SDS drill terminology . . and a view on a model

[Phil Pascoe]

What's the Jacob's chick like? Any good?

 

[robgul]

Looking at the technical spec for that range of drills, there doesn't seem to be any detail as to the weight of any of their drills......
This surprised me a little as it is relevant if you are going to be using it for any period of time.
The 1500w version you mentioned is a fairly big, hefty machine and depending on what you're planning on drilling and how often you're going to be using it, you may choose to go for the slightly smaller version as it will certainly be easier on the arms and wrists.

A 1000w SDS drill would be far better suited to drilling holes with the occasional bit of chiselling.

The 1500w version would be more suitable for breaking up concrete or chiselling up floor tiles for example as all the weight would be downwards and be of benefit.

I have both types of these drills ( different brand) and the decision to use one or the other depends on the job at hand.

Some of the reviews say it's heavy - but that's in the eye (feel) of the beholder - I'm pretty big and would rather over-spec than under-spec the tool. The job I need it for right now involves drilling a couple of holes in concrete, doing some fixing for about 15 minutes and then drilling another couple of holes and so on - it's not as if I'm going to be holding the thing for hours on end.

I've bitten the bullet and will be at ToolStation tomorrow to collect it. [What's really annoying is that we have a brand new branch here and a discount vocher came through the lettebof for, I think, 15% off - it got thrown away as I didn't expect to need any tools .... but I will ask in the shop!]

 

[robgul]

Just a thought as I mainly use my sds out side where being cordless is a big bonus, if you have a battery platform of one brand or other for any cordless tools you have could you buy a bare drill for that platform. This is what I did with my Makita & it was just over a £100

I have a mixed bag of about 6 or 7 cordless tools only 2 of which share a battery

 

[Sideways]

2kg class SDS is a nice lightish weight drill.
Easy to handle, very efficient at punching holes in brick, block, etc.
I haven't checked recently but there's been a bosch model in that class around the £90 to £110 mark seemingly forever as well as everyone else's versions.
You would want something much heavier for breaking concrete but for drilling, lighter chiselling and chipping, eg for electrical boxes and conduit they are great. Not to heavy to hold above head height for a few holes.

 

[Robbo60]

I bought a corded DeWalt one a few years ago for one job £99 i think. Have used it several time since on reinforced concrete, prefab garage (which my cordless DeWalt hammer drill wouldn't touch) and been really pleased with it. Bought DeWalt drills also.

 

[Cliver]

Like you I needed drill into a lintel.
I ended up buying the Makita HR2630. Thinking I could sell it on afterwards. Decided to keep it and have used it to drill lintels, cut outs for patress boxes and cable runs. All handled with ease. Wish I'd bought one years ago.

 

[robgul]

Like you I needed drill into a lintel.
I ended up buying the Makita HR2630. Thinking I could sell it on afterwards. Decided to keep it and have used it to drill lintels, cut outs for patress boxes and cable runs. All handled with ease. Wish I'd bought one years ago.

I'm getting quite excited now! - the new one will bring my portable drill count up to 5 (incl 2 battery) plus a bench drill, and a Dremel if you can call that a drill?

 

[willie]

Rob,surely someone (kind) on here has a tool you can borrow, most people have lots of various drill bits to suit!

 

[Spectric]

Same old story, you will only get what you pay for. Having used many drills over the years there is one thing that stands out and that is the impact speed. I have a Makita cordless that has a hammer function but is never used to drill holes in masonary or the like, but it is sometimes used to start a hole as it is light and capable of making an initial indent. For general use I have a Bosch that is more than capable of drilling most holes in concrete and the like, it is a 110 volt GBH 2-26 and usable all day long but when something really demanding comes up I revert to my very old and very heavy Hilti TE72, again 110 volt but has no clutch and takes some handling, but tiring if used for long periods.
The one difference between these three is that the Makita is like a woodpecker on steroids, the bosch noticeably less impacts per sec but the Hilti is way less but much heavier impacts and drills without any fuss, very leisurely.

The Makita HR2630 is very similar to the Bosch and you won't go wrong with either unless you start wanting to drill large holes with big diamond hole cutters.

 

[robgul]

Rob,surely someone (kind) on here has a tool you can borrow, most people have lots of various drill bits to suit!

My goto SDS drill owner is marooned in New Zealand (where she normally spends half the year - went Dec 19 - due back April 20 . . . still there) - she would have drilled the holes as well given half a chance!

BUT (like bicycles) you always need N+1 so a modest investment is worthwhile - and in part (so I told my wife!) my BIG corded drill is getting past its prime and would need replacing in the not too distant future. The machine I've bought has a vast array of drill bits in the box so I'm good to go.

At the moment I've just unpacked it and it does seem to very robust, a bit heavy but I can handle that as I've already described

 

[highwood122]

its not always how many watts the tool is, its the hammer that knocks it in that counts most

 

[Terrytpot]

its not always how many watts the tool is, its the hammer that knocks it in that counts most

I think the quote you're paraphrasing is "I may not have a very big nail but I've got 15 stone of hammer to knock it in" , or the other common rejoinder being "it's big enough to fill a pram"

 

[Phil Pascoe]

It's not the size of the wand that matters, it's the will of the wizard waving it.