How to Use a Power Drill and Impact Driver | WOODWORKING BASICS
Estimated read time: 1:20
Summary
In this episode of Woodworking for Mere Mortals, Steve Ramsey outlines the fundamental techniques of using a power drill and an impact driver, crucial tools for woodworking and home improvement. He covers essential aspects like choosing the right bits, setting up your drill, and the benefits of having both a drill and an impact driver. From understanding different types of drill bits such as brad point, Forstner, and spade bits, to knowing when to use an impact driver for maximum efficiency, this tutorial provides a comprehensive guide. Ramsey offers tips for drilling clean holes, selecting the right speed and torque settings, and preventing damage to both screws and materials. This guide is perfect for beginners looking to better understand their tools and enhance their woodworking skills.
Highlights
Discover how a drill’s variable speed can be used for different tasks, preventing fasteners like screws from stripping or breaking 🔄.
Learn about keyless chucks and why they're handy for changing bits quickly 🔧.
Find out how an impact driver differs from a drill and why it’s better for driving screws into hard materials 🚀.
Get tips on preventing wood from splitting and screws from breaking by using the right techniques and tools 🌳.
Understand how to keep drill bits steady to avoid wandering off the mark when starting a hole 🎯.
Key Takeaways
A power drill and impact driver are essential tools for woodworking and home improvement 🛠️.
Learn about different drill bits like brad point, Forstner, and spade bits, and their uses 🪛.
Understand the importance of speed and torque settings to avoid damaging materials 🌟.
Impact drivers offer more torque for driving screws into tough materials with ease 💪.
Tips like using tape to monitor depth and preventing splintering while drilling can improve your results 🎯.
Overview
In this engaging woodworking tutorial, Steve Ramsey delves into the essentials of using a power drill and an impact driver, tools that no woodworker or DIY enthusiast should be without. He starts by explaining the basic functions of each tool, highlighting how both are indispensable for drilling and driving tasks around your home and workshop. From adjusting the chuck to setting the right speed, ensuring that your drill operates efficiently is key. 💡
Ramsey discusses the variety of drill bits available, such as brad point and Forstner bits, each designed for specific types of drilling projects. He provides useful tips on preventing issues like wood splintering or screw stripping through proper drill use. By covering everything from speed settings to clutch use, he ensures viewers know how to maintain control over their projects, yielding better results. 🔩
One of the highlights is the introduction to the impact driver. With its unique mechanism delivering more torque than a standard drill, it’s a game-changer for driving screws into tough materials without slipping. Ramsey emphasizes the impact driver's convenience, particularly when paired with a traditional drill, making it easier to switch between tasks seamlessly. His practical advice makes woodworking more accessible and exciting for beginners. 🚀
Chapters
00:00 - 03:00: Introduction to Drills and Impact Drivers The chapter 'Introduction to Drills and Impact Drivers' starts with a light-hearted commentary on the ubiquity and repetitiveness of drilling holes. However, it suggests that adding creativity can make the task more interesting. The speaker then introduces two of their most frequently used tools: the drill and the impact driver. These tools are praised not only for their value in woodworking but also for their versatility in home improvement and repair tasks. The chapter aims to cover the fundamentals of using both tools and provides a rationale for why they are essential for anyone undertaking DIY projects or repairs.
03:00 - 10:00: Using a Drill: Key Features and Tips The chapter titled 'Using a Drill: Key Features and Tips' provides an overview of how to use a drill, specifically focusing on the keyless chuck feature. It explains the basic function of a drill, which is to hold a bit for drilling a hole. The chapter highlights that modern drills typically come with a keyless chuck, allowing users to tighten it without a chuck key. Instructions are given on how to operate the keyless chuck—by ensuring the jaws are open wide enough to hold the bit, which is achieved by unscrewing the chuck to open the jaws, before inserting the bit sufficiently.
10:00 - 15:00: Types of Drill Bits and Their Uses This chapter provides a detailed explanation of how to properly install drill bits into different types of drills. It begins by describing the process of manually tightening the chuck by hand and using the drill's trigger to ensure the bit is securely in place. The chapter also explains the difference between drills that have a reverse rotation switch for bit adjustments and those that require a Chuck key for securing the bit. Additionally, it touches upon the use of drill presses that utilize Chuck keys.
15:00 - 20:00: Introduction to Impact Drivers The chapter 'Introduction to Impact Drivers' begins with a brief mention of drill presses, indicating that a detailed discussion will be covered in a separate video. The focus is on variable speed drills, explaining that the speed is adjusted by the pressure applied on the trigger. It advises that starting a drill at a slow speed can prevent the bit from wandering before it grabs, especially when beginning to drill a hole. This provides a basic understanding of controlling drill speed to achieve better accuracy while drilling.
20:00 - 25:00: Conclusion and Recommendations The chapter discusses the usage of drills and their features, specifically focusing on the impact of speed and gear settings when driving screws or drilling holes. It emphasizes the importance of choosing the appropriate speed to prevent stripping or breaking screws. The chapter suggests utilizing the gear switch on the drill to adjust torque and speed, depending on the task - using slower speed for more torque and faster speed for regular drilling activities.
How to Use a Power Drill and Impact Driver | WOODWORKING BASICS Transcription
00:00 - 00:30 Sure, of course. Drilling holes is boring.
But you can liven it up with a handful of fairy dust and a little bit of --
microjig maker of the gripper. Work safer. Work smarter. -- I think my two most
often used tools are my drill and my impact driver. They are useful for
woodworking but also all kinds of home-improvement and repairs around the
house let's look at the basics of drilling and driving and why I recommend
owning both tools. Of course most of us
00:30 - 01:00 are familiar with a drill. It holds a bit
and you use it for drilling a hole. It has a chuck that tightens down these
jaws and holds it into place. Most reels today have a keyless chuck
that you can tighten without needing a chuck key. To use the keyless chuck make
sure that the jaws are open wide enough to hold the bit. To open them up just
unscrew the chuck and you'll see the jaws open. Insert a bit. It doesn't need
to go all the way in just deep enough
01:00 - 01:30 for the jaws to grab it. Then tighten the
chuck by hand. I usually do this all in one motion by holding the bit and the
chuck in my left hand and slowly squeezing the trigger until it's tight.
Your drill will have a switch that reverses the spinning rotation either
forward or reverse. Once the bit is in place, pull the trigger. If the bit is
wobbly you don't have it in right. If you have the kind of drill that uses a Chuck
key, you'll stick it into a hole in the side of the chuck and just crank it down
tight. My drill press uses this kind of
01:30 - 02:00 system. By the way I'll discuss the drill
press in a future basics video. Most reels are variable speed drills you
control the speed of the motor by squeezing the trigger. The more you
squeeze the faster the bit spins. For drilling holes, I use this feature to get
a hole started. If you start at a high speed the bit might wander around until
it grabs. You also need to use a slow
02:00 - 02:30 speed to drive screws or other
fasteners with a driver bit. A fast speed could cause the screw to strip or even
break. Some drills also have a gear switch. On my drill, gear one has a slower speed
but more torque or twisting power and that would be great for say driving a
lag screw into a stud I usually keep my drill set on gear to the faster speed
setting. This works great for drilling most holes.
Another feature most drills have is a
02:30 - 03:00 clutch which can help when driving screws. By adjusting this dial the drill will stop driving when it reaches a certain
torque. This is handy when you want to be careful not to drive a screw too deep.
For example if you're drilling into drywall, you need to be careful not to
break the paper covering. Run a couple of tests to get the correct setting then
you can drill lots of holes without worry. It's also useful for driving
pocket screws and preventing them from
03:00 - 03:30 stripping or blasting all the way
through the wood. Usually I keep the clutch off and have it set to the
drilled setting. If I only have a couple of screws I just slowly drive them into
place. Most likely you'll want the convenience of a battery-powered drill.
To date, batteries can do a lot of drilling and driving on a single charge
and they charge up pretty quickly. You should always have two batteries so that
you can have one on the charger ready to
03:30 - 04:00 go. While not as handy as a battery
operated drill you can buy corded drills. These are good to have if you need to do
a lot of heavy intensive drilling and driving and don't want to risk any
downtime waiting for a battery to charge. The most common type of drill bits are
twist drill bits sometimes called HSS or high-speed steel bits. These are
inexpensive and readily available at hardware stores and home centers
everywhere they work well for wood, metal,
04:00 - 04:30 and other materials. One drawback is they
can be difficult to keep from wandering from where you want the hole to be. A
better choice for woodworking are brad point bits. The point at the tip allows
you to position the bit precisely where you need to drill and the spurs on the
side of the brad point cut into the wood cleanly. Brad point bits bore nice clean
holes but they're more expensive. A spade
04:30 - 05:00 or paddle bit has a point to get it
started and a wide blade for making large holes. Unfortunately a spade bit is
pretty aggressive and can leave a pretty ragged splintered cut. They're best for
rough construction work maybe boring holes in studs for a conduit but not the
best choice for woodworking. When you need to drill a large clean flat bottom
holes, a Forstner bit is the best option.
05:00 - 05:30 It has a starter brad point and a cutter
around the rim Forstner bits require a fair amount of force to push them into
wood and are usually used only on a drill press. You can use them with a
handheld drill but it can be pretty tricky. Your best bet is to clamp the
board down to prevent it from spinning loose also as a rule of thumb, the bigger
the bit, the slower you want your drill
05:30 - 06:00 to spin. One of the most common uses for
a drill all around the house not just in the workshop is as a driver. Driving
screws is much easier and faster with a drill than by hand. Driver bits come in
any type of screw head you need to use. Phillip, Stardrive, Square drive, etc.
They all have a hex shaped shank that fits into your chuck just like any other
bit. You can get long drivers like this
06:00 - 06:30 one that fit directly into your drill or
you just these little tips that fit into a drivers holder. There's a magnet inside
the sleeve that holds the bit in place. I prefer to use these. In
general I don't see any big advantage to spending a lot of money on high-end
expensive drill or driver bits. You can get a huge set with hundreds of bits for
under $30.
06:30 - 07:00 I like to have a big assortment on hand
so I can always find the size I need without having to make a special
purchase. In the case of drill bits I really believe in quantity over quality
there are a lot more types of drill bits and drivers than I mentioned in this
video, but these are mostly what I use. Well there really isn't a lot to know about
how to drill a hole. The main thing is to always press the bit against the wood
before pulling the trigger. I usually
07:00 - 07:30 like to start slowly until the bit feels
like it's starting to grab and then I speed it up. And keep the drill spinning
as you back it out. If you don't have a Brad point bit and you need to drill a
hole in a precise location create a divot first by using an awl or a thinner
punch to get the bit started and to keep it from slipping or wandering. If you
need to make a large diameter hole it can be helpful to drill a smaller guide
hole first. Sometimes you don't need to
07:30 - 08:00 drill a hole in order to insert a screw.
On soft wood or rough construction projects you can just power the screw
into place. But for most woodworking projects you'll get a cleaner more
accurate result if you drill a pilot hole first. Installing hinges for
instance would be a nightmare without
08:00 - 08:30 drilling holes. For hard wood, driving a
screw without a hole can be nearly impossible. You risk splitting the wood
or even breaking the screw plus a screw hole actually holds stronger
when it's threads are cutting into the size of a hole instead of pushing the
wood fibers apart. There are times when you want to stop the drill at a certain
depth. Say you want to attach legs to the underside of a tabletop. Blasting all the
way through would be disastrous.
08:30 - 09:00 Instead wrap a piece of tape around a
bit where you want to stop drilling. rather than fussing with the actual
dimensions of the bits and screws, I just find a drill bit that is about
the same diameter as the shank of the
09:00 - 09:30 screw that I want to use. Hold a bit and
the screw together and eyeball it. With a drill bit in front of the screw you
should only see the threads. It doesn't have to be exact, just make sure you're
comparing the bit to the shank of the screw and not the threads. For a clean
look with the head of the screw flush or slightly below the surface of the wood
you can use a countersink bit after
09:30 - 10:00 drilling your hole to make a cone-shaped
indentation for the head of the screw. Just make sure you're using regular
wood screws with a beveled head rather than a round or pan head screw.
An easy way to keep the drill at a right angle to your workpiece is to screw a
couple of scrap boards together and use them as a guide. A common problem with drilling a hole
all the way through the board is that it
10:00 - 10:30 can blast through the other side causing
splintering. To prevent this, simply clamp a board to the exit side and pull the
bit into thinking that the workpiece is thicker than it is. This is very useful
when drilling holes for drawer pulls or cabinet knobs. Everything I've discussed
in this video can be accomplished with
10:30 - 11:00 just a drill and that's exactly what I
used for years until I discovered the impact driver. Seriously, after using an
impact driver I can't imagine working without one. It made a big impact on
my life. An impact driver is only for driving screws or bolts. You can't drill
holes with it it doesn't have a chuck
11:00 - 11:30 with jaws like a drill but instead has a
locking quick change collet that holds standard hex shank drivers. To install a
driver bit, just push forward on the collet and drop the bit in and release
it. An impact driver has a variable speed trigger just like a drill but instead of
just spinning it also delivers rapid impact blows in the direction it's
spinning this gives the tool way more torque than a drill and can drive screws
into super hard wood or other materials
11:30 - 12:00 with little effort. Use the impact driver
just like a drill when the screw gets close to being fully seated you can slow
down the driver and you'll see it slowly torquing into place. With an impact
driver the tip of the bit stays in the head of the screw and doesn't slip out
the way a drill can. If you've ever used Phillips screws you know how frustrating
it can be to ruin the head of a screw and
not be able to continue. An impact driver
12:00 - 12:30 can also help remove those screws whose
heads are all scrumped up. Plus it's just really handy to drill hold with a drill
and then quickly switch to the impact driver to drive the screws. I highly
recommend owning both a drill and an impact driver. In fact, manufacturers
often sell them paired in kits. This set complete with two batteries cost about
$130.
12:30 - 13:00 Well there are a lot of other types of drills and bits
that I didn't cover in this video but I
13:00 - 13:30 hope this has been helpful enough to get
you familiar with the basics. My drill
13:30 - 14:00 and Driver certainly aren't the sexiest
tools in my shop but they get used all the time. In fact, they are the only tools
that I don't have dedicated storage
14:00 - 14:30 spaces for. They're always on one of my
work benches within reach. And trust me, once you get
an impact driver you'll wonder why you waited. If you found this video useful,
please take a moment to share it with others. And if you are new here please
click that subscribe button and ring the notification bell so you won't miss any
of my videos. Check in the description for links to the drill and driver I use
and all the products I mentioned. And be
14:30 - 15:00 sure to browse through the other videos
in my woodworking basics series. Thanks for watching everybody!