[miamicuse]

My garage got broken into and my tools stolen (compound miter saw, compressor, three drills, impact driver, a bunch of cordless batteries, chargers, circular saw, sawzall, jigsaw, even took a sprinkler pump that's broken)...

The tool I use the most is the impact driver. I need to get a new one ASAP.

I am debating between the regular vs the brushless.

I understand the brushless is better and more powerful. I am trying to decide if it's worth the additional $.

I have been using the Ridgid 4X impact for 2 years now and it did well and not once did I run into a situation where I needed more power. I even drove 12" long hex screws through double 4X4s and no issue. I probably will stick with Ridgid tools simply because of the life time warranty on batteries (which I only have 2 left, 5 were stolen).

I know they have the GEN5X and the GEN5X Brushless. Any opinion on brushless? I saw one reviewer that said brushless is "too powerful" and it drove his screws deeply recessed into the lumber. Now is this a skill/experience thing? I thought the new ones have 1-2-3 settings? Can it be too powerful?

Thoughts?

 

[Oso954]

Any good impact is "too powerful -will over drive screws" with a novice user. It is a skill and experience thing.

The 1,2,3 settings on the impact are speed/torque settings, not clutch settings. While the lower speed settings may help with releasing the trigger, they produce the higher torque.

The gen5x brushless impact and hammer drill kit is $259 at my local HD. The 5piece gen5x combo kit (brush type tools) is currently $399.

Personally, I'd grab the 5piece kit because of the circular saw and sawsall, but it's your choice.

 

[miamicuse]

It is also $259 at my local store for the brushless drill & driver combo. One thing that is worth mentioning is with this combo, the batteries are the high capacity 4ah which is better then the 2ah ones I have.

The $399 5 piece combo I have considered as well however the issue is I have a Ridgid cordless sawzall and a P&C corded sawzall already so I don't need any more sawzall - they were sitting in the back of my truck when they broke into my garage so those were not stolen. The circular saw I need a new one but I am leaning to getting a corded saw because I have never had to use a circular saw where it was inconvenient to have a plugged in version. The light I do not consider that a valuable tool. Right now for the cordless I think I would like an impact driver, a hammer drill, another charger, more batteries. They do have a GEN5X brushed hammer drill and impact for $169 but it's out of stock for a long time now. Or I can get the $259 brushless with the higher capacity batteries.

 

[Mort]

My brushless Milwaukee is great. Level 1 is easy to control and somewhat quiet, level 3 will take the lug nuts off my truck.

Brushless is also better for battery life.

 

[jrp458]

Go Milwaukee. You won't be disappointed. Their most recent release has four different speed settings.

 

[woodworkbykirk]

makita and milwaukee are pretty much the leaders of the pack when it comes to brushless impact drivers.. i dont know what ridgid's gear is like these days.. they have had a really bad track record with their battery tech and then being a total p.i.t.a to get a replacement battery as their tech keeps changing

regarding the 1-2-3 settings.. as stated they are for different torque settings. 1 being for delicate work such as trim screws and hardware.. 2 for general use and 3 for structural fasteners... the depth for which you drive the fastener has to do entirely with the user not the torque.. just have to let off the trigger as the screw is getting close to set at teh right depth. very few models of impact drivers have these settings right now and the ones that do can be upwards of $100 more for the bare tool compared to the standard model. i know the makita and bosch are both upwards of $150 more for the kit as the motor is much more involved than their regualr lxtdt04 or o5 models

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... I got a Makita several years ago, 'n don't know how I lived without it,....

 

[jrp458]

makita and milwaukee are pretty much the leaders of the pack when it comes to brushless impact drivers.. i dont know what ridgid's gear is like these days.. they have had a really bad track record with their battery tech and then being a total p.i.t.a to get a replacement battery as their tech keeps changing

regarding the 1-2-3 settings.. as stated they are for different torque settings. 1 being for delicate work such as trim screws and hardware.. 2 for general use and 3 for structural fasteners... the depth for which you drive the fastener has to do entirely with the user not the torque.. just have to let off the trigger as the screw is getting close to set at teh right depth. very few models of impact drivers have these settings right now and the ones that do can be upwards of $100 more for the bare tool compared to the standard model. i know the makita and bosch are both upwards of $150 more for the kit as the motor is much more involved than their regualr lxtdt04 or o5 models

The newest Milwaukee also includes a sheet metal screw setting that starts slow and ramps up allowing the screw to better self tap.