Milwaukee Tool Review: Stubby Impact 12V Fuel 3/8" Drive

Thanks for posting this about the stubby 3/8" impact. I've been looking to add to my Milwaukee 12 volt kit as I have a half dozen or so of them. They are great for when we travel in the 5th wheel, as they are light and don't take up a lot of room. Does anyone have the Milwaukee 12 volt 3/8" ratchet? That has caught my eye also.
Rich

I’ve had the 12V 3/8 ratchet for maybe 6 years now. They did not make a fuel one when I got it. I’ll put it this way, I am not easy on it and use the hell out of it. Sometimes you might have to smack it with you palm to break something loose but no complaints. I will replace it with a Fuel model if I ever kill it.

I made the jump from Dewalt NiCd to Milwaukee lithium when they came out. I have both Fuel and non fuel. Somethings I got before they had a fuel model available and others I didn’t want to spend the extra for something I might use little. I am most happy with all of it. The lithium was the biggest selling point to me.
 
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I picked up one of these during the Black Friday sales. After one hernia and a torn bicep, I'm kind of over muscling stuff if I don't have to.

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M18 FUEL1/2" High Torque Impact Wrench with Friction Ring Kit. The M18 FUEL1/2" High Torque Impact Wrench with Friction Ring Kit features the most powerful cordless wrench in its class, delivering up to 700 ft-lbs of maximum fastening torque, 1,100 ft-lbs of nut-busting torque and up to 2X more runtime.
 
If it helps your understanding at all, it is only in the last few years that cordless impacts have had enough power to set crush sleeves in big axles like the 14 bolt. Until that happened, it was monster air impacts, long cheaters, or torque multipliers that could get it done. Now a few of the bigger cordless ones can do it.
Which one are you using for a 14 bolt cs? Call me impressed that a cordless can do it. We used a 3/4" drive IR air gun to do them and they were still a bitch.
 
Which one are you using for a 14 bolt cs? Call me impressed that a cordless can do it. We used a 3/4" drive IR air gun to do them and they were still a bitch.
Their newest high torque 1/2" Fuel.
https://www.milwaukeetool.com/Products/Power-Tools/Fastening/Impact-Wrenches/2863-20
My helper works with a gear setter on the weekends. He continually chatted with him about how good the Milwaukee stuff he uses at my place works. Typical, the setter said there is no way they are as good as my air stuff for breaking down axles and setting stuff. This went on for a couple years and he finally broke down and bought the previous model 1/2" and started using it. In about a month, all the air tools went in the drawer and stayed there as he started replacing them with the 18V Fuel stuff. He is the one that actually turned me on to the newer higher power impact. He was on his way to pick one up at a good deal and asked if I wanted one.

It helps if you understand the little 3/8" will remove the lug nuts from my dually torqued to 140 ft lbs.
 
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I picked up one of these during the Black Friday sales. After one hernia and a torn bicep, I'm kind of over muscling stuff if I don't have to.

View attachment 69746
M18 FUEL1/2" High Torque Impact Wrench with Friction Ring Kit. The M18 FUEL1/2" High Torque Impact Wrench with Friction Ring Kit features the most powerful cordless wrench in its class, delivering up to 700 ft-lbs of maximum fastening torque, 1,100 ft-lbs of nut-busting torque and up to 2X more runtime.
I have that one and have semi retired it to the tool cabinet since I got the bigger smaller one.
 
I have that one and have semi retired it to the tool cabinet since I got the bigger smaller one.
Being that I have a number of vintage vehicles that I work on, I wanted to be sure and have something that would break loose anything I could throw at it, rust and all. Hell, if I only using it a dozen times, and it works each time and saves me from busting a nut (the anatomical kind), then I will consider it a good investment.
 
I have the newish higher torque 3/8" M12 Fuel and I liked it so much, I bought the 1/4" version of it. It pairs nicely with the small 1/4" M12 Compact Impact, but I like the stubby one above so much that I may get it in 1/4".

We use a set of Gear Wrench 1/4" Impact sockets in both deep and standard, metric and SAE that comes in a case. We open the case and leave it in a drawer as an organizer and we use them a bunch.

In use, the 1/4" seems to be a bit faster and either the same or slightly more torque than the 3/8".

Thanks Blaine. I have a couple of HD Gift Cards burning a hole in my pocket, so tomorrow I'll be getting one of these.
 
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Being that I have a number of vintage vehicles that I work on, I wanted to be sure and have something that would break loose anything I could throw at it, rust and all. Hell, if I only using it a dozen times, and it works each time and saves me from busting a nut (the anatomical kind), then I will consider it a good investment.
There is certainly nothing wrong with that tool at all and I wouldn't even care if the bigger one never came out. For daily use, the bigger smaller one is lighter and easier on us is the only reason we use it.

One thing that is overlooked as to why you may want a bigger tool like that one is the power robbing use of extensions. We use that big one dropped down to 3/8" sometimes when we stack 3-4' of extensions together to reach a bellhousing bolt. The normal 3/8" doesn't have enough grunt to hammer through all the extensions and break something stubborn loose. The big one doesn't even try that hard to do it.
 
I was looking at this the other day and couldn't decide on a anvil size. Currently I have a complete set of 1/2" impacts.

I did get a 3/8" fuel ratchet that I've been trying out to see if it will fill the void between big impact and hand ratchet. I also like my 1/4" air ratchet except for the hose.
 
I was looking at this the other day and couldn't decide on a anvil size. Currently I have a complete set of 1/2" impacts.

I did get a 3/8" fuel ratchet that I've been trying out to see if it will fill the void between big impact and hand ratchet. I also like my 1/4" air ratchet except for the hose.
I don't like it but I've found that we need a set of 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2" impact sockets since moving to the Milwaukee stuff. The 3/8" has a very high impact rate and just beats the crap out of chrome sockets.
 
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I don't like it but I've found that we need a set of 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2" impact sockets since moving to the Milwaukee stuff. The 3/8" has a very high impact rate and just beats the crap out of chrome sockets.

Yup. I have my "impact" 1/4" thin-wall chrome socket for beadlocks. It's in pretty bad shape. I should look into the thin wall impact sockets too.
 
Thanks for posting this about the stubby 3/8" impact. I've been looking to add to my Milwaukee 12 volt kit as I have a half dozen or so of them. They are great for when we travel in the 5th wheel, as they are light and don't take up a lot of room. Does anyone have the Milwaukee 12 volt 3/8" ratchet? That has caught my eye also.
Rich
I got the 12V fuel 3/8 ratchet last year and between my son and I we use the crap out of it in spot where an impact doesn't work. It's snappy and you can use it as a manual ratchet to break a bolt loose.

We've been eyeballing the 12V stubby too!
 
@mrblaine, any updates using the stubby on bigger tasks?

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Nothing of note. We are using it daily and we are at the point where it is a bunch of smaller stuff. Engine skid, belly skid, lots of #4 Phillips and T-40 Torx. Tail gate screws and what not. It has been flawless for all of that. I'll toss a 3/4" socket here in a bit and see if it will pull the bumper bolts we put in yesterday.
 
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My son ended up buying one with his Christmas $. It's pretty awesome. He's been working on his K30 and it's in use daily.

Like @mrblaine said: (roughly) you can judge the merit of the tool by the amount of time you choose to pick it up and use it.
 
Nothing of note. We are using it daily and we are at the point where it is a bunch of smaller stuff. Engine skid, belly skid, lots of #4 Phillips and T-40 Torx. Tail gate screws and what not. It has been flawless for all of that. I'll toss a 3/4" socket here in a bit and see if it will pull the bumper bolts we put in yesterday.
Sweet, let us know

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A big Hear! Hear! to the milwaukee 18 V Fuel impact tools. I burnt up my Porter Cable 20V (really 18) impact drill and went to replace it. The Milwaukee guy was at Home Depot and had me give his a try. WOW...and they were on sale. I got the brushless driver/impact set with 2, 5Ah batteries plus a free battery took them home and ...WOW. I was so impressed that the big boy Milwaukee 1/2 high torque impact driver, 1100 Ft lb impact reversing 700 tightening, came on sale for 99.00 plus free battery. I did not really need it but... So I went home and rotated my tires. not even a hesitation.

So far watching Home Depot I have picked up 1/2 in mid torque, 3/8 mid torque, 1/4 impact drivers. they are hands down the best rechargeable tools I have ever owned. (one caviought I own the Dewalt 12V driver/drill set because the 18V M is two powerful for some things) I bought the 7 1/4 12 Ah battery circular saw and can work it all day building without running out of power. I no longer reach for my Makita corded that I use to love so much.
 
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The Avionics shop at the base just purchased a cordless soldering iron and heat gun. ( Milwaukee ) they had not used them as of the last time i visited.

Have you purchased or used them? Right now im still just useing my station and a Bic. But was thinking of adding them to my collection.

Milwaukee Electric Tools 2488-20 M12 Soldering Iron (Bare Tool) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077ZXH8ZJ/?tag=wranglerorg-20

Milwaukee Electric Tool Milwaukee 2688-20 Cordless Heat Gun https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077GPG2HS/?tag=wranglerorg-20

Yes, we purchased the heat gun and soldering iron. Of all the Milwaukee tools I own, these two are at the bottom of the list of tools that most closely deliver the performance of a corded tool. They are okay, the soldering iron doesn't get as hot as I would like and the heat gun is the same with a slower heat up time than a corded version. They work, I wouldn't trade them for corded versions. If they had cords, I would throw them away.
 
I just looked at the 1/2" and 3/8" stubby impacts; is there a difference other than the anvil size? Specs look identical online.
 
Im a mechanic who gets visited weekly by the big 3 rape vans (Snap-On, Matco and MAC). I asked my Snap-On guy how much their 1/2" cordless impact runs. Close to $700! He then said "But Id never sell you one. Get the Milwaukee. Its better and way cheaper!"

I also have a buddy who does some fab work out of his shop and he was showing me his little Milwaukee cordless circular saw (granted the diamond tipped blade played a part) cut through 3/16" plate steel like it was butter! Impressive.