a long time and charge in about 30 minutes. It comes with two so you can charge one while using the other. They won't charge until they cool down however (the charger will not charge a hot battery). If you need a longer run time, you can get NiMH or Li-Ion batteries in anywhere from 1.5Ah to 3.0Ah that fit this drill. If you go with either of those however, you will need a new charger since the supplied charger is only for Ni-Cad batteries. The UC18YRL is a universal charger that can charge all 3 types of batteries. You can also buy the DS18DFL package which appears to be the same drill with Li-Ion batteries but without a flashlight. For some reason the Li-Ion drill is rated about 6% less torque of 374in/lbs vs this one is 400 in/lbs, although I doubt anyone could tell the difference. The flashlight is bright and lasts a long time, I use it all the time. The light comes with a spare lamp inside if you unscrew the cover. I had a hard time finding replacement lamps for the light for a while, but then found out the Makita ML180 lamps work perfectly as a replacement so I just pick those up at a local Makita dealer. I have dropped both the flashlight and the drill onto a concrete floor about several times and both survived without damage except killing the flashlight bulb if the light was on. I bought two kits I use in two locations and this set has been great in every way. The batteries are getting old so I'll replace them with NiMH or Li-Ion and get the universal charger. All rechargeable batteries self discharge so if you charge it and store it, it will be dead when you need it. If you use it only occasionally, it is best to store the batteries with a low charge or near empty, not fully charged to extend their lifetime. When you replace them, you can recycle them at most hardware stores or any Radioshack will accept them. Don't throw them out, the Cadmium is toxic and like all rechargeable batteries, they should be disposed of properly. Green Dragon Drill by .. Jerry L. Murray () I purchased new for $75 plus a free battery totaling 3 batts. I am glad I got the third one since the 1.4 amp batts do not last long. Hitachi makes higher amperage batts, and I would suggest purchasing them for those who use the unit extensively. The drill is well balanced and well made with plenty of power.