Chicago Pneumatic CP717 - Air Hammer, Welding Equipment Tool, Construction, Heavy Duty, 0.498 Inch (12.7mm), Round Shank, Stroke 2.68 in / 68 mm, Bore Diameter 0.75 in / 19 mm - 1800 Blow Per Minute

Holy busted ball joints batman, this thing is an absolute beast. If you're tired of your old pansy Snap On or IR air hammer, then you found the right place in Amazon tool topia. Sure you could save the money, and continue to be frustrated while seized parts laugh at your over priced, under powered air tapper. Or you could step up to the plate with the CP717 and blow those rusted nuggets to the Jiffy Lube down the street.I've used an IR air hammer for many years. Also tried the supposed best Snap On hammer for a few weeks to see how well it performed. While both are good air hammers, nothing Ive owned, used, or borrowed has come close to Bigger Nastier here. It will pretty much beat anything into submission. It saves so much time with every day tasks. Makes suspension work so much easier. Plus if you're working on an old rusty turd, you pretty much can't afford to not buy this tool. If you already own an air hammer, you will want to keep that one when you buy this one. Because this one is too over powered for certain tasks. It can and will, literally destroy things. The CP717 is like Thor and his hammer. Sometimes you don't need Thor though, you may just need Rocky (like before all the training, at the beginning of the movie). So keep your old gun in your arsenal.The hammer does have a really nice trigger control, so you don't have to give everything "full beans" if you don't want to. But it can get out of hand fast if you dont have a steady hand. You will need ear protection, and eye protection. The air hammer itself isn't that loud, but it hits so hard, the noise can be unbearable after more than a few seconds. Wear safety glasses too because the shrapnel created by Thor here will do some serious damage. Made that mistake the first time I used it. I got lucky, but sure scared the poop out of me. So be smart and wear safety gear. While we may have the power of Thor, we certainly take more damage than him.If you're trying to decide between this hammer and the Astro 4980, I'd go with the CP. The Astro is just a copy of the CP. I'm not saying it's not a good tool. Eric O swears by it. But Astro tools are typically lower quality. Not bad quality, just less than CP. That is obviously my opinion. But when I buy a tool like this online, I have to think about the process of getting it warrantied, or repaired. Seeing as how I can't just walk into a store, or wait for my tool truck guy to come to me and fix my CP or Astro...I'd rather have something with a better reputation of lasting.One last thing I will add. Don't buy the cheap air hammer chisels and bits on Amazon. They are very brittle and will shatter and blind one of your coworkers, or take a piece of your flesh and send it to the moon. Buy the .498 CP bits only. They are made specifically for the unholy power of the 717. I have used this hammer quite a bit, and the CP bits hold up pretty well. By that I mean they don't shatter. They do wear down like any other chisel, and will need to be put on the grinder occasionally. But at least they are "safe".I love this air hammer. I wish I had bought it years ago. You will love it too. I didn't bother getting the quick release chuck for it. I don't think it's necessary. Once you're used to the spring retainer, it's no big deal. If you do get the quick chuck for it, make sure to put lock tite on the retaining screws.

I drive old used vehicles, and the ones from the rust prone areas of the country can be all kinds of fun to disasssemble.I don't use this often b/c it's so big and powerful, but occasionally I need it, and there is no substitute. I bought this after seeing Eric the Car Guy use Big Nasty (the competing AP hammer) on a subaru rear lateral link bolt that was corroded in place, and it's been more than worth it.Whoever compared this to a firearm was right.... I use some big 200 ton rams at work, but this is an insane amount of power to hold in your hand. I try to always have a hand on the barrel to control it when using the hammer bit, otherwise it can walk all over and destroy anything in its path.Treat this thing with respect - I'm confident it could break every bone in my hand in a fraction of a second if it got away from me in a confined area.

This is the best 0.498 air hammer kit you can buy. The bits it comes with are made by Ajax and the case is well built. The CP 717 hammer is the original “Big Nasty” Made in Japan. The Astro Pneumatic version 3970 is a copy of this hammer and is also very well made in Taiwan. That being said, considering how expensive individual Ajax bits can be, the overall value of this set when caught on sale cannot be beat. Ajax bits come with a lifetime warranty which covers breakage but not wear. So you’re covered and will get your money’s worth. Using inferior bits will result in a lot of breakage. These bits in the kit will stand up to the carnage this air hammer is capable of.

I've owned this CP717 for about 10 years. Before that I never owned an air hammer. Because through the years I had borrowed several different .401" ones, and they are just noise makers. However, after replacing a couple Subaru wheel hubs, I finally Googled the best way for removal, because swinging a hammer/mall was a horrible option (and my only one). The CP717 came up as best in the business. And at $500 it had better be. I made the plunge and ordered one. The next Subaru wheel hub didn't stand a chance. Kicked myself for not having one of these 30 years ago. So, if you're looking for the best product, buy this. It is incredible.

I was very skeptical about buying this air hammer because I did not know how good it was going to work and it is very expensive but when you want the best you got to pay the prize. I have had it for about 3 months and have used it on several ocassions and I am very happy with it. It performs very well I do not regret buying it and yes i would recommend to a friend. I use this for 18 wheeler repair and it packs a very nice punch, I can just imagine how much more powerful it is for automotive applications.

Cuts frame bolts and rivets way easy.. and the trigger control is awesome... you can make just single hits to Wide open.. I cant really put it into words how much this thing dwarfs all my other air hammers... its a monster and just eats what ever metal you place in its way yes its controllable to the point you can gently tap in a bearing race or flatten a rivet... I'm way happy with it... those bushings don't stand a chance now ! lol

So much more powerful than the snap on or matco tool that costs more. I've even used it for cutting broken engine mounts on a kenworth and it saved me hours of work. It is a little too much for smaller jobs though and be careful not to mix up the bits, these take 1/2" bits, other air hammers use 3/8" bits and I'm sure that they would ruin this hammer if you ever mixed them up.

The power this thing has is unreal. It's busted brake rotors apart. Really good trigger control too. Attachment options are a bit limited being a half inch shank but that's no fault of the tool itself.A word to the wise: Treat it like a firearm and keep everything important, yourself included away from the tip. You do NOT want to slip and have this hit flesh.I opted to exchange the beehive retainer in favor of a quick change tip

Good quality my favourite works perfect worth the money’s

Big power with trigger control, it can press out a ball joint

Arrived on time, happy with purchase

Right purchase with a good price. This is a good product for long lasting.

very happy with this product