Cordless Impact gun suggestions?

when I worked at a dealership some guy brought in a polaris atv with a stuck stator bolt. no one in the shop had an impact that could get it off. that included a snap on, a kobalt 18v cordless impact, and a ingersoll rand, we even used a 3 foot breaker bar.
I ran across the street to lowes and got their Kobalt 1000 ft/lb pneumatic impact and it took the bolt off like it was finger tight.
the reviews of it have a lot of people complaining about the forward and reverse buttons falling off though. so far that's never happened to me. but the thing is light, powerful and quiet.

 

It all depends on what you are using it for and if you have air backup to get stupid tight shit loose.
One of the cheap 1/2” drive one works fine for lug nuts, sprocket nuts and stuff that isn’t super tight and doesn’t need to be. We have a Hitachi one we bought years ago for pit stops at the 200 I still use if I need past the reach of my air hoses and on the Race car to zip wheels off and on.

For a 3/8” you can’t beat the Snap-on 12V LI battery impacts. I use it or the ratchet that uses the same battery 99% of the time. None of the Lowe’s, Home Depot or HF brands are even close to what they can do and are useful for.

 

That’s the key, find when they are running a special on pretty much any tool you need that comes with a couple decent sized batteries. I have cheap ryobi stuff for around the house mainly because I bought 2 tools and got 4 4.0 batteries plus an additional quick charger. I have a mikwake impact I bought a couple years ago and I use it way more than I thought I would. I’m very good about keeping l-ion batteries charged up so never had an issue and never have come close to it running out of battery even though I have 2 for it. Not looking but if i find another deal on more Milwaukee stuff I’ll retire the ryobi stuff to the boat.

 

You don’t realize how much of a pain air hoses are, even with good reels and plenty of air drops until you don’t need to use them.

 

If you use your battery powered Milwaukee stuff a lot consider getting the FUEL models. I believe the difference is brushless motors and longer battery life as a result. About 2X the price so there's that.

 

LOL, I reckon I do. Been in shops working with them since the early eighties. Like I said, most of the time I use the 3/8” snap on. There are times it doesn’t have the balls to do the job though and I have to break out a air hose and 3/8” air impact. If I’m using a 1/2” gun it is on a air hose 99% of the time. The battery powered 1/2”stuff is slower, heavier, bulkier and less controllable than the air guns. IMO
Like all things, sometimes the old way is still the best way.

 

Milwaukee fuel model. Like a pitbull stand, youll be dead before it fails.

 

I can show you a few dead ones. of all the brands I've used over the years in construction and mechanic work DeWalt is king. I tried Makita and while they are strong and built pretty well their weak spot is the triggers of the drills and impacts. it only lasts about 2.5 years and it will start to fail. I've had to replace 4 of them.

 

What the hell are you using them for? ive had one for 4 years and this other for 2.

 

my former tool repair guy would disagree.

 

So would I.

There’s a reason I ditched the yellow and black...

 

Most of HF's power tools are made in TAIWAN vs CHINA....Big difference in quality. Taiwanese quality is comparable to Japanese.

Check out the video reviews and breakdowns of HF air/battery/power tools vs the likes of SNAP ON....It'll be an eye opener.

 

I have the "Ryobi 18-Volt ONE+ Lithium-Ion Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in. Impact" takes off all my lug nuts, and the power on high has gotten me into enough trouble, so it has enough power for almost every job I threw at it.

Going on 3 years with it.

 

I bought the Milwaukee 18V combo pack a few months back and just last week ordered the 1/2" drive 1400lb impact because it uses the same batteries. I use the 3/8" drive for all the normal stuff, but the big one is so nice for dealing with the big stuff without needing air hoses. Because I already had batteries I found the tool only on sale for $200.

 

i just use a 1/2" to 3/8" adapter and seems to work fine

 

If you've never found a nut that the 3/8" impact couldn't get off then you're not trying hard enough.

 

Front sprockets on my bike always needed the 1/2".

BTW my vote for power tools, including impact go to Bosch

 

The Milwaukee M18 Fuel 1/2" drive is the bees knees. It's overkill for 90% of the jobs, but having the 1,400 lbs of torque on demand is very nice. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauk...ith-Friction-Ring-Tool-Only-2767-20/302654201

 

"Nut-Busting Torque" I'm sold

 

Nothing I enjoy more than busting nuts!