Thread: Advice needed on driving screws into sleepers

Hi all,

Last night I did some more work on the garden beds. Thanks for all of your suggestions... very helpful indeed.

I'm now drilling pilot holes only through the first sleeper (50mm) using my dad's electric drill, and then using a cheap Ozito cordless driver that I borrowed to drive the screws through that pilot hole and into the second sleeper (the upright post). I'm also applying Vaseline to each screw beforehand and that's making the driving a bit easier.

Using this Ozito cordless driver, I'm able to get the screws almost flush with the surface. With my Ryobi hammer drill/driver that burnt out, I was able to drive the screws a little deeper so that they ended up slightly recessed beneath the surface (which is how I prefer it).

I'm thinking of getting a brand name impact driver, as I've got quite a bit of landscaping left to do (i.e. treated pine edging around the house) once I get these garden beds done. Would it be worthwhile buying a hammer drill / impact driver combo (I will be needing a hammer drill, but not very often). Or would it be better to get a good impact driver, and then separately get a cheap hammer drill as it won't get used much at all?

BTW, is it possible to get a decent impact driver for around the $200 to $300 mark? If so, any recommendations?

Thanks!
Pete

Originally Posted by Bushmiller

My son who is a builder maintains his 14.4V Panasonic can put a 100mm batten screw into hardwood without pre-drilling.
l

I'd tend to agree with the Panasonics, although I love my Panasonic too much to abuse it like that.... love my hardwood too much to crack it too!!

Pete,

Look at Sydney Tools website,

18V Dewalt Impact driver DC825N-XE $249

18V Makita 6936FD WAE $279 (old Ni Cd)

Yep, they look pretty good...

As a corded option, would this Makita have more grunt than the cordless one you've mentioned above?

230W MAKITA TD0101F Impact Driver - Bunnings Warehouse

Cheers,
Pete

Pete,

100nm of torque is heaps. My little 12V Dewalt is around 110nm and it can snap coach screws.

The 18V versions are around 140-160nm of torque.

Think of ot this way....a cordless drill is about 30-40nm of torque but then they will stall as where an impact driver still keeps on hitting and the screw/bolt doesn't budge it sometimes just snaps.

With that price you can then look at the rotary hammer or hammer drills. Pick a decent manufacturer though.

I've got the Bosch 18V-LI drill and the Bosch GSR 10, 8V-LI driver and I found they work well together although I've not compared them to anything else. The batteries hold their charge even if I don't use them for months on end.

I used to use a corded type Hitachi drill but now I only use it when I need an impact drill for holes in masonry. It is too heavy and awkward plus if the bit jams unexpectedly it nearly breaks your wrist.

I use square drive screws because they are less likely to strip out. I use paraffin wax because it is non-messy. I can just keep a lump in my tool bag but anything will do, although Vaseline may be a bit thin - it may melt too much when the screw gets hot.

DriLube also works to ease screw insertion

Hi all,

I ended up buying the corded 230W Makita TD0101F Impact Driver from the Big 'B'. Since I will mainly be using it for this garden bed / landscaping project, and not too much after that, I couldn't really justify the 2x or 3x higher price of the cordless variants.

230W MAKITA TD0101F Impact Driver - Bunnings Warehouse

I tried it out last night, and it works like a charm. The battens screws that were driven in by the Ozito cordless were still not flush with the face of the sleepers, so I used the Makita to drive them in a bit further. It's quite loud as it rattles so I will have to make sure I do the work during reasonable daytime hours. The Makita is variable speed, based on how far you press the trigger. Also, the longer you keep the trigger pressed, the higher level of torque you get.

I'm very happy with it. I'll definitely be drilling pilot holes and lubricating the screws in any case. Also, I'll be sure to give the Makita a bit of a rest every so often as I work.

I've got much more confidence in using the Makita compared to the Ryobi. Makita has a good rep in our family - my dad was a tiler for over 25 years and all of his electrical tools were Makita.

So it's all system go from here... 1 garden bed down, and 5 more to go... Good thing the weather is getting warmer and there is more daylight... just what I need.

Thanks for all your help and suggestions.

Cheers,
Pete

Originally Posted by petar

It's quite loud as it rattles

Sounds like you have it in impact mode. That's just for masonry, you should switch it to drill mode for wood.

Originally Posted by Glennet

Sounds like you have it in impact mode. That's just for masonry, you should switch it to drill mode for wood.

It's an impact driver - no drill mode.

Originally Posted by Master Splinter

It's an impact driver - no drill mode.

Oh! My Makita has both I assumed they were all like that.

Pete bought an impact driver. In these tools the impact mechanism acts to assist ROTATION of the chuck. The noise the mechanism makes is the reason they are often described as "rattle guns"

In an impact drill, the impact mechanism acts to assist PENETRATION of the drill bit -- hence their common use when drilling masonary or concrete

Hi all,

Just an update. I've finally assembled all 6 of the raised garden beds. The Makita impact driver made the job so much easier. It's now my favourite power tool!

Below are some photos I took on Saturday showing the garden beds. 3 of them are already sitting in their final positions, and the other 3 are awaiting some extra help (i.e. my brothers) to move them into position.

Thanks again for your all of your suggestions and info.

Cheers,
Pete

Good one.