Wilton has released a sledgehammer that (they claim) has an unbreakable handle. It's got the quaint name of B.A.S.H., which stands for "Bad Ass Sledge Hammer." Why do they think the handle is unbreakable? Probably because it's filled with six steel rods. That'll do it.
If you're feeling cheeky, you can buy one of these tough guys and try to break the handle. If you do, Wilton will cut you a check for $1000 (no joke).
Earlier in the year we got all in a tizzy over the Hardcore Hammer. It's a framing hammer with a two part face that solves some of the issues associated with the general wear and tear on a framing hammer. We really liked the thing, but it does get up into that "nearing $100 range for a hammer," which, no doubt, is pretty extreme. Our review is here. So Hardcore Hammer has recently come out with another model that has a little less bling and comes with a price tag that's much easier to swallow. That new item has the appealing name of "Blunt Force." How can you go wrong with a name like that? They sent us one so we could find out for ourselves.
We were thinking of leaving this review at a simple two word, "Hulk SMASH!" But we thought that might be a little corny. But still, if you took the Jackson Pulverizer and melted it down to its essence, that's pretty much what you'd be left with; a massive green dude in purple shorts destroying everything in his path.
A while back we told you about an interesting new framing hammer going by the slightly ominous name of Hardcore Hammer. Made with a unique, dual-surfaced striking face, the tool is intended to last longer than the average hammer and, on a daily basis, operate in a superior fashion. We got to talking to the manufacturer and they were nice enough to ship us one to review. As soon as it arrived, we took it out of the box and began using it for the task that we use all of our framing hammers for: aggressive demolition...
An inevitable byproduct of tinkering around on your house is something known in English as 'trash.' Scraps of sheet rock, cut-offs, demo'd materials, etc. For the big jobs, you go and get a dumpster, for the small ones, you cut everything up into small pieces and use contractor bags. But what about those mid-sized projects like a big set of built-ins or relocating a wall? The answer used to be: "find a friend with a pickup truck who lives in a town with a lax dump policy," but now, the answer may very well be, 'get a Bagster." Waste Management, who runs the Bagster program, was nice enough to let us fill one up for a review and here's what we found...
Yes! Exactly what the world needs more of: inventive pry bars for decking! We tend to stay away from this category of tools because we don't really know what to say other than, "Um...yeah...it looks like it can pry up a board." But since we like ducks, we thought we'd give a holler about the Duck Prybar.
One end of the Duck Prybar is hooked like a crowbar and the other has one of those forked ends which allows you to leverage off of a joist and easily pop up a deck board. The forked end is hinged, so unlike other pry bars, you can set the angle depending on where you're standing in relation to the boards you're pulling up. You can even get it so you're standing on the deck as you pull up boards, which is nice. Other than that, um.. it sure looks like it can pry up a board.
What do you guys think about all of these specialty demo bars (Gutster, Duckbill Deck Wrecker, Duck Prybar)? We've done a whole lot of ripping stuff up in our days and so far have never been dissatisfied with a simple crowbar, a hammer, and a wonder bar (all of which fit in a normal tool bag). Maybe if you're on a demo crew something like this could come in handy, but otherwise, we don't see any reason to stray from the old classics that have done us so well in the past. Not to mention, this thing will set you back $125, which seems like a lot.
At DuckPrybar.com
Image snagged from deckmagazine.com, who, by the way, saw the Duck Prybar in action and were really impressed with it.
There are things that are 'pretty cool,' like the new DeWalt Worm Drive saw. Then there are things like the Ridgid JobMax that are, 'really cool.' And finally, there are just few items in the world that make it to the realm of 'McQueen cool.' The Husqvarna DXR 310 not only falls into this last category but we'll be damned if it doesn't live at its highest end.
The DXR 310 is a remote control demolition robot. Let's say that again: it's a remote control demolition robot. One more time: it's a remote control demolition robot. Think about that. You could be operating this thing from your bedroom while it's out in the parking lot demolishing your landlord's car.
There's no point in us getting into any specs on the tool because a) no one who reads this site will ever be lucky enough to own one of these things and b) who cares? The only spec that you need to know is that it's a remote control demolition robot.
Husqvarna has a pretty lame video up at their site. It's mostly lame because it doesn't show the DXR 310 fighting the Predator.
Well 12-volt mania is in full swing and if a 12-volt rotary hammer doesn't convince you of that fact, we don't know what will. There are tools that are no-brainers for the whole 12-volt thing, (flashlights, multi-meters, mini drill/drivers) and then there are tools that strike us as, well, totally incompatible with the little batteries. A rotary hammer...that one falls into the second category. We did quite a double take when we first heard that Rockwell was releasing just that tool and we were happy when they sent one our way so that we could take a look.
Actually, it first needs to be clarified that, regardless of what name they want to use, Rockwell's new H3 is not a hammer drill. It's a rotary hammer. There's a big difference and it's a little strange that Rockwell went with the misnomer. Inside the H3, the impact is created through the compression of a cylinder of air, not the metal on metal mechanism of a hammer drill. Hammer drills have a better name recognition, which must be what Rockwell is thinking, although we're of the opinion that they'd be better off calling it a rotary hammer and broadcasting the fact that they managed to down-size the rotary hammer to such an extent that the tools weighs about three pounds.
But there's more to the tool than just the rotary hammer. The H3, by virtue of two different chucks, (both of which click into the SDS chuck of the tool), can also function as a drill and a driver. The tool's chuck acts just like any other SDS with the pull-back sleeve, so changing between functions is very easy. When drilling or driving, a switch on the side of the tool, toggles the motor out of rotary hammer mode and leaves you with a standard 12-volt drill.
We did some extensive testing of the H3 (a good portion of it recounted in our Popular Mechanics article on the tool) and we were surprised at how powerful the tool was. Testing it against a standard 18-volt hammer drill (again, over at the PM article), the tool was very comfortable to use and showed that it could keep up with the larger 18-volt tool in the area of power. The one drawback of the tool is how quickly the battery gets drained when it's in rotary hammer mode. On one battery, we were able to drill 9 1/2" holes on concrete, and on another battery, we drove 11 1-3/4" tapcons. These are impressive numbers for such a small tool, but when compared to the larger tool (with the larger battery), they're lacking.
As a 12-volt driver, the H3 is pretty standard and doesn't have anywhere near the power of the uber-strong Bosch PS21. It's not weak, but it just sits among the pack and not in the lead. It's also a lot heavier and bulkier than the other drivers on the market, obviously because of the added mojo for the rotary hammer. The weight is mostly up in the front of the tool, making it a bit awkward when compared to the other 12-volt drills, but that's the price you pay for having the ability to blast a hole in concrete.
The H3 costs about $180, which is a fair price for all the action that you can get out of it. We're not sure when the H3 is being released, but it should be available soon. There's no info at the Rockwell website just yet.
Our latest Popular Mechanics article is up. This time we tested out the new 12-volt Rockwell H3 Hammer Drill (it's actually a rotary hammer), against an 18-volt Hammer Drill and a corded rotary hammer. The results of the tests are actually pretty interesting, and the performance of the H3 is not what we were expecting at all. We'll leave it at that so you click through to the article.
And if you don't care to read the article, it's worth going to Popular Mechanics just to check out the new redesign. Things are looking pretty slick and it's a big improvement over what they used to have going on.
Watch for a more in-depth review of the H3 in the coming days.
RipCart - A Walk-behind Carriage for your Circular Saw
Pushing a circular saw like a lawnmower is something that most of us can only dream of. But yet, this fantasy of laziness is now reality with the RipCart.
The RipCart, a walk-behind carriage for your circular saw is, in reality, a specialized roofing tool for easy demo of roof shingles. Just strap your saw in and start a pushin'. The theory here is that if you first slice up the roof into manageable pieces, with the right prybar, they'll pop right up, saving you time and money.
There's not much more to say other than that it does seem a bit limited, pending the pitch of the roof.
The Rip Cart costs a slightly insane $500, and that's without any circular saw included. Sounds high to us for something you could cobble together with a hand truck and a roll of Gorilla tape (we're joking...please don't try to make your own RipCart at home, nothing good can come of it). Actually though, when we think about it, if you're a roofer and you use this thing two or three times, it'll probably pay for itself.
SmartManTools also sells specialized blades for the roofing application.
Our normal reviews go something like this: we find an interesting tool or get a press release on something new; then we query the manufacturer (or their PR company) and beg and plead that they send us a sample to test out; if they are kind enough to take pity on us and do so, it arrives at the shop and we spend a few weeks giving it the once over; we then sit down and write a Pulitzer-worthy review of said tool (making sure to comply with new FCC regulations and let you know that the tool came from the manufacturer). Well, this time it's different. We didn't just get our hands on our two Bosch Bulldogs, and we didn't get them from Bosch. We paid for them outright and to be honest, it's some of the best money that we've ever spent on any tools.
It's easy to review the precision or functionality of a tool, but when it comes to durability we usually combine 'general feel' with 'previous experience with that company's tools' and add in a few drop tests, and come to our conclusions. Here, that's not the case. We've had one of these tools for about five years and the other one (the dirty one) we had on an aggressively brutal jobsite for about 18 months. We can only say that these tools are phenomenal and that if you're thinking about getting one, just go ahead and do it. There were days when we treated these tools so poorly, you'd think that we hated them. They've been dropped, tossed, kicked, stepped on, and one of them was even lost in a snowbank for a short period of time. As far as tools go, they're like the paperboy from Better Off Dead; always there, ready to go, non-stop (minus the annoying voice).
In addition to the unreal durability, there's the power/size ratio which, in our eyes is perfect. If you're a carpenter, you really don't need some massive hammer drill, but you still want the ability to chip concrete and spend a day driving tap-cons. This tool does all that, and it doesn't take up that much room in the back of the van.
They cost around $200 and there are a couple different versions with different handles and features, but they've all got the same ass-kicking quotient.
We just checked out the Artillery Tools website and saw that it has gotten a much needed facelift. The new site is a lot easier to navigate and has a nice product page, making it easy to build your own destruction bar. They also sell pre-assembled bars or complete sets.
If you're in the market for a high-quality demo bar, we recommend looking at the Artillery. It's a small company built solely on the enthusiasm and determination of founder/inventor Joe Skach. If you call to place an order, it's likely Joe will be the one answering the phone.
With a name that only appeals to firemen and career criminals, Stanley's 30" Forcible Entry Tool is one of the newer additions to their stud bending, nail ripping, sheetrock destroying Fubar line.
Along with the standard nail-pullers, 2x jaws, and demo hammer, the Forcible Entry Tool comes with a few features specific to emergency responders. It's got a hydrant wrench, a gas shut-off wrench, as well as heat-resistant grips.
It all sounds good to us and it costs about $150, which is a hefty amount of dough (about the same as we paid for the boots that we're currently obsessed with). If you like the idea, but want something a little smaller, check out the Channellock Rescue Tool.
Because it's such a specialty item, it's only available at select retailers. The list is at Stanley.
When it comes to large scale demo, all the fancypants prybars in the world aren't going to help you. So put away your Artillery Bar, your FuBar, and your Dead-On Annihilator and hire an excavator. Here are two videos we found of just that kind of awe-inspiring destruction.
We've seen a similar scene first hand and what it did was leave us with a blinding respect for the power of hydraulics. When these things get going, it's like the house isn't even there.
Wilton B.A.S.H. Sledge Hammer
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The Renovation Continues....