Drill lights are pretty neat for working in tight spots without much light. They won’t be much help if the drill itself isn’t working, though.
While it isn’t common, sometimes the light on a Makita drill comes on but it’s still not working after that. There’s clearly power, so what else is wrong? Let’s find out together how to troubleshoot this!
Related: Meaning of Makita Charger Light
Makita Drill Light Comes On But It’s Not Working – 4 Reasons
- Does The Trigger Press Down Properly?
Before troubleshooting, press the trigger down fully. Preferably, keep it close to one of your ears while doing that.
The main thing to watch out for is unusual resistance when pressing the trigger. Keeping it close to your ears will also make it easier to hear any rattling or other symptoms of trigger issues.
Do you notice any of these things when pressing down the trigger of your Makita drill? If so, do as I’m doing in the image down here. Take the covers off the tool and check the trigger.
If resistance or noise is coming from the trigger whenever someone presses it, it may not be fully pressing. It’s getting blocked from getting pushed in fully.
That’s stopping the trigger from allowing the drill to spin. Find the root of the resistance or rattling noises by inspecting the trigger and removing any debris that’s causing blockages.
If there’s a loose wire or switch that’s causing the noise, adjust it back into place using the drill’s manual for reference.
- Switch The Gear Around
A random yet common reason for a Makita drill to stop working has to do with the gear. By that, I’m referring to the gear near the drill chuck, which is for controlling speed.
The gear is tied to a knob that users spin around to adjust the speed however they want. It can get stuck in place between two speed levels though, which happens randomly.
Related: Fixing a Makita Drill Bit Stuck
Being in the middle of two different levels confuses the gear. It’s not sure what kind of force to operate the drill with, which makes the drill stop working altogether.
Fixing that is really easy. Just move the knob I highlighted in the picture below to get it unstuck. Slide it up and down all the way a couple of times.
Moving the gear a little should get it to engage again, and let the drill work. For the unluckiest of people, however, the issue may be much worse.
The gear mechanism may be entirely faulty. No amount of movement is setting it back into place and engaging it. In that case, replacing the gear assembly is your best option.
- Part Number 650583-6
Certain components are always common culprits depending on the issue at hand. When it comes to this problem, part number 650583-6 for your Makita drill is the likely root of the issue.
This little part plays a very big role in the operations of the drill. It’s responsible for diverting power to parts of the tool whenever users press the button; namely the motor.
When this part goes bad, it starts to let power through to the LED light on a Makita drill, but not its motor. That’s why the light comes on but the drill is not working.
This part is right next to the trigger. I’ll highlight it in the photo below this so you know what I’m talking about. It’s what you have to examine.
Open the covers of your Makita drill to examine PN 650583-6. I suggest using a multimeter to check the voltage on the wire that leads directly to the motor to see if the voltage is too low.
Ideally, the voltage should be around 18V. If it’s not, you’ll have to order PN 650583-6 online and replace the faulty one inside your Makita drill with it to get the drill working.
- The Motor Itself Has Issues
If even part number 650583-6 isn’t problematic, I think a faulty motor is the only logical explanation left. The motor can short-circuit and stop working if it overloads or overheats.
So, do as you did with PN 650583-6 and check the voltage on the motor. Connect a multimeter to it like I have in the image below, and check for the readings.
If the readings show that the motor is dead, you’ll have to replace it. Whether it’s worth it to replace the motor or just get an entirely new Makita drill is up to you.
On the other hand, you could skip doing all this and just redeem the warranty if it’s still in play. Makita should honor it and replace your faulty drill without any hassle.
Depending on the extent of whatever issues are causing this, the company will either repair your drill or send a completely new one. Either way, the problem will be dealt with!
