Core drilling, SDS drill advice and retailer experiences (phew)

Hi all, I've been lurking here for the past few weeks in preparation for some self-fit air conditioning I'm currently buying. I've got a lot useful info from here so far and at risk of tying up several older threads I want to ask a few more questions.

I'm going to need to drill some 60mm holes in brick walls. My flat is of London brick/concrete construction and I don't anticipate much trouble with this, however: I've got the el-cheapo [ferm] SDS drill that all the sheds and screwfix sell cheap. I do not intend using this with a core drill given the warnings of snags and wrist injury danger so I'm looking to replace it. I've seen the Bosch GBH2-20SRE SDS drill for =A366.09 from powertoolsuk.co.uk which is a great deal cheaper than screwfix etc and appears to be up to the job, please tell me otherwise. Has anyone bought from these guys and can you recommend them? They also sell a cheap range of TCT and diamond core drills. Do you think I can get away with TCT for what will be at most 3 holes in brickwork or am I better off buying the diamond one. Many questions I'm afraid but I'll gladly keep you all informed on job progress for your efforts. Mark.

Reply to
MJS
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Hi Mark, personally speaking I wouldn't put my SDS through the onslaught of core drilling. I recently drilled 120mm, 40mm & 22mm holes through triple brick and it wasn't easy, even with the beast of a drill I hired (see

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- puts my SDS to shame! :-) ).

Anyway, I hired the whole shooting match for about £20.

Tips: Keep as straight as possible to avoid the drill snagging and WATCH FOR BRICKS POPPING OUT THE OTHER SIDE!! Came *this close* to pushing an entire brick out and it dropping through downstairs' window. Get someone to watch from the other side while you're drilling. Not a lot you can do about this unless drill through from both sides and meet in the middle, but *there's no way on earth* you could use the thing I had up a ladder.

It's also *incredibly* noisy so ear defenders are a sensible move.

Andy

Reply to
Pecanfan

Oops, I forgot to mention, I'll be able to drill from both sides as the walls face onto a balcony. I'm hoping to be able to drill a long pilot hole from inside through to the outside, and then drill the cores into each side. I'm more worried about believing I can buy a 'cheap' TCT core drill and have it last for long enough to do the job. Mark.

Reply to
MJS

I'd be surprised if it would last. Even the 'beast' snagged at times and the torque clutch thing kicked in. How thick is the wall?

Andy

Reply to
Pecanfan

I *think* the wall is of standard brick with a cavity but don't quote me on that. I don't know until I try. The flat is being rented out at the moment but I'll be moving back in a couple of weeks. I can only guess based on my previous experiences drilling holes there. For what it's worth, the flat is mid 20th Century ex Local Authority. It's fully bricked up on the outside but I don't know what the internal side of exterior walls will be - is it likely to be breeze block or similar? Sorry if it's all too vague still. The other possibilty is that I forget drilling nice round holes and go for brick removal. Mark.

Reply to
MJS

It's only a 60mm. I've had no problem core drilling small holes like those, even with a low powered, wrist shattering cheapie with a TCT bit, which has lasted for several holes with no sign of expiring.

Obviously, I would have to recommend that a safety clutch is used, even if I didn't follow my own advice.

Christian.

Reply to
Christian McArdle

What were the bricks like? I don't think there's any way a normal SDS would have made it through our walls (stupidly hard 1900's triple brick with no cavity) - even the 40mm holes were a struggle. Mind you, breeze block won't be a problem and if the bricks are soft enough I suppose you might get away with it. It's still cheaper and easier to hire though, unless you're planning to do loads more core drilling later down the line - the bit alone will probably be more than the entire hire costs (don't quote me on that though).

Andy

Reply to
Pecanfan

The internal bricks were breeze block I think, with occaisional hollow pot bricks (that was when I removed a door frame to get an Ikea sofa in. Long story) Like I said, I bought the cheapo SDS monster a couple of years ago and didn't regret it one bit - it's like a hot knife through butter on the concrete lintels I bought it for drilling into. However, it is a heavy unwieldy drill and not very , how can I say, accurate. I find I have to drill a couple of mm smaller than I need because of the wobble on the bit and chuck. This is another reason for buying the Bosch because a lot of people here like them, is light and it has the safety clutch. I really don't want to twist my wrists up on this job. I'm wondering if anyone had bought from

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as their prices were extremely good. However there's always the 'too good to be true' issue. This is the TCT core drill I was thinking of trying:
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the Bosch drill:
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anybody tried these? Mark

Reply to
MJS

6cm is not big. 65mm tct core drill =A34.51 from toolstation.com 72655 sds arbor =A35.27 18616 guide drill 1.98 99910

they deliver, you dont have to go to the hire place and back again, and the stuffs new not knackered.

Even a plain steel bit would manage 3 holes, tct is way tougher. No problem there.

Sideways movement of drill tends to cause snagging, so I'd take it easy if you use a no clutch job. Keep speed down to aviod it biting you, and not use up a ladder.

Personally Id get a clutched one like a bosch, but a cheapie will still work.

Tie a hoover hose onto the depth stop rod and itll do 95% of the clear up for you.

NT

Reply to
bigcat

Well I don't have a car, so would rely on delivery anyway.

That's what I thought.

This is the reason for buying a new drill. At =A366 I don't think It'd be costing me much more than a hire. It has the clutch and claims to be able to do 65mm core drilling. It must surely have less sideways movement than my current one! A quick google search suggests other people have successfully used similarly rated power drills for this work. Mark.

Reply to
MJS

I have to say, I bought a cheapo set of SDS bits from Screwfix and 'dog's hind leg' springs to mind. Some of them are OK, some of them are utterly useless. Luckily they're so cheap and soft they can generally be hammered vaguely straight. :-)

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- didn't know you could get them that cheap! At that price you might as well give it a go and see what happens. Be interested to know if they do the job for future reference.

Andy

Reply to
Pecanfan

Various types.

What type of bits did you use? I used a specially thinned type designed specifically for low powered SDS drills. These can't be made so deep, so you keep having to withdraw to empty the bit. However, the can sides and blades are thin, so don't have to remove so much material, keeping the drill load down.

Christian.

Reply to
Christian McArdle

Sounds like a good deal. Should be easily up to the job. If you want to have a more useful tool left over at the end it might be worth seeing if you can get one of the three function drills (i.e. with rotary stop as well) for a decent price. IIRC Axminster has a special offer on the GBH2-24 a few weeks back.

TCT should be fine for three holes.

Reply to
John Rumm

I've got the el-cheapo [ferm] SDS drill

Are you absolutely SURE this model has a safety clutch?

Reply to
Ben

its the human moving sideways thats the problem. Stable stance wise

NT

Reply to
bigcat

All of the Bosch SDS (Pro) range tools have one:

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Reply to
John Rumm

the clutch. I can't start the job yet but have seen a few higher specced models on ebay for similar money (both new and used).

Mark.

Reply to
MJS

Not sure - same design as the one on the pic, but that's the 117mm one. They were quite heavy and probably about 150mm long - had an extension bar thing too, which was a right pain in the arse. What's the reasoning behind the 'friction fit' SDS-plus bits?

Andy

Reply to
Pecanfan

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