Craftsman 19.2v C3 1/2" Impact Wrench (Bulk Packaged. Battery and Charger Not Included)

I like to do my own work on my cars when possible -- I started learning when I was a cash-strapped college student, and I still do it as a cash-strapped married adult. I had recently splurged on a Craftsman C3 Lithium impact driver and drill combo to replace my ancient but still working Craftsman C3 Ni-Cad drill (and to add lithium batteries to my existing C3 reciprocating saw - trust me, if you haven't switched to lithium, you're missing out big time). I have wanted an impact wrench for a long time, but I was sure that I'd need a large air compressor as well. I don't remember how exactly I came across this bad boy, but I took a gamble and plunked down the required cash. It was a big investment for me at the time, but I wanted to give it a shot. Plus, it could use my new C3 Lithium batteries, so no need to purchase extra (as for right now).It's first test - replacing the rear struts my wife's 300,000-mile Toyota Corolla. With nearly two decades worth of Ohio winters on its undercarriage, I was doubtful that I'd even be able to get the lug nuts off, let alone remove whatever rusted insanity was holding that suspension in place. But, lo and behold, after about 2 seconds of impacts, each lug nut spun right off. Not only that, this impact wrench managed to remove and reinstall both rear wheels and two sets of struts (as well as removing the large bolts that held the rear seat belts in place -- because you have to remove the entire rear seat to remove the struts in a '98 Corolla) and still had juice. In fact, I zipped through what I was sure was going to be an all-day job in about and hour and a half -- I even had enough time left over to attempt to replace the exhaust manifold gasket. It was only on the very last flange bolt that I suddenly lost power -- lithium batteries don't lose power suddenly like Ni-Cd batteries do, but rather they have full power then just quit -- and I swapped in my second battery to finish the job. And that battery lasted through replacing the front brake rotors on my Ford Taurus the next weekend, including one VERY stubborn bolt that took some heating and beating to finally break free (I couldn't even budge it with an 18" breaker bar). I should also point out that, on the first job, I was working with my cousin at his house, and he had a 50-ga compressor and an Ingersol-Rand air impact wrench -- and it couldn't break the lug nuts free as well as this thing could. The C3 isn't as fast, but it's definitely powerful.Overall, I'm extremely impressed with this impact wrench, as I have been with all of my Craftsman power tools. If you count the cost of what I would have paid a local shop to do those two jobs for me, it has already paid for itself two-fold, and I'm sure will continue to do so for quite a while -- all of my older C3 tools are still working fine after 12 years. It doesn't get hot, doesn't lose power, and as long as you use it correctly (only run it in 5-10 second bursts until the bolt breaks free), it should last just as long. If you don't have a shop air system and just want something so you don't have to pay someone everytime you want to rotate your tires or do your brakes, this is the tool.

Fast Shipment / Excellent Products

I like how fast this wrench impacts. It has more BPM than my boss's Dewalt. The craftsman doesn't hit quite as hard as the dewalt, but it is MUCH cheaper. In my experience, if this wrench won't turn it, the Dewalt won't turn it either. This is a great tool and a great value. I'm not thrilled with the ni-cad batteries, as one battery will not remove all the tight bolts from one vehicle. The tool is great though. Spend for the better batteries, and have a few of them.

I was very skeptical on buying this item. I had the lithium battery packs already along with some other C3 tools and had to do some struts on my car. For a little bit more than a cheapy plug in from the freight store, I thought I'd give it a chance. Takes off lugs with ease and made short work of the bolts holding the strut on. But the most impressive thing was using it for the Spring compressors. It zipped right through it crunching them down, which would have been a tedious, slow job otherwise. It used up a battery or so for all the work on all 4 tires. Definitely one of my favorite tools in the C3 collection now. I highly recommend getting the lithium batteries. This had full power up to the second when the battery died. Very impressive. At about 150 ft lbs or so, It tackled all but the biggest, tightest bolts, which just needed a breaker bar to break it loose before running it on or off with this.

This works with the rest of my 19v batteries and it works well. It handles most jobs with no problems and the built in led light makes it easier to use in the dark. I have found that nuts that are tightened by hand (like the ones on my car trailer) it can loosen without even trying. But the ones tightened by an air gun (like on my truck) it has trouble with. It’s just too much for a battery powered gun. But those are tightened to some crazy high torque specs; sometimes I have trouble with them even with a breaker bar. So my solution is to break them by hand then use the gun to finish the job. I haven’t found a battery rattle gun yet that can get those off so it’s not the tools fault. It has handled any other job Ive thrown at it so far. From rust bolts on a basketball hoop to changing the tires on my quad. Get the gun, a few sockets that fit your stuff and you will be able to handle most jobs. Just bring a breaker bar just in case.

The Craftsman Impact Wrench is a good product, however, when I ordered it off Amazon I was never told that the product comes "bulk" with no packaging. I had ordered this as a gift but didn't feel right wrapping up a supposedly new hand tool with no box. They did include the manual along with the wrench, but an unboxed tool is not acceptable when I was expecting the complete package. Nothing in the description of the product led me to believe this was not a tool that came from Sears (or Craftsman) themselves. Instead it came from some little company where they hand wrote a thank you message on my packing slip. I haven't used it yet, but to be honest, it wouldn't surprise me if this didn't work as expected. It came in a plain brown box with a nothing more than the wrench free floating in the box and an owners manual for added effect. I ended up going to Sears to buy the real thing and gave that as a gift. This one I kept for myself because I was too embarrassed to wrap up the "bulk" tool as a gift. It looks like it was a rummage sale item the way it came packaged. If that is the way it is intended to be sold, then they should note that in the description.