Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

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Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

As you know, power tool manufacturers compete against each other.  Each manufacturer is racing to get new products to market and get your business.  The one thing I find fascinating and often overlooked is the battery platform.  Don’t worry, I will cover our Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review shortly.  First, I want to talk batteries.

Some companies are going with higher amp batteries, some are having two separate battery platforms, 12V and 18V and some are going for higher voltage batteries.  I know everyone has their favorite power tool company, but when it comes to a complete lineup, I am a huge fan of Makita and what they are doing with their battery platform.

What I love about Makita is their single battery platform, their 18V.  While some companies are forcing you to buy a higher voltage battery or a separate battery platform altogether, Makita is staying true to their 18V line.

If they produce a product that requires a ton of power, then they use two 18V batteries.  If they want a smaller compact tool, they go with a lower amp and smaller tool, but leave it in the 18V platform.  Then for everything else, it’s their 18V batteries.  So if you are a Makita fan, you only have to worry about one size battery and a single charger.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review Overview

If you read the above paragraphs, I am sure you know I am a huge fan of the Makita Sub compact line.  Ever since they introduced their sub compact line of tools, it has been a big hit.

Now they have a sub compact rotary hammer.  I know some people will shrug their shoulders, but most will understand what this means.  A while back Milwaukee introduced a 12V rotary hammer.  They said they researched the field and a ton of holes were being drilled that were small diameter holes.  So their thought was why force tradesmen to use these big rotary hammers for small jobs?

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

My guess is this is why Makita released this tool.  Here is the cool concept about this tool, it runs off their 18V battery, not a separate battery line.  The model number to this rotary hammer is XRH06RB.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review Features

When you think of the Makita sub compact rotary hammer, image a full-size rotary hammer tool, but a much smaller version.  Even though this is small, Makita didn’t cut corners.  The tool only weighs 4.6 lbs and that is with the battery.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

Makita designed this rotary hammer around an efficient brushless motor.  The motor delivers .88 ft.lbs. of impact energy and 0-680 RPM.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

Towards the front of the tool, there is a dial to select between two modes: rotation only or rotation with hammering.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

The back features a D-Handle for comfort and better grip during working periods.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

The trigger is a variable speed trigger with a range of 0-4,800 BPM.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

The handle has a nice over-mold grip with a little texturing to aid in gripping when wet or in dusty environments.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

Just above the trigger is where you can control forward, reverse or lock.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

Looking at the front of the tool you can see a vibration-absorbing handle that moves independently of the motor and hammer mechanism.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

The head is a one-touch sliding chuck for easy bit changes.  The Makita Sub Compact is an 11/16” rotary hammer and accepts SDS-Plus bits.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review Performance

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

For being such a small and lightweight tool this rotary hammer performs awesome.  Hole after hole, it kept going.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review

While you want the tool to perform the work, we did notice the electronically controlled motor kick in.  When we pushed down on the tool, it kept a consistent speed and kept drilling without any issues.

The vibrations were kept to a minimum.  Sure you can feel them, but not bad considering it’s a small tool.  You would think for a small tool, you would feel more vibration than a bigger tool.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Review Value

The Home Depot has the bare tool for about $220 which isn’t a bad deal for this type of tool.  If you want the full kit, you will pay about $350 which is a steal.  You get the tool, two 2Ah batteries, a charger and a bag.  Yes, $350 is a big investment but if you are drilling smaller diameter holes and want to stay with one battery platform and lose the cord, how can you argue with $350?

Also, think about how many times you use your hammer drill for concrete holes.  Sure a hammer drill will work but in the long run, you end up burning the tool out for multiple concrete holes.

Makita Sub Compact Rotary Hammer Final Thoughts

Bottom line, I love this tool and so happy to see Makita expanding their sub compact line of tools.  Being able to stick with one battery platform is awesome.  You can truly buy tools designed around your needs with the Makita platform.  If you are looking for a compact rotary hammer that is lightweight, yet it’s still powerful, take a look at the Makita XRH06RB.

7 COMMENTS

  1. I would absolutely love it for cramped shower/bathroom repair jobs if it only had a chisel mode. Since it doesn’t, I went with the slightly bigger one that has the integrated HEPA vac.

  2. Eric how many holes were drilled and what size are the holes did you get out of a single battery? What are the range of bit sizes available for the dril?

    • Great question. We never ran hoe many holes it would drill on a single battery. I believe most holes that are drilled for a concrete bit are 5/8 and under. We ended up giving this to a concrete guy who uses it for anchor setting and haven’t heard him complain about runtime. I will see if we can get it back and see how many holes we can get with a 1/2″

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