Impact Driver 1/4

[joncooper27]

I have battery Fein Normal tools like drills I multi tool and Mafell wood working power tools and just bought a Mirka Sander.
My Fein Impact driver has just broken at the weekend just out of the 3 year warranty.
I’m not sure what to get to replace it as the current batteries no longer fit as they are now the amp share type.
Does anyone have any recommendations?

 

[Sideways]

I have Fein drill and oscillator on the old style batteries too.
Mafell corded.
Festool corded.
Lamello corded.
Metabo corded.
Milwaukee corded.

i feel like I may like similar brands to you.

Most of my rechargeables are Bosch. I like their pro core batteries and Fein do too as that's where Amp Share comes from.
But. If I only got 3 years from a Fein impact I'd be disappointed and wouldn't buy another. They pitch themselves as a premium brand and I'd want more than 3 years for their price unless I'd hammered it.
As I recall, Bosch impacts don't perform terribly well if maximum performance matters to you but for a 1/4" (hex ?) they may be ample. I find the grips on Bosch tools comfortable.

A suggestion is to find the Torque Test Channel on youtube. Those guys do real objective tests of, especially, impact drivers and batteries to tell you how most of the popular impacts are performing vs the manufacturers specifications. Many fall short but a few live up to the claims.

 

[Eshmiel]

It would depend in part on what you use an impact driver for. It's possible to over-spec one then discover it too heavy, unwieldy and vicious, e.g. for cabinet-making jobs like putting in slotted brass screws without any camming out mangle.

Personally I find the smaller Bosch 12V and similar Makita impact drivers a perfek fit for my cabinet-making style of woodworking. Carpenters building large-section house frames might want something different.

Also, how much do you use the tool? If it's every day for significant hours per week, most of the tools commonly seen (even those labelled "professional") may not be up to that much work, especially in difficult circs like up a roof in the rain.

Maybe look at air-driven varieties? They seem to have simpler and more robust innards - although you need a compressor too. But perhaps that Fein of yours was such a creature?

 

[joncooper27]

It would depend in part on what you use an impact driver for. It's possible to over-spec one then discover it too heavy, unwieldy and vicious, e.g. for cabinet-making jobs like putting in slotted brass screws without any camming out mangle.

Personally I find the smaller Bosch 12V and similar Makita impact drivers a perfek fit for my cabinet-making style of woodworking. Carpenters building large-section house frames might want something different.

Also, how much do you use the tool? If it's every day for significant hours per week, most of the tools commonly seen (even those labelled "professional") may not be up to that much work, especially in difficult circs like up a roof in the rain.

Maybe look at air-driven varieties? They seem to have simpler and more robust innards - although you need a compressor too. But perhaps that Fein of yours was such a creature?

I use it for some quite heavy work to be honest driving 100mm screws in plus smaller stuff as well! The Fein one I had was great it just only lasted 3 years

 

[TheUnicorn]

It would depend in part on what you use an impact driver for. It's possible to over-spec one then discover it too heavy, unwieldy and vicious, e.g. for cabinet-making jobs like putting in slotted brass screws without any camming out mangle.

Personally I find the smaller Bosch 12V and similar Makita impact drivers a perfek fit for my cabinet-making style of woodworking. Carpenters building large-section house frames might want something different.

Also, how much do you use the tool? If it's every day for significant hours per week, most of the tools commonly seen (even those labelled "professional") may not be up to that much work, especially in difficult circs like up a roof in the rain.

Maybe look at air-driven varieties? They seem to have simpler and more robust innards - although you need a compressor too. But perhaps that Fein of yours was such a creature?

I use it for some quite heavy work to be honest driving 100mm screws in plus smaller stuff as well! The Fein one I had was great it just only lasted 3 years

I have the use of a 12v makita impact quite often (not mine), I have my own dewalt 18v, I have to say that 90% of the time the 12v is more than man enough, normally driving 40 to 80mm screws, I'd be surprised if it would struggle too much driving the occasional 100mm screw, and it is a brushed unit, I imagine a brushless unit would have a touch more powerful. I really like how light the 12v is with a small battery, incredibly easy to use overhead with minimal fatigue, smaller and easier to chuck in a toolbag, hang from a belt etc. The 12v has a matching drill, I have to say that is pretty rubbish, struggling with anything much more than pilot holes.

I'd consider this milwaukee (no personal expereince) it is 12v and 170nm torque so more than man enough for 100mm screws https://www.screwfix.com/p/milwauke...m-brushless-cordless-impact-driver-bare/458vt