So, you’re looking for a Makita 18V combi drill but you don’t know where to start?
It’s not surprising, there are currently at least fifteen 18 volt Makita combis to choose from – some are in Makita’s current catalogue whilst others are older models still being sold by tool stores. So how do you tell them all apart?
To make things easy we’ve split the drills into battery types and given you a quick overview of each and how it differs from the closest product. The newer, lighter and more expensive drills use lithium-ion batteries – before that it was the Ni-MH battery packs and the oldest drills have the distinctive red Ni-CAD batteries.
Lithium-ion Makita 18 volt combi drills – a guide
In order of most powerful (and typically most expensive)
Makita BHP451RFE
The top 18V Makita Combi Drill – 3 speeds, bags of power and torque
Expect to pay…£290-£360
Batteries: 2 x 3.0AH Li-ion
Drilling capacity: 16mm masonry, 13mm steel, 65 mm wood
Max torque: 80 Nm hard/40Nm soft
Weight: 2.5kg
Buying tip: look out for drills with FREE accessory kits
Makita BHP451RF
The same drill as the powerful BHP451RFE but with only one battery
Expect to pay…£199 – £225
Batteries: 1 x 3.0AH Li-ion
Drilling capacity: 16mm masonry, 13mm steel, 65 mm wood
Max torque: 80 Nm hard/40Nm soft
Weight: 2.5kg
Buying tip: make sure you choose the option with a 3.0Ah battery
Makita BHP452RFE
Lighter than the BHP451RFE with marginally less power
Expect to pay…£250-£390
Batteries: 2 x 3.0Ah Li-ion
Drilling capacity: 13mm masonry, 13mm steel, 38mm wood
Max torque: 50Nm hard/32Nm soft
Weight: 1.8kg
Buying tip: sometimes sold as part of a package with free accessories/toolbox
Makita BHP452RFX
The same drill as the well-balanced BHP452RFE but just one battery
Expect to pay…£160-£260
Batteries: 1 x 3.0Ah Li-ion
Drilling capacity: 13mm masonry, 13mm steel, 38mm wood
Max torque: 50Nm hard/32Nm soft
Weight: 1.8kg
Buying tip: look out for freebies (drillbits/accessories)
Makita BHP452RFWX
A limited edition black and white version of the BHP452RFX to celebrate Makita’s 35th Anniversary
Expect to pay…£160-£260
Batteries: 1 x 3.0Ah Li-ion
Drilling capacity: 13mm masonry, 13mm steel, 38mm wood
Max torque: 50Nm hard/32Nm soft
Weight: 1.8kg
Buying tip: as a limited edition you can expect some to be sold as clearance bargains
Makita BHP453RFE
No frills, powerful 18V Makita Li-ion combi hammer drill
Expect to pay…£220-£350
Batteries: 2 x 3.0Ah Li-ion
Drilling capacity: 13mm masonry, 13mm steel, 36mm wood
Max torque: 42Nm hard/27Nm soft
Weight: 1.9kg
Buying tip: a popular drill that’s frequently available on offer
Makita BHP453RFX
Same as the BHP453RFE but with a single Lithium-ion battery
Expect to pay…£150-£220
Batteries: 1 x 3.0Ah Li-ion
Drilling capacity: 13mm masonry, 13mm steel, 36mm wood
Max torque: 42Nm hard/27Nm soft
Weight: 1.9kg
Buying tip: look out for bundle deals with an extra battery
Makita BHP456RFE
The improved version of model BHP452 – more compact and very lightweight
Expect to pay…£300-£399
Batteries: 2 x 3.0Ah Li-ion
Drilling capacity: 13mm masonry, 13mm steel, 38mm wood
Max torque: 50Nm hard/36Nm soft
Weight: 1.6kg
Buying tip: make sure you choose the package with 2 x 3.0Ah batteries
Makita BTP140RFE
A specialist all-in-one impact driver, screwdriver, power drill & percussion drill with a massive 140Nm of torque
Expect to pay…£380-£400
Batteries: 2 x 3.0Ah Li-ion
Drilling capacity: 8mm masonry, 10mm steel, 21mm wood
Max torque: 140Nm hard
Weight: 1.8kg
Buying tip: a great tool if you need a drill driver, combi and impact driver
Makita 18V combi drills with Ni-MH batteries
Makita 8443DWDE ‘Marathon’ 18V Combi Drill Ni-MH
A heavy duty Ni-MH Makita with 500 hour long life motor
Expect to pay…£250-320
Batteries: 2 x 2.6Ah Ni-MH
Drilling capacity: 16mm masonry, 13mm steel, 30mm wood
Max torque: 50 Nm hard
Weight: 2.7kg
Buying tip: it’s one of the older models, so look out for clearance bargains
Makita 18V combi drills with Ni-CAD batteries
Makita 8391DWPE
The classic Makita 18 volt combi drill with distinctive red battery pack
Expect to pay… £99 – £199
Batteries: 3 x 1.3Ah Ni-MH
Drilling capacity: 13mm masonry, 13mm steel, 36mm wood
Max torque: 50 Nm hard
Weight: 2.3kg
Buying tip: often available at a discount – keep your eyes peeled
Makita 8391DWPE3
The same drill body as the 8391DWPE but with 3 1.3Ah batteries
Expect to pay… £120 – £140
Batteries: 2 x 1.3Ah Ni-MH
Drilling capacity: 13mm masonry, 13mm steel, 36mm wood
Max torque: 50 Nm hard
Weight: 2.3kg
Buying tip: almost always on offer – shop around
Makita 8391DWPETK
The same drill body as the 8391DWPE but with 101 piece accessory set
Expect to pay… £120 – £140
Batteries: 2 x 1.3Ah Ni-MH
Drilling capacity: 13mm masonry, 13mm steel, 36mm wood
Max torque: 50 Nm hard
Weight: 2.3kg
Buying tip: check you need the accessories included
Seen one you like? The most important thing to ask yourself is what do you need the drill for?
It’s easy to find an 18V Makita cordless drill at a discount price – but are you really getting a good deal? There’s a world of difference between an older model with 1.3Ah Ni-CAD batteries and a new LXT with a 3.0Ah Li-ion battery pack
Remember: the quality of the batteries is the single biggest factor in the performance and price of the drill.
It’s all about what you’re going to do with it. If you’re a hard-working site joiner, it’s worth shelling out £200+ for a lightweight lithium-ion 18 volt Makita cordless drill because the batteries recharge in 22 minutes and they’ll last longer on each charge and over their lifetime.
However if you just need a backup drill, a reliable DIY machine or if you’re a professional that uses a drill a couple of times a day then a Ni-CAD or Ni-MH model might do you just fine.
Understanding the Makita drill codes
• LXT refers to the Lithium-ion (li-ion) powered drills
• MXT refers to the Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH) drills
• BHP452RFE3 is the same li-ion drill as BHP452RFE except it simply has 3 batteries not 2
• BHP452Z is the same drill as the above models except the ‘z’ means it comes without any batteries (‘naked’)
• DWPE is the code for Ni-CAD powered Makita drills (the classic, value drills with the red batteries)
• 8444DWFE or 8444DWDE are the codes for the Ni-MH 18v Makita drills