shopping for a new cordless drill..saw this "impact" thingy today..opinions?

[Tim Morton]

Was in the local hardware store shopping for a new cordless dril and was struck by a display of makita "impact" drivers. For $197 I can get a 12volt plus a free 12volt mforce driver. Having never heard of or used an impact gun he handed me a 4" screw and a 4x4 pressure treated post....aside from the noise I was stunned at how easy it drove the screw in the post. But I couldn't pull the trigger without getting a SMC approval. Searching this new gun out I see lots of you are sold on the impact thing. So the question is...do I get the 12volt makita here in town, or is there a better choice out there? 14volt seems like over kill, but I am not against overkill. Locally I htink they have 5 units on hand. Cost wise amazon might be a tad cheaper...but if 12volt makita is the best way to go i would get it locally.

[Nick Mitchell]

The Hitachi version is very nice as well, that's what I have. Not sure what your pricing would be. I really like an impact driver for deck screws.

[Corey Hallagan]

The guys i have heard that have various brands of Impact drivers love them!! That sounds like a great deal. A Makita 12v drill / drive is just perfect for wood working as well. If you ever do any deck work, that impact driver will kick but screwing down and putting in lag bolts etc.

Corey

[Bill Erskine]

I really like my Makita impact driver. I got it as a free rebate at the time I purchased my Makita SCMS. Until then I hadn't used one before, but I'm sold now. Drives the tough screws/bolts with no-fuss no-muss. It doesn't replace a VS drill, but Makita is taking care of that by getting you both.
You have to use a light touch sometimes or you'll either snap off the head of cheap screws, or drive the heads into the wood. Also be careful if you're driving Kreg screws, they can get cranked so tight it has cracked the drilled board. (Don't ask how I know that!)

[Tim Morton]

OK..so now the question becomes size...I GOTTA think that 12volts is plenty. is there ANY reason to go with the bigger 14v? (tim allen grunting ...MORE POWER!!!)

[Bill Erskine]

My Makita is a 12V model. It's got plenty of drive and plenty of capacity. I'm recharging my 14V (non-impact) drill more frequently than my 12V driver. I think it has to do with the way the torque is developed. In a drill, its those electrons are having to push against the resistance of the load to make things happen. In a driver, those electrons are zipping in to spin up the hammer before it whacks the anvil in the chuck. In an impact wrench, the trigger is controlling the number of impacts per minute, more that the strength of impact. Although increased speed does mean harder impacts.

[Matt Meiser]

I have a 12V Porter Cable drill and a 12V Dewalt impact. I use both on a regular basis, usually swithing between them for drilling and driving. The impact with square drive screws is simply awesome.

I've used my impact for disassembling and reassembling system furniture that I bought to create my wife's scrapbooking room. I probably removed and installed about 100 bolts using a 1/4" drive adapter and a socket in one day with only one battery change. When I drove the lag bolts to mount the vises on my bench, it was as easy as driving #8 screws.

As for voltage, I personally like the 12V drills for hobby use. They aren't too heavy, and pro-quality tools have batteries that last plenty long enough to allow the other battery to charge.

[John Miliunas]

Tim, I got that exact same Makita impact driver/drill combo a couple months back. Can't hardly speak well enough about it! Did the bulk of the lumber storage outside last weekend and it did beautifully. Today, I was drilling in the standards for my inside rack, once again, grabbing the Makita. Fast and easy, plus that LED "headlight" is pretty trick. The one caveat: Be careful as to the quality of screws you use. Even the 12V has plenty of torque to snap off the head on a flimsy one! (DAMHIKT! ) Two thumbs up over here! And no, unless you're doing some real heavy duty stuff 8 hours a day, I seriously doubt you'd need more than the 12V. (BTW, the M-Force drill which comes with it, is real nice, too! Plenty of power and great chuck!)

[Tim Morton]

Thanks guys...12volt it is. I will pick it up this weekend. I was looking at amazon and they had the 14volt makita kit for $249, but coastal tools has it for $209. I was going to call amazon and get them to pricematch plus 10% of the difference. On top of that taking $25 off for going over $199 would have made the 14volt cheaper than the 12volt....but I think you guys are all saying that the 12volt is plenty and actually preferable for woodworking. Plus its always good to buy things locally when possible.

Thanks again for the help in making the choice.

[Al Lupone]

Thanks guys...12volt it is. I will pick it up this weekend. I was looking at amazon and they had the 14volt makita kit for $249, but coastal tools has it for $209. I was going to call amazon and get them to pricematch plus 10% of the difference. On top of that taking $25 off for going over $199 would have made the 14volt cheaper than the 12volt....but I think you guys are all saying that the 12volt is plenty and actually preferable for woodworking. Plus its always good to buy things locally when possible.

Thanks again for the help in making the choice.

Tim, something else to think about. Price matching the 14.4v from Amazon also gives you free shipping AND the 14.4v battery will last longer when using the drill.
Al

[Corey Hallagan]

Nope, just get another battery, you will be fine! Or buy the Binford Pro 24V cordless

Corey

[Mike Holbrook]

I bought the 14 volt Makita driver/drill combo at the Atlanta Woodworking show. I think the driver is just to powerful, the ratchet does not kick in fast enough. I end up tearing the head off to many screws. I can not make enough pressure against the screw head most of the time to keep the driver head in the screw head. I may have a weird one but my 12 volt Hitachi works much better. The 14 will drive a screw head all the way threw a 2x4 without breaking a sweat if you can keep the driver in the screw head.

I did find the 14 helpful when I was driving size 10 screws into concrete, although I still ripped a few heads off. I had to have someone push against my back to get enough weight behind the driver to keep the driver in the screw head. Wheew!

[John Miliunas]

I bought the 14 volt Makita driver/drill combo at the Atlanta Woodworking show. I think the driver is just to powerful, the ratchet does not kick in fast enough. I end up tearing the head off to many screws. I can not make enough pressure against the screw head most of the time to keep the driver head in the screw head. I may have a weird one but my 12 volt Hitachi works much better. The 14 will drive a screw head all the way threw a 2x4 without breaking a sweat if you can keep the driver in the screw head.

I did find the 14 helpful when I was driving size 10 screws into concrete, although I still ripped a few heads off. I had to have someone push against my back to get enough weight behind the driver to keep the driver in the screw head. Wheew!

Hmmm...Wonder if that's the extra power thing. The one thing I really enjoy about my 12V is its ability to hang on to the screw head. LOML had bought a whole BIG box of outdoor screws (coated) from one of the borgs last Summer and used some out of the box before I noticed that she had inadvertently chosen the Philips head. Yuk! But, to my delight, the Makita does a great job in driving those through without wrecking the head. More than I can say for one of my regular cordless drills. Also, I don't know if the 14.4 is larger physically, but that 12V is a very compact and handy size to get into tight places.

[Tim Morton]

Quote:
<table border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td class="alt2" style="border: 1px inset ;"> Originally Posted by Mike Holbrook
I bought the 14 volt Makita driver/drill combo at the Atlanta Woodworking show. I think the driver is just to powerful, the ratchet does not kick in fast enough. I end up tearing the head off to many screws. I can not make enough pressure against the screw head most of the time to keep the driver head in the screw head. I may have a weird one but my 12 volt Hitachi works much better. The 14 will drive a screw head all the way threw a 2x4 without breaking a sweat if you can keep the driver in the screw head.

I did find the 14 helpful when I was driving size 10 screws into concrete, although I still ripped a few heads off. I had to have someone push against my back to get enough weight behind the driver to keep the driver in the screw head. Wheew!
</td> </tr> </tbody></table>


Hmmm...Wonder if that's the extra power thing. The one thing I really enjoy about my 12V is its ability to hang on to the screw head. LOML had bought a whole BIG box of outdoor screws (coated) from one of the borgs last Summer and used some out of the box before I noticed that she had inadvertently chosen the Philips head. Yuk! But, to my delight, the Makita does a great job in driving those through without wrecking the head. More than I can say for one of my regular cordless drills. Also, I don't know if the 14.4 is larger physically, but that 12V is a very compact and handy size to get into tight places.
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Cheers,

John K. Miliunas
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John, I wonder if he is talking about the impact driver or the VS driver. I can't imagine having to need more leverage with an impact driver. I was running a 4" screw into PT wood today with one hand. The phillips screw head was not even scratched.

[John Miliunas]

John, I wonder if he is talking about the impact driver or the VS driver. I can't imagine having to need more leverage with an impact driver. I was running a 4" screw into PT wood today with one hand. The phillips screw head was not even scratched.

Hmmmm...Maybe. I know there is a slight learning curve in getting used to the impact driver, as well. Just a real different feel from what we've become accustomed to over so many years with the regular VS drills. Gene Collison and Tyler highly recommended one to me, as I had never even touched one before. Glad they did! In my case, with those arthitic thumbs and all, I have found that I can do more with less pain, which is always a good thing!