Metabo HPT MultiVolt Hammer Drill
We tested more than 50 cordless drills head-to-head in our Best Cordless Drill head-to-head review. The Metabo HPT MultiVolt Hammer Drill (DV36DA) fits in the Heavy-Duty category. It’s part of Metabo HPT’s MultiVolt tool lineup and runs on either a MultiVolt 36V battery or an AC adapter.
You’d think with that kind of power output, there’d be a significant advantage over every other drill that runs off of 18V. It certainly boasts some impressive specs, but we’re more inclined to let the testing results tell the tale.
Notable Features
The Metabo HPT MultiVolt Hammer Drill features a 36V brushless motor that delivers up to 1,440 watts of power, pushing closer to the power you can get from a 15-amp outlet.
The battery packs take advantage of the larger 21700 cells. If you’re working on really power-hungry tasks, you can turn to the 120V AC adapter and just plug it in. Who knew we’d be talking about a cord as a feature in 2019?
It also features a Reactive Force Control feature that senses when the tool overloads and stops rotation to ensure that it doesn’t break your wrists off.
An all-metal keyless chuck with carbide inserts makes changing bits quick and secure.
The Metabo HPT MultiVolt Hammer Drill also features some of the inclusions that we just sort of expect from a Pro-quality drill, like an LED light and a metal belt hook. It has an aluminum gear case and all-metal gears as well, which ought to ensure that thing lasts years and years. Just in case it doesn’t, Metabo HPT includes a Lifetime Warranty on the tool.
Performance
During our speed-under-load tests, we started by throwing a Milwaukee 2-9/16″ SwitchBlade Self-Feed Bit onto the Metabo HPT DV36DA and went to work. This hammer drill maintained an average of 509 RPM, which was the fastest drill we tested in this segment. What’s even more impressive is that’s 98% of its no-load speed.
A 2-9/16″ self-feed in OSB is an aggressive test, and that kind of efficiency shows just how much power Metabo HPT has to call on at low speed.
Next, we used a 1″ Bosch Daredevil High-Speed Auger Bit. It performed in the middle of the pack for this test, maintaining an average of 1656 RPM with an 86% efficiency rating.
It also finished in the middle of the pack for concrete drilling, finishing 3″ deep with a 1/4″ Bosch Daredevil Multipurpose Bit in an average of 5.06 seconds. This was also a mid-pack finish, but between the first and last finisher, we’re only talking a difference of 3-ish seconds.
Metabo HPT’s no-load speed in high is the lowest of the Heavy-Duty group and seeing it reach into the middle of the pack is a solid finish with this design. What this effectively means is that Metabo HPT is prioritizing more torque than others in high speed, meaning you can use larger bits without dropping into low.
Wrapping up performance, we tested soft torque by hooking it up to our test rig. On its spec sheet, the Metabo HPT MultiVolt Hammer Drill has the second-highest hard torque rating at 1220 in-lbs. However, it averaged 468.8 in-lbs of torque in this compression-based test. Again, this was a mid-place finish.
Weight and Footprint
While size and weight aren’t a huge priority for Heavy-Duty hammer drills, but we’ll still take what we can get. The Metabo HPT DC36DA is the heaviest of the group at 5.85 pounds with its 4.0Ah battery. Even though it’s near the bottom, take it with a grain of salt. The Metabo model that’s dead center is just 0.06 pounds lighter.
The hammer drill sits 8.3″ tall without its battery and has a head length of 8.1″. That’s another middle-of-the-road placement that’s not far off of the front or back. Only the Hilti SF 10-A22 is significantly larger than the rest.
Price
Metabo HPT’s pricing structure is a bit non-traditional for its MultiVolt line. Many of the tools are “bare” but actually come with your choice of an AC adapter or MultiVolt battery/charger starter kit. The Metabo HPT MultiVolt Hammer Drill isn’t one of those tools, though.
As a bare tool, the Metabo HPT DV36DA runs . That’s a pricey bare tool. But for $40 more, you get the kit with two 4.0Ah batteries (4.0Ah x 36V = 144 Wh). That’s still not cheap, but not terrible for a Heavy-Duty drill with two advanced batteries. And keep in mind Metabo HPT has a lifetime warranty on this hammer drill.
Here’s are some familiar favorites in the same price range:
- Milwaukee 2806: $349 with two 5.0Ah batteries (90Wh x 2)
- DeWalt DCD997: $369.00 with two 5.0Ah batteries (90Wh x 2)
- Hilti SF 10W-A22 ATC: $313.00 with two 2.6Ah batteries (56Wh x 2)
- Metabo HPT DV36DA: $289 with two 4.0Ah batteries (144Wh x 2)
- Metabo SB 18 LTX-3 BL Q I: $512.59 with two 5.5Ah batteries (99Wh x 2)
Recommendation
The Metabo HPT MultiVolt Hammer Drill absolutely belongs in the Heavy-Duty class and has the performance to back it up. Beyond that, this is a brand that brings some worthy talking points to the table such as its AC adapter, benchtop cordless tools, and lifetime warranty.
While the brand is still building its reputation in the market following their change from Hitachi Power Tools, it’s worth looking at the MultiVolt line as a whole to see if that suite of tools has what you need on the higher power side of cordless.
Metabo HPT MultiVolt Hammer Drill Specs
- Model Number: Metabo HPT DV36DA
- Power Source: Metabo HPT MultiVolt battery or AC adapter
- Chuck Type: 1/2″ All-Metal, Keyless, Single Sleeve
- Chuck Capacity: 1/16″ to 1/2″
- Max No-Load Speed: 0-2,100 RPM
- Max Impact Rate: 0-31500 BPM
- Reactive Force Control: Yes
- Clutch Settings: 22 + 2
- Clutch Torque: 18-71 in-lbs (+/- 9 in-lbs)
- Wood Capacity: 4″
- Steel Capacity: 5/8″
- Concrete Capacity: 3/4″
- Tool Length: 8-1/32″
- Weight (with 36V battery): 5.85 lbs
- Warranty: Lifetime on Tool, 2-Year on battery, 1-Year on charger
- MSRP: $289
