20 Most Recent Craftsman 3/8" Corded Drill Questions & Answers

If it was new a couple of days ago I would take it back where I bought it. I bought a power saw and used it once and smoke came out the motor. I took it back and they gave me a replacement.

Not all drills are reversible. Only if they say it is.

Give it a shot of WD40 It may be stuck and seized up. Soak it inside chuck as well.

may be there change the number try checking thro serial number

Your R/L switch is probably faulty. Sometimes the little pin on top of the switch brakes off.

Hi auntygamma,

Welcome to fixya!

Yes, you need to use a bit with all drills. They come in different sizes and shapes. If you don't have any bits to put into your drill, an all purpose kit would be nice to have. You can find them at your local hardware store or online.

Check out this webpage: http://www.toolup.com/dewalt_dw2163_37-piece-screwdriving-set-with-tough-case.aspx

Copy and paste this entire web address into your browser and a page with one of the kits on it will open up for you. You don't have to buy a kit with lots of bits, you can pick up just one or two bits that you would use the most at the hardware store. The most used bits would be the #1 and #2 Phillips bits and a couple of different sizes of flat bladed bits. A few drill bits might come in handy too.

The drill that you have has a keyless chuck. This means you don't need any special tools to put in a bit or change one. If you look at the chuck, you'll see that the ridged part has two sections. If you hold the back section with your left hand, you can turn the front section to either open the chuck or close it to put bits in.

I don't know if this was clear or not, but if you have any problems or more questions about this, please be sure to reply back. I'll be glad to help you.

Thanks,
Handie Andie

Try spraying WD40 or similar into jaws of chuck and alow a couple of minutes for it to penetrate before trying to close it.
Also use cloths on the chuck while tightening to get a better grip.

With these types of electric motors there is an armature, (the main brain of the motor) it has all the copper wiring wrapped around it and slides between two carbon brushes into the armature housing. If you took out the armature, there is sometimes a very thin peice of metal at the top of the armature which slides into the plastic housing above the armarture and creates a spring loaded "seat" for the armature, if this little shim looking thing fell out, you will need to find the old one. Without this tiny peice of metal the armature in the motor will have play in it causing the brushes to wear to one side or the other prematurely, the brushes have to wear evenly. Sometimes the brushes are spring loaded as well for a self-feed type deal. If these springs are missing the same thing will happen. Also one or both brushes could be in backwards. Check and make sure the brushes (black carbon and rectangular shaped) are positioned to support the spin of the armature. Lord, I hope this helps. I worked with small electronic motors over 15 years ago. I worked at the place for a few months, and didn't think I still remembered everything,

I just put mine in reverse and grasp the chuck with a pair of channel locks. Pull the trigger and hold the channel locks tightly. The chuck will release the bit.

If you open the chuck as far as it will go and look inside you may see the head of a screw, especially if the drill is reversible. So undo the screw and then you should be able to unscrew the chuck. But I am not sure if it will be easy to unscrew. With a keyed chuck you use the key and a hammer to unscrew the chuck.