greasing sds drills

Hi,

SDS newbie question: I bought a cheap sds drill from Screwfix. It says on the top to check the grease level regularly but it doesn't say how often to check or how full it should be. I was chiseling some chases and when I looked after, it appeared empty. I filled it to the brim with grease and did more chasing and the walls got covered in grease! So is it that these will spit if overfilled? What is the right level to fill to and how often should you check: before every job?

I see that there is a rod in the bottom: is the important thing to keep that covered? Is that the hammer mechanism?

It can be quite tiring using a 6kg drill to chisel, and now that I appreciate what sds can do, I think I might look for a 2kg drill. It seems that some of these can pack as big a punch as the 6kg drills. I notice that the branded 2kg drills do not need grease, why do the 6kg ones?

TIA

Reply to
Fred
Loading thread data ...

I keep a small syringe full of grease (just bike grease) in the drill box. If drill bits look dry (or dirty, in which case I wipe them first) I place a tiny drop on each of the four splines on the drillbit. I've never greased the drill (machine) itself, nor does it need to be "filled".

You're lubricating the slideways, and on an SDS these are the bit rather than the main mechanism. You don't need to grease the impact face: that's not sliding sideways, and (as you discovered) you'll get the grease pumped out and everywhere.

I suspect your instructions have suffered a little in translation.

Reply to
Andy Dingley

I got one of these

formatting link
(link goes to ebay) and it's brilliant, highly recommended. I usually grease the bit of the bit that goes in the chuck IYSWIM :o)

Reply to
John

My technique is to have a "mouldy" pot of LM grease (ie rough jobs, not for packing bearings) - I dip the end of the drill in about 1/2" then wipe the sides off on the pot leaving a bit in the grooves.

As for the machine, my Hitachi mentions greasing the mechanism as a maintenance item, but the knowledgeable shopkeeper said it almost never needed to be done as the grease is normally good for life in practise. It's not really a "user" job - involves taking the machine to bits.

Reply to
Tim Watts

There are two things that need grease - the back of the bits where they go into the SDS chuck, and the gearbox.

On my metabo, the chuck nose is rubber and you must use a grease which doesn't rot the rubber. (I got that wrong to start with, but they very nicely sent me a new chuck for free, as it should have come with the correct grease but it was missing.)

Topping up the gearbox grease isn't possible with all SDS. I'm wondering if yours deliberately leaks the gearbox grease onto the back of the bit? In mine, the gearbox has no provision for user topping up, but you can send it back to Metabo for a service. I haven't needed to in 10 years as yet (excluding it having to go back when it was brand new for two faults), although it's probably about due now. However, this is a professional SDS drill which I bought before the DIY products existed.

I'd agree on the weight issue. Mine's 2.something kg which is not a problem to use for a long time. Unless you're built like Arnie, the heavier ones are tiring. In 10 years, there are only two times when it would have been nice to have a more powerful one, and the rest of the time, not.

Reply to
Andrew Gabriel

[...]

I was talking about greasing the gearbox but I notice that all the other replies have talked about greasing the bits. I never knew that I was supposed to grease them, but then I did declare myself an sds newbie I'd agree on the weight issue. Mine's 2.something kg which is not

Although this is a 6kg drill, the figures for drilling capacity are not that different to a blue bosch that weighs just 2kg, though I notice the impact energy is claimed to be a respectable 4J.

Reply to
Fred

formatting link

That would be a faulty seal on the gearbox input, although I would question if you're supposed to completely fill the gearbox.

A drill gearbox always needs reduction gearing as the universal motors they use spin too fast for direct coupling, and the torque gain is also important. In this case, it also needs to change the drive shaft direction through 90 degrees, and in many cases, it provides alternative gear ratios too, and sometimes a reverse gear.

Depends where it leaks from (probably not in your case).

Reply to
Andrew Gabriel

This was certainly par for the course with some of the original design of cheap SDS machines like the NuTool etc. They eventually degrade into a sticky greasy mess that covers everything.

The better machines have sealed gearboxes, and just require the back of the bit is lubricated from time to time.

Price mostly. Creating grease tight mechanisms and gearboxes takes somewhat more engineering precision.

Note also there are two classes of 6kg machine. There is the budget SDS which has impact energy of between 2 - 3J per blow (the same as the professional 2kg machines), but there are also professional tools in this range with a 4 - 6J impact capability.

If you are upgrading look for one with a decent speed controller, and a chuck that allows the chisel to be rotated to a position of your choice and then locked. That way you can align chisel with a direction you want to cut, and also start and markout with it at low revs before going full whack.

If you have a look at the "what to look for" section, you may find some relevant stuff:

formatting link

Reply to
John Rumm

I think that overfilling may have made matters worse as it was only when filled to the brim that it spat madly everywhere.

I'm not sure whether there is a fault as the instructions do intend you to top-up regularly, so they obviously expect it to go down in use. Other posts suggest that other budget drills have the same failings.

BTW you never told me why the dc07 was better than the dc04 round the house ;)

Reply to
Fred

Yes, I have found that getting the chisel where I want it is not always as simple as it could be. I also find that the sizes of chisel available are limited.

I think you can only get 25mm and 40mm wide chisels, but I guess if the chisel was wider you would be distributing the impact force over a wider area so it wouldn't be as effective?

The chisel bits seem to be about a foot long but I sometimes wish you could get slightly longer ones for when you are chiselling the floor and slightly shorter ones when you are chiselling the wall to be kinder on your back. Is the reason you can't get shorter ones to keep you at a safe distance and stop ejected material hitting you?

TIA

Reply to
Fred

Point, 20mm, 40, 60, and 80 are certainly available. However I find 20 and 40 to be the most useful combination. Occasionally I also used a cranked gouge or a brick removing chisel.

I am sure my ones are shorter than a foot - they fit in the drill case quite comfortably. Probably about 8" IIRC. I think they were QDS brand from SF probably.

Longer could probably be arranged with a few chisels and angle grinder and a welder! ;-)

Reply to
John Rumm

replying to Fred, Spannerman wrote: Fred, The Titan is the new version of the old Challenger model. I've had my Challenger for nigh on 20 years and used very regularly and still going. I have found Makita Hammer Grease the best. I have attached image of the user manual, it suggests to check level every 6 hours use, I have found that to be excessive every 40 hours of use should be sufficient. Over filling will result in excess grease ejected via the chuck. Hope this helps.

formatting link

Reply to
Spannerman

I'm sure this reply 9 years later is most helpful. Use a saner portal to get here & this problem won't happen. Here is news:uk.d-i-y

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

You can put too much grease in a gearbox. If you, do there will be excessive pressure as it runs and the grease is likely to come out somewhere unwanted. There needs to be grease on the moving parts, not jam packed full.

Reply to
harry

Can you redo the link or give us the name of the product you talking about as the link is broken :/ Thanks

Reply to
JohnDoe

You can dig up a link as follows.

"I got one of these

formatting link
(link goes to ebay) and it's brilliant, highly recommended. I usually grease the bit of the bit that goes in the chuck IYSWIM :o) "

Edit the original URL:

formatting link
like this:

formatting link
and you will see what the link said.

A similar item is this.

formatting link
No, I can't see the Ebay page, I just got the link value and found a similar one.

And be careful what you use those on. Some people who use hammer drills, they "lean on them like they're a jack hammer". Not all the things you're drilling through, can take that kind of abuse. Sometimes you just have to shut off the hammer, stop leaning on the tool, and drill your way through. Using a fresh bit. If you're "riding it like a pony", that's hard on the drill too.

Paul

Reply to
Paul

Could you give us a clue to what you are referring to? Even looking at the mangled home owners hub history, all the original thread structure has been lost, so it's no clear.

formatting link

Reply to
John Rumm

Surely rather than attempting to resurrect an old thread, there has to be a wiki somewhere on this sort of thing by now. Brian

Reply to
Brian Gaff (Sofa

I think he is looking for the grease that you should put on the sds drill bit 'splines' as you slide it into the drill. I just use CV joint grease. You should be able to blag some from a friendly garage.

Reply to
Andrew

Very interesting. Thanks

Reply to
ARW

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.