Concrete Holes: Drilling History

To acquire and learn about the varied fasteners for concrete a specialty supply house is the only way. The normal retail store doesn't handle much in specialty concrete fasteners or want to. Years ago our fathers used a tool they called a star drill. It required a large hammer and a few blood blisters. The tool is still made and sold through retail distribution. I saw my father and grandfather use these obsolete tools. Today we use mostly what is referred to as a rotary hammer. This tool has been out for a long time. I would guess, the late fifties. The hammers I've seen thirty-three years ago were mostly Black and Decker, Skil or Milwaukee tools. There were a few German, Swiss and English tools in the market too. Our best resource for this information is the old privately owned independent repair centers. They an invaluable resources in many ways. Always make good friends with these guys. They normally respect the quality in the tools they work on. They also can give you a positive bias opinion of tools you may be interested in. Years ago each manufacturer designed a receiver unlike its competitor, probably due to patents. Then came the universal adapter. The first ones I ran into were A taper and B taper. It was a wedge system that required a round or flat drift key to knock the bits out of to change them. Recently they have come out with a quick change adapter. The taper adapters were a bother to use. The newer QC (quick change) is a cost saver for the larger rotary hammers.

Drilling With Shank SDS

The expense of bits using the larger shank SDS adds up quickly. The quick change adapter will normally cost about $85.00 U.S.. The two primary styles are SDS-Plus and SDS-Max. It appears that this dominant style started in Europe and now we have adapted to it. It won't be that many more years and the adapter style (A and B) will be obsolete and not available.

Adapter Style Hole Drilling

Note: If you still have the adapter style with the flat key knock out and you lose your key, major H.S. drill manufactures have k.o.'s in their lines. There are many different sizes, so make sure you're ordering the right one. The rotary hammer can be rented or purchased. The small hammers run about $225.00 and the larger ones start at $500.00. A rental fee should run $25.00 to $35.00 per day. Should I buy or rent? What's your time worth?