Customer Reviews

Bare Tool Milwaukee 0881-20 18-Volt V18 1/4-Inch Hex Impact Driver Kit (Tool Only, No Battery)

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I find that this driver is excellent for driving larger fasteners such as lag bolts and larger machine threaded types. The time to set a 5/16 X 3" lag bolt is approx. 25% less than a new model lithium makita (MK-L140-A) and 20% less than Dewalt. By design it is not going to be so good for #2 phillips screws. (The torque applied before impact action begins is higher than makita or dewalt). This is a good thing when drilling holes or using larger fasteners, but not so good for smaller screws. It is a lot bigger and heavier than either brand as well. Simply put it is excellent in it's class of heavier impact drivers but don't expect it to be as light and small as the other two brands. The led is not so well designed. If you use a 2" bit in it, you will be working in the shadow of the nose of the drill, also it does not have a time delay built into it as does the Makita driver

This is a typical Milwaukee tool. It is stout! I have several other 18 volt 1/4" hex impact drivers, but I wasn't prepared for this one. The first time I used it to tighten 7/16 nuts on 1/4" bolts it sheared off the first one instantly. I thought hmmm, must have been a soft one. I went a little easier on the following bolts and had no further trouble. A couple weeks later I tried to remove the nuts. I was very surprised, I had to use my longest box end wrench to get them to turn, they felt like they were welded in place. I am sure they had stretched. I don't remember ever in my life having to use so much force to loosen a nut on a 1/4" bolt. I am pretty sure it would have taken less effort to just tighten them and break them off.

I loaned this tool to a friend of mine who built a 24 x 24 deck using composite deck boards with joists on 12" centers. He used it for 5 days on the original battery charge driving about half of the over 1200 stainless steel hold down screws. With the Lithium Ion battery this thing is the energizer bunny of impact drivers. I continue to be very impressed with it. The only drawback I can see is due to its tremendous power it can be real hard on bits and screws if you aren't paying close attention to what you are doing with it. It can break just about anything you touch with it without even working hard. This tool needs to be used with restraint. I love it.

I bought this impact driver thinking I was only gonna use it for lag screws in a deck we are building. I was wrong, this thing does almost everything my Milwaukee 18 volt hammer drill does, but better and stronger. Because it uses torque to drive fasteners, nuts, screws, etc, it rarely strips, or skips the screw head. Also you can use little to no pushing force to drive fasteners, where with the regular drill you often had to position your hand on the back and push with it or risk stripping the screw head. It is great in tight places where you can't use two hands, like on a ladder, or under a deck. I haven't used it for drilling holes yet, but I look forward to. The only draw back would be that it only has a 1/4 hex chuck which doesn't accept all types of drivers. Sometimes you have to buy adapters to use all your drivers, vs a regular chuck which would have been more practical, but might have slipped under force.

This is my first impact driver, and I will say that they are very impressive. Drives screws in 1/2 the time, and even helps suck the two boards together (which isn't always easy without reversing the screw first). Medium lags are no problem (didn't try any larger ones). There aren't a lot of extras; the LED light works well and the spare bit clips are typical.

Like all my other Milwaukee power tools, this one seems well built and comfortable. Forward/reverse switch is exactly where it should be (like their drills) and the trigger pull is smooth. And the lithium v18 batteries are fantastic.

A belt clip would be nice. And I expected it to be a bit lighter; feels just like their drill/hammer drill, but that's no big deal.

I purchased this one b/c I already had Milwaukee v18 tools (for over 7 years now... VERY happy with them) and didn't want more/different batteries laying around.

I've owned and used other impact drivers like the Makita 12v, Makita 18v, Craftsman 14.4v and others. The battery lifes vary, but they all do a fine job with screws, not so much with lags. The LED's are useful in dark areas and the impacting action saves strain on your wrist.

The Milwaukee 18v is a bigger, heavier-duty tool as the one reviewer said. Its not for delicate work and does not have a clutch. At 1,400 in/lbs of torque, it makes it the strongest in the 18v cordless range. Its does a great job driving 2-1/2 to 3" deck screws, and lasts a long time even with the 2.4ah nicd batteries. Square drive bits are the way to go with an impact driver if using screws. If you buy junky brand screws, these impact drivers will snap them off easily.

The tool is well-balanced and incredibly powerful. Smaller lag sizes are no problem. Definitely a great tool to have for general purpose contracting or anyone that drives a lot of fasteners and is tired of having sore wrists from the twisting action that a big drill puts on on you. Definitely would buy the Milwaukee again.

This is a great price on this tool, even better than Amazon Prime. Tool arrived promptly and in good shape. Tried it out against my Milwaukee 18v driver drill on 3" #10 into a 4x4. Seemed to be about the same, but expect it will work better on lags and bolts than the drill tho.
Works great with Lithium batteries, Price is right if it fitss your existing batteries, if not better to buy something that matches your system.........

This thing is incredibly strong. So powerful I bought the 12v for lite to mid-range fastening after severing 3 square drive bits & destroying more than a few screws as this thing powered through a standard bath area's worth of Hardiboard on a single Ni-Cad charge, and still had the snuff to hang some drywall. It's "heavy" but in my experience "heavy" sometimes translates into "well-built". I've read complaints about the LED but with a 5 or 6 inch bit or extension, which is common practice even recommended for some applications, the light shines true, right ON the screw.

Complaints: It's less compact than other tools in it's class.

At $55-$60 it's a great value for a-lot of tool.

Bottom Line : Buy this tool if you want to manhandle whatever comes your way.

I love this thing. It is a little bit lighter then the Milwaukee drill, and more stout, meaning it can get into tighter spaces. The snap lock feature for bits is the best one I have ever seen and it is entirely metal! It will give you crazy power to drive in screws and lags with no wrist torque, none! That is the beauty of impacts. But this thing is so powerful, that it will snap bits. So be prepared, and make sure you buy extra impact driver bits (yes they are labeled as such and are generally black). It will also last a very long time on a single charge. This thing is worth more than the price (currently $50 on Amazon). In addition to my thoughts I have two brothers who also have the tool. Both love them as well.

I can't get over one of the reviewers crying about it being too big. Are you joking? This is a serious tool. It is an 18 volt tool. Not a 9.6 or 12 volt pocket driver! Come on man, really. Dimensions and weight should always be looked at before buying, so I really wonder what you were thinking? Did you think the driver was the size of its picture or something? And for the other guy ranting about no battery... You are clearly... well how do I put this so you will understand... Stupid! It says in like 5 places "tool only". So if you aren't stupid, you are lazy. The fact that you would write a review and embarrass yourself like that is hilarious. I rely heavily on reviews, but reviews from these 2 clowns really wastes my time and doesn't paint a picture of whether or not an item works, or is as described.

great deal on this impact drill, since i already have the whole v18 kit. The impact drill is much more efficient drilling holes in wood to run wires through. I get much longer life from the battery, also the drill bit does not have to be as sharp as compared to drilling with the regular drill. It does not turn as fast when in impact mode, but nothing will stop it!

this compact little power house packs a punch and with 18volts and lithion batteries it lasts. I would buy it again and recomend it for all those self tapers and concrete tapcons.