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What's a good impact gun for a decent price that will hold up well for a weekend warrior like myself? Probably be used less than 10 times a year. Harbor Freight had some for about $43 from Central Pneumatics that did something like 550 ft lbs. Although I'm not familiar with CP that one sounds ok but I'd rather have a little more ft lbs. And I'm guessing air driven (vs. battery) would end up giving more torque for the cost.
Also, with the higher torque capacity I'm wanting I'd guess the 1/2" drive is what I should be aiming for?
After daily use for 13 years, my Ingersol 2131 started getting a little weak and I got tired of chasing the forward selector across the floor, I bought an Earthquake 1/2" drive. Got it on sale for about $145. Impressed so far, it's only been a few weeks. I take tractor trailer wheels off with it. It has the power to do what you want and breaks bolts if you're not careful. 1190# breakaway torque...
electric impacts are the way to go anymore. Buy once, cry once. I love my Milwaukee Fuel 18V. Its a beast. i think i got it on sale at home depot for $180
electric impacts are the way to go anymore. Buy once, cry once. I love my Milwaukee Fuel 18V. Its a beast. i think i got it on sale at home depot for $180
I picked up the cheap 1/2" HF battery impact, works great for the money.
Removed lug nuts with no problem.
To the OPer, whatever impact wrench you pick up, get a set of impact sockets to go with it.
They're made of specially hardened steel and thicker than regular sockets to take the beating from an impact wrench.
Last edited by moparado; Sep 20, 2017 at 08:38 AM.
I picked up the cheap 1/2" HF battery impact, works great for the money.
Removed lug nuts with no problem.
To the OPer, whatever impact wrench you pick up, get a set of impact sockets to go with it.
They're made of specially hardened steel to take the beating from an impact wrench.
I picked up the cheap 1/2" HF battery impact, works great for the money.
Removed lug nuts with no problem.
To the OPer, whatever impact wrench you pick up, get a set of impact sockets to go with it.
They're made of specially hardened steel and thicker than regular sockets to take the beating from an impact wrench.
They're also made to be more ductile than regular sockets. Here's a good link with lots of information you never wanted to know about tooling, haha
All kinds of good info to the left of that page...might be common knowledge to a lot of people, but there's also a lot of people who don't know. Give it a read, there's some good stuff there.
realy happy with my 20V dewalt 3/8" impact. it might seem small and at first I wasn't sure I made the right decision vs a 1/2 impact, but now I love it. it might not take care of rusty leaf spring / control arm bolts like an air impact or a bigger electric one, but I soon discovered it comes in really handy for everything else and saves a ton of time. for the bigger stuff I break it free with a breaker bar and finish it with the impact.
also if I'm lazy it has enough strength to remove my lug nuts that I torque to 110ft/lb. feels great in your hand, is compact enough for tight spots, and the battery lasts very long (at least for me, never had to use the 2nd battery during a full day at the junkyard)
might not be what you're looking for but thought i'd share my experience. i'd probably go with the same brand when looking for a real strong impact. i also don't have a big enough compressor and got to like electric impacts. nowadays they're very powerful so the idea of air being better than electric is not that accurate anymore.
I got the Kobalt 8-Amp 1/2-in Corded Impact Wrench from Lowes. At $130 I used a $50 gift card so it was cheaper. And with corded you don't have to worry about replacing expensive batteries when they go bad. All you need is an extension cord.
So far, after 3 years, it has removed everything except 1 rusted out hub bolt.
I have had multiple Snapon and Blue Point electric impacts over the years. I have had an issue with almost every single one. They lasted less then a year with day to day use. Now I have Snapon's newest 3/8" gun and it has been good. I dont use it much though. It pulls off pretty much every bolt and even lug nuts. Would I pay $600 again for another one, heck no. When it dies, I am either getting a Milwaukee or Dewalt but still in the 3/8" version. I will leave air to power anything that needs a 1/2" socket.
Need some direction on getting an impact wrench
