The Hart logo should look familiar to you; it’s the house brand found on shelves at Lowe’s and is known for deliver decent performance at a lower cost. Historically, it was associate with no-frills electric tools, but moving to brushless technology is a whole different conversation. Going from a brushed drill to a brushless one are like night and day in terms of longevity, runtime and efficiency.
So when Hart brought out its own line of brushless tool, did they realy stand a chance against the established giants of power tools? It’s a lot more than specs on a page. It’s about trust.
Will this thing do the job or it will let me down? Can I depend on it when I’m against a deadline? To find out, I took the Hart 20V Max brushless drill driver and put it through its paces for several weeks.
I hung shelf and assembled some furnitures. Where did it falter? Where did it perform well?
Here is what you should of know before you add it to your bag.
Reviewing The Hart Brushless Drill Features
The Rise of Hart Brushless Technology
Because they don’t have actual physical brushes to create friction and wear on the motor, brushless motors is significantly lighter, which is the first thing you’ll notice about Hart. It’s engineered to be balanced in your hand, meaning you won’t feel like you’re wrestling a heavy brick.
Lightweight Design and Ergonomics
This may sound small, but it makes a big difference, especially if you’re working in a tight crawl space or drilling overhead. When you’re tired, every ounce can make a huge difference. You’ll be able to work longer without your arm giving out, which sounds small but adds up to a big advantage throughout an entire days worth of work.
Power Delivery and Performance
The real beauty of the brushless tech is its power delivery. This can be an issue for older drills as they tend to bog down under heavy resistance when the motor cannot handle the load. With the Hart brushless drill, there was no bogging out when biting into metal or hardwood.
I tried it on some 2×4 lumber and I got a good solid push all the way through. No stalling. No sputtering.
Just driving that screw home with authority. That level of reliability makes for fewer battles with your tool and more time getting the job done. The electronic controls provides the right amount of power based off the demand, a big improvement different than the older fixed-gear designs.
Battery Efficiency and Runtime
The lack of friction between brushes also mean that more electrical current is going straight to the motor instead of wasting it fighting with brushes, and that’s another big win for battery life. That results in longer run time between charges. I was able to hang pictures in several whole room on one standard battery.
That’s just more efficient work, resulting in less down time and fewer trips to the charger. It actualy helps the battery last longer. You’ll get more seasons of use before having to replace them.
It has a fast charger too, which keep the process moving along. You can plug it in during your lunch hour and by the time you’re back, its good to go.
User Comfort and Control Features
I also have to give some credit to the ergonomics.
Even with gloves, I had no issue gripping them. The texture gives good traction. The paddle switch is very responsive and easy to use precisely when needed.
This can be critical when you’re driving a screw into something soft so you don’t split the item. The trigger has a nice range of motion that feel natural. When you need to enter slowly, you can feel the throttle to do that, or if you need full power, just slam it down.
The positioning of the LED light work well too. It lights the area around the hole and cuts through the darkness in cabinet corners or other dark areas. All those little things make using this tool much more pleasurable.
Limitations and Final Verdict
No tool is perfect, however, and while the Hart drill doesn’t feature all the fancy bells and whistles as more expensive professional lines, it also don’t need them. There is no fuel gauge to show how much charge you have left in real-time. Its chuck might be a bit snugger if you were doing heavy duty metalwork stuff.
But this is really nitpicking for your average DIYer or homeowner. For occasional use, this thing does its job and just goes about it. It’s a tool made with the right quality at the right price for the gap it fills.
It is professional grade without the professionel grade price. Then again, is this brushless drill worth your coin? If you are starting a new tool kit from scratch, the answer is a definite yes.
It’s a powerful, comfortable and efficient addition to any arsenal. There’s no reason to break the bank for a tool that appreciates your hard work and time. House brands can change.
And this drill shows us that house brands aren’t just the bargain bin anymore. They’re serious contenders. And just like with anything else, don’t forget to charge it.
A good tool is only as good as the energy behind it. And with the brushless advantage, that energy goes further then ever before.