tools , budget or ex rental?

[Flyfisher]

Or is an impact driver a different animal?

I believe an impact driver differs from a hammer drill in the manner by which the percussive action is applied. A hammer drill 'bangs' the drill into the work, whereas an impact driver 'bangs' the bit in a circular fashion.

A bit like tapping a spanner with a big hammer when trying to undo a stubborn nut or bolt (which I've never done, of course ).

 

[Feltwell]

Or is an impact driver a different animal?

I believe an impact driver differs from a hammer drill in the manner by which the percussive action is applied. A hammer drill 'bangs' the drill into the work, whereas an impact driver 'bangs' the bit in a circular fashion. A bit like tapping a spanner with a big hammer when trying to undo a stubborn nut or bolt (which I've never done, of course ).

That makes sense - I knew it was different to a hammer drill, I just didn't know how! I'm surprised that doesn't make the screwdriver bit slip though? I guess it must lots of little "bangs" (technical, huh?)

I believe an SDS drill differs as well from a "normal" hammer drill by more than just the type of chuck. I can certainly vouch that an SDS goes through masonry considerably more quickly and easily than a normal hammer drill, but I can also vouch that you need to use an SDS drill with caution, as you can make bricks loose if you're a bit too heavy handed....

 

[Flyfisher]

I think the idea with an impact driver is that you can concentrate on pushing hard against the screw to prevent the bit slipping out, while the rotary hammer action does the tightening work.

I've got a 'manual' impact driver somewhere - it looks like a big screwdriver and you hit it with a hammer (hence 'impact'). The action of hitting it causes the bit to rotate slightly while the force of the hammer holds the bit in the screw.
Eg: http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/cht498-1-2in-drive-impact-screwdriver-se

As for SDS hammer drills, I think they are just a heavy-duty refinement of the hammer principle rather than anything radically different.
http://www.sds-hammer-drill.com/

 

[LadyArowana]

i wanted to employ ms robgil as my grafter in exchange for food , water and a camp bed but she is too pregnant at the moment , i tried to get some anti pregnant cream to see if we could get around it but the doctor said it wasn't possible , i am thinking about changing our doctor.

The anti pregnant cream can take up to 9 months to work. After that you are just going to have to accept that traditional methods are not always the best and resort to a properly applied damp proof membrane along with some modern chemicals. Otherwise the same problem will only occur again.

 

[JoceAndChris]

:lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Feltwell]

i wanted to employ ms robgil as my grafter in exchange for food , water and a camp bed but she is too pregnant at the moment , i tried to get some anti pregnant cream to see if we could get around it but the doctor said it wasn't possible , i am thinking about changing our doctor.

The anti pregnant cream can take up to 9 months to work. After that you are just going to have to accept that traditional methods are not always the best and resort to a properly applied damp proof membrane along with some modern chemicals. Otherwise the same problem will only occur again.

:lol:

I hope the tool in that case is neither budget nor ex-rental :wink:

 

[Feltwell]

One of the best combinations you can get is a cordless drill and an impact driver. Once you've used an impact driver you'll never want to use any other sort of cordless drill/driver; it'll put a four-inch screw into oak one-handed, and will drive screws in or whip them out without burring the heads. I use Makita, but deWalt, Hitachi and Bosch all make them now. Obviously it's not a tool to be used in place of a cabinet maker's turnscrew, but in the right place it's an absolute godsend.

Well, following Gervase's advice, I treated myself to a cordless impact driver, and all I can say is.....

Wow! What a piece of kit. Absolutely fantastic.

Last weekend I was installing a cast iron window in my new garage, using masonry screws - as I have to drill close to the edge of bricks, these are a much better bet than screws and plugs, they don't tend to burst the edges off the bricks even when fixed close to them.

The screws are Phillips headed. There was no way my cordless driver was going to put them in, so I ended using my corded drill in a low gear. For each screw I put in I threw away about 6 - basically the only way I could get them to go in (bearing in mind they cut their own thread into the masonry, in a pre-drilled pilot hole) was to run the screws in with the drill until it started to "cam out" - at which point the screw head was useless and I take it back out again and throw it away. Keep putting screws in until by about number seven, one would go in all the way. An absolute pig of a job - and yes, I did lubricate the screws. The torque required is such that even using a screwdriver with a spanner at the top of the shaft - so you put your full weight against the screwdriver and turn it with the spanner - would not get them in.

This weekend I had a second, identical window to fit. I bought the cheapest Lithium-ion impact driver I could find - £110 - so nowhere near as powerful as Gervase's Makita beastie. I put all the screws in within about 10 minutes, not a single one rounded it's head. I couldn't believe that such a small and very light cordless tool could do this.

Flyfisher was right in his description. It is basically an electric, cordless version of the air-powered impact wrenches that you see tyre & exhaust centres use to change your car wheels with.

Mine was the Ryobi one in Screwfix. I did see that B&Q do a cheapie own brand one for £50 - but that's Ni-Cad, which I try to avoid these days (the batteries die long before the tool does).

Top tip from Gervase there - thanks very much. To everyone else, I would start dropping hints for Christmas!

 

[Flyfisher]

On the subject of tools, can anyone recommend or advise on a decent pipe-bending tool? Something for 15 and 22mm copper plumbing.

I've read a few reviews and the quality of the formers seems to be quite variable, leading to scored or kinked pipes. Also, are the hand-held ones worth considering or should I really be looking at the ones mounted on a floor-stand?

While cost is always a consideration, I'm not looking to penny-pinch on this tool as I've got a fair bit of plumbing work to do and although I'm not going to be a heavy-duty user in a jobbing-plumber sense, I do want to do a good job so quality is at least as important as price on this one.

Any thoughts gratefully received.

 

[MdB]

I borrowed the pipe bender from the neighbour. I've no idea if it was a good quality one or not but it worked fine for me and looked like this:

(which cost around £20)

If I had to do the job again, I would use the same or similar tool again.

 

[middi]

I,ve got one of those (in red colour) that bends 15 and 22mm copper. Purchased from a plumbing supplier, they also do a small single hand held one for 10mm copper pipe. A lot of plumbers use them.

 

[Flyfisher]

Thanks for that, although I'm now kicking myself for not thinking of asking in the plumber's merchants this morning when I bought all the tube and fittings. Guess I was fixated on fittings rather than tools at the time. :roll:

I'll go back and get one tomorrow!

 

[Feltwell]

Yep, I've got a cheap pipe bender, much the same as the one shown in the picture above - made by Draper, does 15 and 22mm only. I wouldn't spend much on one, not worth it. I blagged mine for free as a sample! I'd be tempted to get a cheapie off Ebay, personally. If MdB's was £20, that is a cheapie - pro quality ones can cost much more and frankly I don't think are worth it if you're not a full-time plumber.

A floor standing unit is complete overkill for domestic plumbing.

I wouldn't bother with pipe springs either - they're a pain, a pipe bender is so much easier (and less painful on the knees!)

 

[Flyfisher]

Yes, I gave up on pipe springs many years ago when plumbing in my first washing machine.
Thanks again.

 

[robgil]

rothenberger make good kit but nine times out of ten a bad bend is down to the quality of the copper and not the bender.

 

[middi]

I think the person that invented pipe bending springs should be castrated as punishment.

 

[robgil]

I think the person that invented pipe bending springs should be castrated as punishment.

bit harsh :lol: although if they were castrated with a rusty spade and a brick then deservedly so i reckon .

 

[Flyfisher]

Two bricks is the best method - it only hurts if you get your thumbs caught between the bricks. :shock:

 

[Penners]

Oh, Flyfisher! I thought my jokes were old....!

 

[Flyfisher]

:lol: :lol:

 

[chuckey]

There are still £40 SDS drill kits about - I bought mine in B&Q about 7 years ago for £34, you just have to look for them, Aldi, big sheds etc. My SDS "chuck" is rather worn now so I am toying with the idea of buying a replacement. The one I bought has the ubiquitous "rotation stop" lock on it and this is the only point of critisism, it stops your 2" wide chisel from actually rotating like a drill bit, but does not lock it, so when chasing render off the orientation of the chisel and drill change slowly, so you have to reset them every minute or so. The other alternative is to use a spanner on the chisels hex. shank to stop it rotating. My one earnt its cost the first time I used it, clearing hard cement render of from around a bath, several sq. m in 5 minutes!!
For concrete 2" thick, I would use my sds drill to bore a circle of 10mm holes, break them into a hole with a chisel, then just use a pickaxe/sledge hammer/ wedge under the slab to break it up in under an hour. I would be weary of starting at an edge cos' the concrete might have bonded to the actual walls or at least if you wack the concrete hard enoughand it cracks, defacto the small bit which has moved has moved "wallwards" and might have caused some loosening to the base of the wall.
I have a 10mm X 1m drill for drilling through 2' thick walls at an angle, its a beast, but if I start off with a 200mm drill then put the 1m drill into the hole then engage the drill onto it, it does all work. First time I tried using the long drill at the top of a ladder I found that my arm was not long enough to hold the drilling machine far enough away from the wall to use the drill at other then about 45 degrees to the wall!!!
Frank