Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b

On Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:54:14 -0500, justme wrote:

Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b

Rental equipment stores have different size jack hammers from hand held
electric, pneumatic and small hydraulic units mounted on Bobcats or large
units mounted on back hoes. Do you really want to buy one? Most rental
places rotate equipment and it is maintained so they don't have to do
field repairs that are a lot more expense for them than making sure it's
rental ready at the shop. Might consider purchasing a used unit.

RLM wrote:

On Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:54:14 -0500, justme wrote:

Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b

Rental equipment stores have different size jack hammers from hand held
electric, pneumatic and small hydraulic units mounted on Bobcats or large
units mounted on back hoes. Do you really want to buy one? Most rental
places rotate equipment and it is maintained so they don't have to do
field repairs that are a lot more expense for them than making sure it's
rental ready at the shop. Might consider purchasing a used unit.

If you have any trace of carpal tunnel syndrome, or just aren't built
like a gorilla, any of the hand operated units will do a number on your
arms. A rental Bobcat with a hydraulic breaker is much more powerful,
can work at angles you can't with a hand unit, and best of all you get
to run it from a comfy seat, isolated from the hand numbing vibration.

Pete C. wrote:
RLM wrote:
On Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:54:14 -0500, justme wrote:

Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b
Rental equipment stores have different size jack hammers from hand held
electric, pneumatic and small hydraulic units mounted on Bobcats or large
units mounted on back hoes. Do you really want to buy one? Most rental
places rotate equipment and it is maintained so they don't have to do
field repairs that are a lot more expense for them than making sure it's
rental ready at the shop. Might consider purchasing a used unit.

If you have any trace of carpal tunnel syndrome, or just aren't built
like a gorilla, any of the hand operated units will do a number on your
arms. A rental Bobcat with a hydraulic breaker is much more powerful,
can work at angles you can't with a hand unit, and best of all you get
to run it from a comfy seat, isolated from the hand numbing vibration.

I got quite a few hours with an electric HF jackhammer. I thought the
blows it delivered seemed a bit soft, like hitting a chisel with a hard
rubber hammer instead of a steel one.
It did okay on red basalt, struggled occasionally through some harder
'blue' rock. Concrete or limestone should be easy enough, but granite
definitely not.
The tool was easy enough to hang onto and maneuver. I worked it at
angles from vertical to near horizontal, using my knee to kick the
pointy end out to where I needed it. The angle of attack had to be
changed continually on stubborn rocks. Forget the cart idea.

"justme" wrote in message
...
Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b

In the past I have just rented a Bosch. It worked well for the concrete but
a word of caution, the rental yard charged me to re-sharpen each bit when I
really didn't need more than one of them for the task. They claimed that
they had to be re-heat treated every time they were dressed hence the
charge.

I think you would have to have an awful lot of demo work to justify
purchasing one of these tools.

--

Roger Shoaf

About the time I had mastered getting the toothpaste back in the tube, then
they come up with this striped stuff.

On Mar 22, 2:54*pm, "justme" wrote:
Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b

Might not be pertinent, but I had a solid limestone outcrop in the way
of a home sewer line at my former home. Had to make an opening
through the rock roughly 2' wide by 5' high by about 8' long. I
borrowed a pnuematic jack hammer, an Ingersol Rand rock drill and a
150cfm compressor from a friend. The jack hammer made little or no
progress. The rock drill worked pretty well at drilling, but making
swiss cheese of the rock did not really speed things along. It was a
bitch to hold at an angle on the rock face as it weighs about 100 lbs
and the drill steel was about 3' long, it also made a clouds of rock
dust which went everywhere.. Next I tried expansive concrete put into
the drilled holes to split the rock. This worked, but was painfully
slow. Called a Blasting company, but one look at the site and I was
told it was it too close to the house. Next I rented a track hoe with
a 2000 lb hydraulic breaker hammer. This made quick work of the rock
and also was able to break it up into nice sized chunks I could move
out of the way with my backhoe. Well worth the $600 rental fee which
included delivery.

PIM,

Thanks for the info. I wonder which H.F. model that you have?

You also say that I should forget the 'cart' idea. Why do you say that?


j/b


"Poultry in Motion" wrote in message
net...
Pete C. wrote:
RLM wrote:
On Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:54:14 -0500, justme wrote:

Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute
jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b
Rental equipment stores have different size jack hammers from hand held
electric, pneumatic and small hydraulic units mounted on Bobcats or
large
units mounted on back hoes. Do you really want to buy one? Most rental
places rotate equipment and it is maintained so they don't have to do
field repairs that are a lot more expense for them than making sure it's
rental ready at the shop. Might consider purchasing a used unit.

If you have any trace of carpal tunnel syndrome, or just aren't built
like a gorilla, any of the hand operated units will do a number on your
arms. A rental Bobcat with a hydraulic breaker is much more powerful,
can work at angles you can't with a hand unit, and best of all you get
to run it from a comfy seat, isolated from the hand numbing vibration.

I got quite a few hours with an electric HF jackhammer. I thought the
blows it delivered seemed a bit soft, like hitting a chisel with a hard
rubber hammer instead of a steel one.
It did okay on red basalt, struggled occasionally through some harder
'blue' rock. Concrete or limestone should be easy enough, but granite
definitely not.
The tool was easy enough to hang onto and maneuver. I worked it at angles
from vertical to near horizontal, using my knee to kick the pointy end out
to where I needed it. The angle of attack had to be changed continually on
stubborn rocks. Forget the cart idea.

Pete,

Thanks but there are always better ways to do things, especially my
'things'. I have already bought the hammer.

j/b


"Pete C." wrote in message
ster.com...

RLM wrote:

On Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:54:14 -0500, justme wrote:

Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute
jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b

Rental equipment stores have different size jack hammers from hand held
electric, pneumatic and small hydraulic units mounted on Bobcats or
large
units mounted on back hoes. Do you really want to buy one? Most rental
places rotate equipment and it is maintained so they don't have to do
field repairs that are a lot more expense for them than making sure it's
rental ready at the shop. Might consider purchasing a used unit.

If you have any trace of carpal tunnel syndrome, or just aren't built
like a gorilla, any of the hand operated units will do a number on your
arms. A rental Bobcat with a hydraulic breaker is much more powerful,
can work at angles you can't with a hand unit, and best of all you get
to run it from a comfy seat, isolated from the hand numbing vibration.

RLM, as I said in my original post, I already bought the hammer


j/b


"RLM" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:54:14 -0500, justme wrote:

Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute
jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b

Rental equipment stores have different size jack hammers from hand held
electric, pneumatic and small hydraulic units mounted on Bobcats or large
units mounted on back hoes. Do you really want to buy one? Most rental
places rotate equipment and it is maintained so they don't have to do
field repairs that are a lot more expense for them than making sure it's
rental ready at the shop. Might consider purchasing a used unit.

Oldjag,

Thanks for the input. How long is 'painfully slow' with the expanding
concrete?

I am negotiating on a backhow but I need to break limestone now.


j/b


"oldjag" wrote in message
...
On Mar 22, 2:54 pm, "justme" wrote:
Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b

Might not be pertinent, but I had a solid limestone outcrop in the way
of a home sewer line at my former home. Had to make an opening
through the rock roughly 2' wide by 5' high by about 8' long. I
borrowed a pnuematic jack hammer, an Ingersol Rand rock drill and a
150cfm compressor from a friend. The jack hammer made little or no
progress. The rock drill worked pretty well at drilling, but making
swiss cheese of the rock did not really speed things along. It was a
bitch to hold at an angle on the rock face as it weighs about 100 lbs
and the drill steel was about 3' long, it also made a clouds of rock
dust which went everywhere.. Next I tried expansive concrete put into
the drilled holes to split the rock. This worked, but was painfully
slow. Called a Blasting company, but one look at the site and I was
told it was it too close to the house. Next I rented a track hoe with
a 2000 lb hydraulic breaker hammer. This made quick work of the rock
and also was able to break it up into nice sized chunks I could move
out of the way with my backhoe. Well worth the $600 rental fee which
included delivery.

justme wrote:
PIM,

Thanks for the info. I wonder which H.F. model that you have?

You also say that I should forget the 'cart' idea. Why do you say that?

The jackhammer was like this one...
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=96035
I borrowed it from a neighbor. He paid something like $250 on sale, when
the regular price was $400.

A cart might work well if you're breaking up a 4" concrete slab. A rock
more than, say, 6" to 8" thick probably is NOT going to crack through
the way the concrete will. The bit will just make a little divot and not
go any further straight down, so you'll have to chip away the surface at
various angles to liberate little pieces. Zing! I don't see how a cart
would let you aim the bit the way you need it.

Wear goggles! In fact, wear a full face shield if you want to keep all
your teeth.

j/b


"Poultry in Motion" wrote in message
net...
Pete C. wrote:
RLM wrote:
On Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:54:14 -0500, justme wrote:

Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute
jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b
Rental equipment stores have different size jack hammers from hand held
electric, pneumatic and small hydraulic units mounted on Bobcats or
large
units mounted on back hoes. Do you really want to buy one? Most rental
places rotate equipment and it is maintained so they don't have to do
field repairs that are a lot more expense for them than making sure it's
rental ready at the shop. Might consider purchasing a used unit.
If you have any trace of carpal tunnel syndrome, or just aren't built
like a gorilla, any of the hand operated units will do a number on your
arms. A rental Bobcat with a hydraulic breaker is much more powerful,
can work at angles you can't with a hand unit, and best of all you get
to run it from a comfy seat, isolated from the hand numbing vibration.
I got quite a few hours with an electric HF jackhammer. I thought the
blows it delivered seemed a bit soft, like hitting a chisel with a hard
rubber hammer instead of a steel one.
It did okay on red basalt, struggled occasionally through some harder
'blue' rock. Concrete or limestone should be easy enough, but granite
definitely not.
The tool was easy enough to hang onto and maneuver. I worked it at angles
from vertical to near horizontal, using my knee to kick the pointy end out
to where I needed it. The angle of attack had to be changed continually on
stubborn rocks. Forget the cart idea.

Thanks for that clarification, PIM.

j/b



"Poultry in Motion" wrote in message
net...
justme wrote:
PIM,

Thanks for the info. I wonder which H.F. model that you have?

You also say that I should forget the 'cart' idea. Why do you say that?

The jackhammer was like this one...
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=96035
I borrowed it from a neighbor. He paid something like $250 on sale, when
the regular price was $400.

A cart might work well if you're breaking up a 4" concrete slab. A rock
more than, say, 6" to 8" thick probably is NOT going to crack through the
way the concrete will. The bit will just make a little divot and not go
any further straight down, so you'll have to chip away the surface at
various angles to liberate little pieces. Zing! I don't see how a cart
would let you aim the bit the way you need it.

Wear goggles! In fact, wear a full face shield if you want to keep all
your teeth.

j/b


"Poultry in Motion" wrote in message
net...
Pete C. wrote:
RLM wrote:
On Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:54:14 -0500, justme wrote:

Has anyone ever used a H.F. LARGE jackhammer AND a Bosch Brute
jackhammer?

I need to break up some limestone and harder rocks underground.

I already bought a H.F. unit but haven't gotten it yet.

Has anyone every made one self-supporting on a 3 or four-wheeled cart
whereby one didn't have to hold the unit?

Thanks

j/b
Rental equipment stores have different size jack hammers from hand
held
electric, pneumatic and small hydraulic units mounted on Bobcats or
large
units mounted on back hoes. Do you really want to buy one? Most rental
places rotate equipment and it is maintained so they don't have to do
field repairs that are a lot more expense for them than making sure
it's
rental ready at the shop. Might consider purchasing a used unit.
If you have any trace of carpal tunnel syndrome, or just aren't built
like a gorilla, any of the hand operated units will do a number on your
arms. A rental Bobcat with a hydraulic breaker is much more powerful,
can work at angles you can't with a hand unit, and best of all you get
to run it from a comfy seat, isolated from the hand numbing vibration.
I got quite a few hours with an electric HF jackhammer. I thought the
blows it delivered seemed a bit soft, like hitting a chisel with a hard
rubber hammer instead of a steel one.
It did okay on red basalt, struggled occasionally through some harder
'blue' rock. Concrete or limestone should be easy enough, but granite
definitely not.
The tool was easy enough to hang onto and maneuver. I worked it at
angles from vertical to near horizontal, using my knee to kick the
pointy end out to where I needed it. The angle of attack had to be
changed continually on stubborn rocks. Forget the cart idea.