Hercules Brushless vs Brushed vs Flex Hammer Drills: Which One Earns a Spot in Your Kit?

Introduction

Hammer drills rarely get the head-to-head treatment they deserve, and when a value-focused brand like Hercules launches a new brushless model, the obvious question is simple: how close does it come to a premium tool that costs considerably more? This comparison puts three drills to work in the same conditions, on the same material, with the same batteries, to find out.

The lineup is the new Hercules brushless hammer drill, the older Hercules brushed hammer drill that has been around for years, and the Flex hammer drill, which on paper should not even be a fair fight. Real-world drilling into pressure-treated lumber tells a more interesting story.

How the Test Was Run

The baseline setup was straightforward. A large spade-style boring bit was used to drill into pressure-treated 4x4 lumber, with fresh holes started at least an inch away from previous ones so no test benefited from a partially broken surface. The old Hercules brushed drill went first, using a standard 5 amp hour battery at full charge.

Winter conditions were part of the challenge too. Snow and glare are real factors for anyone working outdoors in cold months, so safety glasses rated to Z87.1 for impact protection are worth keeping on the list alongside any drill purchase.

One small but genuinely useful detail across all of these tools is the push-in chuck. Rather than fumbling to pull the chuck collar open with one hand, you simply push the bit in and it locks. It is the kind of quality-of-life feature that makes daily use noticeably easier.

Brushless Changes the Story: The New Hercules

The new Hercules brushless hammer drill is the headline here. Paired with the same 5 amp hour battery the brushed model struggled with, it completed the job where the older drill could not finish the hole even after a battery swap. That alone says a lot about what the brushless motor brings to the table.

The bigger surprise came with the battery swap. Switching to a 4 amp hour pack built on 21700 cells made a world of difference, delivering noticeably stronger performance than the older 5 amp hour pack, which had not caught as full a charge. On speed 2 with that pack, the brushless Hercules drove the bit cleanly through the 4x4, and a repeat run confirmed it was no fluke.

At roughly 150 dollars for the package, it sits in a price tier that undercuts the premium options by a wide margin, backed by a five-year warranty and an in-store return option. For a tool in the value-pro field alongside brands like Metabo HPT and the higher-end Ridgid lineup, that combination of performance, warranty, and price is hard to ignore.

The Old Guard: Hercules Brushed Hammer Drill

The older brushed Hercules is the tool many buyers already own or are considering secondhand, so it is worth knowing exactly where it stands. With the standard 5 amp hour battery, it could not push the large bit through the pressure-treated 4x4, and even swapping in a freshly charged battery did not let it finish the job.

To its credit, it performed noticeably better in hammer mode with the 4 amp hour 21700 battery, and it handled the workload without issue on lighter demands. It also shares the push-in chuck, which remains a pleasant detail at this price point. For occasional household drilling and light masonry work, it still does the job. But the gap between it and the brushless version is real, and anyone buying new today should think hard before choosing the brushed model to save money.

The Flex Hammer Drill

Flex sits in a different tier entirely. Based on the specifications and the price, this should not have been a close contest, and in the speed-3 drilling test it powered straight through the 4x4 with the 5 amp hour battery, as expected.

What was not expected was how close the Hercules brushless came to it in subsequent testing. The Flex remains the stronger tool on paper and in hand, with features like smart-sensing modes alongside the standard speed settings, but the performance-per-dollar calculation shifts dramatically once you see the Hercules numbers. Kickback control was solid, the finger-release chuck is a nice touch, and nothing in the test suggested it is anything less than a premium-grade tool.

If your work demands top-tier performance and you are willing to pay for it, the Flex holds up. If you want most of that capability at a value-pro price, the comparison makes the Hercules brushless a serious contender.

Overall Buying Advice

Three takeaways emerge from this comparison. First, the battery matters more than most buyers realize: the 4 amp hour 21700 pack dramatically outperformed the standard 5 amp hour pack, so factor battery chemistry into any cordless drill purchase. Second, brushless is worth the upgrade over brushed for demanding boring work, even within the same brand. Third, the value-pro tier, where Hercules plays alongside Metabo HPT and higher-end Ridgid, has closed the gap with premium tools far more than the price difference suggests.

Long-term durability is the remaining question mark, and that is where the Hercules five-year warranty becomes part of the value argument rather than just fine print.

Conclusion

The Hercules brushless hammer drill is the story here: a value-priced tool that held its own against a considerably more expensive premium competitor and comfortably outperformed its own brushed predecessor. The brushed Hercules remains serviceable for light duty, and the Flex remains the benchmark for buyers who want the best regardless of price. For most buyers weighing performance against cost, the new Hercules brushless looks like the pick that finally proves the value-pro market has arrived.