Air impact wrench recommendations

Everything else! new member introductions, pics, announcements, news..

Moderator: F9K9

User avatar
Walt
Admin K Elite
Admin K Elite
Posts: 1556
Joined: Thu Jan 22, 2004 11:27 pm
Location: Mize, MS

Air impact wrench recommendations

Post by Walt »

I recently acquired a 120 psi 60 gallon air compressor. I'm looking for a decent impact wrench for rotating my own tires. It will be used maybe once or twice a month, so I don't need something built for a master mechanic. I'll also change the occaisional back hoe tire.

I already have a good set of impact sockets that are 1/2 inch, so I'd like to get a matching wrench. I'm also on a tight budget. :). Any suggestions?

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2
--Walt
2001 S-10 CrewCab - Retired...
blaz
Crew Elite
Crew Elite
Posts: 177
Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2008 7:30 pm
Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Re: Air impact wrench recommendations

Post by blaz »

I have had good results with ingersoll rand. Make sure you use and oil it regularly.
User avatar
HenryJ
Admin K Elite
Admin K Elite
Posts: 12705
Joined: Tue Oct 01, 2002 9:14 pm
Location: Ontario, Oregon
Contact:

Re: Air impact wrench recommendations

Post by HenryJ »

I have Snap-on, NAPA, CP (Chicago Pneumatic) , Campbell Hausfeld and Ingersol Rand. The NAPA is probably the best impact wrench for the money, but still not cheap. I woud say my old...OLD CP impact is the best just because it is affordable and still works after the beating it has taken all these years. It has since been retired to home duty in my garage.
If you have any pawn shops around, might be worth checking. Craigslist and yard sales also come to mind. You can probably find a very good one for $10-$25

This one is dirt cheap and might get the job done: Harbor freight impact $21
I might be tempted to try this Sears Craftsman impact $50 it looks very similar to the Ingersol Rand gun. I haven't used the plastic bodied wrenches though. Not sure how much abuse they might accept. Looks like it might have more torque than the Harbor freight cheapie. Sears looks to have a couple more choices under $100 that look reasonable too.

"Speed doesn't kill, suddenly becoming stationary does." - Richard Hammond
"Speed is just a matter of Money - How fast do YOU want to go?"-Mechanic from Mad Max-
If at first you don't succeed - Don't take up Skydiving!
- ThunderII KE7CSK
User avatar
_STUCKY
Crew Elite
Crew Elite
Posts: 866
Joined: Wed Feb 08, 2012 6:07 pm
Location: Central IL

Re: Air impact wrench recommendations

Post by _STUCKY »

We usually get a cheapo from NAPA. They seem to work ok, but when something happens to it, we just get another. We probably have a pile of 10 of those lil junkers. The last one, the bolts wouldn't stay tight and it would spit oil all over the place. I've also seen them snap off the 1/2 square that the sockets go onto. We can probably get a year or so out of one, but they see a lot of abuse. We are not gentle on them.

My mechanic has a very nice snap on. It is fairly lightweight.
User avatar
rlrnr53
Crew Elite
Crew Elite
Posts: 557
Joined: Wed Dec 28, 2005 2:04 pm
Location: Prosperty, West Virginia

Re: Air impact wrench recommendations

Post by rlrnr53 »

The composite guns are nice, we started using them about 3 years before I retired. At that time, they were still going strong.
[size=75]Mitch
2001 Polo Green Metallic, no mods,(can't afford any)[/size]
User avatar
HenryJ
Admin K Elite
Admin K Elite
Posts: 12705
Joined: Tue Oct 01, 2002 9:14 pm
Location: Ontario, Oregon
Contact:

Re: Air impact wrench recommendations

Post by HenryJ »

rlrnr53 wrote:The composite guns are nice, we started using them about 3 years before I retired. At that time, they were still going strong.
:thumb:

"Speed doesn't kill, suddenly becoming stationary does." - Richard Hammond
"Speed is just a matter of Money - How fast do YOU want to go?"-Mechanic from Mad Max-
If at first you don't succeed - Don't take up Skydiving!
- ThunderII KE7CSK