Electric and cordless drills usually require little
maintenance in normal use apart from a periodic lubrication. However after heavy
use, replacement of the motor brushes may be necessary. Maintenance varies with
the make and model of drill, your best bet is to consult the instruction manual
that comes with most drills.
You will need to disassemble the drill so it might be wise to sketch a diagram
of where all the parts go. I cannot stress the importance of this step. If you
skip it you may end up with a bag of ‘spare parts'. You could use a digital
camera and take a snap of each step you take, then reverse the order when you
put it all back together. This is more accurate than sketching.
Some drill bodies are of the "clamshell" type – the two halves are held
together with screws. When you lift off the top half, all internal parts are
left in place in the bottom half.
For electric drills old grease should be removed from the gear case and
replaced with new grease that is specifically made for drill gears, this is
available at any good hardware store. Motor and shaft bearings should be
lubricated with light machine oil unless the manufacturer specifies some other
lubrication. Ball bearings are usually permanently lubricated and sealed during
manufacture and as such require no additional oil.
The drill will become noisy during use if lubrication is needed, typically a
loud squealing or screeching sound will be heard and its time to dismantle the
drill. If possible it is always better to lubricate an electric drill well
before it gets to this noisy stage in its life.
You will have to remove the front end to expose the gear case with some drills,
and the cover section of the handles will need to be removed to expose the
brushes. Although some drills do have brush caps on opposite sides of the body
at the rear. To replace the brushes you will need to remove the caps and lift
out the spring-loaded brushes the new brushes and springs can then be inserted.
Care should be taken not to lose the springs they will be difficult to find on
your workshop floor. Always remember to replace both brushes at the same time
Basic maintenance on a drill is easy work and will add years to the life of
your drill. The time investment will more than pay for the many extra years you
will get from your drill.
Dougal has been an avid diy and tool man for over 20 years and owns and runs Hammer and chisel. , a hardware machinery and tool shop based in the UK.
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