weaker impact wrench, slower or never?

[Danglerb]

When you have a reluctant fastener how do different impact wrenches compare, is that one might take a long time, reversing etc. to get it loose, or it doesn't budge until you get a stronger impact wrench?

 

[shopforeman]

In my experience, some rusted nuts/bolts will come free with some hammering from my impact, (I only have one at the moment-fairly light duty) then the fastener will spin off slowly until it lets go or drops out. Anything that doesn't come loose fairly quick around here gets the Oxy/Acetylene treatment.

 

[arkracing]

Anything that doesn't come loose fairly quick around here gets the Oxy/Acetylene treatment.

I have a really weak impact gun right now. (looking to get a AirCat Nitro Cat thing maybe my wife will see this and get if for x-mas)

Anyway I find that if you give it a bunch of short bursts with the gun, sometimes that helps, if not, I also get out the fire-wrench

 

[kartracer55]

It depends.

Sometimes I will get REALLY lazy on something and I will be using this one gun in particular that is old and pretty weak. If you hammer at a nut long enough, it will eventually start to move.

Other times, a strong gun will just break a fastener because it is SO much torque right up front. A big gun isn't the key to everything, because a stupid person with a lot of torque can to a lot of damage lol

 

[jimmycrackcorn]

If its stubborn I would hit it in reverse then switch to forward and back a couple of times...

 

[fourfeathers]

One trick my dad showed me, is to try loosening, then tighten, then reverse, etc. Seems to work a fair amount of times.

 

[jimmycrackcorn]

Other tricks is to use a short socket if posible, a dab of oil in the gun, sometimes take air out of the compresser until it kicks and hit it again when it's full again

 

[fourfeathers]

If its stubborn I would hit it in reverse then switch to forward and back a couple of times...

Jeez, beaten by a minute! lol

The tire guys here will run a BUNCH of air-tool oil through the gun and on the threads of a stuck lug-nut. It works, or at least gives the truck compressor a chance to catch back up.

 

[Brandon_Lutz]

I usually soak stuck nuts and fasteners first with some JB 80 for a while. Then I hit it with the impact. Go back and forth a little bit and they generally come right off.

If all else fails, good ole heat wrench, aka the torch

 

[shopforeman]

Other times, a strong gun will just break a fastener because it is SO much torque right up front. A big gun isn't the key to everything, because a stupid person with a lot of torque can to a lot of damage lol

Now that's the truth! If all else fails and I can get the box end of a wrench on it with a snipe or another box end locked into the open end of the first...well there ya go...another dummy with a lot of torque!

I haven't run across much that I couldn't break given room to work and enough leverage. Luckily it's usually the fastener that gives in before the wrench.

Disclaimer: Professional wrecker in a closed shop. Do not attempt at home!

 

[Danglerb]

The reason I ask is that I am thinking about buying a cordless impact wrench, like the Dewalt DW056 that is only about 100 ftlbs, which should be dandy all around the house, but will it do diddly at PickAPart?

 

[Detroit Diesel Man]

Even at work with the 3/4" and 1" Impact guns sometimes they dont budge a nut or bolt loose..one trick is to moderately oil the gun right before the stubborn nut/bolt also oil it as you work. I've found this to work numerous times. I oil My guns daily but oilingjust before a stubborn fastener seems to give it a burst of power.


DDM

 

[SteveU]

With a really weak gun like my 'up to 250 ft lbs' one you can hammer on something till the cows come home & it isn't going to break loose. Lug nuts that I have torqued to 100 lbs take a second or so to spin off. Tried to take the lugs off a buddies PU that had been sitting out in the weather & it wouldn't touch them where his Mac gun took them off after a couple of seconds. With the Nitrocat it either spins off or breaks off so some things are better done by hand especially if it is a part that would be hard to replace.

 

[Danglerb]

Did you really work at it with the whimp ratchet, forward, reverse, smack with hammer, or switch right away to the big boy?

At home I will just use my Sears 710 impact wrench, the cordless would only see rough duty in a wrecking yard, and I figure other than suspension parts I may be able to just work around a reluctant nut. Course I will also have a 25" breaker bar with a 3' pipe in my toolbag.