Yes, HF will take them back.
I purchased the equivalent of this SDS hammer drill at Harbor Freight a few years ago and it is one of my favorite tools. It drills into concrete like it is butter and with the chisel bits, it allows us to break up smaller sections of concrete with relative ease (compared to using manual tools, not compared to a full size jack hammer...)
See:
I got it for $49 on sale or with a coupon, can't remember which.
Sorry, a typo, should read "best prices"....
I bought a hammer drill so I could drill holes in large boulders and use feathers/wedges to split the boulders into smaller stones. We have a lot of very large boulders sticking out of the ground, so I have done this a lot.
I also used my hammer drill to bust up a concrete slab so I could pour a new one. I orginally tried using a chisel bit, but the slab was 6 inches thick reinforced with rebar. So the best I could do is chip off small sections at a time. I reverted to drilling holes and using the feathers/wedges like I do when splitting rocks. This let me break off large chunks of concrete easily. It took a bit longer than a jack hammer, but it wasn't bad:
This summer I also found a unique use for my hammer drill. We were trying to dig a trench in the front yard to install a sprinkler system. The soil is rocky and was hard packed as strong as stone. Even bouncing on a sharpened spade just barely penetrated the soil. So, I put a chisel bit in the hammer drill, set it to hammer only, and proceded to drive it into the ground in multiple places. This loosened up the soil enough that I could easily shovel out the loose dirt. Weird, but it worked great.
Anthony Watson
re: "drilling holes in wood"
Just take it off of "hammer"...sometimes.
Yeah, they do. The page I linked goes directly to 18-8 SS hex bolts, 3/8 x
16 x 1 3/4 @ $0.71 eachHere's the same size bolt in grade 8 steel @ $0.35 each
On Mon, 12 Dec 2016 19:28:15 -0600, Vic Smith advised:
Here's what I now have as light-duty home drills:
Thanks for that advice that I basically have a second 1/2-inch drill for light-duty work that just happens to have a button to add a slight hammer feature (and VSR which is variable speed reversible).
Looking at the specs, it's not any bigger than my existing DeWalt cordless drill, but it seems to go faster.
When, at home, is a "faster" drill useful though?
On Mon, 12 Dec 2016 17:48:30 -0800 (PST), DerbyDad03 advised:
I just grabbed my three (now four) drills, and looked with a magnifying glass at the specs, so I agree with your assessment that it's now my "most powerful" drill, if I count the speed and amps as "power".
I bought the drills in the order below, where my 'kid' drill was the Rockwell which was a Christmas gift when I was just a boy. Later, probably in college days, I bought the Craftsman because I had to drill using larger bits than 1/4-inch bits so I got the 3/8ths-inch chuck.
After that, I never used any other drill but the Craftsman 3/8ths-inch chuck VSR but at some point I needed to work outside and didn't want to deal with extension cords so I bought the 1/2-inch chuck DeWalt cordless.
Now, due to the need to drill four holes in concrete, I now have the hammer drill.
In reality, the DeWalt cordless does pretty much all that I need, but I guess if/when I have to drill a *lot* of 1/2-inch bit holes, I will have the drill to do it now. :)
I still can't think of any reason for wanting the hammer though, other than to drill concrete (and maybe railroad ties).
The hammer drill with a chisel blade is great for removing floor tile too....
On Mon, 12 Dec 2016 20:02:40 -0700, rbowman advised:
Thanks for explaining that the hammer feature is only for masonry work.
The Chicago Electric 7.5Amp hammer drill has two buttons, a trigger, and a lock.
The funny thing is that I don't *feel* any difference with that hammer/drill slider set to hammer versus drill.
Is that odd?
Whether I'm drilling in air (playing the air drill) or if I'm drilling in the concrete, I feel no difference in the drill no matter if the slider selector switch is set to hammer or to drill.
Is that normal?
On Tue, 13 Dec 2016 16:11:39 -0000 (UTC), HerHusband advised:
I have never used a hammer drill before so I have to ask if you can *feel* the hammer action when using the drill (either just spinning it in the air or when chipping that soil)?
I can't feel any difference in the drill in hammer mode versus is normal drill mode.
Is that how it's supposed to feel?
On Tue, 13 Dec 2016 14:31:02 +0000, Stormin' Norman advised:
Yours is better than mine, but I paid around the same price. Mine is 1/2 inch chuck with 7.5amp motor, while yours is a 1-1/8 in. chuck and a 10 Amp Heavy Duty SDS Variable Speed Rotary Hammer motor.
Chicago Electric Power Tools 69274 10 Amp 3-in-1 1-1/8" Variable Speed SDS Rotary Hammer, Harbor Freight item#69274
It seems that yours uses the funky shaped SDS bits I bought!
Why are they shaped that way anyway?
On Tue, 13 Dec 2016 08:43:50 -0500, dadiOH advised:
Thanks for explaining that water isn't generally used when drilling through concrete. I wasn't sure if the water was needed for either cooling or lubrication.
Where would you get four 2/3/4-inch 3/8-inch stainless steel
Thanks for that page where the SS 3/8ths x 16 TPI bolts are the cheapest yet, at $0.92 each for the 3-inch length.
Interestingly, they don't sell the bolts in quarter-inch increments either, so, it's going to be either 2-1/2 inch (which is a tad too short) or 3 inch (which is a tad too long).
Wonder why they call them "tap" bolts:
Googling, I find this description of a tap bolt says it's "fully threaded".
On Mon, 12 Dec 2016 19:58:34 -0700, rbowman advised:
This is good advice to use a nut as a "die" to clean up the threads after cutting, but stainless is pretty hard stuff to cut.
But I do get your point, and I do have a miter saw where I can put a diamond blade on it so I can probably buy the 3-inch 3/8'ths inch SS tap bolts and cut off a quarter inch.
The SDS bits are far superior to standard high-speed twist bits. There is zero chance of bit slippage, additionally, they click-lock in the chuck, none of that hand tightening or loosening the chuck. Lastly, bit changes are quite rapid. I love my HF rotary hammer drill.
Once you apply pressure to the drill bit you should - at a minimum - hear the rapid tap-tap-tap of the hammer action. You won't feel a jarring action since it's kind of isolated from the user (It's not a jack hammer) but you should hear a difference.
On Tue, 13 Dec 2016 11:21:01 -0800, Oren advised:
Funny you mention a bench grinder because I bought the 8-inch one on sale from HF when I got the tools (I didn't mention it because that was ot).
The one I got is the Central Machinery 8" item 39798 3/4 hp 3450 rpm with pre-drilled mounting holes.
It's still in the box.
Is it a decent grinder?
On Tue, 13 Dec 2016 13:05:21 -0500, dadiOH advised:
Thanks for letting me know they have 1/4-inch sized bolts because the videos all show everyone has the same problem with 3-inch bolts being too long (but they dont mention it).
here's a video screenshot of the video that clare posted which shows the guy compensated for the extra quarter inch with multiple washers:
The only problem is that you have to know this ahead of time to notice it because nobody seems to mention that the goldilocks length is 2-3/4 inches and not 2-1/2 or 3 inches.
On Tue, 13 Dec 2016 11:15:47 -0800, Oren advised:
I remember not feeling anything when I drilled the four concrete holes. I need a better test of the hammering action than my feeling it.
On Tue, 13 Dec 2016 11:10:33 -0800 (PST), DerbyDad03 advised:
I didn't hear or feel anything when I drilled the concrete. I guess I need a better test to ensure the hammer is hammering.
Drill a hole in concrete. Now switch the tool to the opposite setting and drill another hole. The hammer setting will be obvious even its not from the marking on the tool or the instruction manual.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.