Bosch GSB 500 RE Professional Hammer Drill

The following article is a review of the Bosch GSB 500 RE Professional Hammer Drill and is intended to be an info page with some description, photographs and technical specifications as provided by the manufacturer.

This impact or hammer drill by Bosch was purchased in mid-2014 as a replacement to my older green Bosch PSB 400-2 hammer drill when it broke down during a DIY job.

As the older drill had been working hard for over 20 years now, it was due for a replacement.

[UPDATE:] Or so I thought. Seemed it had stopped only temporary during the job, probably due to heat. It is actually still running today, although the chuck needs replacement from the expected wear and tear.

The Bosch GSB 500 RE Professional Hammer Drill carries the same specifications as the GSB 10 RE and comes in a hard plastic case with holders for a variety of drill and driver bits, as well as other small hand tools such as hammer, pliers, adjustable spanner, fluid level and retractable blade. At a very reasonable price of RM250.00, it was good value-for-money.

However, the masonry drill bits are not of premium quality, and I do not use them in my work. Instead, I use drill bits by Alpen and Volkmar.

In my opinion, Bosch could and should have used and included their own well-regarded drill bits instead of some OEM bits that look far from being heavy-duty capable.

I tried one of these masonry bits for one job and was disappointed with its performance. The drill was fine and held its own, but the drill bit had poor cutting ability.

A switch at the top of the drill allows easy switching between normal drilling and impact modes, the former for wood, metal and brick walls, and the latter for concrete and other hard masonry substance.

A forward/reverse rotation button is located above the trigger switch for screwdriving applications, to be used with the included driver bits, although I am worried such a drill may be too powerful to be used for driving screws, risking damaging screw threads and heads. I would recommend a cordless driver instead for this sort of work.

The Bosch GSB 500 RE Professional comes with a 100-piece accessory set and makes for a good starter impact or hammer drill at an affordable price, and it’s limited only by the drill bits attached to it.

Go for a high quality set of bits like those from Bosch, Dewalt and Alpen (see links below), and you’d have a good performing drill in your hands.

SEE ALSO:

• Bosch PSB 400-2 Hammer Drill
• Bosch GBH 2-20 DRE Professional Rotary Hammer
• Bosch GDR 10,8-LI Professional Cordless Impact Driver
• Bosch GDM 12-34 Marble Cutter
• Bosch GWS 8-100 CE Professional Variable Speed Angle Grinder
• Bosch GLM 80 Professional Laser Rangefinder