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When doing DIY (Do It Yourself) projects that involve wood cutting, shaping, or splitting, there are several types of axes and hatchets that are commonly used. Each tool has specific uses depending on the task at hand:

1. Hatchets

Hatchets are small, lightweight axes designed for one-handed use, making them perfect for smaller tasks or for use in confined spaces.

• Camping Hatchet: A small hatchet with a short handle (typically around 12-14 inches) and a broad blade. It's ideal for chopping small branches, splitting small pieces of wood, and general-purpose cutting.
• Carving Hatchet: A hatchet specifically designed for wood carving, featuring a thin, curved blade with a sharp edge. It allows for more precise control when shaping wood.
• Roofing Hatchet: This specialized hatchet is used primarily for roofing jobs and features a hammerhead on the back for driving nails. Some have a magnetized face to hold roofing nails.

2. Axes

Axes are larger tools designed for two-handed use, (although one handed axes are available),  providing more power and control for larger tasks like felling trees or splitting logs.

• Felling Axe: A long-handled axe (typically 28-36 inches) with a thin, sharp blade designed to cut across the grain of the wood. It's used for felling trees and chopping large sections of wood. We stock a range of felling axes with both Hickory and Fibreglass shafts.
• Splitting Axe: Similar to a felling axe, but with a wider, wedge-shaped head that is designed to split wood along the grain rather than cutting across it. It is ideal for splitting logs into firewood.
• Carpenter’s Axe: A medium-sized axe with a straight edge and a flat butt for pounding. The blade is typically thinner for fine, controlled cutting, and the tool is used for tasks like shaping and trimming wood, or even precise hewing in carpentry.
• Broad Axe: A large axe with a broad blade and a flat side, used primarily for hewing logs into square beams. It's often used in timber framing and traditional woodworking.

As well as different weights of axes and hatchets you can also choose between a hickory wood handle or a fibreglass shaft, Rapid Tools Direct has a selection of each. If you are still unsure what axe or hatchet you need call us on 01536 446396.

Percussion drills (also known as hammer drills) are power tools designed for drilling into hard materials such as concrete, brick, or stone by combining rotational drilling with rapid, hammer-like impacts. They differ from standard drills by adding a percussive motion to the drill bit, making them more effective for tough surfaces.

For a great range of Percussion and hammer drills visit https://rapidtoolsdirect.co.uk/collections/hammer-drills-and-percussion-drills

Here's how they work and their main characteristics:

1. Hammering Action

• Percussion drills generate a fast, back-and-forth hammering motion as the drill rotates. This hammering helps break up dense materials, making the drilling process quicker and easier compared to regular drills.
• The hammer action is typically adjustable, allowing the user to switch between traditional drilling (for wood or metal) and hammer drilling (for masonry work).

2. Drill Bits

• Percussion drills often require special masonry drill bits, which are designed to withstand the hammering force and penetrate materials like concrete and stone without breaking.

3. Usage

• These drills are widely used in construction, renovations, and DIY projects where materials like brick, stone, or concrete are involved.
• Applications: Drilling into walls for anchors, boring holes in masonry, or chiseling out small amounts of concrete.

4. Difference from Rotary Hammers

• Although sometimes confused with rotary hammers, percussion drills are typically lighter and have less hammering force than rotary hammers, which are designed for even heavier-duty work.

5. Settings

• Many hammer drills come with settings for switching between hammer mode (for masonry) and regular drill mode (for wood or metal), making them versatile tools for different applications.

In summary, percussion or hammer drills are essential tools for anyone working with hard materials like concrete or stone, offering a powerful combination of rotation and hammering to ease drilling into tough surfaces.

www.rapidtoolsdirect.co.uk has a wide range of Percussion and Hammer drills as well as Combi Drills, Drill Drivers and Angle Drills and Magnetic Drills and Reamers

Gas Cages, or Gas Bottle Storage Cages as they are often known, are not only a convenient way to store Propane, LPG and other gases, but hugely important from a Health and Safety perspective.

Storing any bottled gas inside your premises is dangerous and regulations recommend any bottled gas or LPG to be stored outside and away from the building. The other consideration is that flammable liquids or gas should be kept locked away from vandals looking to start a fire or cause damage.

Steel mesh gas cages provide a convenient solution to this problem allowing you to store bottled gas, outside, away from your building and locked away from vandals.

Available in a range of sizes and colours the Gas Bottle Storage cages available on Rapid Tools Direct are manufactured in the UK to the highest standards and supplied with a powdercoated finish in a range of colours.

The good news is many of our Gas Cages are now 5% off our normal prices!

Our gas cages can also be supplied with a Health and Safety sign as below:

On our website you will see a range of heights, widths and depths and conveniently the number of bottles each can hold.

Protect your business and staff and invest in a Gas Bottle Storage Cage today.

TIMCO Screws have landed! We are really pleased to announce the arrival of the TIMCO Screw range on the Rapid Tools Direct site. You heard it here first, folks!

The TIMCO brand is a highly reputable one and the quality of their products meant that we had no hesitation in adding their screws to our site. To help you choose the right screw for your needs, we have put together a profile of the different types and the uses that each are best suited for:

1. Top of the bill are the ever-popular multi-purpose Classic Screws. They are made of zinc, are yellow passivated and are sure to prove a boon to professional tradesmen and DIY’ers throughout the country. A reliable screw for a multitude of tasks, including working with hardwood, softwood, thin sheet metal, chipboard, MDF and plastic. Think of them as a fixing workhorse – a jack of all screws if you will.

1. Next up are the Drywall Screws – these are more specialised and are ideally suited to attaching drywall to wood or metal studs. They are not really designed for use with wood (see the Wood screws section below if you need screws for your woodworking project). Unlike the Classic screws discussed earlier, Drywall screws are black passivated and the business end of this screw has a 25 degree super sharp point. There is a choice of coarse and fine thread screws available.

1. TIMCO Twin Threaded Wood Screws are perfect for using with softwoods and various types of hardwood. They are zinc plated with a double countersunk head and a 60 degree twin thread for faster insertion.

1. Lastly, we have added Decking Screws that are designed to be used outside in all weather conditions. The organic green coating  provides great protection from the elements – these rugged screws have been able to withstand 1,000 hours of salt spray testing! They come with a double countersunk head and a double slash point for rapid pick-up.

So there we have it. Just remember that if you want to get the job done right first time use these screws – they will not disappoint. All the above are Phillips recess screws and can be purchased in tubs or boxes, whichever you prefer. Feel free to take a look on our site for more details.

This is an exciting time for us at Rapid Tools Direct and we are sure that these new brands and products will prove to be hugely popular with our readers. As always the focus is on quality and providing our customers with the tools that they want at prices they can afford.

In fact, these screws are just the latest in a number of product additions that we are planning to introduce over the coming months. Stay tuned for some more exciting product announcements coming shortly!