What do the amps on a corded drill mean?

Question

For example, is a 5.4 amp DeWalt drill any good? What would that be in comparison to a cordLESS drills volts? Anyone know?

Answer 1

Amps is the amount of power the drill is putting out. a 5.4 amp is for basic household usage. If your looking for anything that's useful try a 14 -18amp drill that will give you more power.

Answer 2

5.4 really could use some more torque but okay for a corded drill. Cordless drills with a 5.4 amp motor will give you the same torque, the higher the volts the longer the battery will last and the easier it will drill. So Cordless drills are based on the size of voltage as that is how long they will last before recharge. So there really is not a way to compare these 2 models. Try a 14.4 model cordless to compare price.

Answer 3

AC motors on corded drills and DC motors on cordless drills have roughly the same efficiency. They convert a little over 90% of electric power to torque.



A 5.4A corded drill runs off 110 volts and that means (110 times 5.4) = 594 watts of power.



From the reference link, I see a 18V Dewalt LI cordless drill DC920KA has a max power rating of 510 UWO (unit watts out).



Therefore the 5.4A corded drill is roughly 15% more powerful. I do not know if you would be able to notice the difference.

Answer 4

If it's cordless, that 2.5 amps is probably the current drawn by the battery charger not the drill. 2.5 A. at battery drill voltage won't run much of anything. Look for torque ratings or motor watts to make a comparison.

Answer 5

amps has NOTHING to do with torque. Nor does a tool "put out" amps...commercials make me laugh when they say a vacuum cleaner is the "Most powerful" unit at so and so amps...

when amps is what the unit draws in current....or amps is what amount of current or wattage is used to RUN IT....like a 100 watt bulb uses 100 WATTS of power..

a 10 amp motor (at 110 volts) USES 1100 WATTS of POWER.

which you pay for..... AMPERAGE in reality does not tell you how powerful a unit can be or how much torque it has...for in reality you can actually get far more torque in lower amperage models...

because they are GEARED differantly......such as gearing in a truck...GEARING and power together make torque...not amps..

and a 10 amp vacuum can actually be MORE powerful than a 12 amp vacuum...because of efficiency, better design, and torque.

so to say a 12 amp vacuum is better...than a 10 amp is not true..

some times...and the same goes for drills...

Answer 6

Dewalt makes good equipment, if it is big enought to do the job for you then sure. also, are you sure you dont mean volts? If it is actually amps its short for amperes which is just the measure of electric current. if its volts, that is actually a pretty small drill and I wouldnt recommend it for any heavy duty applications.

Answer 7

I believe it relates to the power of the piece . . . and how much torque you can generate on the drill bit. The higher the amp, the more turque, and, hence, the more better you can drill stuff. Hope this helps!

Answer 8

the more amps the more power.the volts would still be 110,a 7.5 amp drill would have more torque and more power than a 5.4.but it would also cost more.

Answer 9

More amps = more power.



And, as all guys know, more power is better. :)



5.4A should be okay, though, and DeWalt is a good manufacturer.

Answer 10

http://www.abbysguide.com/ope/discussions/6978-A-1.html

Answer 11

means the same as on a corded anything.

it's good. get it.

Answer 12

sometin bout electricity