I'm trying to decide between these two, mostly for use in maintaining or repairing my cars. I view the tool as a convenience replacement for my current socketed, ratchet wrenches. I gather the driver uses bits rather than sockets (a negative), but is lighter and more manouverable (positives.) I imagine I will continue using ratchet wrenches for initial and final (un)tightening, but I like the idea of spinning bolts in no time flat. Please share your experience!
I have both a driver and an impact wrench. Bought the driver first.....and now I never reach for it unless I'm drilling something. Impact wrench is the tool of choice, hands down! You just have to be careful not to strip your bolts, screws, and threads with the impact wrench, they have a lot of power and can do a lot of damage if not used correctly.
You know what I do for a living so take my advice for what it is worth. For a screwgun with 3/8" chuck and impact cordless buy only Dewalt 20vdc 3.0 amp and for a ratchet buy a Milwaukee. Given a preference though, mechanic will still take air tools first if given a choice. PS Get an extra battery pack for each. That's experience talking.
Love my impact wrench (Ryobi) and it is small enough to fit everywhere. With extensions and u-joints, you can virtually reach anything. Love it!!
Not trying to sell any particular brand. I was just impressed that it is small and fits in most places. I'm sure Hitachi makes a similar model.
You should always start threading with your hands, make sure the screw/bolts are threading properly before using the impact. If not threaded properly, the impact will continuing driving with force and strip the threads. I've made the mistake of setting the impact to "tighten" instead of "loosen" once and broken a bolt right off (on a battery module), so you have to not drink and "drive" These impact wrenches come with different torque ratings. The smaller ones are for tight spaces, like under the dash etc but is lower in torque. This is all you'll need for screws and bolts. If you buy the driver and impact both as a package (all of the manufacturers package them this way), you'll save a lot of money vs buying only 1 individually. Amazon often run specials on tools during Black Friday, Christmas and Father's day. The tools go on sale and there's also $20 off promotions. That's the best time to buy.
Somewhat tangentially, it seems as though purchase of the tool only and batteries separately is quite a bit cheaper than packaged together, at least for Hitachi.
I found 1.5 Ah for $50 each, and the tool of $115 -- Vs ~ $340 for the combo package that includes a 3 Ah battery. This is a Hitachi
Having used most of the cordless brands out there my previous recommendations stand, however the Makita set jc1006 listed is a good for light and home use. As to anyone having used both air tools and cordless, quality air tools properly maintained are more reliable and last longer than any cordless in a true work environment. Cordless is only for when you don't have air. Most weekend home jobers can get by without pneumatic tools until they try to pull an axle from a spindle or something requiring more -ss or repetitive use. With air tools though you also need a quality compressor with good volume and it's associated noise. Link to the ratchet is below, although prices and suppliers vary. Milwaukee M12 12-Volt Lithium-Ion Cordless 3/8 in. Ratchet Kit-2457-21 at The Home Depot
Thanks for the feedback, one and all I bought (separately) a Hitachi impact wrench and 1.5 Ah battery, both in battered packaging through Amazon, for $137 total. We'll see in 6 weeks if 'father's day' would have been worth the wait.
They are releasing or already have a right angle impact in the M18 series. Probably going to have to pick one up.
