A hammer drill is a very special power tool that enables you to create a hole into very hard material. Whether you are dealing with concrete or wood, a hammer drill makes the otherwise difficult job of punching holes so much easier. Make no mistake, if you are working on a big project around the house, you probably would need a hammer drill.
What is a Hammer Drill Used For?
What alternative do you have? Seriously, if you want to save time and elbow grease, hammer drills are it. They are basically the only game in town. If you don’t believe me and the next time you are trying to put in a kitchen or install a deck, ask yourself, am I really all that excited? Punching holes with a hammer and specialized equipment?
Probably not because after a few swings of the hammer, heaviness of the head as well as the unsteadiness of the piece that you are using to create a whole can get the better of you. Its just too much work and often times it takes a bit longer than you anticipated. Why go through that when there is a more automated and easier alternative? This is where hammer drills come in because this really
The bottom line is simple. You want to simplify the whole process of punching holes. The great thing about a hammer drill is that it is a power tool designed to make quick work of the often grueling task of punching holes.
Now, if you’re just punching holes in wood (see best drill bits for wood), it’s probably going to be an easier task for you. It’s not easy, but it’s more manageable than if you were working with a harder surface like concrete.
If you have to punch a lot of holes in concrete, all bets are off. It’s one thing if you’re demolishing concrete just to get a jackhammer, it’s another if you need well measured and precisely spaced holes on a concrete surface.
In that case, it’s much better to use a hammer drill because you can be assured that if you use this instead of a handheld spike and a heavy hammer, the holes will not only be evenly spaced and well-measured, but they would also be uniform.
This is crucial because you don’t want to create a vast hole, and then the next hole is too narrow. You’re going to extend your work far longer than it needs to be. You don’t have to go through that.
With a hammer drill, you can walk away with quite a bit of confidence that the holes that you are making would be reasonably uniform. This is good news, especially if you’re going to be using a specific size of fastener. So for all these reasons, it’s a good idea to go with hammer drills.
Types of Hammer Drills
Now, there are many different designs of hammer drills. It all boils down to the angle that you’re going to use. If you tend to work in a reasonably level way where your hand is level to the ground, you might want to consider hammer drills that work well with a straight arm.
On the other hand, if you see yourself stretching your arm up because you’re punching holes up ahead or at a higher space than your head, then you would probably need a hammer drill that would accommodate that angle. This is a significant factor because a lot of people are under the impression that hammer drills are all the same, and they all work in a somewhat similar way. Boy, are they in for a surprise.
It turns out that knocking holes on pieces of wood, as well as on any kind of surface–especially concrete surfaces require many different angles. So when they find themselves in that situation, they do a lousy job because they’re trying to use a tool that is designed especially for a particular context in a completely different way.
Do you see how this works? So, it’s a good idea to be clear as to the kind of hole punching work you see yourself doing. Also, pay attention to the type of workload that you’re going to be tackling today and then a few years from now. A little bit of foresight can ensure that you maximize the amount of value you get from your hammer drill.
The problem with a lot of do-it-yourself types in the United States and elsewhere is that they would rush out to the hardware store to buy a piece of equipment because of the job they have to do right here right now. That is understandable. But the problem is you don’t want to pay your hard-earned dollars for something only useful in a short period because it may well turn out that your needs change.
Features to look for in a Drill
Sometimes, it can change drastically. What do you do in that situation? Well, you still need to punch holes, but it turns out that you will need a different type of hammer drill. So you spend all this money and at the end of the day, when it comes to volume and the quality of work you’re looking for, the equipment that you bought simply isn’t up to the job.
The worst part of all of this is that it’s not the equipment designer’s fault. It is not the brand on that piece of equipment’s fault. It’s your fault because you didn’t plan.
So, do yourself a huge favor. As excited as you may be about buying this impressive piece of equipment, think to yourself, how can my needs change over time? What kind of volume should I look for? How do I ensure that when I buy something, I’m going to be using it for a long, long time to come.
[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nrb1mF1oJqI” width=”500″ height=”320″ responsive=”no” controls=”no” rel=”no” fs=”no”]
This analysis is how you maximize the total use-value of all the things you buy. If you want to stretch the amount of use you get for every hard-earned dollar you spend on any kind of equipment, think in terms of total use-value.
The best way to illustrate this is to imagine buying two items to do a job. One item costs $10, and another item costs $10,000. Now, just looking at the price tag, you may be under the impression that the $10 item is automatically the best hammer drill value—hands down. It’s so apparent to you.
Well, what if I told you that the $10 item could only be used once? So, the cost per use is $10. Okay? So far, so good. Now, the $10,000 item, on the other hand, can be used 100,000 times. So, if you do the math, that’s 10 cents per use.
Now, ask yourself. Which is the better value? Well, the total use value boils down to the cost per use. So the lower the cost per use, the more valuable that item is. For this to happen, that piece of equipment has to last a long enough time so that you can use it repeatedly.
Do you see the big picture now? Do you know how you can zero in on the actual value of any piece of equipment or device that you buy? Because unfortunately, a lot of handymen and a lot of people who do do-it-yourself projects, they don’t see this. Side note – be sure you know how to operate a rotary drill safely before buying one!,
Instead, they see a flashy new gadget that their co-worker or buddy picks up, and they can’t wait to get their hands on that neat little trinket. Before they know it, it’s out there in the garage gathering dust.
So, whether you’re in the market for standard drills or hammer drills, keep the concept of total use value in mind. Not only should you get specialized equipment, but using the total use value analysis, you can maximize the value of everything red cent you spend to handle tasks around the house.