Makita DHR171

Tseralo

Active member
Does anyone have experience with the Makita DHR171 or (similar small  1.2J SDS drills)? How does it do drilling 8mm holes in limestone? I'm thinking about getting one for small jobs and at the end of a lot of rope. My DHR243 is excellent but a bit heavy to lug around if you just want to drill a few holes or have to hold it above your head for hours on end. It is however perfect for shotholes or larger holes for resin or plug and feathers. Obviously, as I already have lots of Makita 18v batteries I'm only looking at their stuff.
 

Pitlamp

Well-known member
Try searching for posts on here from SamT; I remember he posted some valuable information (and images of packing methods) about one of the smaller Makita dtrills - although I think that may have been the 242 come to think of it.

There may be information about other small drills within the same topic, from memory.

Badlad's advice is usually excellent on this topic - hopefully he'll see this soon & chip in.
 

Ian P

Administrator
Staff member
I bought one for installing anchors.
I was sceptical at first due to the size and weight.  (I have a full stable of Makita tools so was ?shackled? to this brand, which I don?t mind as I really like Makita).

Really impressed with it, well balanced and easily does the job. Paired up with a 6ah battery it has serious duration for its size.

Pros: compact, light, efficient drilling.

Cons: doest have a chisel action.

To keep it looking new, I wrap it in ?hand pallet wrap? (thick clingfilm) and then poke holes in to access the trigger, works a treat  :)

Ian
 

Tseralo

Active member
I think this is the thread you are referring to Pitlamp. Your right its about the 242/243 and Peli 1400's. That's the setup I have already I think 4 TSG members do now after seeing pwhole's set.
 

pwhole

Well-known member
Martyn's Bosch equivalent seemed more than capable of putting 8mm bolts in quickly when I saw it recently, and it was much smaller and lighter (and quieter) than mine, so I'm guessing the Makita will be just as good in that respect. I know what you mean about the weight of the 243, but the chisel action has proved invaluable to me - and the non-hammer chuck too, but for only putting anchors in on climbing routes I can see why a smaller one is appealing.
 

Tseralo

Active member
pwhole said:
Martyn's Bosch equivalent seemed more than capable of putting 8mm bolts in quickly when I saw it recently, and it was much smaller and lighter (and quieter) than mine, so I'm guessing the Makita will be just as good in that respect. I know what you mean about the weight of the 243, but the chisel action has proved invaluable to me - and the non-hammer chuck too, but for only putting anchors in on climbing routes I can see why a smaller one is appealing.

Seeing that little 12v thing drill 8x200m holes is what made me think about it. Don't worry the 243 isn't going anywhere though it's definitely the allrounder.
 

aricooperdavis

Moderator
I've got the Makita DHR171 - it's a nice bit of kit and works fine for bolting. It doesn't have the same water resistance feature thing that the brushed version has, so you need to be slightly more careful with it (I've made a neoprene "condom" for it).

Originally bought it for installing trellises for roses, then it got snaffled for caving  ;)
 

Tseralo

Active member
I bought a 171 and took it underground last night to stick some 8mm bolts in. Once it was worn in it worked very well. I think we installed 13 bolts on 1 5.5AH battery, it wasn?t bogging down at the end and the battery still says 2 bar out of 4.

It?s obviously not as fast as the 243 but it weights almost 1kg less is much more compact and is noticeably quieter which was a unexpected benefit. It?s definitely a drill for expansion bolts maybe a few 10mm holes for Raumer super stars but I wouldn?t want to try drilling loads of 16mm for BP anchors or plug and feathers. I expect it will be very good for bolt climbing especially as I have a umbilical to take 500g of battery off it.

Definitely a good addition to the fleet not an all rounder like the 243 but for ?100 I?m also happy to batter it a bit more than the 243 at ?200.
 

aricooperdavis

Moderator
I've used mine for 16mm holes for plug and feathers and have been pleasantly surprised - it's not a speed demon by any means but it got the job done and didn't chew through too much battery.
 

Cantclimbtom

Well-known member
Maybe in the mix at ~3Kg and around the ?100 mark if you get a good deal, you have https://makitauk.com/product/dhr202z which has 2.0J impact rather than 1.2 of the DHR171

I was drilling ordinary strength concrete yesterday (8mm for some 100mm long concrete bolts) with one, no Hilti TE-72 but was perfectly acceptable. Maybe one to consider if it's for home and occasional bolting? Probably want peli 1500 though if you need space for batteries drills and whatnot
 

aricooperdavis

Moderator
I think DevCRO have just invested in one of these, it did the job very nicely for plug and feathers holes at training last Thursday  (y)
 

Tseralo

Active member
Cantclimbtom said:
Maybe in the mix at ~3Kg and around the ?100 mark if you get a good deal, you have https://makitauk.com/product/dhr202z which has 2.0J impact rather than 1.2 of the DHR171

I was drilling ordinary strength concrete yesterday (8mm for some 100mm long concrete bolts) with one, no Hilti TE-72 but was perfectly acceptable. Maybe one to consider if it's for home and occasional bolting? Probably want peli 1500 though if you need space for batteries drills and whatnot
That?s not a bad shout if someone wants a cheaper big drill. It?s specs look similar to the 243 but lower blows per minute at the same weight.
 

SamT

Moderator
Cantclimbtom said:
Maybe in the mix at ~3Kg and around the ?100 mark if you get a good deal, you have https://makitauk.com/product/dhr202z which has 2.0J impact rather than 1.2 of the DHR171

As per all my original posts on this topic. its the need for a longer/bigger pelicase that's the deal breaker for me on these. 
 

Tseralo

Active member
SamT said:
Cantclimbtom said:
Maybe in the mix at ~3Kg and around the ?100 mark if you get a good deal, you have https://makitauk.com/product/dhr202z which has 2.0J impact rather than 1.2 of the DHR171

As per all my original posts on this topic. its the need for a longer/bigger pelicase that's the deal breaker for me on these.

Oh if it doesn't fit in a 1400 sod that. A 1400 is a pain and heavy enough as it is.
 

Pitlamp

Well-known member
One or two folk above have alluded to using plugs & feathers which need 16 mm holes. I use plugs and feathers which go in 14 mm holes, which allows a significantly greater about of drilling from each battery. I was using them this afternoon in fact and managed to get two really big bites out of an immense boulder I'm working on.

The thing about plugs and feathers is there's a few key things which have to be learned to use them successfully. Very important is drilling the holes well beyond the reach of the plugs and feathers. So drilling capacity is actually much more important than folk having no experience with plugs & feathers might think.

This might sound (arguably) off topic here - but it's an important factor which is related to the original question, indirectly.
 
Top