OK cue the launches of the spitballs, posts of derision, negative commentary, and criticism: I bought a Chicago Electric (Harbor Freight) 1-9/16" VARIABLE SPEED ROTARY HAMMER. It uses the SDS Max bits. So far I am very satisfied with it.
I got estimates of $2000 to demo two bathrooms in our extensive home renovation of a 1950's construction CBS south Florida ranch-style home. The physical space would be kept, but everything down to the walls (a mix of wood-stud/plaster backerboard, and CBS walls) and the floor joists (hollow wood floor, joists, T & G 1X6" sheathing underlayment, ceramic tile finished floor) would be removed. I went to a couple of local tool jobbers and the Home Depot looking at the Bosch and Milwaukee stuff principally, but decided to buy at Harbor Freight. I read the online reviews for all the similar tools, and decided that the Harbor Freight was the 'best bang for the buck,' as it was SDS Max, and out the door the price was less than $100. If I was going to be using this in a frequent usage situation then I would have probably sprung for the Bosch end-loop handle model. But, I didn't expect to have much use for this after the bathroom demos, so I went with something I could use immediately, and if it blew-up, I could return it for an exchange, or a refund, and get one of the other more-expensive pieces like the Bosch.
About the only criticism I saw about the Chicago Electric tool was that the trigger would become 'sticky' after use, and while it wouldn't prevent the machine from stopping its motion, it would allow an electrical 'hum' to show that there was still a bit of energy passing thru the variable-speed switch. In use, I found this to be true, that after it got dusty, the switch would retract-enough to stop the tool's motion, but you could feel/hear a minimal current still energizing the switch. I found that by pulling-out on the long switch trigger, you could get it to stop completely. If I was using it continually, I didn't bother, but if I was going to stop work to clear rubble, then I would pull the switch closed before I put it down. Not a big deal, a minor inconvenience.
I did get a big tub of Valvoline general purpose grease, and the last thing I did for the day was to blow-off the tool, and to load the grease vault with fresh grease for the next day. In the morning, or when changing bits, I would be sure to use a good coating of grease on the bit flanges. If the bit flanges ran-low on grease, the bit movement would not become consistent, a tip-off that t's time to re-lube the flanges. At the end of the day, I scavenged some heavy polyethylene from the project scrap pile and wrapped the greasy bits in it to keep the grease from getting all-over everything, and to keep them together.
The bits I principally used were a 4" spade bit and a needle bit. I was using it as an impact tool, not as a drill, though I did buy the HFT set of SDS Max drill bits. Towards the end of the second bathroom, after yet-another bout of impact cutting and prying, I finally did manage to snap the HFT 4" spade bit. I sent my wife out to Home Depot for a replacement Bosch SDS Max replacement, and that tool allowed me to finish the job. I had her buy two, to ensure that I could finish, in-case I broke the first one, the second bit is now just sitting in it's wrapping, unused, and as-infrequently as I am using this tool, it will probably be like that for years.
So, my results were that the HFT/Chicage Electric 1-9/16" VARIABLE SPEED ROTARY HAMMER, using SDS Max bits, will do the work with little drama, at a very reasonable price, and allowed me to donate 5,000 lbs of masonry debris to the Miami-Dade Co. regional landfill. Even with the tipping fees (I have a 4' x 12' open utility trailer) and the tool purchase, I saved probably $1,700 over the bids I got for the bathroom demo work.
I've used the tool a few times since, and it's still capable of whatever I need it to do. I like and own Milwaukee and Porter-Cable electric tools, and I do use my Craftsman C3 19.2 V cordless stuff a lot, but this is a good tool for the money, if you don't need to beat-on it every day.
But, we don't always get what we want, so I want to minimize it. So, i read something about shock in the Dewalt drill, but am not certain that is designed to minimize shock to me??? Of course, if a drill goes in fast, then shock won't really be an issue anyway.
