Good affordable impact wrench

Whats a good affordable 1/2 impact wrench for removing tacoma lug nuts? Want something i can use when swapping tires, etc...either corded or cordless, since it stays in garage....

 

Wait for the Black Friday sale at your local Harbor Freight. I bet you'll find a great/affordable one from there.

 

Corded will be the cheapest. I have a Craftsman 1/2" corded impact that will take the nuts off anything. It's definitely cheaper than a Milwaukee cordless. And for how often, i.e. not that often, it gets used, a corded one is fine with me.

 

Milwaukee M12 Stubby Impact! Super small and light, but zips off lugs easily. I use it for everything (haven’t ran my air impact since honestly). I usually have to turn it down to “2” to put them back on or it can over torque them, even with the small 1.5 battery. Thinking about it, it’s probably the best tool I’ve bought in the last 10 years.

$154 M12 FUEL Stubby 1/2 in. Impact Wrench

https://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-25...la-570352784085&ref=&adgrpid=61495038909&th=1

 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-XTR...s-Impact-Wrench-1-Battery-Included/1002274076

 

This! Not the cheapest battery impact, but definitely worth every cent. This does 99% of what I need on a vehicle (I've actually given away my 'windy' gun) with ease.

 

I second this!

I love my stubby.

My Milwaukee impact is pretty good too!

 

A breaker bar. No charging needed, lugs dont get messed up from the impacts, no cross threading when putting them back on

18$

 

Wut? That's not a thing. Only if you try to hammer the lugs on with the impact which is always abad idea.

 

this.

 

The HF corded impact did well for me for a few years. It was about $40 when I bought it and had enough torque to pull the axle nut.

Last year, I got an 18V non-Fuel (brushed) Milwaukee set from HD for a killer price. I've since retired most all of my corded stuff. Even the 1/4in impact can loosen the lugs. The 1/2in is pretty epic though.

 

I have this too but 3/8s. It’s great

 

i still rock my Chicago Electric Harbor Freight 1/2 impact. the first thing you should ask yourself is do you have a battery ecosystem? if that the case just get the bare tool from that company. if not you have to ask a harder question, Which hater you want to be? Milwaukee, Dewalt, Makita, Rigid, Ryobi, Kobalt, Craftman or Flex.

for real you can never go wrong with the big 3 Milwaukee, Dewalt or Makita.

 

Hahaha!

I'm gonna go a bit nutz this year and grab the Milfuckee mower. 1. To get quieter angry pixie power and 2. to get those two lovely M18 12Ah batteries.

C'mon Costco rebate time!

 

I'm also a breaker bar fan for lug nuts. Stores in the truck storage, right next to the torque wrench.

That said, my cordless line has been slowly going to Kobalt. Quality-to-cost, some of their tools are a good purchase. Some of Kobalts' line is overpriced, but their impact wrench and driver are damn good for the money.

 

Pick your favorite color in your price range and call it a day. You can go down a real rabbit hole researching the differences, and unless you're using it daily as means of making money, it doesn't really matter. My personal preference for cordless tool platform is Ridgid from Home Depot. Not because they're any better or worse, but because their tools and batteries have lifetime warranty. If I were looking for the best (only my opinion), I'd go for Milwaukee. If I were looking for affordable, and don't need to depend on this tool daily as a source of income, but still dependable enough that it'll work every time I intend to use it, I vote Ridgid. If you're just looking for the absolute cheapest, pick a color and call it a day. There's really only a few different categories: cheapest/tossup on reliability, mid-range/perfect for DIY home mechanics, high-range/depend on it daily for work.

 

Fun fact rigid (the orange ones) are made by Milwaukee's parent company TTI.

 

I guess I’m old school, but I’m still a huge fan of air power. Always works and I don’t have to worry about batteries & chargers. This one has been working great for me:

 

Agreed. I used to use my air impact to pull wheels off but never on, but now I just use my breaker bar and it's just as quick and I don't have to lug out my air setup. I like the ratcheting style for other uses. I'm not opposed to using my Milwaukee 3/8 M18 Impact to spin the lugs back on after I've started them by hand. The second I get any sort of kick on it (I always go slow) I stop and call it good if they've seated against the wheel and then torque on the ground.

 

I have the M12 fuel stubby 3/8”. Amazing tool especially for the price. Fits in the HFT $5 pelican knock off box nicely.