A little while ago we posted about Milwaukee’s new M18 compact rotary hammer. Didn’t I see something super-compact from Bosch a while back? After digging through emails I highlighted and tripled starred but still forgot about, I came across a press released for Bosch’s new 18V brushless cordless SDS Plus rotary hammer (RHH181).
Brushless?! Yes, but that’s not really a new development, as the RHH181 is essential evolved from the brushless RHH180 rotary hammer that came out two years prior. There’s also the brushed RHS181 rotary hammer which is more compact and lighter than Milwaukee’s new M18 offering.
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As the RHH181 was seemingly only a step up from the RHH180, it slipped out of my mind for a couple of months, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth getting excited over.
Features
- Brushless motor for greater durability, efficiency, and runtime
- 3/4″ maximum capacity in concrete
- 0-1400 RPM
- 0-4500 BPM
- 12″ width
- 5.7 lb weight
- Drills over 150 1/4″ x 1-1/2″ holes per charger (4.0Ah battery pack)
- 3-modes – rotary hammer, rotation-only, hammer-only
- Vario-Lock positioning allows for multiple chisel angles
- Integrated LED worklight
- Full tool kit comes with (2) 18V 4.0Ah FatPack batteries
- RHH181BL (bare tool + L-Boxx kit), RHH181-01 (2-battery kit)
Buy Now(Bare Tool Kit via Amazon)
Buy Now(Kit via Amazon)
Pricing: $299 for bare tool + L-Boxx-2 combo, $449 for 2-battery kit
First Impression
Okay, so not only is this brushless rotary hammer fairly compact and lightweight, it can work with SDS bits up to 3/4″ in size, and can also drill more than 140 1/4″ x 1-1/2″ holes per charge. That’s pretty darned impressive.
The only downside I can see is the somewhat high pricing, but high performance + long runtime + user-friendly features will help you forget about that.
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John S
This is looking like a solid, solid tool.
LORDDiESEL
IMO, Bosch makes the best corded rotary hammers in the world. And i’m sure this cordless version is built with the best of the best as well. As for the price, as Stuart mentioned, Any contractor who buys the kit version will pay it off the first 4 hours of operation. I can’t see a home owner buying or needed a cordless product of this caliber. I would love to own this tool, but i’m just not a fan of the bosch cordless systems.
John S
Agreed and agreed about contractors paying it off within just a few hours of use… Entirely cordless jobsites seem like a reasonable prediction of the future…
Otg
A corded is more powerfull and cost less, last longer.
Lorna Gillies, Toolstop
We have the same product in the UK but over here it is called the GBH 18V-EC. It is a very popular product with our customers and we have had great feedback about it.