Im looking to buy a cordless drill for making late winter dirthole sets. Was wondering what was the right choice. A hammer drill? Or would a regular one be sufficient. Dewalt or Milwaukee? Dont want to spend alot of money on the wrong thing.

A lot of people will argue with me on this one but I bought a Hercules 20 Volt drill from Harbor Freight last years plus I bought a 5 Amp. battery. The drill has so much torque it almost feels like it could break my wrist. I can put in 30 dirt hole sets a day & only use 50% of the battery. The battery has a battery indicator light to show how much battery life is left being very helpful. Buy the extra 5 Amp. battery on e-Bay for almost half the price.

I have a 20v hammer drill and a 20v rotary hammer,DeWalts, and don't have much luck in late Winter,when the ground is frozen,flint hard.Instead,I use a 1"x10" masonry bit and it drills right through.If I need it a little bit bigger,I can wallow the bit around.Just no luck with augers here except earlier in the season.

I don't know if there is one for our frozen ground and utilizing an auger. I have used 1 1/2" spade bits they seem to work better than augers when it gets frozen solid. Draw back is a small hole and they dull pretty fast. I also have use an axe or hatchet to hack out a trench or depression just deep enough for bait and lure then cover it with a cow pie, wood chunk, anything close by. Another thought for frozen conditions is utilizing a hole that is already there. Badger digs are very attractive. a large bait down the hole out of sight to comply with game laws here and some call lure has worked for me many times.

I personally have never tried concrete bit. I will this winter. Thanks Taximan.

You don't want a masonry bit with a smooth,round shank as it will probably spin in the chuck.My bit is an SDS Plus bit for the rotary hammer.A hex shank bit should work in regular chucks.

Make sure you have a way to keep the battery warm. Not sure if you drive from set to set, but if those batteries get cold, they can quit working even if they're fully charged. I bought a Ridgid Octane hammer drill for use as an ice auger this last winter. It has 1,300 in lbs of torque and with a 6" ice auger blade, I was able to drill 27 holes through 16-18" of ice on a small 3 aH battery. I picked it up from Home Depot for $160, but last year they had a deal going where you could buy the 9 aH battery and charger for $180 and you got a free bare tool. I missed out on that deal, but they may offer something like it again.

I plan on using that same drill this fall for drilling dirt holes. I don't have many other uses for a drill that big, but if I need it, it has plenty of power.

The Milwaukee Fuel hammer drill is another popular model in the ice fishing community. I know drilling through frozen dirt isn't comparable to drilling through ice, but it's something to think about.

If its covered by snow first then a lot of times you can scrap the snow back break out the first 2 or 3 inches and drill a hole if you what a hole.
Imo there is better options that time of year but to each his own.

A Milwaukee rotary hammer drill is a game changer in the winter. Use it to chisel trap beds, drill pilot holes for Earth anchors and like Taxi, mouse holes with a masonary bit. Best money I've ever spent.

We have all Milwaukee battery tools at work. Can't stop a 1/2" hammer drill..... Giving it all I had with a 1/2" cement bit. Best there is. I have craftsman drills here at home. Keep a charger in my truck while I use them trapping. Always put the battery to charge driving between sets. Do ok, but a Milwaukee is on my SOMEDAY list!!

Last fall I used a Milwaukee mud mixer drill. Adjust it to what rpm you want and power you wouldn't believe. Won't leave home without it.

Get out there early and make your holes before the deep freeze. Drills work nice but eventually they won't be as efficient to make them worth hauling around in the winter. They still come right in even if the holes been there for a month or two. I really like Cage's suggestion as well. There's not a badger hole an animal will pass up once it gets cold enough.

Is it a hammer drill or regular drill ? Square shank on drill or round ?