Milwaukee M18 Cordless SDS+ Rotary Hammer Review

Manufacturer: Milwaukee
Model: 2605-22
Price: $449
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Milwaukee tried to slip one by us earlier this year, but we caught it. As part of their April 1st push of the new RedLithium platform (which is no joke) the company leaked info on a new M18 Rotary Hammer with SDS Plus technology (2605-22). It’s a 7/8-inch model and comes with either 1 or 2 RedLithium XC batteries. We love it when reviews and projects collide. With the case of the
Milwaukee M18 SDS-Plus Rotary Hammer, we couldn’t have asked for better
timing. The M18 Rotary Hammer
represents one of those cross-over tools. It’s a cordless tool that
really attempts to be a corded tool replacement. It’s not for chopping
up large swathes of concrete, but it’s also a huge step above something
you’d use for routine fastening into block walls. The 2605-22 Cordless
SDS-Plus Rotary Hammer Drill Kit is light enough to be used overhead,
but strong enough to plow through high density concrete with a 7/8″ bit.

Back to our aforementioned “collision”. Working with Parker Street Ministries,
a local non-profit organization here in town, we help them on a fairly
big drilling job. We needed to secure three brand-new bike racks into a
concrete slab, do it securely, and accomplish the task in a short amount
of time. That pretty much ruled out the conventional hammer drill –
which would have done a number on our arm with the number and size of
holes we were drilling. Before we get too far ahead, let’s talk a bit
about the tool itself.

Build Quality

When we say the M18 Cordless Rotary Hammer is nimble, we mean it –
but that doesn’t mean your 4-year old can one-hand a hole while holding
the tool up over his head. But you probably could. The 2605-20 rotary
hammer weighs just under 8 pounds with a RedLithium XC battery
installed. It’s also balanced “properly”, which is to say that it makes
sense – particularly when you are using the front handle to stabilize
it. The tool is, as you’d expect, no different in appearance from any
other red & black Milwaukee Tool. What it does have, however, is a
unique (for the M18 line) D-handle and really rugged build quality where
the anvil mechanism and motor structure are situated.

The kit includes the 2605-20 7/8″ Rotary Hammer, two RedLithium M18
XC batteries, charger, side handle, depth gauge rod, and a nice blow
mold case.

Milwaukee touts its AVS Anti-Vibration System, which is largely a
mechanical separation of the handle from the active anvil mechanism. The
thing is, though – it really works. The rotary hammer doesn’t numb your
hand as you’d expect it to, firing 4800 beats per minute at 1.8 ft-lbs
of force. Use a conventional rotary hammer and you’ll encounter enough
vibration that some organizations like OSHA have started studying the
effects of it on the human body. With Milwaukee’s 2605-22 Rotary Hammer,
the AVS system means you can drill longer without getting fatigued.

We liked the way Milwaukee ran the rubberized overmold from the
battery base to the bottom and front of the tool body. The adjustable
side handle was also very convenient and made the tool extremely easy to
direct. On the left side of the tool body is the Mode switch, which can
alternate between Drill mode (rotary-only), Hammer Drill mode, and
Hammer-only (chip) mode. The Hammer-only mode is perfect if you need to
break up a small area of concrete or clear away a broken area in order
to pour new cement and facilitate a repair. Normally rotary hammers of
this class do not have this feature. The trigger is variable speed, as
you’d expect, and can ramp up to 1400 RPM for extremely fast debris
removal during drilling.

The SDS-Plus bit system is  standard which allows access to a full
range of concrete/masonry bits up to 7/8″ in diameter. The release
collar is easy to use and allows simple tool-less bit changes. Attached
to the side handle is the included depth gauge rod, which is easily
adjusted by pressing down on the clamping lever and sliding the rod
backwards or forwards until it’s at the proper depth from the tip of the
bit.

Testing and Use

As we mentioned, the best way to test a tool is to get it involved in
a real-world scenario for which it was precisely designed. Drilling
twenty four 3/8″ x 3″ holes into a concrete sidewalk to secure three
bike rack supports to the ground seemed to fit the bill perfectly. One
thing that’s nice about supporting an inner-city ministry like Parker
Street Ministries here in Lakeland, Florida is that you are never short
on opportunities to use tools in real-world applications. With this
particular project, each bike rack support required four holes on each
end for a total of 8 holes per rack.

To secure the rack to the concrete, we used Red Head 3/8″ x 3-3/4″
wedge anchors. These anchors are perfect in that you simply drill the
hole, drop in the anchor, and then fasten down the nut to mushroom out
the anchor and cause it to grab to the sides of the drilled hole. The
required shear force to break these bolts makes them nearly impossible
to break without running into the bike rack with a car. To drill the
holes we grabbed the Milwaukee M18 Rotary Hammer and loaded it up with a
Bosch SDS Plus masonry bit.

The M18 Cordless Rotary Hammer enabled us to not waste any time in
getting the job done, both by being efficient, and also by giving us a
depth rod to ensure we didn’t over-drill our holes and waste effort on
an already potentially tedious job. On top of that, the company’s AVS
Anti-Vibration System really stole the show and we didn’t tear up our
arms getting the work done. In fact, with a freshly charged M18
RedLithium XC battery, we did all 24 holes and still had two bars of
power left on the battery.

Starting the holes was simple and the combination of the drill and
the front handle allowed us to begin without fear of the bit walking on
us. This was a precision job since the four holes had to be perfect or
the supports wouldn’t allow the anchors to slip perfectly through into
the concrete. The M18 rotary hammer drill really powered through the
holes very quickly and we were constantly surprised at the general lack
of vibration in the main handle – it was very noticeable.

Unlike some other products we’ve utilized, the the depth gauge rod
and the clamping mechanism had a really sturdy feel, with minimal
wobble. The adjustment lever consistently provided very positive
engagement with the depth gauge rod. It just felt like you could use it
without fearing you would strip it out or bend it by applying too much
pressure during the end of your drilling cycles.

We didn’t use the chipping mode of the 2605-22 but felt it was a
great feature that is often missing on cordless rotary hammers of this
size.

Conclusion

Overall, we’d have to summarize that it was the size and dynamics of
the tool that impressed us the most. It just got a lot of work done and
it’s not very large. In that way, it’s deceptively powerful. The
Milwaukee M18 2605-22 Rotary Hammer was really easy to use and
comfortable to hold and it’s the kind of tool your professional friends
want to have. We know because they told us… over and over… For
Performance, the 2605-22 received an easy 9/10 and for value, well it’s
still pretty good. After all this isn’t a DIY tool or something you’re
going to pick up for the occasional job. If you’re doing a consistent
amount of concrete drilling, this tool is very likely to save you both
time and money and so it’s very much worth the ~$450 retail price. It’s
also worth the 7/10 Value rating we gave it. There’s “expensive” and
there’s “quality” – the Milwaukee Cordless Rotary Hammer is most
certainly the latter.

Specs

• Bit: SDS-Plus, 7/8″
• Force: 1.8 ft-lbs
• Mechanical clutch
• AVS Anti Vibration System
• Modes: rotary hammer, hammer, rotation
• RPM/BPM: 1,400/4,800
• Side handle, depth rod
• Battery: 2 x M18 RedLithium XC
• Tool weight: 7.2 lbs
• Length (tool): 11-3/4″
• Warranty: 5 Year limited