Hammer drill or rotary hammer

Bob - MI

Well-known Member
I am starting to dislike Dewalt tools due to the fact that they just don't seem to last.

My latest frustration is with a Dewalt hammer drill that overheated and failed when drilling a hole through a concrete block. This is the 2nd Dewalt that I have an issue with and it seems that we are pushing them past the limit. I am OK spending more to get better quality.

Not sure that we need a rotary hammer as opposed to a hammer drill but that might be the best way to go.

Any thoughts on brands and HD vs. rotary hammer?

Many thanks in advance and my best wishes to all over the upcoming holiday.
 
Get a Hilti and dont look back. I have used Hilti HDs for many years and they are the best. There are other brands that will work but when push comes to shove I always go with Hilti.
 
As far as drilling cement, masonry, concrete block, etc.......you need a rotohammer. A hammer drill (screamer) is only good for small holes, and is very highspeed, almost to fast to allow the hammer to work good.

I have Makita, bosch, hilti, and Milwaukee roto hammers of all sizes. Makita makes a great small rotohammer (up to 7/8") SDS. The makitas are affordable and have given me great service. I also have a bosch and a hilti in the bigger sizes (SDS+) they are animals. The bosch will walk a 2.5" bit right through a concrete foundation.

Get a good rotohammer....and stay away from dewalt. I don"t like their power tools either.
 
Hilti, very well proven on commercial construction projects, I used to buy quite a bit from them back in the day. I am not sure if any of the models you may find at a big box retailer are homeowner grade made for that market, I always dealt with a Hilti rep and supplier. I have an old TE-52, a large hammer drill, chipping hammer from the early 80's well taken care of, I'll never need another. Great thing about it, I was doing a small commercial job 8 years ago and I needed to install small diameter fasteners, local rep ordered me an adapter for this large old drill, and though its huge for the size hole, I did not have to buy a new and smaller drill, they made good quality tools, and their bits were one of the best you could get, cost more, but worth it on productivity.
 
agreed -

Not a huge dewalt fan myself, but in fairness to them, if you push any tool beyond it's intended purpose it's going to die early.

Hammer drills are good for small diameters.

I think brand matters less than matching the size of the tool to the job. Always better to be on the side of overkill.
 
I have used many but my vote is for Hilti. This is the Cadillac of them all. My Dewalt grinder is made in China. The other day I was grinding and it looked like the other wheel was wobbling. I stopped and checked and everthing was tight . Soooooo maybe the bearings are shot already. I have an old made in USA grinder that takes over two minutes to stop spinning after shut off. I tried to sell it at a consignment shop but they had alot of other grinders and lucky for me it did not sell. I think it will be the DeWalts replacement .Paid five bucks for it at a cheerleaders fund raiser sale. Paid good money for the Chinese DeWalt too. Sorry gettin' off topic here. But who knows what other DeWalt is imported from commies.
 
Hey Doc.

I did some research and found that the new Hilti power tools are made in (you guessed it) China.

I have a Milwaukee Magnum hammer drill that is about 20 years old and has drilled literally thousands of holes in concrete, cmus and stone over the years however the new ones are chinese also.

We need to change the laws to make American companies able to compete with other companies in manufacturing.

Brad
 
As you probably know, the rotary hammer drills much faster than does the hammer drill. I like my Hitachi.
I had one Dewalt toll armature that the cooling fan loosened. Used epoxy with reasonable results, but the balance is not perfect. Their DW321 jigsaw (discontinued) is a piece of crap and they offer no help. The blades fly out of the saw.
 
Are you sure about that?
Hilti is the top of the line in drills/hammer drills.
Hilti's use to be made in Germany.
The Milwaukee that I have is made in Eastern Europe......5 years old now.
The Bosch is a good drill, only problem is that the chuck is an SDS bit, no keyed drill chuck that should be standard.
 
I got a like new Bosch rotohammer on an auction a few year's back for about 1/4 of new price. Best money I ever spent. Goes through concrete like butter. I had used one when working for a contractor and they are an excellent tool.
 
That is true, but for drilling holes in studs, or aluminum plate I want a real keyed chuck. (I do not do much hammer drilling)
 
DeWalt makes good cordless drills and great power miter saws. Beyond that, the stuff they make that I've seen or used is home owner quality.

I agree with the other about Hilti.
They are the best.

I have Milwaukee.
One is a 1/2" hammer drill for small holes.
Then I have an 1 1/8" SDS (or is it SDS+?)roto hammer. It's compact, powerful and a drilling son of a gun!
I have two spline drive roto hammers. One is an older US 1 model. The other is a Thunderbolt model.
Both are very good. The thunderbolt does a better job of isolating the operator from the vibration.
 
I have a Hilti that I found on the highway about 30 years ago. I have used it a lot over the years. The only thing I have done to it is change the cord. Been a really good drill. My DAD gave me a B&D. The Hilti is much better.
 
I thought Hilti was Swiss, but it turns out that it was founded and is still headquartered in Liechtenstein. I'd be very surprised if anybody on this forum could name another product from that country (and if they say beer, they have to name the brand because every European country makes beer).

Stan
 
All my Hilti tools were made in Liechtenstein. Way too expensive for me to buy new, I figured a used one was better than a new tool from other manufacturers. $60 on ebay for my first drill, still working perfectly.

I was a little embarrassed to resell a Bosch hammer drill (chucked) that I had bought new. It worked as it was supposed to, but the buyer had clearly never experienced SDS. A world of difference.
 

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