Electric Drill RPM

[Bookworm1707]

Hi,
I am looking to forgo the pneumatic drill for an electric one. I have a few cordless drills at home, the fastest being 2000rpm. I believe part of the advantage of pneumatic drills is the rpm which seems to be up around the 4-6000rpm and that makes for more accurate holes.

I have found electric higher rpm drills, 4000rpm, but they will cost in the same region as a pneumatic.

I can get a good brand, lightweight cordless for about half the price of a good pneumatic the has an RPM in the 1800-2100 range.

I am totally overthinking this! But would be keen to know the RPM of those that are using cordless electric drills.

[PaulvS]

I have a Makita cordless drill, variable speed to 1300 RPM and it works well. I have other corded and cordless electric drills but I prefer this drill because it is compact, the chuck runs very true, and the trigger is smooth.

[flion]

Faster speeds make better holes for aluminum, but that's not the whole story. If you are building a pre-punched kit, you will be fine with a slower drill and reamer for much of it, though I would still recommend a high-rpm drill for thick undrilled stock.

[digidocs]

Lots of flying RVs built with standard speed electric drills out there. One big point in your favor is that the shank of a solid rivet expands when driven and thus fills out the hole.

[jacoby]

I have a 4000 rpm pneumatic pistol drill, a 2200 rpm pneumatic drill from the box store, a ~2000rpm 24v electric drill, and a corded electric.

All of them do the final drilling just fine. All of them do regular drilling fine but the 4000 does a faster and better job, especially with #40 holes.

My favorite all around is the 4000 rpm pneumatic because of the light weight and shape. But my little compressor can't quite keep up. I got it with the standard chuck but probably should have opted for keyless.

The electric is too big and heavy and the brushes stink but it still drills fine. Something like the lightweight Bosch pistol drill would be better. This drill does well when using the unibit and larger drill sizes though.

The box store pneumatic isn't worth it. No torque, uses lots of air, loud. I'd put the money towards another drill instead.

Generally I keep a #40 in the pneumatic and keep the electric around for the bigger sizes as needed.

[fgwilliams]

I have been using an electric drill. It’s worked OK up to this point. When I started drilling through spar caps, it started getting a little tiresome. At this point, I’ve opted to order an air drill to have options in tool choice. Both have their places. Having both makes it easier.

[PilotjohnS]

I have a Makita cordless coreless. Very nice cordless drill, lightweight and easy to use.

However, the most trouble with these is not the speed, but rather the chuck is loose in the drill; it wobbles. I made it work this time, but had to use extra jigs and stuff when I had to drill a really nice hole; it was great for the skins, but not good for the brackets and stuff that needs more precision through thick material.

This is why I would not build again with a Lowe's or Home Depot drill. Next time I will find one of very high quality with a good chuck without wobble.

[AlpineYoda]

I've been using 3 drills for mine - a Dewalt 18v drill that can do 2000 rpm, a JET drill press that gets a little more than 3000 rpm, and the pneumatic that comes with the PlaneTools builder kit.

As much as RPM matters, the drill quality matters a lot, too. Does it hold the bit straight? Does the bit wander? The Dewalt is big - around 5 pounds. It is very flexible to use it, but there are times that I've shifted over to the pneumatic simply because I'm frankly getting tired. Drilling something like the hundreds of holes in the tail skins into the J stiffeners and longerons with a battery drill, for example, is exhausting after a few hours. The pneumatic is my go-to when I simply need to give my arm a bit of a break.

[John Tierney]

I built most of my pre-punched RV-7A with my old Dewalt cordless. But halfway through the build picked up a Sioux pneumatic palm drill during one of the Brown Tools sales (Christmas I think), and it is wonderful for new holes/non-pre-punch. I also have a surplus pneumatic 90-degree drill from the Yard Store, that still has the Boeing serial number etched in it; not used often but good to have.

[raisbeck]

I've never seen the need for a pneumatic drill, and yes, I've used them.
We started our RV-8 with an older NiCd Makita and a Porter Cable corded drill. Never noticed any excessive play in the holes we drilled, and not dragging an air hose around is really a plus. More recently, my partner bought one of the new Li-ion Makitas... Its nearly as small as a pneumatic, which is a real plus in tight areas, and doesn't weigh much more. Sweet!

We still use the PC for heavy stuff where the horsepower is useful.

FWIW - our mentor, who built and has been flying a -6A for the last 15 years, bought a cheapo HF electric 'cuz compressor noise gives him a headache.