Impact wrench decision

[jives]

I think a cordless impact wrench is in my future, but specs and sizes and configuration have me wondering what to choose. My constraints are as follows: Makita 18V (fits my platform), mostly working on cars (lug nuts, rusty everything), access to tight spots may be needed (everything under a car is potentially hard to reach). More torque seems better, but is that really true? Not sure about speeds, 3/8 vs 1/2. . .what else? The Makita website lists at least 6 different models and I'm stumped.

Thoughts?

Edit: The most important need are large rusty lug nuts and the like. . . seems like 1/2" would be best?
Friction anvil vs. detent anvil vs. hog ring. . . what is the advantages/disadvantages?

 

[MarineScott]

If it fits your platform, do it. I use Kobalt because that was my platform to start. If I wasn't a retired auto tech, I would use Milwaukee. If you didn't have a platform , then I would suggest Hercules by Harbor Freight for the cost and warranty. All this is just my opinion.

 

[Komet]

No one cordless impact wrench is best for everything. The compact unit that fits in tight spaces probably won't bust apart your rusty suspension bolts, and the full size unit that will do said rusty bolts easily is heavy in the hand and bonks into everything all the time.

If you want just one, a mid torque is probably ideal. I get along with an impact driver for light work and a full size for when the bolts aren't listening. Swivels and extensions can compensate for the bulk of the full size to some extent. They reduce overall power but that's why it has excessive power.

 

[cgrutt]

I have Milwakee but Makita should have similar selection. I bought the 1/2 high output (don't recall whatever they call it but the most powerful one they had at the time) and a standard 3/8. The 1/2 is probably overkill for lugnuts but I don't think the 3/8 would actually work esp on my F150 pickup. I've used the 1/2 for suspension work and also for building decks. The 3/8 is great for smaller fasteners on top of engine and general assembly/disassembly. If I only had one I'd pick the 1/2 any day of the week.

 

[WWheeler]

Edit: The most important need are large rusty lug nuts and the like. . . seems like 1/2" would be best?
Friction anvil vs. detent anvil vs. hog ring. . . what is the advantages/disadvantages?

A Hog Ring is sometimes called a Friction ring, and is generally preferred over a detent pin, but not by everyone. A hog ring will hold onto sockets tight but they can be pulled off by hand, and sockets are often harder to pull off when new until the hog ring gets a bit broken in. The hog ring is a consumable and may wear out or break. They are pretty cheap to get and easy to replace. The replacement is the hog ring itself, a really thick c-clip looking thing, and an o-ring that goes behind it. My preferred method is to put the new o-ring on the anvil and set the hog ring on a piece of cardboard on a floor or sturdy table and push the anvil down onto it starting at a slight angle and straightening it up on it as I push down harder until it snaps in place.

Detent pins are sort of like a ratchet or breaker bar anvil but instead of a ball-bearing detent it's a pin that (1) you will need to take care to line up with the hole in an impact socket for the pin to lock into when putting the socket on and (2) will require a small screwdriver or such to push the pin in to remove.

In my experience, detent pins are better suited for situations where there is very little to no changing of the socket on the impact.

 

[setfocus]

1/2" is best for lug nuts and hardware that size found on most suspensions, brakes are a bit of a mix. Good mid-torque should have the power for 80% of that unless you're talking an old rusty beater or hd truck. The mid will be smaller/lighter than high-torque.

So question is. Do you want 100% of the power you might need for a job or is 80% enough and it fits more places with less fatigue

As an auto tech that works in a shop. I prefer air for 1/2". But if I got a 1/2" cordless for wrenching at home or working on some pos dumped in the parking lot, it would be the Milwaukee mid-torque, already invested in m12/m18 line, and theirs is one of the better options.

 

[Wrench97]

Detent pins are great for guns where you rarely change the socket, for example my 1" is a detent pin but 90% of the time it has a 33 mm socket on it for 10 lug unimount wheels. Past that hog ring is easier the swap out sockets on.
The mid torque XWT18Z should have no issues with automotive lug nuts, the high torque like most is larger and heavier if you need that for lug nuts they were installed too tight.

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[finn]

Detent pins are, I think, mandatory for overhead work where a falling socket could be fatal to someone on the ground.

Consider getting a mid torque 1/2” drive and a 3/8” compact. I have impact wrenches from s high torque Milwaukee down to a 3/8” Dewalt Atomic. The Atomic 3/8” gets the most use, followed by the 1/2” mid torque Milwaukee. Very rarely do I drag out the big Milwaukee. It’s too cumbersome and heavy, making it fatiguing and clumsy to use.

 

[pbon]

I live in NH where roads are salted and we have corrosion. I change wheels twice a year — summer to snows and back again. I final torque to spec by hand. While in theory even my M12 3/8 stubby should be able to remove lug nuts on all my cars, which range from 88 to 118 lbs, in practice, it lacks the power to do some of them even with a 6ah battery. So I pull out my M18 Mid Torque and it can do most of them. But not always all. So I almost always have to use my M18 High Torque for some. And if some, it is easier to just use it for all.

My Mid Torque may be an early one that does only 450lbs. Maybe if I got the latest one that does 650 lbs, it would do the job. Have not bought one to try yet.

 

[Rusted Nut]

I have a Milwaukee 1/2” mid-torque, a 3/8” stubby impact, and 3/8” ratchet; those 3 cover 95% of any home DIY auto stuff. I’m sure Makita has comparable tools. The 3/8” stubby is really only good for fasteners up to about 60 ft lbs.

 

[Rabid Badger]

I think a cordless impact wrench is in my future, but specs and sizes and configuration have me wondering what to choose. My constraints are as follows: Makita 18V (fits my platform), mostly working on cars (lug nuts, rusty everything), access to tight spots may be needed (everything under a car is potentially hard to reach). More torque seems better, but is that really true? Not sure about speeds, 3/8 vs 1/2. . .what else? The Makita website lists at least 6 different models and I'm stumped.

Thoughts?

Edit: The most important need are large rusty lug nuts and the like. . . seems like 1/2" would be best?
Friction anvil vs. detent anvil vs. hog ring. . . what is the advantages/disadvantages?

Makita's current mid-torque is an excellent multi-purpose tool.

 

[VolvoRyan]

Worth a looksee on the Torque Test Channel, and cross-check the specs. A lot of 3/8" vs 1/2" mid-torques are the same gun with different anvils.

-Ryan

 

[dnschmidt]

Having every impact Milwaukee makes I will say that I use the High-Torque the least. The modern Mid-Torques go up to 600 ft-lb which is pretty crazy. I don't do trucks or farm equipment so that biases me but for any car work a Mid-Torque can handle everything I can think of but then again I live in Phoenix and not in the Rust Belt.

 

[finn]

Having every impact Milwaukee makes I will say that I use the High-Torque the least. The modern Mid-Torques go up to 600 ft-lb which is pretty crazy. I don't do trucks or farm equipment so that biases me but for any car work a Mid-Torque can handle everything I can think of but then again I live in Phoenix and not in the Rust Belt.

I agree. Thr Dewalt compact DCF923 goes up to 450 ft lb losening.

i think most brands have improved recently, so don’t get confused by what five year old tools offer.

 

[u2slow]

We have the big makita DTW1002 at work, but 9 times out of 10 the little 1/4" hex impact driver (with 1/2" adapter) is the goto tool.

At home, the big tool is air, and I have the same small makita driver as at work.

 

[Hannahranga]

I have a Milwaukee 1/2” mid-torque, a 3/8” stubby impact, and 3/8” ratchet; those 3 cover 95% of any home DIY auto stuff. I’m sure Makita has comparable tools. The 3/8” stubby is really only good for fasteners up to about 60 ft lbs.

Provided they're torqued correctly and not rusted I've found the 3/8" M12 stubby doesn't have a problem with 100ftlb wheel nuts etc.

 

[bcradio]

Provided they're torqued correctly and not rusted I've found the 3/8" M12 stubby doesn't have a problem with 100ftlb wheel nuts etc.

Same here

 

[richfinn]

I've downsized from a full sized IR cordless 1/2" impact to a Milwaukee gen 2 Mid-Torque 1/2" and I'm very happy with it (my first M18 tool) I work on cars/motorcycles and vans mostly (in rusty old England)

The key for me is having a much lighter more accessible tool and not ultimate "nut busting torque"

It's not quite as powerful on paper (or on YouTube) as the very latest from Makita or DeWalt but it's almost definitely the most compact unit and shorter by almost an inch than a lot of the competition (Important when working around brakes and suspension parts), and in reality who really hammers away at bolts for 15-20 seconds, all the "grunt" is where you need it in the first few hits on the Milwaukee.

I don't bother with a dedicated 3/8" impact and just use a stepdown impact adapter (adds 1/2" to length) on the lowest torque setting (I do like my 3/8" m12 fuel ratchet though) the 3/8" stubby impact is cheap enough as a bare unit if I ever change my mind.

That said, if I were only using an impact for lug nuts on big pick up trucks occasionally, I would probably go Hi-Torque as having to lower the Jack and break them loose with a breaker bar kind of defeats the object of having an impact in the first place IMO

I have the M12/M18 dual fast charger (cost £20 on sale) which is a really great addition as I now only need a single neat charging point.

The Milwaukee silicone protective boots are also a nice accessory for keeping the tool clean and in good shape, you can buy M12/M18 batteries almost anywhere at very reasonable cost as they are perpetually on sale (buying IR batteries was a complete PITA in the UK and prohibitively expensive).

I can now see why Milwaukee has become so popular with Auto Mechanics as a good value for money proposition compared to IR and Snap-On cordless products (it's just so painless and priced very competitively if you shop for deals online).

I can't really speak for Makita as I've only ever owned a compact 1/4" hex drill/driver (which has also been a great tool).

 

[Rusted Nut]

Provided they're torqued correctly and not rusted I've found the 3/8" M12 stubby doesn't have a problem with 100ftlb wheel nuts etc.

Hmmm. Maybe my battery was getting run down the other day, my stubby was struggling with some fasteners that should have been about 60 ft lbs.

 

[jives]

Thanks, folks, for the lessons. My twin daughters have been asking what dad wants for Christmas. . . too bad a couple of hundred is out of range for them!

 

[richfinn]

Thanks, folks, for the lessons. My twin daughters have been asking what dad wants for Christmas. . . too bad a couple of hundred is out of range for them!

You could ask for a smaller PayPal gift and make up the difference yourself

 

[Dig Doug]

Get the High torque 1/2 now
and
maybe down the road you get a compact 3/8 mid torque Father’s Day is coming…..


lol

 

[engineer2]

I have the Makita XWT08 1/2" Impact. Around 1000 ft-lb loosening torque helps in situations where nothing else is viable. It's a beast at 8 pounds and will split HF Pittsburgh impact sockets without a problem.
Useful for rusted Honda and Pontiac harmonic damper bolts and rusted swollen lug nuts. Saved a neighbor from the misery of swollen Chrysler lug nuts that he couldn't budge with a 2 ft breaker bar.

An impact driver is much more useful, but someday I may get a mid-range 3/8 or 1/2 impact. Not common to have fasteners over 300 ft-lbs on passenger cars and something light and compact is much easier to handle.

 

[mervyn]

Got one of these awhile back. It laughs at lug nuts.

M18 FUEL™ 1/2" High Torque Impact Wrench with Friction Ring Kit

www.milwaukeetool.com

 

[mepstein]

Hmmm. Maybe my battery was getting run down the other day, my stubby was struggling with some fasteners that should have been about 60 ft lbs.

Because of friction and corrosion, breakaway torque can be multiples of the torque initially used to set the fastener.

 

[mepstein]

I got one impact wrench years ago after a year at a repair and restoration shop. I wasn’t a tech but I managed them and got to see how they worked and what they used. Now I have 8 impacts. Everything from 1/4” impact driver to 1/2” high torque.
Get something, use it and add to your collection as you need it. My go-to is 3/8” mid torque for 80% of the fasteners . I work on some rusty project cars so the high torque 1/2” is my best friend for that. I much prefer impacts to breaker bars.

 

[ohhimark]

I have the Makita XWT08 1/2" Impact. Around 1000 ft-lb loosening torque helps in situations where nothing else is viable. It's a beast at 8 pounds and will split HF Pittsburgh impact sockets without a problem.
Useful for rusted Honda and Pontiac harmonic damper bolts and rusted swollen lug nuts. Saved a neighbor from the misery of swollen Chrysler lug nuts that he couldn't budge with a 2 ft breaker bar.

An impact driver is much more useful, but someday I may get a mid-range 3/8 or 1/2 impact. Not common to have fasteners over 300 ft-lbs on passenger cars and something light and compact is much easier to handle.

+1 on the Makita XWT08, works great for rusted fasteners/etc.

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