DeWalt DC925 Cordless Drill

It’s not at all obvious why a software company would need a cordless drill – we’d be at a loss without one. Assembling office furniture, unscrewing computer cases, affixing things to walls and the periodic and unenviable task of maintaining our satellite Internet uplink, which lurks beyond the realm of extension cords, all conspired to bury the previous office drill. Admittedly, the previous drill was cheap when we bought it, and it lasted for the better part of a decade.

DeWalt power tools are thoroughly enjoyable – built to withstand the fall of a civilization, well thought out and encased in robust industrial-yellow plastic, they’re as unlike cheap tools from Walmart as tools can get.

The DC925 cordless drill is a particularly fine example of the current generation of DeWalt’s best toys. Lurking within it is an eighteen-volt motor that seems capable of significantly altering the rotation speed of the earth if you can find a long enough drill bit. It’s powered by substantial interchangeable batteries – our drill came with two of them.

As an aside, no cordless drill should come with fewer than two batteries – in keeping with the muscle it applies to whatever it’s turning, the battery life between charging for the DC925 is all too brief. If you plan to spend all day working with one of these beasts, you’ll want one battery on charge while you use the other.

The DC925 is surprisingly well balanced and easy to hang onto – unlike the drill it replaced, its designers clearly allowed for the weight of its battery when they created its case. Its controls fall comfortably beneath one’s fingers.

One of the features of the DC925 we were impressed by was its selectable torque levels for driving screws, something a cordless drill is asked to do quite a bit of here. You can dial down the considerable power of the DC925 to wind in screws and bolts without ripping them from whatever they’re winding into.

The DC925 features the most well-designed drill chuck we’ve yet encountered. It’s entirely keyless, and yet it hangs onto drill bits, screwdrivers and anything else you can think of rotating with remarkable tenacity.

The DC925 cordless drill is the best drill in the shop – it does what it says on the box to a truly exemplary degree. Unquestionably more expensive than most of its competitors, it’s easily worth every dollar. Well-made tools are a pleasure to work with, and this is one of the coolest.