I've used Milwaukee's 18v drill for years (I own two of them) and they've never failed me. By far, the best cordless drill available... until now. When Milwaukee came out with their V28 line, I was intrigued, but I didn't need a new drill. Besides, the 18v drill I had worked fine, I didn't think it was necessary to upgrade (especially for the price). When it came time to buying a hammer drill, I looked again at the V28 hammer-drill and decided to buy one, figuring it would at least allow me to combine two tools into one and save the room in my car. I ended up getting a LOT more then I expected.
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br /First, the belt clip is amazing. I didn't think twice about it when I read the drill's description, since I have a holster that works fine. The holster's now in the garbage as the belt clip is absolutely ingenious. Now I can easy attach the drill to my belt without looking and it's fully secure. With one hand I can push down on the latch and detach the drill for use... a marvelous idea. Best thing about it is I can also use it with my V28 flashlight when I need to.
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br /Another thing I really like about this new drill is the bit holder... I always liked the idea of DeWalt's drill's holding the single bits, but Milwaukee provides a place for two. However, the only downside to this is if you use the drill in the hammer-drill setting, the bits tend to slide out after prolonged use.
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br /Then there's the power... one of my first uses was drilling a 1" hole at an angle through two old 1x10 joists and a 2x4 in order to run a wire. I've done it several times with my old 18v, but I always end up having to reverse back a bit then start again to get a bit of momentum. If I can, I normally leave the job up to a corded drill to make things nice a quick. Not anymore... the V28 ripped right through the wood without the slightest problem. The power difference between the 18v and the V28 is shocking... you'd think you were using a corded drill.
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br /The hammer-drill function was another big plus for me... I used this drill side by side with another corded Milwaukee hammer drill to drill numerous holes into a concrete foundation. The cordless worked just as well as the corded... no difference at all, except I wasn't lugging around a cord.
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br /Lastly, there's the longevity of the charges... usually I'll go through at least one full battery and charge it on the site. Again, not anymore. I rarely need to use the second battery during a single day.
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br /If I could, I'd give it six-stars. This thing is just incredible.

Ive had this hammer drill for about 7 months now and can say it is the best cordless drill on the market for endurance.
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br /The company claims it has 600in lbs of torque in actuality 600in lbs of torque is not near enough to be compared to a corded drill.
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br /the drill will power a 2-9/16 self feed bit and I did get thru over 20 holes in redwood 2x on one charge but the motor stalls many times trying to keep that bit turning.
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br /The fit and finish of the tool are not milwaukee impressive and the cheap chinese plastic pieces integrated into the tool are unacceptable for a $400.00 tool.
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br /Overall you are paying for the battery which is very impressive but the tool itself is not. Milwaukee says "cut the cord" but they need to add about 200in lbs of torque to make that happen. the drill is larger than 18v units and slightly heavier.
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br /If you dont earn money with your tools and you dont have it to burn I would pass on this one.

I have had this drill for a couple of months now. It has tons of power and runs a LONG time before you need to switch to a fresh battery. It has all metal gears and an awesome chuck that actually holds the drill bits securely. This has been a sore spot with other cordless drills I have used.
br / I would recommend this drill to any professional tradesman. They also recently extended the warranty on the batteries to 5 years just like the tool itself. Can't beat that!
br / Milwaukee makes great tools and they scored a winner with this set of cordless tools.

I have been working as a carpenter for the past year and a half. I have worn out a craftsman corded drill and have had a dewalt begin to over heat every-time I used it. I have ran about 60,000 2 1/2 screws with my dewalt and expect to run even more with the Milwaukee. I have used the drill to run many screws and have not had any problem out of the second drill. I only gave this drill 4 stars, because the first drill I received ran two screws and died. I love the lithium battery. Lithium batteries are the better batteries for power tools. It is so nice to have the first screw have the same torque as the last. I am very happy with the drill and am glad i got it. As with all tools, you get what you pay for. This drill is very much worth the money. I am also a big fan of all Milwaukee tools.

Milwaukee 0724-24 V28 Lithium-Ion 1/2-Inch Cordless Hammer Drill/Driver Kit
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br /Cons:
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br /- much heavier and larger than 14 or 15.6 volt drills. However, it seems no heavier or larger than my Bosch Brute 18v drill/driver.
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br /- the main switch sometimes pinches my finger, where it meets the red frame. I scraped some of the sharp edge around the switch and that helped; but it didn't fix it.
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br /- should have a way to connect a safety strap; to wrap around my hand when working on a ladder, so the tool can't be dropped.
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br /Pros:
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br /- 28 volt Lithium-Ion batteries; the highest voltage available, and longest lasting, batteries; latest battery technology. If you can afford a professional-grade cordless tool, get one with NiMH or Lithium-Ion batteries. NiCad is cheaper, but it's old and inferior technology.
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br /- V28 power. 600 in lbs. of torque is more than any 18 volt tool. Even though it lacks the maximum torque of many corded 1/2" drills, it handles 99% of my heavy drilling. I might used a corded drill once per work week. (Doesn't count using a Milwaukee SuperHawg for the really big holes.)
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br /- Press a button on a V28 battery and 1 to 4 LEDs will shine, indicating remaining power. You'll know if it needs a charge BEFORE climbing the ladder, etc.
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br /- Excellent ergonomics; comfortable grip, good switch function, plenty of clutch choices, excellent side grip. Battery is reversible if it the normal mounting gets in the way.
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br /- Excellent chuck; 100% steel to take the pounding of the hammer-drill function.
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br /- Good speed choices to work faster: 0-600 (lo) and 0-1800 rpm (hi); lower powered drills need lower speeds to get decent torque ratings - not this one.
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br /- Excellent tool-belt-hook. Slide the tool on the hook and it locks in place; plus it's easy to unlock and remove. Tool holsters are pathetic by comparison.
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br /- Tool is guaranteed for 5 years, parts and labor. (Register online at Milwaukee dot com.) Batteries are guaranteed for 2 years at full replacement, and prorated for 3 more years.
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br /Other:
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br /- Choose drill or hammer-drill by turning the black steel ring behind the clutch ring. The hammer function is for lightweight use only, when compared to a rotary hammer. But of course, it's a much smaller tool. It works well for small holes in concrete or drilling into mortar, soft brick, or cinder block.
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br /- This drill is too big and heavy to by my primary light drilling tool. For those jobs, I still use one of my two Panasonic 15.6v drill/drivers (the best light-weight cordless drills on the market, IMO). This isn't a "con" of the tool; powerful drills are heavy.
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br /Summary:
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br /I have to agree with Fine Woodworking's 2008 Tool Guide, which calls Milwaukee's cordless line-up, "the best tools for serious work".
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br /Consider buying this hammer drill/driver as part of the Milwaukee 0928-29 V28 Cordless 4-Tool Combo Kit. For $200 more, you also get the V28 Sawzall, the V28 circular saw, and the V28 flashlight. All are excellent and designed for day-in day-out contractor use.

This cordless drill is a little more than most people really need. It is heavy, not excessively, but noticeably compared to other 14v and some 18v drills. It is made for the situations where you would have pulled out your corded drill but now can use cordless. It is very powerful; very cool technologically; and has a very long battery life. It is a good drill for doing decking, concrete, brute power stuff. This is not the drill to get for hanging rock. I tried using it for that, but my friend with his light and slow 14.4v Milwaukee was able to go faster than me. He could whip his drill around faster and more accurately than I could with this drill. But when it came time for drilling 1.5" holes through the floor joists he stood back while I ripped through 'em! This baby is built for power, pure power!!! The battery power gauge is very accurate and when the battery is dead, it's dead! Overall, a great drill for the right job.

The Milwaukee V28 tools are incredible. I'm the superintendent of a mechanical company and I've easily invested 10K on these gems over the past year. With all of the free tool rebates that have been offered, I've been able to outfit multiple crews with the product. I literally took all the Dewalt cordless tools I had and gave them away, as they were a waste of space.
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br /Overheating is not a problem as it is with other brands. These provide full power right up until the battery dies, which brings me to the four-star rating. The batteries go bad and fail on you. I have 24 batteries and I've had 8 go bad on me in the past year. Judging by the jobs or tasks that the batteries start failing on, I believe that they are shorting out due to moisture. I'm not talking about dunking them in water, I'm seeing a high failure rate on the demo side of jobs where residual water will run from the piping to the tool via a sawzall or porta-band blade and get the tool wet. The tools themselves continue to work fine but the batteries start to refuse a charge. On "dry" jobs there is not a high failure rate. That being said, I can attest to the fact that Milwaukee honors the warrantee on the batteries. I send them to my supplier and I get sent new batteries once Milwaukee looks at them. This could be an issue for you if you were limited in your battery supply as it's about a 4 week turn around.
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br /The only other disadvantage that the product line has, which would pretty much be limited to the drill, is the weight of the tool. If you were using it continuously to drive screws (door or cabinet installers), there are lighter products available. Be warned though, lighter products = lighter work loads. I would recommend the 12V Dewalt if weight were an issue for you.
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br /The advantage of cordless tools with corded power on a job site is incredible. As I alluded to above, these are in use on commercial jobs being used heavily on a day to day basis. Losing extension cord management is a HUGE timesaver. I don't have to deal with finding power at the spider boxes in order to go to work, this time is saved again and again as we move from work area to work area. I don't have to provide or inspect any cords for tasks with the exception of "task" lighting. As so much of our work is done from ladders or scissor lifts we lose the safety issue of having our cords being damaged on metal studs or ran over. When power goes out on the job, we keep right on going.
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br /Overall these are high quality tools. The money that I've spent on them has already been returned to me via increased efficiency and productivity.
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br /June 2008- I'm still happy with the product but the battery issue is not going away. I have the milwaukee reps direct line and I get the batteries sent to me directly when they fail. I have about 40 batteries now and I get 4 replaced every other month.
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Drill is a little on the expensive side but it is worth every penny. I have been using this drill for about 2 months now and am very happy it. The only problem is that I have to buy another one because my crew is constantly fighting over it. Like all Milwaukee products this drill is an absolute workhorse.

Don't let my computer nickname fool you, I just finished a complete remodel of my home, as well as a number of decking and outbuilding construction projects. The real test of the 0724-24 came when a buddy decided to build a deck cover that required drilling holes in a 6" thick concrete pad (why I can't remember). We borrowed a 3/4" Bosch heavy duty hammer drill but the masonry bits just weren't getting the bite they needed to chew through. Rather than go to the store and buy a new $20 bit we decided to try the masonry bits we had lying around the garage. I had my trusty V28 Milwaukee for the framing work and we decided to try a 5/8" masonry bit in hammer mode. In less than a minute the hole was done. The Milwaukee tore through all 6 holes plunging the bit all the way through the pads without incident. We even managed to get all the framing assembled on the same charge.
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br /Pros: Batteries go forever it seems. Hammer mode works great without tearing your arms and shoulders out of socket. Batteries can slip on from the front or the back depending on how you want the drill to balance in your hand (I find the battery from the back very useful when working in a vertical position because it changes the center of gravity). Tremendous torque in both speeds. The high speed will almost rip your arms off if you aren't careful.
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br /Cons: This drill gets very hot, very fast when in hammer mode. Batteries go dead very quickly in the cold. Milwaukee has offered to replace the batteries under warranty for me but this seems to be a Lithium Ion issue not specific to the V28. All of my rechargeable batteries die in mere hours when left in the garage but if I store them inside they hold a charge for months. I can only assume that the cold is the culprit since the garage is about 45 and the house is 65-75 degrees.
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br /Final thoughts: This is a very pricey tool for the casual DIY'er. I bought mine because this was all the store had in stock at the time when my old Dewalt died. The contractors I hired to help with the heavy remodeling work were so impressed that they went out and bought thier own V28's. I have since justified the purchase of a second one so I don't have to keep changing bits during the drill a hole, drive a bolt while on a 24' ladder. I strongly recommend a holster through, makes toting the tools a lot easier than the belt clip that comes standard.

At 600 pounds of torque and 1800 RPM this baby makes quick work out of any project. It is a heavy bugger, so you if you're a pansy don't even pick it up. You have to pay attention while your using it, I've seen people let it spin around on then and get jaw-jacked by the battery. The batteries seem to last forever and they recharge very quickly. Unbelievabley better then the old Ni-Cad batteries. No complaints at all.

I have had this drill for about 3 months, so I guess now is a good time for a review.
br /I got this drill to replace my old milwaukee 18 volt, which I was very happy with. This drill is powerful! I like it because it can handle just about anything, and the battery lasts forever. The led indicators on the battery are very useful; you don't want to go across site to find you need a fresh battery.
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br /However I can't reccomend this drill for any one, newer drills are now much more powerful and the milwaukee is very heavy.Only buy this if power is essential to you.Most of my friends don't like it because of it'e weight, but borrow it once in a while for certain jobs ' because your drill is more powerful'.
br / I plan to buy a lighter drill for less demanding work. However if I were to have only one drill, this be it.

I'm a commercial electrician and use this drill daily. Sometime for hours at a time. It has a ton of power. So much in fact it will darn near break your wrist if what you are drilling catches the bit and turns the drill when you least expect it. I'm constantly using large bore step bits to drill into steel j-boxes, door frames, etc. It's perfect. I have 3 other cordless drills and they stay at home. This is the only one I take to the job site with me every day. I'm so hard on this thing. I use it and use it hard. I have no clue what Consumer Reports could have possibly done to break it. I've used it so hard the drill body was too hot to rest your palm on and it didn't even smell. I've dropped it off a 10 foot step ladder onto concrete, picked it back up and used it the rest of the day. I've owned it 8 months and have put it through more than most people will in a lifetime and it's still going strong. I can't say enough about how extremely durable it is.
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br /On the hammer setting it will drill 1/4" holes in block but that's about it, so don't expect much from the hammer setting if you have anything heavy-duty to drill. I use the Milwaukee 28v cordless SDS hammer drill for 99% of my hammer drilling anyway. (that drill is a superb hammer drill BTW)
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I am not a pro, but a do it yourselfer with a 100 year old house. There is no such thing as a small project. This drill was a Christmas present that replaced a 5 year old Craftsman 19.2 volt. WOW!!! Just to "play with my new toy" since I didn't have any projects going on Christmas Day I went out to the shop and drilled some 2 1/2 inch holes in some 2x scrap. It was like cutting butter with a hot knife. 20 holes later the battery still had 3/4 of its charge left. I have since used it for a couple of projects and have been equally impressed. The belt clip works wonderfully. The balance is great. It is a tad bit on the heavy side, but when it drives 3" deck screws like a machine gun that doesn't really matter since you don't have to hold it as long to get the job done. I highly recommend this tool to anyone who will listen to me.

A great product to use, lives up to it's reputation as being the best drill on the market. Extremely satisfied with this product.

this drill has the power I need to drive large drill bits/ 2 9/16 and the large timberlock screws we have to use every day it holds up to daily hard use. my one complaint is the overall life of the batterys they have been only lasting me a little less than a year.

I bought the V28 hammer drill about 2 years ago and got a second one free with the rebate.
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br /I could literally type up a book on this drill. It is by far the best cordless drill I have ever seen. It is so powerful that I don't even remember where my corded drill is. I have never needed any more power than this thing delivers. The battery gives full power right up until the point where it shuts off. I have only used the full charge a few times because it maintains the charge for so long. The battery charge indicator lights are a simple feature, but they are so handy. No more guess work at how long the battery will last.
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br /The only thing to think twice about is the price. It is defiantly much more than I wanted to spend on a cordless drill. At $350 that is ½ the cost of a Powermattic Jointer!!! That being said, I have never regretted this purchase at all. Even after using it for 2 years, its performance still surprises and delights me every time I use it.
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br /I have used the Dewalts before and they don't even deserve the title of "drill" compared with the V28.
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br /This is not hype, I really do think this is one of the best tools I own.
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I have had 8 of these batteries fail, all so far have been replaced under warrenty,
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br /i own the hammer drill, impact , sawzaw each has cooked batteries with small poof of smoke from battery and its dead
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br /i advised Milwaukee of what i believe the problem is and the batteries failing they advised that ITS me causing the tool to fail. but they have replaced batteries under warranty
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br /when i first phoned into their support they advised me of a issue with the batteries which caused them to fry under load. Since that point if i call back they deny they ever told me this and turned the blame on me
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br /if your using the drill and or sawzaw and the bit or blade binds for a split second it fries the battery.
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br /bottom line dont risk it and buy this tools , mine have been broke more then they have worked
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br /i have used a cheap 30$ walmart drill to finish the job that the milwaukee fried on,
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br /still currently fighting Milwaukee to fix my issue, this time they are CHARGING ME to mail my batteries back in for inspection
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br /BOTTOM LINE IS IF THE DRILL CANT TAKE A SLIGHT STALL OF THE BIT THEN IT SHOULDNT HAVE A DIRECT DRIVE MODE.
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br /DONT GET ME WRONG WHEN IT WORKS ITS GREAT.. MOST OF THE TIME ITS NOT

I never had a cordless drill until this, knew and hear from other brands, look for a Bosh Brand, but a friend recommend to me the milwaukee and Now i got it is an amazing thing maybe if it could be a little smaller, but after all the torque power is ok the clutch steps are well defined (but I think too much 20 steps) the 2 vel are good enought for any aplication.
br /I spent more money in this that other 14.4 or 18V but worth, the products seem to be a chinese cheaper thing but is a good product and top quality made with several parts made world wide canadian batteries, mexican charger, european drill and chinese belt clip, other USA parts and carry case. I would buy another of this products if i have to I love mine and hope to have oportunity to buy other milwaukee tools....

I am a commercial glazier(Aluminum and glass) and so far so great. I really like the feel, speed, and torque. Time will tell if it can withstand the rigors of construction use.

I got this for my husband's birthday and he LUV'S! his drill. OMG! He said the power was just amazing!He is not happy with his other drills now that he has this one. Shipping was fast! I did not think I would get it on time because I ordered it last minute but it was here in just a few days. I could not ask for more.

This is the most powerful cordless drill I have ever used. The power does not fade like NiCad powered drills. I use the drill daily and I would highly recommend it for contractor use.

still new didn't have time to try yet