Lithium ion powered impacts

[ClineWrench]

So I'm toying with the idea of grabbing a 1/2 and 3/8 lithium ion powered impacts to help make "super quick jobs" actually super quick (rather than dragging out air hose, then Illini the car more forward because I'm too lazy to buy longer hose and whatnot.

And so I pose the following question to my faithful and hardy GJ friends. Is there any love for the Craftsman C3 ½” Heavy Duty Impact Wrench?

Keep in mind I don't want to spend so much that it costs more than my IR 1/2 and 3/8, so if you suggest an alternative, please don't suggest a $500 snap-on tool (have plenty of those already).

Thanks guys.

P.S. It's 4 in the morning and I can't sleep, so I'm hoping one of you mods will grace me with moving this thread to the general tool board and not the garage board.

 

[ZRH`]

Air tools are usually cheaper than equivalent quality cordless. Cant speak to the craftsman except that Sears power tools have always been **** in my experience.

I'd be looking at makita, metabo etc.

 

[J Persons]

Air tools are usually cheaper than equivalent quality cordless. Cant speak to the craftsman except that Sears power tools have always been **** in my experience.

I'd be looking at makita, metabo etc.

Ditto on the sears power tools. I have both the 3/8 and 1/2 Makita 18v impacts. The 1/2" is a beast and much more powerful than my Craftsman 1/2" impact air wrench. The 3/8" is light and easy to handle and will just about any thing I ask of it.

 

[3 Gun Shooter]

Check out the Depot, online they have good deals on both 1/2" and 3/8" Milwaukee impact. My 1/2" will be here this afternoon.

 

[volleyball]

I have love for the craftsman. I have it and used it several times. It is a lot more powerful than my air powered one. It has no problem taking off my truck tires.
I have several 19.2v tools and decided it is best to stay on one battery system.
Mine came with a nicad but it is still in the box.

 

[3axap]

I have the C3 1/2" impact and I've honestly been rather impressed with it. On a full charge it will easily remove 20 lug nuts (80 lb-ft torqued) and tighten them all back. I've also used it to bust loose a crank bolt on a car recently and that one is tightened to 160+ lb-ft as per manual. It took about 3 attempts at 5-10 seconds each, but that bolt came out. BTW, I'm using the NiCD battery with mine, so you may see better results with a Lithium. FWD axle nuts also didn't stand a chance against a fully charged battery. That's my experience and for ~$100 I think this wrench is a good deal. Bought mine in 2011 and have used it regularly since then.

 

[nit2wn]

If you go with the Craftsman, you just really need to go to the lithium batteries. The Nicads don't hold enough power long enough to do one justice. I used mine to rotate tires and it does a fine job. I'd recommend it, but only on the lithium batteries. I prefer it over dragging around an air hose.

 

[Jetfixr320]

Pretty happy with my C3 Craftsman 1/2" impact. Great bang for the bucks.

 

[er3456df]

Craftsman lithiums are just fine.

There are 2 different 1/2" impacts, and the new one is definitely better, but either one is fine for regular use. The difference only shows up when you're maxing it out to remove a seized bolt.

 

[Burb]

Pretty much what everyone else has stated. I'm very happy with my Craftsman, and while the NiCad works for a little while, the Lion are much better.

Watch for sales. I already had the impact/NiCad and was looking to upgrade the batteries and I picked up a 3/8" drill/Lion/charger combo for cheaper than what the Battery/charger combo would have cost, then added another Lion into the mix.