A cordless rechargable will be fine and come in handy on lots of other projects down the road. Ditchiing the cord is well worth the extra $$ over a cheap drill.
for sure- i have a couple of sets of them i just thought that battery might not be strong enough… just need a hacksaw and a coupe of clamps and i should be in business
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You know, I got the nice cordless drill and every time I need it, it’s not charged. I just stick with the cord for now.
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My Ryobi came with two batteries. I always leave one on the charger, and swap them out regularly. My cordless drill gets used a LOT 
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Get one thats at least 14 volts. Higher is better. Ive had my 18 volt Ryobi for at least 10 years and its still going strong. I have drilled 1/2" holes in steal plate. Makita is even better brand. I gave up on Black and Decker. They got cheap.
You will also want a metal file to smooth out the edges where you cut.
One other thing you might want is thermal paste to put between the solstrips and the heat sinks. Helps a bunch with heat transfer. 20 grams was enough for me to do my light which has 8 solstrips.
If there is a scrap metal or a metal recycling place in town, check them out. There is one near me where I get all my aluminum stock. They sell it by the pound. Much cheaper than Home Depot or the Hardware store.
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I got a Stanley fatmax 18v brushless lithium ion all singing all dancing pile of want. Clutch died under light use after a couple months. Now I have 2 Aldi drills (supermarket specials) and they’re dynamite. But the mill definitely is handy
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Aldi rocks!!! Never bought power tools there though. Jesus created Harbor freight 20% off coupons for a reason!!!
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You know it. 20v 1/2" Cordless Drill !!!
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Depends on the need. I like my drill with chord. Not wimpy. 1/2 chuck will mix small quantities of cement!
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I have an old black and decker 3/8 that I used to mix all the mortar for my block with. They don’t make them like that anymore lol
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I didn’t even know they had Aldi in the US?
That’s presuming you’re in the US because I didnt know we had harbour freight here either 
If we do
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Twenty year old DeWalt rechargeable drill, here. Still chugging along. Two battery packs when purchased, only one of battery packs went to scrap probably about eight years ago. Hard to believe, twenty years on the other pack!
Don’t know how the newer model drills hold-up, I know they changed the battery pack voltage.
Oh, on the cord vs cordless question. Cordless for most things. This drill starts to struggle at around a 1 inch auger through 6 inch treated wood for example. Drains the battery quickly, though. Using good bits, have drilled into a variety of metals. I have a Bosch corded hammer drill for the serious work but, as Larry notes, for convenience the battery powered drill is the go to drill. I could use a real bench press drill for precision. Maybe one day a mill like Colanoscopy’s.
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I don’t know if you’d want a harbor freight near by. Good for low-end tools that might work when you need them. So consider yourself lucky… 
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Harbor fright tools are single use 
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For stuff with a bit more bite but still cheap. Id recommend the sieg stuff. (It’s branded Clarke here) the only issue I’ve had with my mill was a 1amp quick blow fuse that did nothing more than it’s job when some aluminum binded. $0.25 fix and I’ve got multiple replacements
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Not at all. While I don’t use it that often, My Benchtop Drill press is 30 years old and has survived 3 moves. Spindle has no wobble to it, at all (have had to change a couple of belts, though).
Just got a 10" sliding miter saw. Have used it a half dozen time and still works great. Paid $89 for it instead of almost $300.
While I would admit that they probably aren’t on the shopping list of a pro, or even a busy hobbyist, for the occasional user it beats over paying for something that will get little use.
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I have a Dewalt. Got two extra batteries and worked building pole barns with my Dad and they are better than my old corded.
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dewalt drill and driver, they have been handy, father’s has built a cabin and only kicked one battery in a good 8+ years on his.
for storage i always unplug my batteries from them
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I like my 18V Milwaukee for light/medium use, especially with the smaller/lightweight lithium batteries. But I’ll use an old corded 110V model for heavy-duty jobs.
Whichever one you choose, be careful.
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I am amazed daily what I pull off with my Bostitch 18v cordless impact drill. Got it on clearance at Walmart and that sucker pulls off every task I throw at it… I use Black and decker 20v for daily tasks because I am stuck in their battery ecosystem. Cordless saw, leaf blower, weedeater etc…
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