Recommendations for an air hammer.

[Coach James]

I did a search and came up empty. Any opinions on a good air hammer or which ones to stay away from?

Also, who makes good bits and which ones to stay away from?

Thanks

Coach

 

[Buckgnarly]

Snap On 3050, period...thing is a beast.

Bits: Snap On, Ajax, Old Forge have all served me well.

 

[theknurl]

what are you going to be doing with it?

makes a big difference

my Engraver engraving tool is an air hammer, but so is a CP 95 pound class jack hammer (and I want one)

 

[Coach James]

what are you going to be doing with it?

makes a big difference

my Engraver engraving tool is an air hammer, but so is a CP 95 pound class jack hammer (and I want one)

Good question. Some automotive, removing bricks etc. Not building a sky scraper or making jewelry.

Coach

 

[rlitman]

An automotive air hammer is not going to do much with bricks. The 3050 is nice. I prefer my CP717. Even that doesn't touch bricks, but my 4 bolt rivet buster sure does, although that's way too much hammer for much automotive work.

 

[Coach James]

An automotive air hammer is not going to do much with bricks. The 3050 is nice. I prefer my CP717. Even that doesn't touch bricks, but my 4 bolt rivet buster sure does, although that's way too much hammer for much automotive work.

I'm leaning more toward the automotive side. Something along the lines of a IR122.

Coach

 

[outdoorsman310]

superior pneumatic 1750 I believe. I have it and have used it some. get a quick change chuck for it. I heard that their warranty service is great, but have not needed to warranty anything. i think its a bit stronger than the snap-on but have not put them side by side to test. Made in usa. great customer service

 

[gtermini]

I just bought a NOS Atlas Copco off stealbay for $75. It's 2500 strokes/min class and hits like a freight train. New price is well over $500, but if you watch, you can get a deal. I was looking for a Snap On, but ended up with the Atlas Copco, and am very happy.

Greyson

 

[bcradio]

I'm leaning more toward the automotive side. Something along the lines of a IR122.

Coach

I have the 122 and it is a great gun... I prefer the short barrel myself as I'm not trying to break the part, just take it off

 

[wafrederick]

I have a Matco MT2816 and I call it the bit breaker.I broke one bit,a Matco bit that is going to be replaced under warranty.Matco puts a lifetime warranty on their air hammer bits.It is very powerful that it breaks bits.

 

[dr_clyde]

I have the Snap-On 3050. An excellent gun for automotive use. I cut rivets, sheet metal, and all sorts of stuff. Hard to beat for the money. If you are after power , get a long barrel. If you want a high number of hits, like for hammering rivets, get a short barrel hammer.

 

[Skin]

Snap On 3050, period...thing is a beast.

Bits: Snap On, Ajax, Old Forge have all served me well.

3050 is good but also overrated due to its overwhelming popularity. Most guys that have it haven't used other [high quality] air hammers. Myself, I like trigger control. 3050, has horrible feathering ability, its either tapping and doing nothing or smashing away full blast.

Find a company that makes rivet guns, they'll be the best option for a precise air hammer. Sioux, Chicago Pneumatic, to name a couple.

 

[Ruger_556]

3050 is good but also overrated due to its overwhelming popularity. Most guys that have it haven't used other air hammers. Myself, I like trigger control. 3050, has horrible feathering ability, its either tapping and doing nothing or smashing away full blast.

Find a company that makes rivet guns, they'll be the best option for a precise air hammer. Sioux, Chicago Pneumatic, to name a couple.

My 3050 has excellent trigger feathering but it's the newer one

 

[bimmerTEK]

SA3050 probably is all you need. I have the cp717 is a beast but it could be too much for automotive and the shanks .498 are not easy to find

 

[Skin]

My 3050 has excellent trigger feathering but it's the newer one

So is/was mine. 3050A with the quick change which is identical to the new B revision. The trigger control is appalling compared to the long stroke Sioux that replaced it and the Sioux hits just as hard.

 

[gtermini]

Find a company that makes rivet guns

I should have said that as well. The gun I bought is a rivet hammer. The throttle is amazing, unlike most air hammers.

Greyson

 

[Ruger_556]

So is/was mine. 3050A with the quick change which is identical to the new B revision. The trigger control is appalling compared to the long stroke Sioux that replaced it and the Sioux hits just as hard.

My point of reference is a $40 IR 114 so my opinion may be a little skewed towards the 3050 by that experience...

 

[outdoorsman310]

3050 is good but also overrated due to its overwhelming popularity. Most guys that have it haven't used other [high quality] air hammers. Myself, I like trigger control. 3050, has horrible feathering ability, its either tapping and doing nothing or smashing away full blast.

Find a company that makes rivet guns, they'll be the best option for a precise air hammer. Sioux, Chicago Pneumatic, to name a couple.

and Superior Pneumatic

 

[rlitman]

SA3050 probably is all you need. I have the cp717 is a beast but it could be too much for automotive and the shanks .498 are not easy to find

Grey Pneumatic makes .498 chisels and a quick connect. The best part about the CP717 is the fine trigger control. Not something my Snap On had at all.

 

[gtermini]

Just went looking a little and found this pair of hammers for $60: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pneumatic-Riveting-Hammer-Thor-2X-and-Thor-3X-401-Shank-/310863395326?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4860e6f9fe

IMHO these are way better than you average IR cheapo.

Greyson

 

[outdoorsman310]

something else to consider is the bits that do not spin. I know of a hex type I believe.498 and a ball bearing type

 

[Skin]

Supposedly the CP714 is the little brother of the 717 and will accept the .401 bits. Im guessing either is way over the OPs price range though and truthfully the 717 is a monster.

I will say that 717 has withstood the test of time. They've been making that same gun for decades, and I even think they're still made in Japan just like the originals.

 

[rtole]

I vote snap on 3050 for automotive work. I dont like snap on air tools, but that is the one and only that I own anymore. I think its the best 401 shanker you can commonly find. My experience is only with auto work though so take that into consideration

 

[00S4Boy]

Odd perspective I bought a snappy ph2050 reman from my dealer like 4 years ago, sent it out for repair once and got a ph3050 demo model as a loaner. I don't know if the 3050 demo was just beat to **** but I actually perfered the feel strength blows and trigger control of the 2050 over the 3050.

Becareful now though cause they have the bluepoint at2050 which seems similar but I bet is it lacking compared to the snappy version.

 

[Mohawk Dave]

I just bought a NOS Atlas Copco off stealbay for $75. It's 2500 strokes/min class and hits like a freight train. New price is well over $500, but if you watch, you can get a deal. I was looking for a Snap On, but ended up with the Atlas Copco, and am very happy.

Greyson

I have an Ingersoll Rand 132...also like 500-700 bux...I don't think people understand how damn hard these guns hit until they use one. I literally picked up another IR (772)...just b/c sometimes I need more precision if you will. The 132 is a 4" stroke IIRC...BEAST.

 

[ADSR]

I have the 122 and it is a great gun... I prefer the short barrel myself as I'm not trying to break the part, just take it off

Another vote for this gun. You really cant beat it for the money.

 

[Canadian Charlie]

I only needed to use it once to chisel off some leaf spring hanger rivets so I went for the cheapest China one. 15 years latter I never had to use it again

 

[Tarheelgarage]

The IR 118Maxx is what I use; puts all the others, including snappy, to shame.

Kicks like a mule

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005MVB4RU/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[01ps]

I have a snap on, wanted a superior pneumatic but it was too much of a pain to get it from the us to canada, especially for warranty. But I'm impressed with the snap on, powerful and easy to use. Trigger is fine for me. It's not intended to be a rivet gun but I use it to peen spring rivets. If you are doing mostly automotive, you'll be happy.

 

[Hpozzuoli]

I have an old ATD. It's small, hits well, and is nicely balanced. If I use it 4 times a year it's a lot. It's not an expensive piece, but it is a left over from when we had our Arco/Sunoco station so it's more sentimental than anything.

 

[Coach James]

Thanks for all the input guys. I settled on the IR 122 but I have a problem. I am embarassed to write this, but how do I attach the air hose? I see where the hose should attach, but it appears to have a bolt through a hex ring then another hex ring. The lower one does not turn but the upper one does. I don't know how to get it off. The gun came with no instructions and simply turning the hex ring does nothing. I have used lots of impact wrenches before but never ran into this.

Now that I feel like an idiot, what am I doing wrong?

Coach

 

[Ruger_556]

Thanks for all the input guys. I settled on the IR 122 but I have a problem. I am embarassed to write this, but how do I attach the air hose? I see where the hose should attach, but it appears to have a bolt through a hex ring then another hex ring. The lower one does not turn but the upper one does. I don't know how to get it off. The gun came with no instructions and simply turning the hex ring does nothing. I have used lots of impact wrenches before but never ran into this.

Now that I feel like an idiot, what am I doing wrong?

Coach

Need pics... But it's most likely a plug. Take it out and thread your coupler in.

 

[daparrothead]

Let the flaming begin lol. I have a CP that is 30 yrs old, bought it when I was wrenching for a living and it's still going strong to this day and it has been used & abused. Think I paid $80 for it in 1984 off a Matco tool truck. Depending on how regularly the OP will be using one should be a major factor in the investment level.

 

[devoncoolman]

Thanks for all the input guys. I settled on the IR 122 but I have a problem. I am embarassed to write this, but how do I attach the air hose? I see where the hose should attach, but it appears to have a bolt through a hex ring then another hex ring. The lower one does not turn but the upper one does. I don't know how to get it off. The gun came with no instructions and simply turning the hex ring does nothing. I have used lots of impact wrenches before but never ran into this.

Now that I feel like an idiot, what am I doing wrong?

Coach

Probably just a cap. Most likely just grab it with pliers and pul it out.

 

[Tarheelgarage]

Thanks for all the input guys. I settled on the IR 122 but I have a problem. I am embarassed to write this, but how do I attach the air hose? I see where the hose should attach, but it appears to have a bolt through a hex ring then another hex ring. The lower one does not turn but the upper one does. I don't know how to get it off. The gun came with no instructions and simply turning the hex ring does nothing. I have used lots of impact wrenches before but never ran into this.

Now that I feel like an idiot, what am I doing wrong?

Coach

Surrender your man card immediately....

The other option to redeem your oversite of a simple plug being the culprit would be to spend a week in my shop so you could experience the agony and hell that my body goes through working on POS vehicles.

 

[Mohawk Dave]

OP, sounds like a plug like the other guys said. It's just there to keep **** out during shipping/transport etc.

One thing that hasn't been touched on is to buy quality bits. I need to search more here on GJ for all the quality ones, but I know the Snap On ones are extremely good, and I have been picking those up at yard sales and swap meets. Cheap bits are like butter and ****.

Post up a pic of the plug if you haven't got it out yet just in case it's something way out of the ordinary.

 

[Coach James]

Well, I finally got back to messing with the air hammer and it was just a plastic plug. My knife popped it right out. It came with several chisels, but I need a hammer bit. Any recommendations of what is good or what to avoid?

Thanks for the help.

Coach

 

[Ruger_556]

Well, I finally got back to messing with the air hammer and it was just a plastic plug. My knife popped it right out. It came with several chisels, but I need a hammer bit. Any recommendations of what is good or what to avoid?

Thanks for the help.

Coach

My mayhew's are fine... I have a 4" and a 16" Between the two stuff get's moved

 

[Unmarked Bill]

If there's an O'reilly near you, they sell the Ingersoll 114 for pretty cheap, and you can return it if it doesn't suit you. It's nowhere near as powerful as the others mentioned but it gets some work done. I'll probably still use mine once I get something stronger, for little stuff.

 

[newchris]

Matco MT2816