Electric impact wrench advice please
 

I would like to buy an electric impact wrench, after trying to remove the struts yesterday, took me all day and lots of pulled muscles, would an impact wrench remove seized/ rusted on bolts that require alot of torque?

Can they also be used to remove the crank pulley bolt? I have seen this on ebay, http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CLARKE-CEW...item2ecd45b435

Is it any good? Advice much appreciated:)

this would help on the crank pulley

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/330935934049

Thanks for that, Im asssuming you use the tool to hold the pulley, then use a breaker bar on the bolt?

Thanks

yes I believe so

you can go mad and do this method but it scares me :)


http://www.rs25.com/forums/f105/t113...nk-pulley.html

I have the Clarke mains powered electric impact wrench. I find it works pretty well. I know it doesn't have the same torque as a pneumatic gun but has worked for virtually all seized bolts and nuts

Knowing my luck the alternator pulley would come flying off and hit me in the face :lol1:

Thanks Andy, this might sound like a silly question (Ive never had an impact wrech before), is it possible to use extension bars for hard to reach bolts with different size sockets with an impact wrench?

Just to answer for andy, though I'm sure he'll chip in anyway.

Yes you can use them as you would a socket wrench. You'll need impact sockets really, as standard sockets won't really be up to the job, the Clarke already comes with a small selection, and for the money you won't really get better.
It'll be one of the best tools you'll buy, but like anything the more you pay the better it'll be.
The Clarke should be up to most jobs.

Look at the reviews here, for an idea of what it's like.


Just bear in mind, you can strip threads easily with them.

I suppose so you could, but would use quality tools rated for impact use. I have never used it for tightening.

I initially got the Clarke CW to undo bolts on motorcycle forks( they need a quick action to break the seal) Then used it for removing seized disc bolts on an old motorcycle. After suspension bolts on my car. I tend to use it in burst of 5 seconds, if the nut/bolt isnt coming off after 3 or for goes, then more leveraged is required. The thumping action though seems to free off the seize, when a breaker bar is eventually used

See my thread here:
https://www.scoobynet.com/diy-39/102...ct-wrench.html

I can recommend the Dewalt DW292, proper piece of kit and doesn't cost a fortune either

I have the Dewalt DCF899 18V impact wrench. It's awesome! Up to 950NM of constant torque and 1600 odd breakaway torque according to their specs. I've yet to find a bolt it can't undo. Saying that, it could break stuff pretty easily too.

DCF899, which will deliver 950 Nm of max torque. 950 Nm ~ 700.7 ft-lbs

How you getting along with it, felt brilliant walking into a scrappers and just banging nuts off like it was nothing :D

Here's where I got mine from but for £144 at the time. I already have the batteries for other tools.

http://www.bigredtoolbox.co.uk/dewal...volt-bare-unit

All specs are on there to see :)

I'm not so sure that's an accurate figure, someone's bound to test it at some point.

My max torque is 1100lb/ft 1432nm and yet my breakaway torque is less than yours, somethings not right there.

Well maybe it is or maybe it's not, it's quoted as that everywhere I look, even the Dewalt website. I'm not willy waving, just saying that it's a great piece of kit and a great price. It does everything I need it too.

Dont forget your :thumb:

Sealey VS2243 Torque Stick, 1/ 2-inch Square Drive, 90 Nm

http://www.sealey.co.uk/PLPageBuilde...roductid=14833

Oh i know, just irks me how they listed it in a kind of cheaty fashion.

Bit like how they list their batteries as 20v when in reality it's still 18v.

All very misleading, just a poor attempt to try and get one up on the competition.
The max torque is the breakaway torque, it's the maximum of what the gun is rated at simple when you think about it.

Be interesting how it stacks up against the likes of milwaukee and ingersol rand, shouldn't be long before someone gives the dewalt a go against either one.
I hope it does well, could be quite a good deal as decent impacts costs a fair whack.
I won't lie, shelling out £480 for mine stung a bit.

Edit - Here we go, as i suspected this is what ingersol rand say on the matter.


Let’s settle this once and for all: in most cases, advertised “ultimate” or “bolt break away” torque is really just a marketing ploy. Manufacturers will test tools in ways that allow them to increase the advertised torque rating, but these methods do not yield an accurate portrayal of real or “working” torque. Sure, you may be able to get 1000 ft-lbs of torque here and there, but this is often not the genuine working torque that the tool is readily capable of day to day.

There's a good few reviews of it on YouTube, I watched some and went ahead and bought it. It eats and ****s my mates Metabo stuff which is very good. Think his is rated at about 600Nm??

There's no doubt it's more than enough to do what I want and is really good at removing stuff that would otherwise be destroyed by conventional tools.

Worth every penny in my opinion. Check some of the YouTube videos out too, you might be surprised!

That was the first thing i did, im like a magpie for any new power tools.
Loved the 889 vs 899 hell of a difference, especially with those big lag bolts going into that plank of wood.

Funny you should mention power, because honestly I feel mine's a bit overkill for what I need. Sure it's a laugh seeing just how strong it is, but after a while you realize just how much trouble all that power can land you, if you aren't reserved in using that trigger.

Oh yeah they are without a doubt worth every penny, and then some.
I changed a whole driveshaft in 40 minutes, that included getting all the tools out, the impact made it all so effortless.

Best part is going into scrapyards with it, the looks on some people's faces when you see them struggling, and i just waltz in and bang off every nut like it's nothing :lol1:

You honestly wouldn't think a battery impact would be so good, let alone best most air guns.

Thanks for all the replies, ended with the clarke, its quite big so doesnt fit into tight spots, it did undo suspension bolts though, will go for a dewalt next year:)

I like a power tool :D

So got a little bit side tracked, were people saying the Dewalt was the best to get or the Clarke ?

lol if I was doing it again and a bigger budget bext time I would go for the Dewalt, the clarke is quite bulky, and its not undoing some seized brembo bolts.

Yeah the Dewalt is pretty compact considering its ability, mine is the XR brushless version which cuts a fair bit of the length of the body. I was using it to change a caliper on my mates car yesterday, he was amazed by it. Wheel off in seconds, old caliper off in no time at all too. It's especially good at taking old rusty nuts and bolts out that would be rounded or damaged otherwise. I don't use it for reassembly though, afraid of destroying things with it! I use it on the lowest setting to put wheels back on but then use my torque wrench to tighten properly.

didnt realise just how expensive these dewalts are !!

eek

I was lucky enough to already have a Dewalt 18V XR drill so I didn't need new batteries or a charger. The DCF899 impact driver alone cost me £144 I think so was a great buy from that perspective.

Don't look at milwaukee mine cost £480 ffs, worth it mind but I would have been tempted by the Dewalt if it was about at that time.

All depends what system you prefer I guess. I wanted the best with a wide range of tools, and seeing their 2015 catalogue they pretty much have it all.
Even have a 9.0ah battery out, just because everyone else is jumping up to 5.0ah.
I just love the fact they have to be top dog. Take Makita they do lovely drills, and was top dog for a few months naturally Milwaukee didn't like this so came out with one to best it by a fair margin :lol1:

Personally though I'd go cordless all the way, for the obvious reason you can use it pretty much anywhere, nothing worse than going in a scrappers wsith all those siezed on bolts, spent too many years swearing at cars to faff about at my age.

As for the Clarke, just use it for unfastening as it has no variable speed it'll be very easy to bugger things up.
I've managed to muller a nut just using the 100lb/ft setting :facepalm:

I bought an Aldi/Lidl cordless impact wrench for £39.99......only use it occasionally but so far so good.