Hammers Reviews

I burned out Dad's old hammer drill, and I needed
one to finish my job and get him a replacement.
Unfortunately, Dad has not yet got ahold of this one.

In hindsight, I wish I had gotten the keyless chuck
version, but this is a rugged piece of equipment.
It has enough power to easily rip the drill from
your hand if the bit happens to grab ahold of something.
And dual variable speed is a nice touch.

What I dont like about it is that the collar to
switch from hammer to regular drill is easily
bumped and switched inadvertently.
Also, the power cable must be detached from the
drill before it will fit into its carrying case.
Attaching and removing the cord is relatively easy,
except in dark corners, but I wish the case
were just a bit bigger so that I wouldnt have to
attach and detach the cord everytime I get the
drill out and put it away.

I bought this drill because I needed to secure a few walls to the concrete floor of a basement. Okay, so it was overkill, but I'm not much on renting. Did the job, no problem. That was expected. I then used it to "cut" a large chunk out of the foundation so I could add a door to the outside from the basement. The foundation is 12" poured aggregrate, and here in Mass. (next to NH, the Granite State), the aggregate contains quite a bit of granite. Anyway, 150 or so holes later (1/2 holes, all the way through the 12" aggregate), the chunk is out and the door is in. In short, I don't believe a mickey-mouse drill would have drilled 1 of those holes, much less all of them.
Took quite a while (several evenings), mainly because bits don't do well when they hit granite. Nonetheless, the drill worked (and still does work) great. No problems recommending this one highly. Heavy duty? Without a doubt.

I bought this drill because I needed to drill some 1/2" holes in concrete. Before buying, I read a number of reviews of both this drill and others (by DeWalt, Bosch, etc.). This drill got the most favorable reviews, and after using it I can see why. It drilled the holes like it was drilling through warm butter. I didn't notice it heating up, but I only had to drill 25 such holes for this particular task. I did have the problem of the locking ring slipping from hammer to drill, but only once and that was while drilling the first hole. If it had happened again I'd blame the drill, but it didn't so I blame myself. I had no problems with the trigger hole pinching my finger, although ... the trigger lock is in an awkward position. Nonetheless, I give it five stars because it drills like five stars.

I've been a carpenter for 25 years and have gone through my share of tool belts. This is with out a doubt the best I have owned. I will retire with this pouch and hand it down to my grand kids. It's well made and the pouches are nice sizes. If I had one thing I didn't like about it, it would be the hammer loop. It's too small and located in front. But I just took the old hammer loop of my old pouch. I'm sorry Amazon only has 5 stars to give.

I've have a set of these bags now for over 10 years and as far as I'm concerned, they'll probably last another 10. Unfortunately, I won't ever find out because someone broke into my job trailer and one of the things that they stole were my 10 year old pouches - which I think speaks more loudly than anything I could say.... They are a bit bulky, but are built like a tank - they will hold up to anything that you'll throw at them in normal construction - Only slight problem would be that you can't fit a 35' fat-max in the tape holder. A 25' works fine for almost everything that I have to do. You might not like some things about these, like the size or weight, but I don't think you'll hear anyone complain about the quality.

Thats what my coworkers nick named me because off all the tools I carry and the size of the rig. This is what I carry every day ,tape,knife, caulk box,small prybar, 2 pencils, sharpie,4 in one screwdriver, snips, dikes, speed square, combo square, nail set, all in their own holders.Depending on what I am doing I'll also carry, a second caulk box, 2 vise-grip c clamps, rock saw, rasp, and a 9 inch level, with every tool in its place. Very large and heavy but with the 5055 suspenders very comfortable. Great for framing and rocking but too large and bulky for trim and fine work. Thinking about buying the trimmers belt also. My old belts always tore, these show no signs and will last for a very long time. These belts are not for everybody because of the price, size, and weight. Try one on before you buy and make sure everything is adjusted, it took me a week to get the suspenders adjusted right, but have not changed them since.

These other reviews seem to me dead-on. I love this hammer so much that I even called Douglas to tell them in person that their 23 oz framer is great, but the claw is the worst I've ever used for almost everything. It's too fat. If the hammer had an Estwing claw, I'd bronze it.

I am a cabinet maker/ remodeler so I don't have to use a hammer all that often, a couple times a week at best. I find myself looking for nails to hit because I like the hammer so much. The wide claw works great for removing nails without doing damage to surface.

This is by far the best hammer I have ever owned, don't waste you money on another cheap hammer, if you use this tool to make your living it is worth every penny.

From the moment I used one belonging to a friend I knew I had to have one. I had never seen one before then and it handles like a dream. I looked all over town until finally searching on the internet to find and order one. That was two years ago and I still love this tool.
The original had three thru-handle studs, but mine (and I guess all the newer ones) has two. I figure its probably a concession to the production process as its doesn't seem to make any difference.
The waffle face is great...provides enough grip on nail heads, but doesn't tear stuff up (wood and fingers) like regular waffle faces do when you miss. The side pull feature is handy and the claws work fine for me.
This is the most expensive hammer I ever bought...but I don't regret it for a second.
In life, I've decided you only have to buy the best tools once.
I may buy another and put it away some place safe just to make sure I always have one in case they stop making them again for some reason or someone steals mine.

This is a very capable, high-quality tool. I bought it to bore through brick/wood and it did very well.

However, the case is cheap. It looks like you can close/open it 4-5 times and it will be done. And, the plastic depth guage broke right away. If you don't care about the depth gauge or case, then this is very good value for you.

I used this Bosch hammer drill to make about 50- 3/8 inch diameter holes in a concrete floor slab, and 50 holes in brick and mortar, it worked great. The drill had a good amount of weight and power. I even used it to drill a 1" diameter hole (the bit fit a 1/2 in. diameter chuck) in a brick wall it was no problem after drilling a 3/8 in. pilot hole. I debated buying a lighter weight drill but would not recommend anything lighter for drilling in concrete. I thought the case was great (unlike other reviews) and the depth gage seemed sufficient although I didn't use it. The one I have is a -factory reconditioned- but was totally new and never used. Bosch is high quality and I expect this drill to last for many years. I would also recommend the Bosch hammer drill bits instead of the yellow brand. I used both and the difference was clear, you get what you pay for.

This is perfect for the DIYer. Concrete isn't a problem and drilling through block is no match. I've had to drill through wet wood that bound my "yellow" drill, but it couldn't stop the Bosch. Like everything else Bosch makes, this is one excellent piece of equipment that will last a long, long time. I would have liked a metal measure stick so that it would last as long as the drill, but that's minor.

Ok .. so i recieve my new Senco air nailer around the date i predicted. thats a great start. but thats where the props stop. i open the box main shipping box (which wasnt hard as it was 1/2 opened already) and get to the manufacturers retail box. i have another person in the room so i asked them to come be a witness to this. we look and sure enough it has been open. its this little seal on the outside flap that says "If seal is broken or package damaged check contents before signing reciept"
So my alarm is immediatly set off about this product as i now fully open the box and the case. as i'm opening the case i hear a very strange sound. it reminded me off a rain stick but it didnt last long. it struck me as odd but i wasnt focused on the case. i was more worried about the gun. i didnt notice anything wrong w/ the mechanics off the gun but i cant count on an working product till after ive tested it in a work enviorment. i'm a trim carpentry sub-contrator. i use and have used just about any 15ga finish nailer made and i have my personal favorite .. the dewalt D51275K. only drawback is its not oiless. so thats what i use for myself. but for my employees, i want to give them something to use thats dependable, reliable, virtually maintainece free and so the expensive but generally well recieved Senco seemed to be the best option. i was wrong. after about 10 min off using the gun my employee came up to me with a problem with the gun. it was jammed. no problem. it happens. shouldnt happen often cause i AM using Senco brand 2" angled nails but ok. i gave him my dewalt so he could keep working. i fix the jamb and start using the senco myself and after i'd say about 5 shots it goes and jambs again! as im clearing the jamb i notice that this jam was caused by the long nail hitting either a metal plate or concrete. ok, so i clear the jamb and go to set the nail head thats sticking out. and then i put the nails back in the gun and go to shoot my first nail. IT SHOOTS THROUGH DOWNWARDS INTO THE FLIPPIN MAGAZINE!. yeah, right through the metal nail clip. no way of fixing at the moment + i wanted to see Senco bite the bullet for a piece of crap i was sold so i left it alone. after going back home that evening to put it in the case i start examining the case. yeah, it makes a weird sound of platics bits inside the case. then i look where you put the manual. the whole edge of that plastic piece was chewed up and the whole flap itself caved inwards. the sound i was hearing was the pieces of chewed up plastic moving around inside of the manual compartment.

all in all, it's my belief that i was sold an inferior product, a 2nd, an assembly line inspectors reject. because of the lack of time i had and the work that i had lined up i dont have time to have a long drawn out battle over getting reimbursed or replacement but i'll have it be know that i will no longer buy ANYTHING from amazon.com that isnt music/dvd/game which ive had no problem with in the past ordering hundreds of dollars worth of merchendise. i no longer have the original gun and case that was sent to me as i went to my local supply store and bought the same model and swapped out and returned on that reciept explaining the problem. they RTV'ed it to get sent back to the manufactuer. so i do have a working gun now but unfortunetly i have to fight my workers wanting to still use my dewalt now that they've tried it. i might end up buying another few of those in the future. but as mentioned, no more Sencos for awhile and definetly no more Amazon.com

I've wanted a finish nailer for years and finally got the Senco FP41XP. I just use it around the home and farm, and I've found that it works fine with an air bottle for a quick repair out in the back 40. I designed and built some Craftsman style lighting fixtures out of redwood sticks, basically, and the only way I could assemble it without splitting was with the Senco. The nails seem a bit expensive, but it's very easy and convenient to change sizes back and forth, no tools or adjustments required. Depth of seating is very consistent in different materials...surprisingly so, to me at least. It speeds projects up more than I would have thought - since I do most projects without a helper, I can hold the work randomly in place with one hand and "bam" it's fastened. There's no need to position and clamp for each fastening operation. Also, if you drive a few nails for just a temporary holding operation, it's easy enough to pry the fixture apart when needed, with only minimal holes in the work.

I own quite a few nailers, and in my opinion this is really a top-of-the-line nailer. The oil-free design is great, it has a lot of power, and is light and convenient to use. This nailer has never jammed on me, but removing a jam is easy thanks to the flip-open front. Setting the nail depth is also easy.

One thing to note is the nails are specific to this gun, so make sure you can get nails at a price that's affordable to you. Another is if you set a nail too deeply you'll notice an elongated depression where the drive pin kissed the wood. I suppose another thing to keep an eye on is your supply of nails, as you go through a clip rather quickly due to the ease of use of this gun.

Summary: The nailer costs a bit more than others and is well worth it.

I've been a framer for a lot of years. This review is for any carpenter that wants the truth about this Stiletto Tibone hammer.

I finally decided to pay the big bucks and get one of these Tibone hammers because of all the reviews I read.

Actually, I prefer wood handle hammers, but we all know that they don't last as long. Anyhow, all the hype I read made me go ahead and get this titanium from Stiletto Tools.

Here's what I've found using this hammer.

The actual weight of the hammer is not 15 ounces. The head may weigh in at 15 ounces, but the hammer actually weighs in at 33.1 ounces. Suddenly, my 22, 24, and 28 oz framers don't seem so heavy now.

The handle is wrapped with a rubber material that makes it nice to hold on to. But, the handle end has a curved bump-out that makes it almost impossible to get in and out of your steel hammer loop. And, if you use a leather loop, forget about getting this hammer in at all.

The replaceable face is 1 1/2". That's ok I guess for some, but most of the guys that I work with don't need that big a head to hit nails. Anyhow, it is replaceable, but I sure don't have time to make the necessary adjustments to keep the bolt holding it in place secure.

The picture you see advertised has a inverted triangle to "pull those 16's with ease." I actually think it's easier to just keep on using the claw to bend over those 16's.

The side of the face you don't see is open. I didn't like that at all, especially if I want to use the side of the head to start a nail in tight spaces.

I'm not one that likes to slam anyone, or anything. But, I'm really doubting that this Tibone "15oz" hammer has the driving force of a 24oz framer. But, again, I'm a carpenter, not a test engineer.

Also, I'm no doctor either, so I can't pretend to verify if this hammer makes my elbow feel any better. Actually, this hammer doesn't do anything either way to make my elbow hurt worse or less because I'm already used to a 28oz framer. As far as I'm concerned, the only thing this Tibone hammer has going for it is the advertising hype. As for my new Stiletto Tibone, it's off to the Ebay auction to recoup a few bucks back from the outrageous price I payed for this hammer.

I like the Tibone hammmer, been a carpenter for 15 years, mostly formwork, the only drawback I have found is the rubber handle is splitting, Will have to figure something out

I recently purchased this tool and find it to be a very good product. My only complaint is an annoying "ping" upon contact with a nail. For almost two hundred dollars, I do not want my hammer to "sing" all day long while driving nails. It is easy on the elbow and wrist and does drive nails very well. My 12 hammers I own in my remodeling business still get more use than the TiBone. I am thinking of selling it after only one day of use. I have not tried the smooth face head so I can only report that the milled face head makes the ping noise. I have emailed manufacturer about this but have received a reply.

I purchased the belt based on the recommendations of the previous reviews in this section. I chose this one over the several others listed in the category.

It certainly looked and sounded appealing, specificaly, being able to quickly add or subtract the individual pouches. After opening the shiping box and seeing/feeling the flimsy belt and the small puches, I felt robbed. Nonetheless, I tried it out for three weeks. After the third week, I dumped it and went back to my old tool pouch.

This would be a nice product in the $40 price range, but at $100, it's way too expensive.

This is a average weekend-warrior belt. Serious users should stay away.

I first heard of the Task system last winter. In December I visited a collegue who works at Pratt & Whitney's jet engine assembly plant up north in Connecticut. The techs at P&W all use a varient of this system. What surprised me were the kind off efficiencies that could be realized when components could be shared between techs. I was also surprised at how little grumbling the P&W techs had about the use of a corporate mandated tool. As I am involved in an engineering concern with aerospace contracts, I thought that this system could be useful at my company. I bought a couple of belts and organizers and supplied them to one of my crews. They liked it so much the second shift asked to be similarily equipped. I have used my belt & organizer every workday since spring & I can't imagine going back to the old fixed belts & buckets our company used before.

I'm not a contractor, but I've seen them on TV, and I've dated a few. I have seen many a tool belt in my time, but none of them compare to the simplicity and functionality of the Task "Quick-Switch" Modular Tool Belt. The pouches snap on and off using clips like the ones that you used to see on purses. You can attach nail pouches, or driver drill pouches, or whatnot. It's so fun! I suddenly understand why I don't tend to wear my regular tool belt around the house--it's just not practical! It's laden down with all the tools I happen to not need at any given time! The Task Corporation Modular Quick-Switch Modular Tool Belt is the only tool belt for me. P.S. I forgot to mention that it is also really strong, and there is a "bucket buddy" version which you can hang on your wall when you need the bucket for something else like mixing gruel.

I have owned one of these for about 2.5 years and so far no serious complaints as this has been a consistently reliable tool. It has more than justified its high price with its solid performance--for most small masonry applications this drill has proven itself more than adequate. I have been in situations where I have had to really abuse this tool--drilling 1/2" holes in aged cement and while this tool couldn't keep up like a cordless it still hasn't died. Oh, and these 18v batteries will work in my 24v Bosch tools, but their 24v batteries will not work in this 18v drill.

The batteries leave something to be desired and the weight still feels excessive to me for 18v--I purchased the 18v instead of an 24v SDS because I don't have masonry applications that often and would like a full-size drill that could handle the infrequent times when I would have to drill brick or concrete, but still be light enough for general use. That said, I have the 24v jigsaw and circular saw from Bosch, and I'm not sure that it wouldn't have been a better idea for me to get the 24v hammerdrill for battery interchangeability. The 18v is still pretty heavy--the carabiner clip on the bottom of the drill's handle seems like a great idea until you actually try to use it and then find it pulling your pants down around your ankles. The drill feels solid and well-made--although on mine the clutch's inked on numbers as well as the BOSCH name painted in red on the side of the motor have basically scratched off entirely. The included side handle is nice and the case is surprisingly decent.

I'm generally happy with this purchase, but I'm not sure it is necessarily the best option out there. I have a Metabo 15.6v I like more for general use and for serious hammerdrills I wish I had probably went either with the 24v Bosch SDS or the comparable Hilti 24v, or even the 19.2v P/C's. If I was doing a lot of masonry drilling inevitably I would have to go with a corded anyway.

I am a dealer for Basement Systems, Inc of Seymour, CT. which means I spend the better part of the week in dirt crawlspaces, drilling into predominantly block walls, but occasionally, concrete footings. This tool gets dropped in the dirt, is used in high humidity areas, and generally worked hard. I had been using DeWalt 18V 1/2 inch hammer drills, but their triggers gave me problems. I also use a 24V Bosch, and so far, these drills have proven durable, powerful, and effective. A tool repairman in this area told me he rarely sees a Bosch tool, but fixes DeWalts often.

I purchased this drill in the Multitool kit when ALL my tools went up in a fire. My old 12 Bosch drill was light, balanced, a joy to use. My initial impression of this piece was that it was going to be too heavy for enjoyable use. Then on my first project (a 13x35 foot deck) my newly unpacked corded drill gave up the ghost after a mere dozen screws. I fell back on this and it punched 15 pounds of 3.5 inch #9's without a whimper. Decent run time. The trigger is very responsive with good speed control. Plenty of torque. Used it as a nutdriver while assembling my new tablesaw and had to stop because it kept stripping the threads off the 5/16th inch bolts. The majority of my handheld tools are Bosch and I believe in them fervently.

1.
The price you pay for this hammer is based on advertising hype. I would have saved the high price of this hammer if someone would have had the ballz to write the truth about this Tibone.
2.
This hammer is bulky and not balanced well. This hammer does not do a damn thing to make your elbow hurt any less or more. Again, advertising hype.
3.
The rubber around the handle, and the bump-out at the handle bottom, make this hammer a real pain in the neck to get in and out of your hammer loop.
4.
The hammer head may weigh in at 15oz, but the total weight of this Tibone weighs in at 31.1oz. Maybe that's the real reason it has the "driving force" of a 24oz hammer. Besides, who made-up that phony business about "driving force" anyhow? Someone that works for Stiletto no doubt.
5.
The replaceable faces are a joke! So what if you can change them out. What, you have time to constantly check to see if the bolt is secured that holds it together? I don't. Besides, you want to keep on forking out another 40 bucks plus shipping for them? Not me.
6.
Don't be a sucker like I was for paying the outrageous price for this hammer! Don't believe the Stiletto Tibone advertising hype.
There's nothing "primo" about this hammer at all! Except the price.

I shuddered. Is it really worth it... Oh yeah. Here in Norway we pound 4", 5" and 6" nails regularly. My elbow and wrist were killing me and I woke up from the carpal tunnel. I sprang for the Stiletto and it's worth it. The pain is gone and the nails slide home no problem. It swings easy and hits hard. It adds a bit of length to the tool belt though, get used to it after a while. Great tool.

Forget the price. If you want the best hammer buy it now. My elbow was in bad shape I was framing one house 7am till 4pm than another 4pm till 7pm 7 days a week. I couldnt even raise my arm for a sip of beer. I bought the hammer a year ago and it has saved my elbow. I am ordering one for my younger co worker so he might not to ever feel the pain.

First, this is a very comfortable hammer (grip, balance, and easy on the elbow). The comfort comes at the expensive of keeping the vibration in the hammer.

After every strike, the hammer continues to ring for a few seconds. I thought I had a 5 star hammer until I helped a friend build a shed. My elbow felt great, but the continuous ringing for 2 days was enough to drive me insane! Even my friend was affected by the ringing while working several feet away.

He had the 20-ounce Antivibe and it does not experience any ringing. I headed to Lowes to buy a new hammer and tested these two models in the store. I sampled several of the Antivie hammers on the shelf and the 16oz/20oz ringing/not ringing held true.

If you can handle the extra weight, the 20oz Antivibe is a great hammer. It dampens the vibrations in a split-second. If you need a 16oz, I'd continue to look elsewhere if you need to drive more than a dozen nails per project.

I wanted to know if this hammer was tool enough to hurt my head if I hit myself with it, square in the forehead, wham, bam, ouch. I devised a scheme for testing the product before purchasing it, and it's a great little trick you might want to use in your online shopping experience, so I'm going to share it with you. But, hey, this is just you and me, okay? Don't go emailing this to everyone you know, especially your aunt - she'll just send it back to us every couple of months, along with that joke about Regis Philbin.

So, anyway, I figured the computer screen might be about as hard as however hard the hammer might be, so I opened up the large version of the product picture, and whacked my head with that, instead.

Lemme tell ya, that's not how you're going to want to wake up after a long night of reading neo-Freudian polyethnic poetry and drinking absinthe. It wasn't REAL real fun, if you know what I mean.

And, yet... It didn't smart nearly as much as I'd hoped. Maybe that's because the picture wasn't big enough. My computer's only 4 inches wide, and surely the hammer's bigger than that.

This really is a great hammer, and far better than I needed. A welcome surprise. The antivibe is excellent for me since I have some minor nerve problems in my right arm from years on the computer. It's comfortable to grip and I'm just pleased with it.