Tools you wish you'd bought sooner...

[Slow]

markiii said:

Baldchap said:

Biggy Stardust said:

In Russia a Man Goes to Buy a Car...

He goes up to the dealer and asks for a car, to which the dealer responds:

'You know there is a 10 year waiting list?'

The man then answers, 'OK,' and after some time he then agreed to buy a car.

So he pays for the car in advance, and just before he leaves he asks the dealer,


'Can I pick the car up in the morning or afternoon?'

'It's 10 years away, what does it matter?'

'The plumber is coming in the morning'.

Replace Russia with post-Brexit Britain.

Replace Brexit with covid

Where on earth do you guys live to have these problems? Other than everything costing a bit more can’t say I’ve struggled to get anything I’ve wanted/needed (people included).

[GeneralBanter]

Anyone recommend a pneumatic pop riveter ideally under £60?

[98elise]

RizzoTheRat said:

A while back it took me what felt like minutes to drill a 6mm hole in a concrete slab with my mains powered hammer drill

I borrowed a friends SDS drill to do some more last night. Holy crap I can see why everyone thinks they're so great! It went in to concrete about as easily as my battery drill goes in to wood!

Not really worth buying my own though when I only need to drill half a dozen more holes.

You can pick up a cheap corded SDS drill. My first one was £29 got abused, yet lasted years. They are especially good when you realise you can use them as a mini breaker (as long as they have the ability to turn rotation off). I took up a 3m concrete path with mine.

[98elise]

Byker28i said:

Sford said:

NextSlidePlease said:

OR, you can apply sketchy man maths and go buy an SDS drill, not sure if they are still available but Screwfix did a beast mode titan SDS drill for around 70 quid a few years back and it's exceptional value. I broke up a garage concrete base with one and it just bullied it's way through. I have a few grands worth of Milwaukee M18 kit for work but still pull out the titan for tough jobs. It just keeps on going. I reckon it would survive a nuclear blast.

Edited by NextSlidePlease on Tuesday 14th March 09:20

Friend of mine in the trade uses Dewalt but has one of these. He swears by it and when it did eventually give up after the abuse it was still under warranty and he got a new one!

I've got something similar that CDC were selling cheap (£30) about 20 years ago. It's like a mini road drill and there's limited times to use it, but last year we demolished a neighbours large brick wall based planter in minutes.

It's a common form factor for the cheap SDS drills. They are surprisingly robust and powerful. I'm on my second cheap one, and when it finally give up I will buy another exactly the same.

As you say they are more like a breaker than a drill.

[SiH]

98elise said:

Byker28i said:

Sford said:

NextSlidePlease said:

OR, you can apply sketchy man maths and go buy an SDS drill, not sure if they are still available but Screwfix did a beast mode titan SDS drill for around 70 quid a few years back and it's exceptional value. I broke up a garage concrete base with one and it just bullied it's way through. I have a few grands worth of Milwaukee M18 kit for work but still pull out the titan for tough jobs. It just keeps on going. I reckon it would survive a nuclear blast.

Edited by NextSlidePlease on Tuesday 14th March 09:20

Friend of mine in the trade uses Dewalt but has one of these. He swears by it and when it did eventually give up after the abuse it was still under warranty and he got a new one!

I've got something similar that CDC were selling cheap (£30) about 20 years ago. It's like a mini road drill and there's limited times to use it, but last year we demolished a neighbours large brick wall based planter in minutes.

It's a common form factor for the cheap SDS drills. They are surprisingly robust and powerful. I'm on my second cheap one, and when it finally give up I will buy another exactly the same.

As you say they are more like a breaker than a drill.

If you buy an SDS drill make sure you know the difference between SDS Max and SDS Plus. I made the mistake of buying an SDS drill from Screwfix just before closing time and bought an SDS Max drill thinking that it would have a bit more 'oomph' than the Plus equivalent (the price difference was only a few pounds). It was only when I got it home that I realised that the SDS Max tool are significantly bigger than other SDS tools; this is fine if I want to drill a hole that I can climb through but it's not quite as useful for the day to day stuff. It looks like I'll have to go and buy another drill so it's not the end of the world!

[SiH]

While it's not exactly a tool this is something that I bought a little while ago that has been really useful...
Tesla T-Smart Immersion Heater
It's a smart immersion heater that gives an accurate reading of the tank water temperature that you can see on an App. We use it to see if we need to boost the water heater if everyone has been using the hot water and it's also useful as a source of heating water in the middle of the night on a cheap Octopus tarrif. It was easy to fit and I'd definitely recommend it.

[cml24]

benp1 said:

I have that Titan SDS drill from Screwfix. It is indeed very good, although it's also bloody heavy. Definitely a two handed drill

As others have said, the Titan from Screwfix is great. quite big and heavy, although I've used up a ladder before.

Does a great job of breaking up concrete and removing bricks on pure hammer function.

[RizzoTheRat]

98elise said:

You can pick up a cheap corded SDS drill. My first one was £29 got abused, yet lasted years. They are especially good when you realise you can use them as a mini breaker (as long as they have the ability to turn rotation off). I took up a 3m concrete path with mine.

I didn't realise they were that cheap!. Just looked at my local DIY shop and the cheapest mains powered one is a €125 Bosch, although Lidl appear to do a Parkside one for €65.

[Slow]

RizzoTheRat said:

98elise said:

You can pick up a cheap corded SDS drill. My first one was £29 got abused, yet lasted years. They are especially good when you realise you can use them as a mini breaker (as long as they have the ability to turn rotation off). I took up a 3m concrete path with mine.

I didn't realise they were that cheap!. Just looked at my local DIY shop and the cheapest mains powered one is a €125 Bosch, although Lidl appear to do a Parkside one for €65.

Amazon even cheaper.

Einhell TC-RH 20/1 Rotary Hammer Drill | SDS Plus 4-in-1 Drill - Drilling / Pneumatic Impact Drilling / Chiselling With and Without Lock | 500W, 1.6 Joule Impact Force, Electronic Speed Control https://amzn.eu/d/cXDlgyr

Edit: toolstation cheaper yet

https://www.toolstation.com/silverline-850w-5kg-sd...

[RizzoTheRat]

Stop it, I don't need one

Hmmm, Amazon have a different model of that Einhell with a selection of bits/chisels/etc for €85. But I still don't need it

[bucksmanuk]

LunarOne said:

After watching a little too much M539 Restorations on Youtube (must watch if you like BMWs and are a spanner-spinner) I'm constantly lusting after one of those Bendpak scissor lifts, despite my garage having a relatively low ceiling height. Anyone got one or a good alternative?

I've got one of these.
https://automotechservices.co.uk/products/as-7532b...
amazing piece of kit.
e.g., I was changing the radiator on my M5, and needed to raise the car 50 mm for better access. This would have been a right faff with trolley jacks, axle stands etc... This time, 10 seconds on the rise button.
I’ve hurt my back too many times underneath cars not to have one.
Every mate who sees it in action says “I’m getting one of these” or the more usual “can I come round and borrow….?”

[M11rph]

More room for new tools.

Decent roller cab. Same as the US Pro and SGS offerings but currently discounted at Homebase. £550 delivered.
https://www.homebase.co.uk/ultimate-56in-10-drawer...

I've just unpacked mine and it's significantly sturdier than the cheapest offerings. Comes well packed and fully assembled bar the handles, 10mm socket required

[Big Stevie]

M11rph said:

More room for new tools.

Decent roller cab. Same as the US Pro and SGS offerings but currently discounted at Homebase. £550 delivered.
https://www.homebase.co.uk/ultimate-56in-10-drawer...

I've just unpacked mine and it's significantly sturdier than the cheapest offerings. Comes well packed and fully assembled bar the handles, 10mm socket required

That looks great. I bought a Halfords tool chest/drawer unit last Easter during their sale but have yet to build my new workbench to place it under, so it's still boxed up!!

As for SDS drills, I have a Makita cordless, it's so nice and light that I use it whenever I need to drill for a wall plug in the house, instead of using my combi drill.

Edited by Big Stevie on Wednesday 15th March 14:34

[Arnold Cunningham]

Is an SDS drill really such a massive upgrade for drilling in to cement, concrete etc? I always thought it was maybe a 10-20% improvement, and for the infrequency of needing to do it, hard to justify. But if it turns drilling holes for rawbolts in concrete into an easy job, I can see myself making a "wise purchase" soon enough.

[eltax91]

Arnold Cunningham said:

Is an SDS drill really such a massive upgrade for drilling in to cement, concrete etc? I always thought it was maybe a 10-20% improvement, and for the infrequency of needing to do it, hard to justify. But if it turns drilling holes for rawbolts in concrete into an easy job, I can see myself making a "wise purchase" soon enough.

You'll never look back! For drilling into walls, concrete etc etc it turns it into "knife through butter" territory

[RizzoTheRat]

As the one who started this recent SDS discussion, the difference is incredible. SDS took seconds to drill in to concrete which my mains hammer drill took minutes to do! If you drill in to concrete it's well worth it IMO, but for standard brick or block work a normal hammer drill is fine.

[shih tzu faced]

In the spirit of the thread I’d seriously suggest that one SDS drill isn’t enough.

Ideally you need at least two as the difference between a small one and a big one is night and day, to the point that there is hardly any crossover between them.

A compact cordless SDS will be light weight and comfortable to use one handed up a ladder but will still comfortably outperform a combi on hammer setting into masonry. Usually they’ll deliver about 1 - 1.5 Joules of energy (or whatever it is) and probably won’t have a chisel function. These drills are in their comfort zone doing 6-8mm holes in brickwork or concrete.

At the other end of the scale there’s the Titans etc. Usually corded (or very expensive cordless), heavy and very powerful. Brilliant for demolishing things and drilling big holes but not ideal for smaller fixings especially at a height.

Horses for courses innit

[Big Stevie]

Arnold Cunningham said:

Is an SDS drill really such a massive upgrade for drilling in to cement, concrete etc? I always thought it was maybe a 10-20% improvement, and for the infrequency of needing to do it, hard to justify. But if it turns drilling holes for rawbolts in concrete into an easy job, I can see myself making a "wise purchase" soon enough.

With my cordless Makita combi drill I sometimes have to lean my bodyweight into the drill to get through the concrete or block, but with the SDS it goes through quickly and effortlessly. Also with a combi drill it can sometimes wander off course if hitting a pebble, problematic if you're drilling for a wall plug. But the SDS tends to just glide through anything. For wall plugs I still start with a smaller sized drill bit before using the correct one, but that's just habit and ensures a neat hole.

[M11rph]

There are times when an SDS drill is the only answer.

If you are just drilling blockwork in a house then even a small battery drill will do it, try engineering bricks or concrete and you'll struggle. Want a 14mm hole in concrete that's a foot deep and SDS will turn it into a pleasure.

Also fantastic for ripping up floor tiles and demolishing anything.

[cml24]

eltax91 said:

Arnold Cunningham said:

Is an SDS drill really such a massive upgrade for drilling in to cement, concrete etc? I always thought it was maybe a 10-20% improvement, and for the infrequency of needing to do it, hard to justify. But if it turns drilling holes for rawbolts in concrete into an easy job, I can see myself making a "wise purchase" soon enough.

You'll never look back! For drilling into walls, concrete etc etc it turns it into "knife through butter" territory

Compared to my corded hammer drill, it's more like three times the speed putting 6mm or 8mm holes in tradition bricks.

I also like suggestion of a second sds. I've got makita cordless tools so a lightweight sds sounds good.