What cordless impact driver?

[pablodomingo]

I've got a good cordless drill/driver now but still feel the need to round it out with an impact driver. I have never had one, but I've used a friend's makita which I believe is 14v. Its nice and light. Which impact driver do you prefer/recommend? I just traded off my 18v Dewalt driver due to its weight and I would prefer something that is no heavier than necessary.

[newman]

makita or milwaukee Li-ion is nice

[Keith Mathewson]

I've had a Dewalt and Milwaukee 14.4v and the Dewalt is a stronger driver.

[gburnet]

This one has it all, IMHO - brushless motor, 3 speeds, excellent balance, pretty lightweight, good belt hook, nice LED light, comfortable grip, great run time...http://www.makita.com/en-us/Modules/...aspx?ID=316370

If you want a featherweight, you might consider this...http://www.makita.com/en-us/Modules/....aspx?ID=24056

I own both the above tools & couldn't be happier with their performance. If I had to choose between the 2, I'd go for the BTD 144 because it has all the features I could ever want (I think) in an impact driver.

[Leon HI]

I just picked a HILTI 12 V from HD on sale , impact + 2 batteries and charger for $129 , AND its made in Switzerland and the batteries in Japan, it may not be the very best but it's good nuff for me :)

[FramerTK]

I've got the Milwaukee M18 and I am very pleased with it. It has lots of power, great run time, and controlling the speed with the trigger couldn't be easier. I have heard a lot of good things about Makita as well, but I haven't used one.

[Hoover]

Weight wise you'll be happy with any of the lithium ion's. I believe the dewalt 18 is up to almost 8 lbs where the makita 18v lithium's are in the 4 1/2 lbs. I picked up the makita 18v combo drill and impact kit. Not many hours on it yet but I like it a lot so far. Most of the advise I got was for the makita and milwaukee (mostly makita).

[Gary Katz]

Greg,
Do you think the 18v is really necessary in an impact driver?
Gary

[Greg Di]

This is like a thread from a time machine from five years ago.

I love it when a guy says "what is that thing" pointing to an impact driver.

H-E-L-L-O....what rock have you been hiding under for all these years? LOL

The Makitas are great. I have a bunch of them.

To answer Gary's question, the only time you truly need 18V is when you driving large bolts or a large quantity of long screws.

Otherwise, the 10.8's can do nearly anything.

[Tom Bainbridge]

the 10.8s dont have belt hooks (well last time i bothered to have a look)

any impact driver (or any other type of driver) without one is a waste of space and money

as to the 18V question, in my case makita, it depends if you intend to buy other battery tools in the range

otherwise no

i had a 12v hitachi impact when they were still on NiMH batteries. there was no need for any more power, it drove 6 inch screws without pilot holes with no effort

[proclive]

I own the first generation DeWalt 18v and it is a beast. It does drive screws faster than any of the other brands I have used, but we are talking tenths of a second faster. I prefer the Makitas because they are probably the lightest that I have used. As far as the 10.8 impact driver, I never really liked the Bosch one I had. It could barely drive anything without taking its sweet time. I sold it, but I could see using it if you were doing cabinets or trim carpentry specifically.

[cdubya]

I've got the older Makita 14.4 Ni-MH, still running strong after many drops, one day I'll spring for the Lithium. I did have the chance to use a Panasonic Lithium Ion set we had at a shop I worked in and that set was really nice. http://www.cpopanasonictools.com/pro...y7540ln2l.html

Don't know if I'd be as apt walking around the jobsite and up and down ladders with that set though, but it was quiet, smooth, and light as can be.

[whiskytangofoxtrot]

i had a 12v hitachi impact when they were still on NiMH batteries. there was no need for any more power, it drove 6 inch screws without pilot holes with no effort

I STILL have the same model Hitachi, the one w/ the yellow led light on the belt hook.

I can't help but wonder if the cold weather guys might be better served to stay w/ NiMh instead of Li-on just because of the rotten cold tendencies of the Li batteries.

[gburnet]

Greg,
Do you think the 18v is really necessary in an impact driver?
Gary

For finish carpenters, probably not. But for those of us that are remodeling contractors, probably. The Makita BTD142 only weighs about 2 3/4 lbs; how much lighter would a 12 or 14.4v model really be?

Given the compactness of the Makita models & their relatively light weight, I probably wouldn't be likely to trade them in for a lower voltage model unless there was a huge advancement in features or performance with that tool.

And I respectfully disagree with Greg Di re. the 10.8v tools, at least regarding the Bosch model. I have not found it to be a viable replacement for any of our other impact drivers - a complement, yes - a replacement, no.

[Dan Clark]

This one has it all, IMHO - brushless motor, 3 speeds, excellent balance, pretty lightweight, good belt hook, nice LED light, comfortable grip, great run time...http://www.makita.com/en-us/Modules/...aspx?ID=316370

If you want a featherweight, you might consider this...http://www.makita.com/en-us/Modules/....aspx?ID=24056

I own both the above tools & couldn't be happier with their performance. If I had to choose between the 2, I'd go for the BTD 144 because it has all the features I could ever want (I think) in an impact driver.

Greg,

I have the BTD142HW (Great White). It works well, but sometimes I've wished for something that's more flexible. Amazon sells the BTD 144 tool-only for $150: http://www.amazon.com/Bare-Tool-Maki...4133262&sr=8-2 . Will the BTD142HW batteries work in the BTD 144?

Thanks,

Dan.