Cordless Impact Driver

[Steve C]

What size (volts) do you like best? I have never used one but I want to try them because I use my 18 volt drill all over the shop and house but mostly for driving screws in wood. I am told they are easier on the wrist than a drill. But there are just too many choices and prices out there for me to choose from blindly and thought someone might offer some tips on what to look for or avoid.

The impact driver will drive the screws without camming out of the heads and stripping them out. Get one that will use your batteries and you will be a happy camper. You will never try to drive a screw with a drill again.

My all timer favorite is the Milwaukee v18.

 

[Steve C]

What size (volts) do you like best? I have never used one but I want to try them because I use my 18 volt drill all over the shop and house but mostly for driving screws in wood. I am told they are easier on the wrist than a drill. But there are just too many choices and prices out there for me to choose from blindly and thought someone might offer some tips on what to look for or avoid.

I think I have them all. I like the balance and small weight of the Makita along with the ability to use both 1.5 and 3.0 Amp Hour batteries. The DeWalt is similar in size and performance, it just doesn't feel as compact. The Milwaukee V18 is the KIng Kong of the bunch. It is a little larger,but it has an impressive amount of power and therefore speed. It will flat out outdrive anything else in the 18 volt class buy a wide margin. It almost has to much power for small screws.

I also have the Bosch Lithium Ion 12 volt max/ 10.2 volt impact driver and about 8 batteries. It does a remarkable job for what it is, but the Makita with the 1.5 Amp hour battery is almost as small and is much faster. These are all the Lithium Ion ones I have.

I also have several NiCad versions. I have Craftsman 14.4 and 19.2 volt units. They are hard to beat if cost is a concern. They are very adequet for home owner use, the homeowner style battery capacity is the only drawback along with the aditional weight and bulk of the NiCad battery pack. On the pluss side there are many additional tools that sears sells that use the same battery and the batteries are often obn sale for only about $25 each

One of my favorite NiCad units is a Denali brand sold thru Amazon.com. I bought several of them as bare tools for around $20 each. They work about as well as a Ryoby or a Craftsman with a few advantages. They have a built in led light that shines up on the impact area with its own on and off switch, so you can use it like a flashlight without having to press the trigger. The Battery mount rotates 360 degrees so you can swivil it out of the way to get into tight places. The battery also sems to have a rather large capacity for a consumer grade tool, it holds it charge while stored exceptionally well for a NiCad, and it has a built in charge indicator. All in all it is a very nice unit for very little money.

I think the sensible thing to do is get one that uses the same batteries that you have for your drill. You won't be dissapointed.

 

[QRTRHRS]

One of the articles I reviewed when I was in the market pointed out the weight of an 18V Lithium Ion vs a 14V Lithium Ion. They suggested going with an 18V for heavy duty use but that the 14V models were easier to handle for lighter or all around duty. The article suggested that the 14V would do the heavy stuff but the battery life would be shorter.

Based on that review, I bought a 14V Hitachi Lithium Ion, my first Hitachi tool ever. At that time, it seemed a better option than the Milwaukee or Dewalt options, my usual choices.

I can tell you that I have driven hundereds of three inch plus screws into PT lumber while building out horse stalls with zero issues. The 14V drills lighter weight was nice when I carried it in a bucket while installing fence hardware too.

Regardless, these tools are amazing to use. I do find that with the longer sizes that square or star (torx) hardware heads work better than phillips. The phillips need a little more pressure to prevent spinning out.

 

[Steve C]

One of the articles I reviewed when I was in the market pointed out the weight of an 18V Lithium Ion vs a 14V Lithium Ion. They suggested going with an 18V for heavy duty use but that the 14V models were easier to handle for lighter or all around duty. The article suggested that the 14V would do the heavy stuff but the battery life would be shorter.

Based on that review, I bought a 14V Hitachi Lithium Ion, my first Hitachi tool ever. At that time, it seemed a better option than the Milwaukee or Dewalt options, my usual choices.

I can tell you that I have driven hundereds of three inch plus screws into PT lumber while building out horse stalls with zero issues. The 14V drills lighter weight was nice when I carried it in a bucket while installing fence hardware too.

Regardless, these tools are amazing to use. I do find that with the longer sizes that square or star (torx) hardware heads work better than phillips. The phillips need a little more pressure to prevent spinning out.

I would be surprised if the Hitachi 14.4 volt was much lighter than the Makita 18 volt with the 1.5 amp hour battery. It is a very small and light weight tool. The Makita has the advantage if a 15 minute battery charge and 2 different sized batteries to use in the same tool. Using the 18 volt battery format opens up a lot of useful possibilities that are not available in a 14.4 volt format. Makita, DeWalt and Milwaukee have a very extensive line of tools that they have made available for the 18 volt form factor, many of them are not available in other voltages and the difference in weight of a 14.4volt battery and an 18 volt battery of similar amp hour ratings in the Lithium ion cells isn稚 much.

Having said all that, if the 14.4 Hitachi does the job and fits your hand, then that is the tool for you. They are nice tools and the any of the Lithium Ion batteries are the best.

The original poster said he already had a drill, I advised him to buy an impact driver to use his existing batteries, as I have not yet found one that didn稚 far outperform the same manufacturers drill when it comes to driving screws. Of all the ones I have I find myself grabbing the Makita with the small battery the most, but if I am going to drive a lot of screws I go for the Milwaukee and the 3.0 amp hour battery. That thing is unbelievable. It will twist off ｼ" bolts like they are taffey.

 

[ScottAR]

I have a 12v dewalt and an 18v dewalt. They'll drive the same screws.
The 18v will drive more of them faster. The 12v is quite a bit lighter and
more nimble.

Get somthing to match your other cordless tools if possible. I'm up to
8-9 drills/drivers and interchangeable batteries are a nice plus.

 

[MikePA]

The phillips need a little more pressure to prevent spinning out.

This is why I switched to McFeely's stainless steel square drive screws for fence work.

 

[Kays Supply]

Another vote for the DeWalt 18v. I have two for work now and just ordered a third for my other man. I am replacing a Bosch. If my guys can't tear it up, it is pretty good. They are having pretty good luck with all my DeWalt 18V. The recip saws are great also.

 

[SpringHollow]

The Makita 18V Lithium Ion works great. It always gets good reviews from the pro's as well. It has great balance.

Ken

 

[QRTRHRS]

Steve C, I agree with everything that you said. I have a Milwaukee 18V nicad set that came with three batteries and it is nice to have everything compatible. I have only had the Hitachi about a year and a half but since that time, there are a lot more offerings. At the time, I had narrowed it down to either a Makita or a Hitachi. I always kind of shyed away from Hitachi. To me, they look more like athletic shoes, lol.

 

[Steve C]

I always kind of shyed away from Hitachi. To me, they look more like athletic shoes, lol.[/QUOTE]


My wife has told me that some of the Hitachi tools look like something from a science fiction movie. The looks are a little to flashy for my taste. Its to bad because they seem to work well. I see that Makita is starting down that same path with their new circular saw with the chrome accents on it. I think the guys in the design department have been smoking funny stuff during lunch.