Chicago Pneumatic Red Hawk Gas Line
Three petrol tools on one chassis: a 44 ft-lb gas paving breaker, a rock drill that also breaks, and a rail tamper for ballast. No compressor, no hose, no power pack — the tool is the whole system.
The short version
Every Red Hawk carries its own power. That removes the compressor, the hose, the fuel to run the compressor and the second person needed to move it, which changes the economics of any job that is small, scattered or a long way from a road. Pick by the job, not by the size. Breaking concrete and asphalt is the Red Hawk Road at 44 ft-lb. Sinking anchor, dowel and shallow blast holes — and light breaking on the same tank — is the Red Hawk Drill at 2,700 blows a minute. Consolidating ballast under a tie is the Red Hawk Rail, the same engine as the Road retuned for frequency instead of force. What you give up is running cost on sustained work — one compressor feeding several air breakers is cheaper per hour than several petrol engines. The Red Hawk earns its keep on mobility.
The Breaker: Red Hawk Road
44 ft-lb at 1,440 blows a minute from a 90 cc two-stroke — 60 lb pneumatic breaker territory, with nothing behind it. One model, three shank sizes, all at the same price. The 1 x 4-1/4 in. build is the 48 lb, 29 in. tool; both 6 in. shanks come in at 50 lb and 31 in.
Red Hawk Road · 48 to 50 lb · 90 cc two-stroke
44 ft-lb impact energy · 1,440 BPM · 48 to 50 lb · 29 to 31 in. · 90 cc two-stroke · 0.26 US gal fuel · three hex shank sizes
A breaker with the compressor built in. The 90 cc two-stroke delivers 44 ft-lb per blow at 1,440 blows a minute, which puts it squarely in 60 lb pneumatic breaker territory — without a compressor, a hose or a second man to move it. One operator, a truck and a jerry can is the whole setup.
Where it beats a compressor. Utility repair and emergency call-outs, twenty scattered breakouts across a town, rail corridors and embankments, footpaths, roof slabs, work inside buildings, and any site a towable compressor cannot follow you onto. One person, one truck, no set-up time at each stop.
Where it does not. Sustained production breaking with a crew. For that, air is still cheaper per hour and one machine feeds several tools — see the CP pneumatic paving breakers.
The Rock Drill: Red Hawk Drill
The only petrol tool in the CP line that drills and breaks. A 185 cc two-stroke running 2,700 blows a minute — the highest rate of any Red Hawk, which is what boring a hole wants — and at 16 to 18 ft-lb it will still take a moil point and work as a light breaker. One model, one shank, 55 lb, 30 in., 0.32 US gal tank.
Red Hawk Drill · 55 lb · 185 cc two-stroke
16 to 18 ft-lb impact energy · 2,700 BPM · 55 lb · 30 in. · 185 cc two-stroke · 0.32 US gal fuel · 7/8 x 4-1/4 in. shank
The only petrol-driven tool in the CP line that drills and breaks. A 185 cc two-stroke runs 2,700 blows a minute at 16 to 18 ft-lb through a 7/8 x 4-1/4 in. shank, so it sinks anchor and blast holes where there is no compressor, then takes a moil point and works as a breaker on the same tank of fuel.
Chicago Pneumatic catalogue it both as a rock drill and as a paving breaker, because it genuinely does both. If breaking is the main job and drilling is occasional, the Road hits far harder at 44 ft-lb. If drilling is the main job, this is the tool.
Against the pneumatic sinkers. A CP 0009 draws 19 CFM and a CP 0069 draws 130; both need a compressor, a hose and somewhere to park the machine. On depth and hole diameter the air drills win comfortably. On getting a hole into rock a mile from the nearest road, they do not compete. Chicago Pneumatic do not publish a maximum drilling depth or a penetration rate for the Red Hawk Drill, so we are not quoting one — call 1-888-883-5144 with the hole size and the formation and we will tell you honestly which tool fits.
The Rail Tamper: Red Hawk Rail
The same 90 cc engine and chassis as the Road, retuned: 30 ft-lb at 1,620 blows a minute rather than 44 at 1,440. A faster, lighter blow that consolidates ballast under a tie instead of shattering the stone. Three shank sizes at the same price.
Red Hawk Rail · 48 to 50 lb · 90 cc two-stroke
30 ft-lb impact energy · 1,620 BPM · 48 to 50 lb · 29 to 30 in. · 90 cc two-stroke · 0.26 US gal fuel · three hex shank sizes
The Red Hawk built for track. Same 90 cc two-stroke as the Road, retuned to 30 ft-lb at 1,620 blows a minute — a faster, lighter blow that consolidates ballast under a tie instead of shattering it. Self-contained, so a gang can work a section with no compressor, no genset and no cable.
Frequency over force
1,620 blows a minute at 30 ft-lb moves and beds stone. The 44 ft-lb Road setting fractures it, which produces fines, which hold water, which is how you get a wet bed and a pumping tie a season later.
Spot maintenance and turnouts
Machine tampers do plain track fast and cannot do much else. Hand tampers do switch and crossing work, level crossings, bridge approaches, road crossings and the spots the machine skipped.
Possession windows
A tool that starts on a pull cord and needs nothing else on the ballast is working inside two minutes of the possession going live.
Why a Petrol Tool Instead of Air
The Red Hawk carries its own power. That removes the compressor, the hose, the fuel to run the compressor and the second person needed to move it.
Utility repair and emergency call-outs
One person, one truck, one tool. No towing a compressor to a leak at two in the morning, no waiting for it to build pressure, no hose across a live carriageway.
Scattered work
Twenty small breakouts across a town costs you twenty compressor set-ups. A Red Hawk moves from one to the next in the time it takes to walk back to the truck.
Remote and access-restricted sites
Rail corridors, embankments, footpaths, roof slabs, inside buildings, anywhere a towable compressor cannot follow you. The tool is the whole system.
What you give up
Air is still better for sustained production breaking with a crew: a compressor feeds several tools at once and hand tools cost less than gas ones. The Red Hawk earns its keep on mobility, not on running cost per hour.
CP pneumatic paving breakersThree Tools, One Platform
Factory figures from the Chicago Pneumatic handheld gas datasheet. All three Red Hawks share a chassis, an accessory range and a service pattern, so a crew running two of them carries one set of spares.
| Model | The job | Engine | Impact energy | Blows/min | Weight | Length | Fuel | Shank sizes | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hawk Road | Breaking concrete and asphalt | 90 cc two-stroke | 44 ft-lb | 1,440 | 48 to 50 lb | 29 to 31 in. | 0.26 US gal | 1 x 4-1/4, 1-1/8 x 6, 1-1/4 x 6 | $4,541 |
| Red Hawk Drill | Drilling rock, and light breaking | 185 cc two-stroke | 16 to 18 ft-lb | 2,700 | 55 lb | 30 in. | 0.32 US gal | 7/8 x 4-1/4 | $5,880 |
| Red Hawk Rail | Tamping ballast under ties | 90 cc two-stroke | 30 ft-lb | 1,620 | 48 to 50 lb | 29 to 30 in. | 0.26 US gal | 1 x 4-1/4, 1-1/8 x 6, 1-1/4 x 6 | $4,541 |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
Read the impact energy and the blow rate together. The Road hits hardest at 44 ft-lb and slowest at 1,440 blows a minute, because breaking concrete wants energy per blow. The Rail trades down to 30 ft-lb and up to 1,620, because consolidating ballast wants frequency rather than force. The Drill runs 2,700 blows a minute at 16 to 18 ft-lb, which is what boring a hole needs. Same engine platform on the Road and Rail, tuned two different ways; the Drill gets the bigger 185 cc engine.
Chicago Pneumatic do not publish sound level, vibration, fuel consumption or run time for any of the three. We would rather say so than estimate. Call 1-888-883-5144 if a job spec requires those figures and we will get them from CP.
Drivers, Shanks and Accessories
The Red Hawk chassis takes post driver and stake driver heads as well as breaker steel, which is what turns it into a fencing and signage tool. Every item below fits all three machines.
| Accessory | Description | Taper | Part no. |
|---|---|---|---|
| U-channel driver | Cup only | Small taper | 9246 0205 83 |
| U-channel shank | 7/8 x 4-1/4 in. | Small taper | 9246 0205 79 |
| U-channel shank | 1 x 4-1/4 in. | Small taper | 9246 0205 80 |
| U-channel shank | 1-1/8 x 6 in. | Small taper | 9246 0205 81 |
| U-channel shank | 1-1/4 x 6 in. | Small taper | 9246 0205 82 |
| One-piece stake driver | 7/8 x 4-1/4 in. | — | 9753 2173 99 |
| Square post driver | 1-1/2 in. head only | Large taper | 9245 9820 10 |
| Square post driver | 1-3/4 in. head only | Large taper | 9245 9820 20 |
| Square post driver | 2 in. head only | Large taper | 9245 9820 30 |
| Square post driver | 2-1/2 in. head only | Large taper | 9245 9820 40 |
| Square post driver shank | 7/8 x 4-1/4 in. | Large taper | 9246 0201 62 |
| Square post driver shank | 1-1/8 x 6 in. | Large taper | 9246 0201 60 |
| Square post driver shank | 1-1/4 x 6 in. | Large taper | 9246 0201 61 |
| Trolley for Red Hawk breakers | — | — | 9234 0006 54 |
| Carrying harness | — | — | 9238 2814 10 |
| Machine box | — | — | 9234 0011 25 |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
Small taper or large taper. U-channel drivers and the one-piece stake driver use the small taper; square post driver heads use the large taper. The shank and the head are ordered separately, so a crew running both buys one shank per taper and swaps heads.
The trolley is worth it. Part 9234 0006 54 turns a 50 lb breaker into something one person wheels along a footpath rather than carries. On a day of scattered breakouts it pays for itself in the first week.
Red Hawk Gas Line Questions
Which Red Hawk do I need?
Pick by the job. Breaking concrete or asphalt is the Red Hawk Road at 44 ft-lb and 1,440 blows a minute. Drilling anchor holes, rebar dowels, probe holes or shallow blast holes is the Red Hawk Drill at 2,700 blows a minute, and it doubles as a light breaker. Tamping ballast under ties is the Red Hawk Rail at 30 ft-lb and 1,620 blows a minute. All three share a chassis and every accessory, so adding a second one is cheap to support.
Is a gas paving breaker as powerful as a pneumatic one?
The Red Hawk Road delivers 44 ft-lb per blow at 1,440 blows a minute, which puts it in the same class as a 60 lb pneumatic breaker such as the CP 1260. What you gain is total independence from a compressor. What you give up is running cost on sustained work, where one compressor feeding several air tools is cheaper per hour than several petrol engines.
Can the Red Hawk Drill replace the Road for breaking?
Only for light work. Fit a moil point instead of drill steel and the Drill works as a paving breaker at 16 to 18 ft-lb, which is useful for a crew that has to drill and break on the same job. It will not match the Road’s 44 ft-lb on slab. If breaking is the main task, buy the Road; if drilling is, buy the Drill and accept a lighter blow.
Why not tamp ballast with the Road or the Drill?
Because a breaker is built to fracture, and fractured ballast turns into fines. Fines hold water, water stops the bed draining, and a wet bed gives you a pumping tie. The Rail’s higher blow rate and lower energy per blow works the stone into place instead of breaking it down. The tunings genuinely differ and there is no switch between them — a gang doing both track and general breaking carries a Rail and a Road.
When does a gas tool make more sense than air?
Whenever mobility beats throughput. Utility repair and emergency call-outs, scattered small breakouts across a town, rail corridors and embankments, footpaths, roof slabs, work inside buildings, and any site a towable compressor cannot reach. One person and a truck is the whole setup, and there is no set-up time at each stop.
What shank sizes do they take?
The Road and the Rail each take three, all at the same price: 1 x 4-1/4 in. at 48 lb, and 1-1/8 x 6 in. and 1-1/4 x 6 in. at 50 lb. The Drill is a single configuration on 7/8 x 4-1/4 in. Order the shank your existing steel is cut for.
Can a Red Hawk drive posts?
Yes. The chassis takes U-channel drivers, a one-piece stake driver and square post driver heads in 1-1/2, 1-3/4, 2 and 2-1/2 in. The shank and the head are ordered separately, and the U-channel range uses the small taper while the square post heads use the large taper. For dedicated post driving, the hydraulic CP PDR range is faster.
What fuel do they run and how long does a tank last?
All three are two-stroke, so they run a petrol and oil mix. The Road and Rail hold 0.26 US gallons and the Drill holds 0.32. Chicago Pneumatic do not publish a consumption rate or a run time for the Red Hawk line, and we are not going to estimate one. Call 1-888-883-5144 if a job spec needs the figure and we will get it from CP.
Do you have sound and vibration figures?
Not from the factory. Chicago Pneumatic do not publish sound power, sound pressure or hand-arm vibration for any of the three Red Hawks in the datasheet we hold. If a specification requires them we will request them from CP rather than publish an estimate.
How fast do they ship?
All three are stocked and same day shipping on orders by 4 pm eastern. Add a shank to the cart above, or call 1-888-883-5144 to have driver heads, a trolley or a carrying harness quoted with the machine.
One engine platform, three different jobs
Tell us whether you are breaking, drilling or tamping and which shank your steel is cut for. We will tell you which Red Hawk fits and whether air would serve you better.