Two new cordless drills from Festool combine both brains and brawn. Professional Builder’s Lee Jones looks at the new developments.
For devotees of the brand, the Festool Quadrive PDC and DRC 18/4 machines were already very good machines but, not a manufacturer to ever rest on its laurels, the German power tool specialist has introduced two new models that will inherit the mantle. As a result, its latest flagship cordless drills – the Quadrive TPC and TDC 18/4 – promise to be powerful, versatile and, with four speeds, equipped to take on any number of applications.
A guiding principle with both tools has been versatility. Thanks to some clever electronics, a sophisticated switching concept provides the right torque and speed for the task. Indeed, whether you are working on wood or metal, the Quadrive TDC 18/4 cordless drill will effortlessly do the job, and with its brushless EC-TEC motor promises resilience and endurance alike. At the same time, thanks to an axial impact feature, this new percussion drill is just as impressive when drilling into masonry, and both units can be combined with a large number of attachments.
Many tradespeople will know the discomfort that comes with a tool jamming and suddenly twisting in their hand, but Festool has felt your pain and introduced a new intelligent kickback stop system that minimises the risk of this happening. This is a manufacturer that prides itself on the detail in the design and with the tool in hand it’s immediately apparent that ergonomics has been given careful thought, whilst other features that focus on comfort and convenience include a belt clip that can be attached on both sides, and a bit holder for secure and magnetic bit storage at the side of the tool.
A four-speed metal gearbox will handle high power and speeds, whilst the fully optimised switching concept allows users to quickly switch in any direction as required. On both the TPC and TDC it’s possible to switch from any gear straight to any other on the without intermediate stages, saving time and improving handling. Moreover, thanks to fixed stops, fast downshifting is possible at any time as required.
Festool embraced the longer lasting performance and power that brushless motors afford earlier than many of its peers, and – having been made in its own motor production facilities in Germany – the EC-TEC unit that is in evidence in its new cordless drills is very much a product of in-house development and manufacture. It provides even more torque and speed under load than its predecessors with the requisite power for work with screws and drills with larger diameters, while enabling clean work progress when working with small drill diameters. In second gear, the new units provide a whole 40 per cent more torque compared to their previous PDC and DRC models, for example, achieving full traction even with 8mm screws.
With carbon brushes eliminated, the EC-TEC motor is wear-free and converts the energy from the battery into optimum power with virtually no losses. Here again there’s some intelligent machine management at play with microprocessors that monitor and control the temperature, voltage and current consumption of the motor, electronics and battery.
Whether it’s screwdriving with up to 75 Nm torque in first gear or precise drilling at 3,600 rpm in fourth gear, the new TPC can deploy a smart use of power. For applications with high power needs, the 4.0 Ah Li-HighPower Compact battery pack provides a powerful, compact and lightweight solution. The 5.2 Ah battery pack is the right choice for even more power and a longer operating period for more difficult drilling and screwdriving applications.
Attachments
Not only is there a large number of attachments, a smart FastFix system allows these to be changed quickly and without the need for any tools. A depth stop and eccentric adapter also enables depth-limited screwdriving close to edges, and a quick angle adjustment is available for both the new angle attachment (AN-UNI) and the eccentric adapter (EX-UNI) which is enabled in next to no time simply by rotating the green ring, with the attachment no longer needing to be released from the machine.
Additional Work App functions
When combined with the free-of-charge Work App (iOS and Android), and a Bluetooth battery pack, the two cordless drills offer some practical additional functions. Both are equipped with LED lighting that can be activated in poor lighting conditions, for example, the brightness and lighting duration of which can be adjusted through the app.
For left-handed people, the Work App can be also used to reverse the right-hand/left-hand selector switch so that the switch now protrudes on the right-hand side of the drill in clockwise rotation and, therefore, no longer presses into a left-handed user’s hand. Software updates can be performed or repair orders created for servicing (depending on availability).
The IoT functionality (righthand/left-hand selector switch and LED control) will be available with the latest version of the Work App in the second quarter of 2021.
For further information on the new Festool Quadrive TPC 18/4 and the Quadrive TDC 18/4 visit https://www.festool.co.uk/
