Whether you wanted to loosen a lug nut on your vehicle or you just had a situation where you wanted to apply high torque to an object, you must have either used, or wished you could use, an impact wrench. Found in every tool box, impact wrenches come in various sizes and shapes – electric, hydraulic, compressed air, cordless… the list goes on. Here, however, I’ll focus on just one type – cordless electric impact wrenchesand compare three representatives of this type, being the Kobalt 24V , the Dewalt 20V and the Milwaukee 2763-22 M18. The Kobalt Vs Dewalt Vs Milwaukee comparison might be particularly interesting as these are one of the most popular impact wrenches with a very similar price range.
Kobalt 24v impact wrench review
This impact wrench comes with a 24V high capacity Li-Ion battery, which will be able to provide you with a couple of hours of effective work before you have to recharge it (this, of course, is affected by how you use the wrench). The recharge time, on the other hand is 45 minutes. You can also purchase an additional battery for $20, and then use the machine with one battery while you recharge the other, and this way you’ll always have a charged battery, allowing you to work for much longer periods of time.
The impact wrench itself will provide 650ft-lbs of torque, which is more than enough for any type of work. You can use the speed trigger to vary the rotational speed anywhere between 0 and 1,900RPM. The impact wrench comes equipped with light for dimly lit work areas, as well as a battery level gauge, so that you always know how much battery you have left.
The tool will have a 5-year warranty, while the battery will have a 3-year warranty. The wrench, battery, charger and a soft bag usually can be found for a price of $200 for the wrench itself.
Dewalt 20v impact wrench review
The battery for this impact wrench comes at a lower voltage, but it will still last approximately the same as with the Kobalt’s wrench (see the Kobalt vs. Dewalt comparison below), since it’s also a high capacity Li-Ion battery. The recharge time is 40 minutes, and the same double-battery strategy can be applied with this wrench.
This wrench can apply 700ft-lbs of torque, with a maximum breakaway torque of 1,200ft-lbs, and the trigger allows you to choose between three different speeds. It’s reinforced anvil and wrench construction allow it to safely fall from 6-8ft without any chance of damaging the product. It also comes equipped with a LED work light for dimly lit areas, as well as the battery level gauge.
The product and batteries both come with a 3-year warranty. The price for the wrench is around $200, but you will usually need another $150 for two batteries and another $80 for the battery charger, resulting in the total price of around $430.
Kobalt 24v vs dewalt 20v impact wrench
Since these two products come from the same price range, it would be useful to compare them side-by-side. When talking about the battery, Kobalt wins purely because of the fact that it has a 24V battery, compared to the opposing 20V battery. Apart from that, considering the battery usage and recharge time, everything is the same. When talking about torque, though, is where Dewalt wins – it can just provide a higher torque than the Kobalt wrench, going at 700-1,200ft-lbs, compared to the 650ft-lbs. It might seem like a small difference, but it is a difference.
Finally, the Dewalt wrench can fall from 6-8ft without any damage, while the same can’t be said for the Kobalt wrench. The batteries, however, are more expensive for the Dewalt wrench, and the Kobalt wrench comes with a two year longer warranty, so in total these factors even out, leaving the potential buyer to decide which wrench better suits their needs.
Milwaukee 2763-22 m18 1/2″ inch impact wrench
This wrench has an 18V battery type, smaller than both Kobalt and Dewalt versions. However, Milwaukee boasts a much higher runtime, almost double to that of other products in the same price range, thanks to the superior battery pack construction.
The supported torque is up to 700ft-lbs, and the breakaway torque is 1,100ft-lbs. You can also choose between two fastening modes on this wrench. An interesting thing to note is that this wrench weighs almost 16 pounds, making it twice as heavy as the Dewalt wrench, and still much heavier than the Kobalt one.
In total, it comes at a price somewhat lower than $400.
Kobalt 24v vs Milwaukee impact wrench
The main difference here would be the battery, and here I’m not only focusing on the voltage, but also the duration. As it’s the main pro of the Milwaukee wrench, Kobalt loses on this field, which is opposite from what happened in the Kobalt vs. Dewalt comparison, as the Milwaukee wrench can last on one battery for almost twice as long as the Kobalt can.
There is also a 50ft-lbs difference between the Kobalt torque and the Milwaukee torque, coming at 650ft-lbs and 700ft-lbs. To top it off, the price of the Milwaukee wrench is usually a little below $400 dollars, while that of the Kobalt wrench usually comes a little higher.
Click to know more about Dewalt vs Milwaukee
Overall, Milwaukee exits as the winner here, since it brings a little bit more to the table for a smaller price. If you’re still in love with the voltage on the Kobalt’s battery, you wouldn’t be wrong to purchase that one, since they’re both very similar. Another thing to note is that the Milwaukee wrench doesn’t have neither the work light, nor does it have the battery level gauge, so, if you really want wrenches that provide both, you might want to turn to Kobalt or Dewalt versions.
So, which one is best cordless impact wrench should you purchase? Well, it largely depends on your personal taste. Do you prefer durability over power? You should ask similar questions to yourself, and, based on the answers, choose which wrench would be your pick. Ultimately, the specs and prices of all these products fairly similar, so there isn’t much room for mistakes – you can’t go wrong with either one of these.
Conclusion
Finally, you should also take into account availability. If you live outside of the US, chances are, some or all of these products could be unavailable for you. This means you’ll probably order them online, and, as the products aren’t exactly lightweight, you should look for free shipping opportunities. If you can find one of these on a discount, for example, that would also be a great opportunity to purchase one. So – define your needs and requirements and then use the information from this article, such as the Kobalt Vs. Dewalt Vs. Milwaukee comparison for example, to research your local or online stores for the perfect tool!
I have an interesting two bits to throw at you im a milwaukee guy but tonight my milwaukee 1/2 driver would not loosen the lugnuts on a 2001 lincoln navigator full charged batterie for the heck of it i threw the kobalt at it and ill be damned if it didnt take them off no problem i would never have thought that possible so whats the deal with the ratings on torque this hands on just shot those all, to hell