Makita drill/driver

[billw]

Great, I'll spend a bit of time putting screws into offcuts to see what happens with the clutch and the various torque settings until I get a feel for it. Amazing tools but I wonder how many people just whack it on maximum and to hell with it

 

[mikej460]

When people say "clutch" I presume they mean the effect of the amount of pressure on the trigger? It's very smooth that's for sure.

On positive note I managed to drill a hole with it.

The clutch in a drill is like the clutch in a car, it disengages the motor from the gearbox. In the case of a drill you can set the point at which the clutch operates and stops drilling. When this happens the drill will make a distinctive sound. The trigger just controls the speed of the motor.

 

[Nelsun]

The clutch will disengage the torque quickly on setting 1 (stopping a screw when it hits just minor resistance) and will pretty much keep on screwing at the highest setting (driving the screw through the wood if possible). When set just right for the wood and screw combo you're using, it'll drive the screw and stop (making a fast clicking sound) with the screw set very consistently.

When using bigger bits that may bite you can set the clutch much higher so it only kicks in when it does just that. Bigger bits want more torque (speed setting 1) so, if the clutch is set to low, it'll kick in when you don't want it to.

90% of the time I'm putting 4mm screws into countersunk pilot holes in pine, mrmdf or oak. I'm typically looking at the clutch set to around 3 or 4 (out of 20) in the first two and 4 or 5 in oak to make good contact without the screw going too deep and splitting.

It's also well worth remembering the clutch will only engage in screw mode!

 

[TheUnicorn]

My only gripe with these settings is why the manufacturers don't stick to 1 - 10, my dewalt goes up to 13 or something, be nice if this was consistent across tools.

I agree, particuarly annoying when using a variety of different drills, it would be nice if the slip clutch was marked with a torque rating, so if you dial it to 30 it will slip at 30nm, and 30 is 30 on all drills, also would be a quick way of telling how powerful a drill is. Can't see it happening though

 

[billw]

I agree, particuarly annoying when using a variety of different drills, it would be nice if the slip clutch was marked with a torque rating, so if you dial it to 30 it will slip at 30nm, and 30 is 30 on all drills, also would be a quick way of telling how powerful a drill is. Can't see it happening though

Indeed, I'd love to know who thought 21 was a good number for a highest setting.