1/2" Impact Wrench Recomendation

[BDelling]

I have a Harbor Frieght impact wrench that sometimes doesn't have enough juice to break loose tough bolts.

What would you recommend for a high torque impact wrench? I have a 5 HP, 11.0+ CFM compressor.

Thanks - Bruce

 

[Tools R Us]

IMHO Ingersoll-Rand makes the best. An old school metal 231 is pretty much a lifetime tool, the newer plastic guns make slightly more power and are more ergonomic.

 

[MANUCHAO]

I just scored a used Dewalt DW290 electric impact gun puts out 340 ft-lbs of torque.
I used it a few times and it hasn't let me down...

I also have a craftsman air impact tool but havent used it much...

 

[Pin_Head]

It isn't unusual to run into a bolt or nut that a pneumatic wrench can't spin, no matter what brand (IR, CP, Chinese). Turn up the pressure to the max, and if that doesn't get it, get a bigger wrench. It isn't unusual to break off bolt heads either.

 

[Blue77FJ40]

I like the IR Titaniums. Granted, I'd rather they be aluminum bodied instead of plastic, but they are still the shizzle. I have the 3/8" and the 1/2" models with covers on both of them. The little 3/8 can turn up to about 240 ft/lbs. I use it the most. The 1/2 model goes way over 600 ft/lbs. Very happy with them.

 

[Gumby]

IR titaniums are pretty damn nice. Carquest has a re-branded twin hammer I like a lot too.

 

[Tools R Us]

... Turn up the pressure to the max, and if that doesn't get it, get a bigger wrench. ...

Turning up the pressure sounds cool, but is often counter productive and greatly increases wear. Due to hammer/anvil timing, most impacts make peak power at 100-130psi.

 

[Tools R Us]

I like the IR Titaniums. Granted, I'd rather they be aluminum bodied instead of plastic, but they are still the shizzle. I have the 3/8" and the 1/2" models with covers on both of them. The little 3/8 can turn up to about 240 ft/lbs. I use it the most. The 1/2 model goes way over 600 ft/lbs. Very happy with them.

I agree the 3/8 is my go to and trail gun, great unit, have seen them hit 300 ft/lb, more than most "old school" 1/2" guns.

The plastic housing has proven to be very durable, I replace very few of them and they are relatively inexpensive. The biggest "problem" with the plastic guns is, the users can't find the oil can. They have a coated alloy cylinder, the coating is durable, but can be worn off with enough debris ingestion. The #1 job of oil is a solvent to flush out debris, enough oil should be used so a fog comes out the exhaust, the oil ejected should be the same color as when it was put in, if darker it isn't being oiled enough.

The most often failure with the plastic housings is wear in the reverse buttons/valve area. This is also caused by debris and is from lack of oil, if the buttons feel stiff, it needs oil.

The plastic guns lack the grease reservoir system of the metal guns, so require less grease, but more often. If the gun is shaken and sounds like a box of bolts, it needs grease. The best grease is moly, the same stuff as you use in birfs.

Pic of an abused/dead cylinder.

 

[Tools R Us]

IR titaniums are pretty damn nice. Carquest has a re-branded twin hammer I like a lot too.

IR private labels for several brands and they are widely copied. Haven't seen the Carquest unit, so don't know if it is IR or copy? Most of the private labels have deficiencies when compared to IR guns, older generation parts, etc, to reduce cost. May or may not be detectable depending on use? I haven't seen a copy that I like, IMHO the CP copy is a POS.

 

[Blue77FJ40]

I agree the 3/8 is my go to and trail gun, great unit, have seen them hit 300 ft/lb, more than most "old school" 1/2" guns.

The plastic guns lack the grease reservoir system of the metal guns, so require less grease, but more often. If the gun is shaken and sounds like a box of bolts, it needs grease. The best grease is moly, the same stuff as you use in birfs.

Huh! This may be a dumb question, but where, and how often do you grease these guns? Oil goes into the base, but I wasn't aware of grease.

 

[Tools R Us]

Huh! This may be a dumb question, but where, and how often do you grease these guns? Oil goes into the base, but I wasn't aware of grease.

There is a grease zerk/fitting. On the early steel nose guns (2112 & 2131) it is near the tricker. On the Ti guns (2115, 2135, etc) it is on the nose near the anvil. They don't have the grease system of the older guns, so are somewhat more tricky to get right, easy to over grease. When the gun is shaken, should have a dampened rattle, if it sounds like loose parts rattling inside it needs grease. The grease is distributed by the parts contacting/working inside, so results are not immediate, give it a bit (1 pump on an auto type gun, 4-5 on a small tool type) use the tool and recheck/add more later. If you add too much the tool will bog, not a problem, it will work out though the exhaust. When properly greased the rattle should be somewhat muted and a small amount of grease/oil should constantly be visible at the anvil/bushing.

 

[Pin_Head]

Turning up the pressure sounds cool, but is often counter productive and greatly increases wear. Due to hammer/anvil timing, most impacts make peak power at 100-130psi.

I don't recommend pressures in excess of the maximum recommended by the manufacturer, but pressure makes a difference in the range of 100-130 psi.

 

[craptabulous]

i have boughten 2 ir titaniums , both lasted me a little over a year at work . i then traded them both in for a snap on mg725 , i have had it for a year and a half now and it still feels great . it had a little more power then the ir and it hasn't fallen apart like the ir's did .

did i mention when i went to buy another ir the mg725 was 20$ cheaper . the only problem with the 725 is you shouldn't over oil it because its basically a sealed unit that requires very little oil and its loud with out a muffler . other then that its great

 

[Trollhole]

I have an Aircat 1404. I put it through hell and it's never let me down.

Most problems I have seen with people not thinking their air tool sucks is because they are using a hose that is small in diameter. A big hose makes a huge difference in air power.

 

[Tools R Us]

i have boughten 2 ir titaniums , both lasted me a little over a year at work . i then traded them both in for a snap on mg725 , i have had it for a year and a half now and it still feels great . it had a little more power then the ir and it hasn't fallen apart like the ir's did .

did i mention when i went to buy another ir the mg725 was 20$ cheaper . the only problem with the 725 is you shouldn't over oil it because its basically a sealed unit that requires very little oil and its loud with out a muffler . other then that its great

If you are destroying IR guns in one year, you seriously need to look at your maintenance procedures, it is really not that difficult. I have customers who run them in industrial applications, multiple shifts, abuse them to death and get much more than a year out of them.

For ultimate durability nothing beats the IR 231, period. They aren't sexy, are heavy, rude, etc, but make good power and take one hell of a beating. With basic maintenance will last just about forever. I often work on 20yr old units that are horribly beat, clean them up, replace wear parts and good to go, rarely total them.

 

[Gumby]

i have boughten 2 ir titaniums ,

boughten?

 

[craptabulous]

boughten?

bought·en (bôt

n) Chiefly Northern U.S. v.A past participle of buy.

adj.1. Commercially made; purchased, as opposed to homemade: boughten bread.
2. Artificial; false. Used of teeth.

Regional Note: American regional dialects allow freer adjectival use of certain past participles of verbs than does Standard English. Time-honored examples are boughten (chiefly Northern U.S.) and bought (chiefly Southern U.S.) to mean "purchased rather than homemade": a boughten dress, bought bread. The Northern form boughten (as in store boughten) features the participial ending -en, added to bought, the participial form, probably by analogy with more common participial adjectives such as frozen. Another development, analogous to homemade, is evident in bought-made, cited in DARE from a Texas informant.

apparently i have a dialect from the north .

as for the ir titaniums , the nose cone bushings fall out and the guns grenade them selves .

the ir 231 will definitely last more then a year , however the thing weighs about 2 x more then my gun , and its balance point is terrible .

all my guns are used in an industrial application with in line lubricators and filters at every single hose real . the 231 and 2135 probably don't share a single part , so i wouldn't compare their reliability .

 

[Corbet]

You did not define "high torque".

I have a Milwaukee Tool 24v cordless that is rated at 325 ft/lbs that works for 95% of what I need it to. If it doesn't I get out my old SnapOn pneumatic, rated for 600 ft/lbs, and it finishes the job.

If your currently using a Harbor Freight then any quality brand will probably make you happy. At the time I found a better deal on the SnapOn over others I was looking at. You can't go wrong with an IR. That was my first choice.

 

[Tools R Us]

You did not define "high torque".

... that is rated at 325 ft/lbs ...

Rated and delivered are big time different deals. Most "ratings" are fantasy, best bet is to read the reviews and see what has worked for others.

 

[Corbet]

Rated and delivered are big time different deals. Most "ratings" are fantasy, best bet is to read the reviews and see what has worked for others.

Totally agree and why I said "rated". But as he didn't really define high torque, so I mentioned my cordless as it covers most of my needs and might his? And as I said, I have to get the real deal out once in a while, but not often.