It's time for the angry garage to get an upgrayedd. I have a big enough compressor, so it's ok if the answer is pneumatic. I need a badass impact. My 30YO craftsman wouldn't loosen the Escape's trailing arm bolts, and I'm sure I can get a new impact for less than the dealer labor to do that job for me.
I have the Milwaukee at 1350 ft-lbs or whatever. I watched one loosen a nut that an 18" breaker bar with a 6 foot pipe wasn't moving and said, "yeah, that."
The breaker bar had noticeable flex (more than 6").
A friend of mine borrowed my 20v Max DeWalt, left the switch in the wrong position and proceeded to snap off one of the wheel lugs on his 3/4 ton Ram pickup. If I recall correctly, it has 1200 pounds of breakaway torque. It's a heavy motherberkeleyer though.
I have something very similar to (if not exactly) this Makita monster. Makita impact
It has crazy power, and I can believe the specs. However, it's super big and heavy. It's a special purpose tool, not a daily use tool. I also have a normal sized Makita brushless cordless impact, and I'm impressed with it's ability to break stuff free, though I still have to sometimes break out the big boy.
The answer to "baddest cordless..." is almost always Milwaukee.
From the Torque Test Channel, the ultimate baddest is the 1" IR W9691, followed by a 1" from Milwaukee and various 2-stroke powered things they've made. More realistically, how much do you want to spend? 1/2in or 3/4in? What kind of battery: normal-expensive, really-expensive, or stooooopid-expensive?
One of the best values is supposed to be a $160 1/2" Astro 1894 'THOR' pneumatic if you have a >6CFM compressor. A pre-production Dewalt DCF961 kicked bolt, followed by the existing DCF900. The 3/4" Makita GWT01Z is even more powerful than the 1/2" XWT08Z but weighs 1/2lb more. HF's Bauer or Hercules Ultra have less absolute performance but are cheap, similar thing for some Craftsman model....
$15 for all the TTC results or you can try to piece it together from their YT vids, some screenshots:
Another vote for the M18 Milwaukee 1/2" and the biggest battery you're willing to lift- I've used mine for a full rally weekend, gone to the junkyard with it the following weekend, and dismantled most of a car all without charging it in between.
I've always been impressed with my Milwaukee stuff (have two flavors of 1/2" impact and a 3/8 impact) but the other day couldn't get a crank bolt loose with the biggest of my choices, making me wonder exactly the same as OP, "what tool do I need!?"
In my case the answer is likely a series of pipes and a breaker bar, but the engine is on a stand, so I prefer the short bursts of an impact vs me pulling steadily on a long lever arm while trying to keep engine stand from rolling away, flipping, or both. I do have a bigger battery that intend to try in my case. Biggest batteries definitely seem to have more ass. Especially obvious on the 12v 3/8 impact.
Spearfishin said:I've always been impressed with my Milwaukee stuff (have two flavors of 1/2" impact and a 3/8 impact) but the other day couldn't get a crank bolt loose with the biggest of my choices, making me wonder exactly the same as OP, "what tool do I need!?"
In my case the answer is likely a series of pipes and a breaker bar, but the engine is on a stand, so I prefer the short bursts of an impact vs me pulling steadily on a long lever arm while trying to keep engine stand from rolling away, flipping, or both. I do have a bigger battery that intend to try in my case. Biggest batteries definitely seem to have more ass. Especially obvious on the 12v 3/8 impact.
You may need "the heavy socket". I've collected a couple of different sized ones and they really do the job. Critical for some Toyota and Honda engines particularly. Whoever developed the concept deserves whatever money they have made off of them.
The most used impact I own is the M12 Milwaukee Fuel 3/8 stubby. If I'm working on anything mechanical it is the first tool I grab every time.
It may not be the strongest but it is certainly the most versatile by far. It pulls 95% of the lugnuts in my yard with minimal fuss. It is compact enough to use in an engine compartment. And while it only has 250 lb-ft of torque, how often do you actually need that much power? If I could only have one, the 3/8 Stubby would be it. Edit to say, while I can certainly buy the bigger, badder version, I've never felt the need to.
never met a bolt my milwaukee fuel 1/2 couldn't break loose. One important thing is to avoid adapters, they kill your torque output to the point that it's worthwhile to have a 1/2 and a 3/8 impact
I recently started a new ecosystem with Bosch. While not the baddest thing on the planet, their new impact driver is pretty sweet. It has a 1/4 hex driver inset INTO a 1/2 socket driver. 2 tools for the price of one!
Can confirm the Milwaukee 1/2 in is a heavy badass. The 3/8 stubby is awesome as well.
Watch for deals on the Milwaukee 2767 now that they just announced the Gen3 High Torque Impact.
Woody (Forum Supportum) said:A friend of mine borrowed my 20v Max DeWalt, left the switch in the wrong position and proceeded to snap off one of the wheel lugs on his 3/4 ton Ram pickup. If I recall correctly, it has 1200 pounds of breakaway torque. It's a heavy motherberkeleyer though.
I have the DCF890B 3/8" 20V impact (along with a few other DW 20V tools). It's does 95% of what I need it for. Unfortunately, at 150ft/lbs it doesn't have enough torque to break lug nuts loose. Thanks to this thread and your comment I finally broke down and bought a DCF899 (700/1200ft/lbs). If I need more torque than that whatever it is is going to a shop.
Sooooo, after I ordered the DCF899B I was watching the Torque Channel on YT. The newer DeWalt DCF900 basically matched the Milwaukee for tested torque. I did a little research and found it at Fastenersinc.com for $219 shipped for the bare tool and they have a $10 off coupon for new customers. If you're already invested in DW batteries and chargers it's a great deal.
Fasteners Inc. - DeWalt DCF900B 20V MAX* XR® 1/2 In. High Torque Impact Wrench With Hog Ring Anvil
Needless to say I'll be returning the DCF899B.
I've had the DeWalt DCF899 for several years, it's a beast.
In reply to RacetruckRon :
That seems pretty damn cheap. Have prices already fallen on these?
Scotty Con Queso said:In reply to RacetruckRon :
That seems pretty damn cheap. Have prices already fallen on these?
This seems like the better deal right now: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-M18-FUEL-18-Volt-Lithium-Ion-Brushless-Cordless-1-2-in-Impact-Wrench-with-Friction-Ring-with-Free-M18-5-0Ah-Battery-2767-20-48-11-1850/305907274
In reply to dj06482 (Forum Supporter) :
Your link wasn't working for me. 2767-20 deal $280 with a 5.0 isn't a bad deal. Those 5.0s are ok batteries for starting out but that's 12 year old battery tech.
RacetruckRon said:In reply to dj06482 (Forum Supporter) :
Your link wasn't working for me. 2767-20 deal
Thanks! The app gave me a bad link to share, I fixed it above, as well. I paid $199 for the same combo 4-5 years ago so it's not the lowest price all-time, but it's a solid deal. Just have to decide if it's worth waiting for the next generation or not. I think the deals on the 2767-20 will continue as the next generation comes out.
In reply to dj06482 (Forum Supporter) :
The cost has gone up since then both to TTI and the consumer. I used to be able to get Milwaukee tools at cost, I know through some friends that still work their that the employee price has gone up a reasonable bit too. That being said they freaking print money with the HTIW, the margin on those are ridiculous.
I have it on good authority 
it's a noticeable stepup but the 2767 is a no nonsense tool. I've used a prototype of the next gen. It is noticeably lighter and those LEDs in the head are really nice. I expect Milwaukee to be really proud of that new one and the price ought to reflect that.
Another Milwaukee fan here. I have 5 M18 Fuel tools now, 1/4, 3/8, 1/2 Impacts, and the 4" grinder.
We use the 1/2" at work all the time. Remember my work is submarine maintenance and we use big fasteners (though the m18 definitely will not take on all of them).
Mrs. preach just got me a 4 slot m12 charger for my birthday this week. When I started chuckling at the gift she asked "What did I not get the right thing?".
I replied, "why, yes, yes you got me the perfect gift. Now I can start buying the m12 tools I want so I can justify this charger." Haha.
+another 1 Milwaukee.
I have the Harbor Freight at home, and it is actually damn good. (I'm limiting myself to 1/2" cordless impacts here, as that is all I have experience with apart from air). It did end up costing nearly as much as the Milwaukee/Snap-On competitors that it compared so favorably with, but does its job well.
At work, I use a Milwaukee, and yes,it is damn nice. I recently got a couple of 12 ah batteries for it @ $250 each (you can do better on Amazon). So, like anything, it can get expensive quick. Honestly, it is no better than the HF, it just feels built better, the batteries can be used on other Milwaukee stuff (cordless angle grinder, and circular saw, I'm looking at you).
TLDR: buy the old Milwaukee while you can.
May not be the baddest, but I'm trying to stay with one brand/battery architecture. All my other battery tools are Ridgid for the battery warranty, so I looked and found this one on sale.
Ridgid $249 with 4.0 Max battery
18v with claimed 15,600 in-lb. Should be here by next weekend...
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