1/4 cordless impact drivers, which has the most power

[ProCharger]

The impacts I am using at work just don't have the muscle to drive home when needed. Who makes the most powerful 1/4" driver out there? Looking for real world experience, not the advertised numbers. Weight and battery lifes not much of an issue as I am only using them about 2 hours worth at a time with minimal use in the 2 hours. 3/8" would be too much for my application and would just shear the heads.

 

[deafcon]

What is your application and current brand? I've sheered the heads off of various machine and self tapping screws with my brushed Hitachi 18v. My Milwaukee brushless 18v seems more powerful than the Hitachi, but the ability to change power settings has allowed me to sheer fewer fasteners.

 

[ADSR]

Hex or square?

 

[ProCharger]

Tapcons, attaching front porch step form boards to foundation walls on split foyers. I currently have makitas, model bt141. Using 5/16 hex heads with 3/16" pilot holes. I can get them half way into the concrete and it turns slower and slower until it basucally stops about 1/8" from being tight....what I am doing they must be tight. If I drill the pilot hole and then run the drill bit back and forth about 10-15 times it usually works but I would like to get it the first time. I used a siding guys very old dewalt one day when I forgot mine at home and that sucked them tight without any hesitation every time. I hate to ditch the makita line since I already have the batteries but it gets frustrating when I have to run the pilot hole multiple times to make it work.

 

[kctyphoon]

milwaukee m18 fuel / 3 speed brushless Makita / and the last model brushless Dewalt with the recessed chuck are probably the best carried in home stores.. i belive the Milwaukee specs out the highest, and is believed to be the best which is why they have such a huge following.

if you need to do big lags - you might consider an impact wrench over the driver.. the Milwaukee fuel 3/8 wrench is rated at 200 ftlbs, (will break smaller fasteners) while the fuel driver is about 133 ftlbs.. most of the torque ratings have been found to be accurate..

your model is rated at about 108 ftlbs.. the 3 speed brushless makita is 125, same as the dewalt i mentioned..

edit - i also think yours might just be "tired" if it has seen alot of use - but if you already own alot of Makita stuff if makes sense for you to stay within the brand.. i hard a hard time switching from Dewalt to Milwaukee when i wanted new tools - but im so glad i did. i have never bought ANTHING from Milwaukee (down to scissors) that i do not believe i have gotten more than my money's worth. its almost like ive gotten so use to being let down by purchases that im amazed when things actually work they way you think they should w/o having to buy something like Hilti.

 

[mrvm]

Got two brushed 18V Makita impact drivers that have performed well over several remodeling jobs and the one used the most has started to show signs of weakness which I attribute to worn brushes. The other one is still as good as new. Perhaps your Makita needs some new brushes? Tough to buy into a new power tool line when you still have the Makita batteries but I did that because the M18 had some neat innovative new tools.

 

[Todd1803]

I've got a Ridgid 18v Li impact driver that I use for wood work as well as mechanical work using a hex bit 3/8 drive adapter. In my mind it twists hard while tightening, but seems to be lacking in break-away torque.
I have other Ridgid tools that share batteries, but if doing it again I would have gone with DeWalt

 

[mmelton005]

Bosh ps20 if your looking for something compact

 

[fordgasm]

I may get flamed for this but I have this Craftsman C3 impact driver and love it, never had a problem with it. It also goes on sale at Sears just about every week, no joke. Has 1605 in-lbs of torque.

 

[rice rocket]

Tapcons, attaching front porch step form boards to foundation walls on split foyers. I currently have makitas, model bt141. Using 5/16 hex heads with 3/16" pilot holes. I can get them half way into the concrete and it turns slower and slower until it basucally stops about 1/8" from being tight....what I am doing they must be tight. If I drill the pilot hole and then run the drill bit back and forth about 10-15 times it usually works but I would like to get it the first time. I used a siding guys very old dewalt one day when I forgot mine at home and that sucked them tight without any hesitation every time. I hate to ditch the makita line since I already have the batteries but it gets frustrating when I have to run the pilot hole multiple times to make it work.

Just supplement with the Makita impact wrench. Why would you switch battery platforms for one application?

 

[Catadj78]

I have the dewalt 20v brushless and it seems as if has plenty of power but I havent used any of the others so I have nothing to compare to

 

[99_xc600]

I have a Porter Cable 20V LION 1/4" Impact and it has enough torque to take the lugs of my car.

 

[Hpozzuoli]

I am a contractor and will only use DeWalt. I am using the brushless DCF886. I haven't had a reason yet to look elsewhere than DeWalt. I just changed my whole platform from 18v to 20v this year.

I run tapcons, large lags, and long coarse threads and never had an issue. Obviously it won't remove lug nuts ( I haven't tried but who knows), but it will do everything I need it for in construction.

 

[kctyphoon]

I am a contractor and will only use DeWalt. I am using the brushless DCF886. I haven't had a reason yet to look elsewhere than DeWalt. I just changed my whole platform from 18v to 20v this year.

I run tapcons, large lags, and long coarse threads and never had an issue. Obviously it won't remove lug nuts ( I haven't tried but who knows), but it will do everything I need it for in construction.

im not a Dewalt guy (anymore) but that will most certainly remove lugs from a car.. if ANY (18v) impact driver these days cant, it shouldnt even be considered. my Milwaukee Fuel spins them off no problem, even took the axle nut off my honda.. thats 1/4" hex drive spinning off a 37mm (i think) nut.. cant ask for more than that..

 

[ADSR]

I am a contractor and will only use DeWalt. I am using the brushless DCF886. I haven't had a reason yet to look elsewhere than DeWalt. I just changed my whole platform from 18v to 20v this year.

I run tapcons, large lags, and long coarse threads and never had an issue. Obviously it won't remove lug nuts ( I haven't tried but who knows), but it will do everything I need it for in construction.

I got left out in the cold with dewalt twice now. First with 36v, then with 18v. Been building houses for the last 10 years. 8 with dewalt, 2 with milwaukee fuel.

Fuel wins hands down. Dewalt 20v is still good stuff tho.

 

[Rodbuster56]

I seem to remember reading somewhere, that the new 20 volt Dewalts are really only 18 volt? The batteries have the same number of cells as the 18 volt, so...? Maybe a marketing ploy?

Apologies if this is off-topic.

 

[kctyphoon]

actually - id hate to admit this, but after watching another one of Woodstockva's reviews - it seems like the new ridgid is king on the hill, with almost 167 ftlbs of torque in the impact driver they have.. thats pretty impressive..

 

[jd_1138]

My Ryobi puts out about 1600 inch/pounds of torque. I haven't met a fastener that it can't drive yet.

However, it's more of a DIY/homeowner-grade tool, I guess. If I were a pro, I'd probably go with Makita, Bosch, or Milwaukee. Every pro I know (plumber, electrician, HVAC guy) uses Makita.

 

[ADSR]

actually - id hate to admit this, but after watching another one of Woodstockva's reviews - it seems like the new ridgid is king on the hill, with almost 167 ftlbs of torque in the impact driver they have.. thats pretty impressive..

It does look impressive. But i've seen this with ridgid before. They start off strong and get weak within months.

I'd be looking for a long term review before buying the product.

 

[jd_1138]

It does look impressive. But i've seen this with ridgid before. They start off strong and get weak within months.

I'd be looking for a long term review before buying the product.

And really, the differences are negligible. I mean you'd probably be hard pressed to tell the difference between a 1700 inch pounds Ridgid and a 1500 inch pounds Milwaukee or whatever the actual #'s are.

I did recently read a review of a new Makita cordless impact that is supposedly 30% more silent, but the thing only puts out like 400 inch pounds of torque. Um, I will pass on that.

 

[LordPsychon]

I have a Porter Cable 20V LION 1/4" Impact and it has enough torque to take the lugs of my car.

I have the old 18v version but it has enough torque to do the job on my car (2007 Elantra). To anyone that has the 18v PC platform, Lowe's is selling the impact online for like $8.

 

[kctyphoon]

I have the old 18v version but it has enough torque to do the job on my car (2007 Elantra). To anyone that has the 18v PC platform, Lowe's is selling the impact online for like $8.

$8?? umm.. where?? i just looked, didnt see anything