As a long time Milwaukee fan, it was worrying a few years ago when ownership of Milwaukee changed. With that change, there was a concern that the longstanding quality of their tools would diminish. With this 2410-20 drill, there seems to be little to worry about!
The straight and true: the tool is SOLID, fit/finish is excellent, there is no flex in the handle (other than the comfortable, soft coating). The battery has zero slop in the handle, works for longer than expected and charges quickly. Given the compact size, torque is also better than I hoped for with high speed being a great choice for driving screws (took the tool to work for moving audio equipment in a bunch of sound racks).
The wobble: there is only one part that I've found to deserve criticism - the chuck. It seems great and very similar to the excellent chucks on the V18 drills (minus the carbide grip inserts). While there is very little run-out in mine, the chuck auto-loosens. Driving screws in results in the momentum (on high speed) loosening the grip a little bit each time a screw hits bottom (or the brake of the drill is used when letting go of the trigger). Really cranking the chuck tight helps in delaying the loosening but does not seem to eliminate the problem with the screwdriver bit dropping out after 15 to 20 screws. Although this is a huge problem, the tool is good enough otherwise that it is still a keeper.
After experiencing the positive qualities of this Milwaukee tool, I'm very curious to try out more of the M12 line (especially the impact driver for use with screws). Luckily, the new Milwaukee seems to have done a lot to increase the engineering and design speed of tools and seems to have not lost the high quality that makes older Milwaukee tools legendary.
Edited 9-6-2009 to add: Turns out mine is not the only sample that self-loosens the chuck. This is something to be very aware/wary of and it probably would help if each of us with faulty chuck operation went to [...] and communicated to them through their system. It does not take much imagination to see a decent size, sharp spade bit drop from the chuck and poke a hole in a leg of someone working while wearing shorts.
Edited 7-26-2010 to add: Between my experience with 3 of these drills and reading the comments to this review, it seems clear that Milwaukee has a product where they have failed in both design and testing. Given the time they have had to fix the problem but have not, I suggest passing over the M12 tools until Milwaukee demonstrates production of tools that work 100% properly.
New Rating - One Star - what good is a drill that can't hold a bit?? Milwaukee 2410-22 M12 12-Volt 3/8-Inch Drill/Driver
just purchased the 2410 Milwaukee drill as a kit with two batteries 2 months or so ago from Amazon . first impression good . recent experience quite disappointing.
i have used the drill moderately but often during this time. the major problem it he batteries. first charge good. followup battery performance renders the drill only good for small short duration jobs. charges quickly,so far, but no staying power. now i learn that to overcome this problem Milwaukee has brought out a "heavy duty" battery to be bought separately.
i noticed the problem a few days after the amazon full replacement policy.
i had read several reviews before purchasing- most were good. after my problem i read reviews just on the battery and discovered that many people have had the same experience.
Be careful with this one. It is not an inexpensive mistake.
I purchased the 1/4" hex chuck driver a while back and can't say enough good things about it. When I saw this slightly beefier cordless drill from Milwaukee in the same product family I couldn't wait to get it. It's a great size for light duty work. I like the 3/8" chuck because finding a drill bit with a 1/4" hex shank for the other non spade bit drivers that produces a hole larger than 1/4" is not as easy. Having a higher speed range for drilling and having the clutch are also pluses above the basic driver. I have a Bosch 1/2" 18v hammer drill for heavy duty jobs but it's WAY too much drill for light jobs around the house. This Milwaukee drill/driver is a great intermediary range tool. The trigger pull is smooth and consistent and makes controlling the speed of the drill easy, the clutch has enough range to handle plenty of diverse needs and the size is very convenient to have in a holster if you're working on a ladder or wearing it on a tool belt all day. The life of the lithium ion batteries is great and the recharge is pretty quick at 30 or so minutes. The battery technology has clearly come a ways from my old DeWalt 18v NiCd setup. (which was stolen and is the reason I branched out to different systems such as the Bosch and the Milwaukee) The only down side I can find on this drill (and the 1/4" hex driver as well) is that when I'm using the drill in reverse, my index finger on my right hand tends to hit the "forward" button. It's not a large problem, just something I have to consciously think about when using it in reverse. That's a large hands issue though, not really a fault of the drill.
And I thought my chuck problems were isolated! Reading other reviews here shows me it's common!
I've been using cordless Milwaukee 18 volt tools for about 8 years on a daily basis, and am lucky enough to have a service center fairly close by - I've burnt out the switch on a 18v sawzall, brushes in the 1/2" 18v drillmotor ( and yesterday the swtich!) and the parts are readly available - they've given REALLY good service (though the sawzall is probably on it's last legs - it makes a LOT more noise than it used too!).
But I'm re-thinking - it's about time to replace these guys, and my experience with this little drill motor makes me wary about buying all Milwaukee. How hard is it to spec a chuck that holds it's grip? Who the hell wants to climb off a ladder to fetch the bit that you thought was secure in the chuck, only for it to dropout after one use????????? Not only do I not have time for that, I'm getting creaky and it really ticks me off to get up & down for something so stupid - I've NEVER had a chuck with this poor performance in all my 58 years!
And I won't start on the styling business - it does look cool but the little non-functional rubber piping on the side became halfway detached by day 2 and now just flaps around - I should cut it off!
Hope folks from Milwaukee read this & actually pay attention to business - how many customers can you afford to have defect to another brand? - Driver - Compact - Lithium - Drill'
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