I think I need a new drill for my mill

[bpgreen]

I think I may need to use a different drill for my Cereal Killer. I've got a cheap Skil that is probably at least 20 years old. I sometimes end up dumping grain out because it jams.

I've seen people recommending 1/2 inch drills from harbor freight.

They've got a heavy duty variable speed reversible drill with a 6.3 amp motor (0-1200 RPM) for $29.99 and they also list two hammer drills (both can be used as drill only) with a 7.5 amp motor (0-2800 amp motor). The hammer drills have a hammer drill and a drill only mode.

I'll never use the hammer drill mode, but I'm thinking it might be a good idea to spend the extra $5 (actually, it would only be an extra $4, because I have a 20% off coupon) to get one of the ones with more power.

Has anybody used one of these?

What would you recommend?

 

[beermanpete]

I would go with the 1200 RPM drill. The speed controls on these type of drills don't control speed well and it seems easier to control when closer to full speed. Thus, a lower speed drill should be better even if its power (or current) rating is a little lower.

 

[MrHopScotch]

I have a 1/2” heavy duty drill from HF that is perfect for milling grain. 45 bucks after a 20% off coupon. It has a big motor and is geared way down to have huge torque at any reasonable milling speed.

My old cheapo drill didn’t have enough torque to crush grain unless at pretty high “throttle” at which point the rollers spun way too fast and the drill would still jam if I backed off the power at all. With the new HF drill, the rollers will turn as slow as the drill will go, which is really slow (max rpm is 550 I think).

https://m.harborfreight.com/12-in-heavy-duty-spade-handle-drill-63112.html

 

[Rev2010]

I have that same drill (63112) and highly recommend it. The speed control via the trigger pressure is awesome and very "fine tunable". It's a very strong drill and mills with ease.


Rev.

 

[bpgreen]

Thanks, everybody. I think the 63112 drill is what I'm looking for.