Bmill25 Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 Hi guys, right now I have the most powerful non-fuel m18 hammer drill. I think it's torque is around 725. The new fuel has 1200. I'm starting a large new job that will require a lot of tapcons into concrete. Will the extra 475 inches of torque be an obvious improvement? I've never used one that powerful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisK Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 Can't speak on the 2nd gen fuel but I used to have the Dewalt DCD985 brushed hammer and it put tapcons in with no issue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffmcmillan Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I've had more issues with over-torquing tapcons than lacking power to put them in. The place you want power is for drilling the holes to put them in and torque doesn't matter for that. Do you have a rotary hammer or just using the old hammer drill? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmill25 Posted May 9, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I'm using the old hammer drill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboS1ice Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 For concrete torque isn't the most important feature you want to look at its beats per minute, torque is necessary but don't forget about that Jimbo Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmill25 Posted May 9, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I've never used a rotary hammer drill. Is that significantly better than a normal hammer drill? I usually use my hammer drill for short tapcons to screw metal lathe to concrete to lay stone veneer. Would a 12v rotary be enough? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffmcmillan Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 You should really try out a rotary hammer if you're using that many tapcons. Not only does it go faster with less vibration, but you don't need to put much pressure on the bit like a hammer drill. Again with the voltage it depends a lot on the size of tapcon and even within voltages there are a lot of different size of rotary hammer. Pretty much anything will be good for small 5/32 tapcons but as it gets larger you might want a larger rotary hammer. What's the biggest you plan to drill? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboS1ice Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 Like Jeff said, get a SDS hammer, they are designed for chipping concrete so they will have lower rpm and stronger beats than a cordless hammer drill. Honestly I would really mess with a 12v SDS, I would go 18v or corded. Now when you see corded they are measured by 1" or 1 1/8", they all take the same bits but it's the maximum recommended hole diameter for that tool. Jimbo Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnarlyCarl Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I've never used a rotary hammer drill. Is that significantly better than a normal hammer drill? .......... Short answer, yes! Long answer, ABSOLUTELY! After I got my sds rotary hammer, the hammer function on my drill has NEVER been touched since, its that worth it to have both tools vs just the hammer drill. It's something you have to experience yourself, I can't say enough about how awesome it is. As for which size to get, if just tapcons, go for the m12, but if you think there is a chance you're going to want chisel abilities, get the m18 version. Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BMack37 Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 Check out some videos on SDSs, it's insane how well they work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tools & Stuff Posted May 11, 2016 Report Share Posted May 11, 2016 I would only ever use an SDS for drilling concrete. I personally wouldn't bother with 12v, go for 18v. I have a couple of vids up of the Makita 36v... love that tool. It is rated for 26mm (just over an inch) in concrete. I compared it to a Makita corded 28mm and they were very similar, although I didn't push them to their maximum sizes, mainly because I don't have any SDS+ bits that size. Once you have used a rotary hammer drill you will never drill concrete with a standard hammer drill again. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stercorarius Posted May 11, 2016 Report Share Posted May 11, 2016 Imagine using a self feed 3/8" spade bit on a top of the line corded drill to drill through a 2x4 and then imagine using an 88¢ Philips screwdriver to drill a hole through a tree. That's about the difference between SDS and hammer drill. I would personally just get a factory recon. Bosch bulldog corded unit. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboS1ice Posted May 11, 2016 Report Share Posted May 11, 2016 1 hour ago, Stercorarius said: Imagine using a self feed 3/8" spade bit on a top of the line corded drill to drill through a 2x4 and then imagine using an 88¢ Philips screwdriver to drill a hole through a tree. That's about the difference between SDS and hammer drill. I would personally just get a factory recon. Bosch bulldog corded unit. Depends it could be anywhere from an 88 cents to maybe 2.88 lol, great comparison! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrk_indle84 Posted May 12, 2016 Report Share Posted May 12, 2016 Imagine using a self feed 3/8" spade bit on a top of the line corded drill to drill through a 2x4 and then imagine using an 88¢ Philips screwdriver to drill a hole through a tree. That's about the difference between SDS and hammer drill. I would personally just get a factory recon. Bosch bulldog corded unit. We have been using the Bosch unit for awhile and it works great. It's the 1" unit and it's put in hundreds of tapcons. I'd definitely recommend it unless your set on getting something cordless. Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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