Impact driver bits

[BreeStephany]

Working as an electrician and carpenter, I have come to love my 1/4" impact driver. I use it for driving fasteners, securing emt fittings, assembling strut racks, etc.

Working previously as a carpenter and in day to day work, I have truly come to love and appreciate GRK bits for how many fasteners I can drive on one bit, but working as an electrician, I tend to use robertson (square drive) and philips drive bits a lot, however, GRK doesn't make bits in anything other than torx.

I have used Bosch, Dewalt, Makita, Milwaukee, Norske and Rack-a-Tier bits in the past. The Bosch, Dewalt and Makita bits generally get eaten up pretty quickly, even their "impact rated" bits, and generally last me half a day to a days worth of use before they strip out, especially the Robertson / square drive bits.

The Milwaukee bits generally last me a day to a day and a half before they start to strip out.

I have had decent luck with Norske bits, but when working with EMT fittings, even those have a pretty limited life.

I have been very impressed with GRK for how long they hold up, often times lasting me weeks, if not months before I have to replace them. I know that their life is in part to the fact that torx bits are much less likely to slip than that of robertson or philips, but unfortunately, torx fasteners haven't caught on in the electrical field.

I wanted to pick everyone's brains on their favorite bits and what everyone has found to hold up the longest to the abuse of an impact driver. Thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Jlarson]

Milwaukee and Dewalt, the maxfit ones with the yellow sleeves. That's what I can get in larger packs from a supplier at good pricing.

 

[D-Vice]

I run a 1/4 impact to 3/8 socket adapter. Dropped on a koken 3/8 socket bit holder part no 3138 if I recall. Which holds the 5/16 bits. Then I picked up some 10 packs of vessel 5/16 bits.

They hold up excellent for me. But I doubt I use them as much as you use yours. They get quite a bit of use, but I think an electrician uses them more than a mechanic.

They're about 10.00 for 10 bits.
https://global.rakuten.com/en/store/mutsuura/item/10125484/
https://global.rakuten.com/en/store/mutsuura/item/10125486/

I'm interested in trying some of the GRK now.

 

[rlitman]

Have you tried the Milwaukee ACX bits? They fit the square and slot at the same time. Stay centered, and don’t cam easily.

 

[Eric29]

My favorite bits are the ones you just recommended because I’ve tried a lot of the others, and they don’t work very well. So I may as well try those. I bought some Milwaukee bits, and maybe I just got a bad batch but they were really soft. Ditto for Dewalt.

 

[Firebrick43]

Have you tried the Milwaukee ACX bits? They fit the square and slot at the same time. Stay centered, and don’t cam easily.

+1.

However hard to find in the stores except as part of a large set.

 

[WittHay]

Irwin Power Bits used with either a Dewalt 12V or Milwaukee Fuel M12 screwgun. Most industrial places up here have Irwin and even the regular Irwin bits last a long time. I find the screw guns with the adjustable setttings work better than the impacts for #1 and #2 Robertson.

Have a DeWalt 12V impact and use it mainly with 1/4 nutsetters for metal siding and roofing on sheds and travel trailers. I have the same problem with nutsetters that the OP has with bits. Everything wears out quickly . Found DeWalt to be the best.

 

[techieman33]

The Makita gold have treated me well.

 

[GirlnAgarage]

I'm tending to use the Dewalt bits a lot. Them coming in the big packs helps the choice I think. Mostly use the Phillips heads and Robertson drive. The impact can wear out the Kreg Robertson long bits pretty quick. I imagine my technique might come into play (I did put it into my leg once). I don't use torx too much unless breaking a random fastener on the truck so can't recommend a fave on that one.

A recommended brand I've read about is Milwaukee but I haven't tried them. Like I said, got packs of Dewalt and still going through those.

 

[Yarpo]

http://www.apex-tools.com/

 

[rlitman]

My favorite bits are the ones you just recommended because I’ve tried a lot of the others, and they don’t work very well. So I may as well try those. I bought some Milwaukee bits, and maybe I just got a bad batch but they were really soft. Ditto for Dewalt.

The Milwaukee bits are pretty soft, but you want a relatively soft bit if you’re using an impact, or else you get shattering. Even so, I’ve found that the Milwaukee reaches for the softer end of the range.

However, the ECX pattern gets around the softness issue by engaging the fastener over more surface. When it fits, I find it helps a lot.

 

[HenryAZ]

Wiha has a whole line of impact bits.
Terminator Performance Impact Bits, in Phillips, Pozidriv, Torx, Square, and Hex. I'm on my first set, and have no report on their long term performance.

 

[Dakkyz]

I personally buy these they serve me well for impact and non impact, framing / dry wall / and just general usage.

Where to buy them in the US though is different story.

https://www.amazon.de/dp/B001JG5HQQ/

 

[KDoug]

Klein makes impact rated bits that are made in the USA. I have no idea if they are any good or not, they just caught my eye while glancing through their catalog.

 

[speed88]

I been having good luck with the Wera Impaktor bits. I haven’t used them a ton but the few times I used them they’ve held up great.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004VZKNDY/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[DPkiller]

I use the HF 3 pack ones for 99cents,I have had the same one for almost 3 months now that handles my M12 2553 full force.

They do get chewed but for 99 cents I really don't care, haven't torn up my craftsman sockets yet.

If your wanting straight torx or something then really the only ones I've found has been tool truck versions which is probably overkill for you. But yes the blister package'd ones are junk.

 

[tarbellb]

Im also on the same hunt, bought some gold Makita out of desperation. No report on longevity so far, but they fit #2 phillips nicely.

Other brands that I have heard to check- Vega and Apex.

Vega are harder to find, both are somewhat pricey.

 

[ReggieR]

The Makita gold have treated me well.

Same. Never any unexpected problems.

 

[BreeStephany]

Have you tried the Milwaukee ACX bits? They fit the square and slot at the same time. Stay centered, and don’t cam easily.

I just ordered up a few of the Rack-A-Tiers power drive and a few of the Milwaukee ECX bits to test, hopefully they perform better for me.

 

[BreeStephany]

My favorite bits are the ones you just recommended because I’ve tried a lot of the others, and they don’t work very well. So I may as well try those. I bought some Milwaukee bits, and maybe I just got a bad batch but they were really soft. Ditto for Dewalt.

The old Milwaukee impact rated bits I used to buy seemed to last forever, but ditto on the newer ones, which just seem to be really soft and seem to strip VERY easily.

 

[BreeStephany]

I been having good luck with the Wera Impaktor bits. I haven’t used them a ton but the few times I used them they’ve held up great.

I haven't tried the Wera bits as of yet. I just ordered up a set of Rack-A-Tier power drive and Milwaukee ECX bits to test and am hoping to have some luck with them, if not, I will definitely have to try Wera, though I'm hoping to find something that is locally obtainable.

 

[BreeStephany]

I personally buy these they serve me well for impact and non impact, framing / dry wall / and just general usage.

Where to buy them in the US though is different story.

https://www.amazon.de/dp/B001JG5HQQ/

Definitely looking for something preferably locally obtainable, but if they work, they work and I might have to go that route. I just ordered a set of Rack-A-Tiers power drive bits and a set of Milwaukee ECX bits, hoping those help solve my issues.

 

[engineer2]

Makita Gold was free this weekend at Menards after rebate. Bought 3 packs. Will report back.
Have used the Masterforce (Menards made-in-China brand) PZ2 Impact Power Bits and they seem to last just fine.

 

[Skin]

Bought a set of Makita a few years ago. Still on the first P2 bit after hundreds of screws in various projects. Could probably recycle the first one now but definitely hasn't been poor. I do remember they were made in Japan so maybe things have changed.

This is them

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Makita-Impact-GOLD-2-Philips-Steel-Insert-Bit-4-Piece-B-34942/203696807

 

[Firebrick43]

Warning about the makita gold bits and m18 fuel impactor. I have an double end makita gold bit stick so bad in my m18 fuel that I had to stick the bit in a vise and hammer both ways as I pulled on the impactor to get it loose. Didn't think I was going to.

 

[M6erfan]

Wiha has a whole line of impact bits.
Terminator Performance Impact Bits, in Phillips, Pozidriv, Torx, Square, and Hex. I'm on my first set, and have no report on their long term performance.

+1 on the Wiha Terminators

 

[Dakkyz]

Definitely looking for something preferably locally obtainable, but if they work, they work and I might have to go that route. I just ordered a set of Rack-A-Tiers power drive bits and a set of Milwaukee ECX bits, hoping those help solve my issues.

If you can find them in the US at a reasonable price them give em a shot, I have used a Makita impact driver since 2010 with the WERA impact 897/4 IMP R for almost 8 years on and off but seen a lot of usage while the reviews aren't
great for the WERA for what ever reason I use it with these bits and never had a issue of premature destruction.

 

[rlitman]

I just ordered up a few of the Rack-A-Tiers power drive and a few of the Milwaukee ECX bits to test, hopefully they perform better for me.

That Rack-A-Tiers looks nice. I'll be watching to see your comparison.

The only problem I've had with the ECX was if I once managed to get it to slip out and then run the spinning bit into myself, and it cause quite a few more drops of blood lost than a Phillips would.

The old Milwaukee impact rated bits I used to buy seemed to last forever, but ditto on the newer ones, which just seem to be really soft and seem to strip VERY easily.

Yeah, it's a tradeoff. Milwaukee puts out a lot of torque in their guns, so I've had my M18 snap bits from some other makers. The gold Makita P2 bits have served me well so far.

 

[testwerke]

I really like Wiha terminator impact bits.

 

[tonyciambrone]

I will throw in for Wiha Terminator or Irwin Impact

We used to use Milwaukee shockwave and I vowed to never revisit that. Even the torx seem to wear out quickly.

Irwin's will eat up phillips #2 after awhile but I think all impact bits will.
My square drive fit well and look practically unused.

Felo makes a nice impact bit too from what I remember

 

[epmills]

Has anyone tried snap on for this purpose? I work in automotive, so the torx I use in T20-T25 size are never long or being hammered on as in wood screws. But for bigger stuff the snap on heavy duty (gold colored) are the toughest that I have found.
https://store.snapon.com/TORX-174-H...iver-TORX-Heavy-Duty-Removal-T20-P631261.aspx

 

[kctyphoon]

The short story is they will all get torn up if you are running a crazy amount of screws.. the only thing you can really do to stop that is by using a hex head screw, and a nutdriver bit, which I’m guessing you cant.

 

[Hytekrednek]

Zephyr, Apex, Wera, Felo, and Wiha are the only bits I buy now. I have tried many many brands and those are my go to's. Wera for hex bit is hands down the best. Zephyr P2ACR bits and Wera ACR P2 are my go to phillips bits. For the rest I seek out Zephyr or Apex.
For use in impact tools, Wera would be my choice, but I dont use impacts to drive screws.
Here is an awesome deal on 10 Zephyr P2 ACR bits. They are some of the best I have used. Zephyr make the bits for Snap-on, or least they did.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079Q4HHCP/?tag=atomicindus08-20