Hammer drills

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KVA

Senior Member
Location
United States
I'm looking to buy a hammer drill as cheap as i can but with quality ofcorse. I do mostly residential work and need it mostly for anchoring emt in basements.

I was looking at the 18v Dewalt cordless hammerdrill but i'm thinking a corded would be better because I will be drilling many holes.

I'm a little concerned that drilling concrete will beat up the cordless drill and shorten its lifespan for drilling wood and driving screws.

Maybe i'm overthinking it but as a new guy in business with a tight budget i cant afford to have tools break.

Looking at this one http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100037000/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

Anyone have this one? And what do you use for a hammer drill mostly a corded or a cordless?
 

Howard Burger

Senior Member
Depends on frequency of need - and hardness of concrete!

Depends on frequency of need - and hardness of concrete!

Cordless vs corded, depends on how often you need it. I destroyted a Porter Cable drill on a concrete wall after a dozen holes - don't know what they put into the concrete but it was hard. I now have a low end corded Hilti, that I've used for several years, and have used it many more times than I expected to - it was a good decision.
 

svh19044

Senior Member
Location
Philly Suburbs
For the job you describe, I can't think of a better tool than the Milwaukee m12 hammer drill, yes, the 12 volt. It will last years, the battery lasts a long time, and it's perfect for anchors. It has a 5 year warranty as well. It depends on which job I'm using it for, but anchors gets the m12. The m18 for larger stuff, and the hilti 56 or 76 for jobs that I want done quick.

The 56 might be an older model number, but it's probably the best all around hammer drill I have used (or whatever is comparable model size).
 
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Strife

Senior Member
I bought a porter cable 18V hammer drill for 130 bucks or so. Had it for 2 years now, still works great, batteries are getting a little weak(they don't last as they used to), but I can still get a good day work out 2-3 charges doing tapcons all day long. I even done 1/2" holes thru 8" concrete. Lasts about 2 holes on a battery(if I don't hit any rebar). I have a rotary drill for something more than that.
If you really want to splurge though, I recommend the M18 milwaukee. One of my friends has one and I'd used one for couple of days. Really blew me away power wise and battery life wise(lasted least three times longer than the porter cable, even new). The M18 goes for about 260 at home depot, might be able to find it 20-30 bucks cheaper in other stores, but it's really worth it.
I never used anything but battery drills for the last 10 years. It's not worth to get the extension cord out of the van for normal electrical work we do(tapcons, self tapping screws, sheet metal screws)


I'm looking to buy a hammer drill as cheap as i can but with quality ofcorse. I do mostly residential work and need it mostly for anchoring emt in basements.

I was looking at the 18v Dewalt cordless hammerdrill but i'm thinking a corded would be better because I will be drilling many holes.

I'm a little concerned that drilling concrete will beat up the cordless drill and shorten its lifespan for drilling wood and driving screws.

Maybe i'm overthinking it but as a new guy in business with a tight budget i cant afford to have tools break.

Looking at this one http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100037000/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

Anyone have this one? And what do you use for a hammer drill mostly a corded or a cordless?
 

Fulthrotl

~Autocorrect is My Worst Enema.~
I'm looking to buy a hammer drill as cheap as i can but with quality ofcorse. I do mostly residential work and need it mostly for anchoring emt in basements.

I was looking at the 18v Dewalt cordless hammerdrill but i'm thinking a corded would be better because I will be drilling many holes.

I'm a little concerned that drilling concrete will beat up the cordless drill and shorten its lifespan for drilling wood and driving screws.

Maybe i'm overthinking it but as a new guy in business with a tight budget i cant afford to have tools break.

Looking at this one http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100037000/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

Anyone have this one? And what do you use for a hammer drill mostly a corded or a cordless?

hitli or bosch. i'd go with the bosch.. a bit cheaper than the hilti, and seems to work just as well.

i've got a milwualkee 18v battery hammer drill, and the drill is fine, but the batteries suck.
 

svh19044

Senior Member
Location
Philly Suburbs
hitli or bosch. i'd go with the bosch.. a bit cheaper than the hilti, and seems to work just as well.

i've got a milwualkee 18v battery hammer drill, and the drill is fine, but the batteries suck.

I've had M18 tools for a couple years now (5) and still have the original batteries, though the newer RED lithium batteries are literally generations ahead. I hardly even use the M18 normal lithium batteries anymore. However, they still work as they did when they were new.

You must be referring to the now (as of a couple years ago) discontinued normal 18v, which do suck. I'm not a big fan of the V28 batteries in the other tools we have either, but the M28 really brought those tools to life. The M28/v28 tools are interchangeable, while the v18 and M18 tools are not.
 
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Cow

Senior Member
Location
Eastern Oregon
Occupation
Electrician
Hammerdrills suck.

Dewalt makes an actual 18v rotohammer, I have one, and it works great with 1/4" anchors. But not much more than that probably. I ran a 3/8" bit through an 8" foundation and let some smoke out of it, it still runs fine, but now I definitely know it's limitations.

Not having to get a cord out for a few anchors is great! What I really can't wait to use it for is when I'm running conduit off a lift. I hate dragging cords around!
 

CopperTone

Senior Member
Location
MetroWest, MA
I'm looking to buy a hammer drill as cheap as i can but with quality ofcorse. I do mostly residential work and need it mostly for anchoring emt in basements.

I was looking at the 18v Dewalt cordless hammerdrill but i'm thinking a corded would be better because I will be drilling many holes.

I'm a little concerned that drilling concrete will beat up the cordless drill and shorten its lifespan for drilling wood and driving screws.

Maybe i'm overthinking it but as a new guy in business with a tight budget i cant afford to have tools break.

Looking at this one http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100037000/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

Anyone have this one? And what do you use for a hammer drill mostly a corded or a cordless?

I have bought the cheap corded milwaukee hammer drill and have spent money on the good 18 volt delwalt hammer drill. The best I ever bought is Hilti corded drill. I know - more expensive - but it hammers into concrete like butter. Hands down the best hammer drill I've used. We have a small one and a large one - yes somewhat expensive - but makes your job so much easier.
Spend the extra money - you will have the drill for years and years and you will be so glad you bought it. Think of it as an investment for your company - trust me - don't cheap out on this one.

Dont go cordless for hammer drilling - unless it is for one hole for a plastic anchor one time. you will kill the gears and batteries. dont listen to any salesman - they just want to sell you crap.
 
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handy10

Senior Member
I'm looking to buy a hammer drill as cheap as i can but with quality ofcorse. I do mostly residential work and need it mostly for anchoring emt in basements.

I was looking at the 18v Dewalt cordless hammerdrill but i'm thinking a corded would be better because I will be drilling many holes.

I'm a little concerned that drilling concrete will beat up the cordless drill and shorten its lifespan for drilling wood and driving screws.

Maybe i'm overthinking it but as a new guy in business with a tight budget i cant afford to have tools break.

Looking at this one http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100037000/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

Anyone have this one? And what do you use for a hammer drill mostly a corded or a cordless?

I have the Bosch model that is shown on the sidebar of your DeWalt advertisement. I think that I paid $125 eight years ago. It is going strong. I would never go back to using a regular twist drill for concrete; however, they will not drill through rebar.
 

marti smith

Senior Member
I'm looking to buy a hammer drill as cheap as i can but with quality ofcorse. I do mostly residential work and need it mostly for anchoring emt in basements.

I was looking at the 18v Dewalt cordless hammerdrill but i'm thinking a corded would be better because I will be drilling many holes.

I'm a little concerned that drilling concrete will beat up the cordless drill and shorten its lifespan for drilling wood and driving screws.

Maybe i'm overthinking it but as a new guy in business with a tight budget i cant afford to have tools break.

Looking at this one http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100037000/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

Anyone have this one? And what do you use for a hammer drill mostly a corded or a cordless?

Drilling concrete with a battery pack tool. No. Just for anchoring pipe, no big deal- battery packs seem to be getting better and 18v have some good torque, but I suppose you should factor what your work load is, how hard you are on your tools, what you want to spend up front, what will you do for maintenance, etc.
 

jeremysterling

Senior Member
Location
Austin, TX
If I were in your position, I would get a Bosch SDS. I own a Dewalt 18v hammer
drill but for tough jobs I used my Harbor freight corded SDS until it broke a couple of months ago (thanks, apprentice!).

I have considered buying another Harbor Freight corded SDS (on sale for $79, this week). But if owned my own contracting business, I would consider all the brands mentioned , but might lean toward SDS style chuck and bits.
 

svh19044

Senior Member
Location
Philly Suburbs
And perhaps this is the appropriate place to show my experience with Dewalt. I have had two drills break just like this, one with a 4" holesaw in ply, and another with a 1" paddle bit. :lol: Warranty covered them both, and oddly enough, this breakage wasn't my biggest problem with Dewalts. It's their batteries.

070912_132131.jpg
 

jeremysterling

Senior Member
Location
Austin, TX
And perhaps this is the appropriate place to show my experience with Dewalt. I have had two drills break just like this, one with a 4" holesaw in ply, and another with a 1" paddle bit. :lol: Warranty covered them both, and oddly enough, this breakage wasn't my biggest problem with Dewalts. It's their batteries.

070912_132131.jpg

Yes, that is the DC988, IMO the best drill out there. I too folded a "clamshell" just as you show in the picture same as you using a 4" holesaw in plywood. A new clamshell costs twelve dollars. That drill and many other Dewalts come with an auxiliary handle that clamps to the flat area behind the chuck to prevent breaking the lighter weight plastic "pistol-grip".

I had a dewalt 18v nicad catch fire (spontaneously) one time and it was warrantied (replaced by Dewalt). I have not had problems with the fifteen other 18v nicads I've owned. They do go bad after a few years.
 

PetrosA

Senior Member
Hilti, or Hilti, or maybe Hilti... any of them should be good.

I've had a bunch of different battery hammer drills, but none of them really did a decent job in anything other than salmon brick. A few years ago I got a Hilti SDS+ corded rotary hammer and I have never looked back. I just buy regular cordless drills with no hammer function now. If you absolutely need cordless, I'd still recommend SDS+. If you really can't invest in a Hilti, I've heard that the Bosch are also up to par.
 

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
Hammerdrills suck.

Dewalt makes an actual 18v rotohammer, I have one, and it works great with 1/4" anchors. But not much more than that probably. I ran a 3/8" bit through an 8" foundation and let some smoke out of it, it still runs fine, but now I definitely know it's limitations.

Not having to get a cord out for a few anchors is great! What I really can't wait to use it for is when I'm running conduit off a lift. I hate dragging cords around!

That is exactly what needs considered. The amount of work the drill will be doing. Cordless drills are great for running a few tapcons or 1/4" anchors. Occasional larger hole they can get you by. Lots of larger holes they will run all your batteries dead too fast, and the drill will get hot. Even a good 1/2 corded drill gets hot fairly quick if drilling many 3/8 or larger holes, those are the times when a SDS or spline bit type of drill are needed - they get hot also but usually needs to be 1.5" hole or larger or just a lot of continuous use.
 

renosteinke

Senior Member
Location
NE Arkansas
He wants quality, and he wants cheap .... and here comes everyone naming the most expensive tools out there, and arguing over 'best.'

Let's look at things a bit closer:
A 'hammer drill' shakes a drill bit by having two pieces that resemble poker chips slide over each other. Not really much of a 'hit.' Such a tool -no matter the make- is pretty much limited to holes of 1/4" or less. (Sure, we've all done more- but the effectiveness is lost, the job takes forever, and we beat the tool to pieces).

A 'roto-hammer' has a completely different mechanism, one that applies real impact to the bit. Here's where you have the opportunity to use a real tool, and save some money. The difference in the ease of hole making is amazing.

That's why I reccomend the Harbor Freight corded SDS rotohammer. Typically about $90, it will wildly outperform any hammer-drill out there. While 'overkill' for the usual plastic screw anchor, if you're drilling lots of little holes it's worthwhile.

It's just as well. For actually driving screws I haven't used any drill for ages; my tiny $150 Bosch cordless impact does that much better - and fits in my pocket too!
 

Fulthrotl

~Autocorrect is My Worst Enema.~
I've had M18 tools for a couple years now (5) and still have the original batteries, though the newer RED lithium batteries are literally generations ahead. I hardly even use the M18 normal lithium batteries anymore. However, they still work as they did when they were new.

You must be referring to the now (as of a couple years ago) discontinued normal 18v, which do suck. I'm not a big fan of the V28 batteries in the other tools we have either, but the M28 really brought those tools to life. The M28/v28 tools are interchangeable, while the v18 and M18 tools are not.

last year, i bought 6 batteries. red's weren't out yet.
two of them hold a charge. the other four suck.

i will buy a couple red's when the two remaining ones give up, but i'm not buying milwualkee any more.
just for grins, i charged all six of them up sunday, and went off to work monday.... i needed to sawzall
a 2x4 in half, and three of the batteries wouldn't do it, combined.

the one's that didn't do it after just coming off the charger, went in the trash.
 

hurk27

Senior Member
He wants quality, and he wants cheap .... and here comes everyone naming the most expensive tools out there, and arguing over 'best.'

Let's look at things a bit closer:
A 'hammer drill' shakes a drill bit by having two pieces that resemble poker chips slide over each other. Not really much of a 'hit.' Such a tool -no matter the make- is pretty much limited to holes of 1/4" or less. (Sure, we've all done more- but the effectiveness is lost, the job takes forever, and we beat the tool to pieces).

A 'roto-hammer' has a completely different mechanism, one that applies real impact to the bit. Here's where you have the opportunity to use a real tool, and save some money. The difference in the ease of hole making is amazing.

That's why I reccomend the Harbor Freight corded SDS rotohammer. Typically about $90, it will wildly outperform any hammer-drill out there. While 'overkill' for the usual plastic screw anchor, if you're drilling lots of little holes it's worthwhile.

It's just as well. For actually driving screws I haven't used any drill for ages; my tiny $150 Bosch cordless impact does that much better - and fits in my pocket too!

You can also add to that the type of bit you use, before I used the Bosch Blue granite bits I never thought much about the bit before, but trying to drill harden tile with a chisel tipped bit was so frustrating, a plumber working on a job that I was on, handed me one of these bits, and it went right through, I have been using them for over 5 years now, and while they cost more, they are well worth it, before I would drag out my Milwaukee hole shooter for doing my hammer drilling, but after using these bits, I find my 970 Li dewalt, blows right through drilling everything, I have collected various sizes from 1/4" up to 1" over time as needed, and I installed a special wheel on my bench grinder to sharpen them as the tip is very hard, but they are not a chisel tip, as they have a cutting edge, but drill much faster with less effort.

For large jobs requiring allot of holes, I will still use the Milwaukee hole shooter, but now I use these bits, so with the high speed of the hole shooter its even faster.
 
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