"CWLee" wrote in message
...

My adult son, the amateur handyman, told me he
would like a hammer drill for Xmas. I asked him what
brand/size/model/style/color/etc and he said he didn't know
enough to make an intelligent choice. So, I'm asking you
guys to see if there is any consensus on what to get.

All serious comments and recommendations appreciated.

Thanks.
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CWLee

Yes! Go one step better, and buy a small rotohammer with the SDS bits.
Fergeddabout HILTI, as those bits will cost waaaaaaaaaaay more than they are
worth. SDS are available everywhere, and at a fraction of the cost.
Fraction as in 1/3, 1/4, 1/5.

A small rotohammer, like a Milwaukee with a decent capacity should run you
around $200, IIRC. Maybe even more like $150. Tons of difference when push
comes to shove and you have to drill 50 half inch holes in 5 sack mix.
Everything less cuts like warm butter.

DO NOT get the cordless. You want a workhorse, and batteries won't cut it,
and they are very spendy to replace.

Overbuy on this one for the times when a rotohammer outdistances a hammer
drill like a dragster leaves a Volkswagen. It has to do with the
hammering/rotating pattern/sequence of a rotohammer versus a hammer drill.

Hilti is a quality product, but why go spend $50 on a bit you can buy in SDS
for $15 at the Borg?

Take it from me. I was a steel erection contractor, and burned many a hole
in the hard hard concrete of government projects before I ever became aware
of the difference between a rotohammer and a hammer drill. I had a Makita
hammer drill, and thought it was hot stuff. Yes, it was a good hammer
drill, but not against hard concrete or aggregate. A contractor lent me his
Milwaukee Blackhawk (?) or something like that, and what took five minutes
of sweating with the Makita took thirty seconds with the rotohammer. A
hammer drill will eventually go through hard aggregate, or burn up the bit.
A rotohammer will fracture hard aggregate and concrete easily, using
percussion instead of high speed carbide cutting. I have pulled red hot
bits out of concrete with a hammer drill.

Let us know how it goes.

You asked for advice, and that's what I'd buy and why.

Steve