Lowe’s has quite a few competitive and attractively-priced cordless drill promos for Father’s Day 2021.
Hopefully this buying guide helps you sort out which one might be best for your needs and wants.
FLEX 24V Brushless Drill Kit: $199
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This Flex promo is for the Dad (or user if you’re shopping for yourself) that wants maximum power and runtime.
It also has anti-kickback tech, to help prevent twisted wrists or bashed body parts should it jam or bind during a high-powered drilling or fastening operation.
The kit comes with a 2.5Ah battery and a 5Ah battery, which delivers plenty of runtime and also serves as a capable gateway into the Flex 24V cordless power tool system.
DeWALT 20V Max Brushless Drill Kit: $99
This Dewalt kit, DCD777C2, is perfect for most shoppers who are looking for a solid compact cordless drill kit. It’s a capable performer for its size and price, and having 2 batteries is always convenient.
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If you’re unsure about what to get, this Dewalt 20V Max kit is a safe bet and likely the most popular cordless drills of the holiday shopping season. If you have any doubts, read through some of the very many positive customer reviews.
DeWALT 12V Max Xtreme Compact Drill Kit: $99
I have grown to really love Dewalt’s 12V Max Xtreme Subcompact cordless power tools, and this drill/driver kit is part of what convinced me.
This is the perfect compact cordless drill for quick and light tasks, and it can deliver a surprising level of performance for its size.
See Also: Dewalt 12V Max Xtreme Drill & Reciprocating Saw Combo: $149
If you’re open to spending a little more, this Dewalt Xtreme cordless power tool combo kit special buy gives you their excellent drill/driver, a capable compact brushless reciprocating saw, and a tool backpack.
Read More: Dewalt XTREME Cordless Drill, Reciprocating Saw, Tool Backpack Bundle Deal
Craftsman V20 Cordless Drill Kit: $59
This Craftsman V20 cordless drill kit is a very good value-buy.
I purchased and reviewed this model back when it first came out, and was pretty pleased with its performance for the money. Now, it’s priced even lower.
There’s no confusing this Craftsman cordless drill for a premium performer, but it delivers more than I would expect for the money.
Kobalt 24V Max Brushless Drill Kit: $89
There’s also a decent-looking Kobalt 24V Max brushless drill kit special buy for the season. This seems like a good buy for someone who has already purchased into Kobalt’s cordless lineup, or maybe plans to.
It delivers a little more than many of the models here, with respect to power and performance, offering a little more bang for the buck.
Bosch 18V Brushless Hammer Drill Kit: $99
Bosch has a new 18V brushless hammer drill kit for the season, and it’s paired with a single 2.0Ah battery.
If you think you or the person you’re shopping for will ever need to drill small holes into masonry materials, this might be the best promo kit for you.
SKIL PWRCORE 12 Brushless Drill Kit: $70
Skil’s PWRCore 12 brushless drill/driver provides an astonishingly high power and performance to price ratio, even outclassing many value-oriented 18V and 20V Max competitors.
This kit comes with their premium charger that features a built-in USB charger, and the battery pack can also double as a power bank thanks to its built-in device-charging USB port!
The drill chuck also has a built-in 1/4″ hex socket, allowing for quick bit changes.
This kit is for the more tech and features-focused users.
Metabo HPT 18V SubCompact Brushless Drill Kit: $79
Metabo HPT’s subcompact cordless drill kit would be my top pick of the season. It’s fast and powerful for its compact size, and comfortable to use. Every user will appreciate its smaller size and weight, especially when working overhead or for extended time.
The price is extremely good, as this kit regularly retails for $129.
This drill essentially has 18V-class features, such as its max torque spec (485 in-lbs) and 1/2″ chuck, but approaches and in some cases bests 12V-class drills with respect to size and weight.
Tom D
Where did Flex come from? It claims to be a real brand with history but it apparently is only at Lowe’s?
Stuart
Short answer: Chervon, a very experienced cordless power tool maker, and owner of EGO and SKIL brands, acquired the FLEX brand a few years ago. They have now launched their own line of new pro-focused cordless power tools under that brand and with exclusive launch distribution at Lowe’s.
It’s kind of like what happened with SKIL and SKILSAW, or what Stanley Black & Decker did with Craftsman.
The FLEX brand does have history, but they’re just not as well known here.
Tom D
Interesting. eGO and Skil I recognize. I wonder at what point it’s no longer worth introducing “foreign” brands and instead focus on the existing ones in the market.
Stuart
You recognize EGO now, but they didn’t exist until a few years ago. It could have been said back then that there wasn’t room for another outdoor power tool brand.
Franco Calcagni
Everyone starts with day 1. TV’s as an example; I remember the first time I heard of TCL, Vizio, Hisense and if I go back far enough, I remember the first time I heard of a Samsung and LG TV. (LG had been around as Goldstar, the changed their name to LG (Lucky Goldstar to get a fresh start)
Aaron
Right? Was it the early 2000s when Samsung started seeming almost as legit as Sony? And now I need cheaper alternatives…
Andrew
Hey Stu. You don’t even mention the XTR? You praised that lineup last year. And it has masonry utillity.
Stuart
I didn’t see an XTR drill kit deal, but will look for it. I have another deal post coming up that mentions the XTR combo kit, and I’ll be sure to add mention of the drill kit promo there.
Found it!
Kobalt 24V Max XTR Brushless Drill Kit for $139.
I gave away my XTR kit a few months ago (not before almost shedding a tear or two), but kept the extra drill they sent me. I just might have to update this post or post about the drill kit separately. Until then, here are its highlights: 1,200 in-lbs max torque, anti-kickback tech, bundled battery is a compact 4.0Ah. That battery is actually a great pairing for the drill, and I used it with all the other tools as well.
I’m not sure where to place this model in relation to the others.
Also, this is the drill kit, not the hammer drill – I didn’t see a promo on that. Actually, it looks like $139 might be the regular price for the drill kit? Even so, it’s a great price for what you get.
If you’re spending in the ballpark of $150, I would also point towards the Metabo HPT brushless hammer drill kit for $149 as another good option.
I hope you can appreciate why I tried to limit the scope of this post to the promotional offers that stood out most.
Andrew
Totally thanks. Just wondering if your opinion turned. Great posts as always stu love readin
Kane
When it came time to set aside my personal set of Porter Cable 18v tools, I bought into Skil’s 12v platform in part because the drill review here along with the price and the offer of a five year warranty. Multiple tools in, I have no regrets, and I believe the lineup is second only to Milwaukee’s M12 platform when it comes to variety.
IMHO, their toughest sell is that folks automatically dismiss them because “it’s only 12v”. Granted, there are folks who seem convinced that “20v max” offers more power than 18v too — and why weak 24v tools (along with the newer trend of no-name brands calling their tools 21v) have a market, even though they really shouldn’t when actual performance is taken into consideration.
(I suppose it also didn’t help that under Bosch’s ownership, Skil was mostly relegated to entry-level tools versus the prosumer class they are now.)
Tom D
Perhaps a decade ago the 12v tools really were underpowered – but now it’s pretty clear that 12v can be used for most anything except the very highest current draw requirements.
After all 12v can start a car 😉
Aaron
I think at this point the idea of comparing 12v lines to only each other is pretty flawed. Particularly DeWalt and Makita have compact models that are almost as user friendly and are part of actually large product families in their 18v lines. I consider long term manufacturer commitment to a line and variety to be requirements for real consideration. I’ve really seen skill put out only a few more than core tools in their new lines. Certainly better than Ridgid’s lineup but nothing like a Makita DeWalt Milwaukee…
James Davis
I too went with Skil PwrCore 12. I have everything except the jig saw, work light, and ratchet. These really are great tools. The only tool I find lacking is the circular saw, but that is only because the shoe could be a little more robust. Power wise, these are really nice tools. I bought in late last year into the early part of this year. There were super great deals before inflation and supply chain issues caused the prices to surge. When I think of how cheaply I got this line of tools together, I almost feel like I stole them from Chervon / Amazon. Oh well……
Chaz
I got the kit with drill and driver with the jump charger and two batteries for $70. Fantastic kit, these tools feel great to use and seem very capable so far. I also got their right angle impact, because they work wonders for vehicle repair. It’s hard time to find anyone at all that makes these, kind of why I picked the Skil 12v line to compliment my Ryobi stuff.
I have two concerns. One, it’s hard to buy the other tools since there is almost no “tool only” options. I want to add the circ saw, jigaw and maybe the ratchet wrench if I don’t get the Ryobi’s. But I’ll end up in a pile of chargers.
Secondly, inventory seems low. The right angle impact I just bought is low at Lowe’s and out of stock from Amazon (not counting people flipping these). And none of them say, “more on the way”. Their social media is dead.
I’m hoping it’s due to chip shortages amongst some delays in a small refresh or packaging. But it feels like another short lived renaissance and after watching Porter and Cable being held out to dry, I hope it doesn’t happen to Skil.
Fyrfytr998
Noticing a lot of the Lowe’s in my area aren’t carrying as many of the American assembled Brushless DeWalt clones by Craftsman. They seem to be pushing the cheaper brushed sets a lot more. And the Brushless kits that are around are the Chinese made clones. These were my observations (I could be wrong).
Craftsman 820 is a DeWalt 887 (American assembled)
Craftsman 810 is a DeWalt 787 (Chinese assembled)
Craftsman 721 is a DeWalt 796 (American assembled)
Craftsman 720 is a DeWalt 791 (American assembled)
Craftsman 710 is a DeWalt 777 (Chinese assembled)
Anyway like I stated, they seem to be pushing the cheaper brushed sets since Porter Cable and B&D is all but gone for entry level stuff. I wish SBD would get their act together with Craftsman. I’ve enjoyed my 820 and 721 purchases. And the $99 4ah battery starter set with free tool promotion has been decent for me.
Here’s hoping I don’t regret going Little Red for my platform. So far, so good.