It’s often dark and hard to see when you’re drilling a hole or screwing in a screw under a cabinet or in a closet. A simple solution that works great is to use rubber bands to strap a small flashlight to the top of your drill.
Slide a rubber band around each end of the barrel of the drill and slip the flashlight under it. Position the flashlight far enough back so it doesn’t interfere with the chuck, and adjust the beam for best visibility. Rubber bands make it easy to reposition the flashlight and remove it when you’re through. Now you’ll never be in the dark again when working in tight quarters.
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May 23rd, 2010 at 4:19 pm
some times you see drills with led lights included with them. But you have to pull the trigger to work, I not only find this awkward, but could be dangerous. I think this a much better way, too bad the tool makers can’t take a hint.
joe t. Says:May 23rd, 2010 at 4:49 pm
Hey Cliff, Glad you liked my “bright” idea (sorry). You’re right, while many drills now have integral worklights, most don’t come on until you squeeze the trigger, and they’re usually rather weak or don’t shine the light where you need it. Very frustrating. The other great thing about this tip, of course, is you can always remove the flashlight and use it separate from the drill. Thanks for writing and good luck!–Joe T.
May 26th, 2010 at 11:42 am
I know I’m getting a little off, but I once did the same thing with a reciprocating saw. It worked fine just a little jittery. And as a mechanic in a steel mill I used to have rubber bands around my hard hat,(I used to tell them it was to hold in the pressure)for hands free lighting.