This thing works great. It is powerful enough to install/remove lug nuts and is easy enough to use in jobs where you might normally use a 3/8" ratchet setup. I bought it to speed up the job of assembling new boat trailers at a marina. No hose to drag around, fast speed, and small size makes it perfect for a job that has many bolts to be tightened but are spread out. With it we can assembly about 3-4 trailers on one battery. Each trailer involves loosening and then tightening about 16 3/8 self-locking nuts (which are hard to turn before they are tight) and then the 10 lug nuts, which are at close to 100 LB-ft. The first test I did when I got it was to remove the lug nuts off our truck, which had not been touched for two years. It did it but just barely. It is not the big brute for high torque, but it is compact and handy. My only gripe is the sockets are held on too tight by the retention pin, maybe as it wears it will release easier.

I need an impact wrench to loosen and tighten lugnuts on my car for when I change tires when I race. pUnit has ample power to loosen lugnuts. Good runtime. Very well made. Very light. Very small, easy to use.pI don't use it to any extremes, but should be very useful for most people. pNot having a cord - priceless

this dewalt impact drill spins faster and has more power for driving screws into concrete or steel but the batteries last only half the time as my makita 12 volt impact.so i use my makita mostly cause i dont have time to be changing batteries every 15 minutes..

I've used the DeWalt 18 volt driver/hammer drill for years, and I really have thought it was a good product. I once dropped my drill from a second story and after it bounced a few times it still worked, so I've been convinced that the DeWalt product was a decent brand.pI recently got this 14.4 impact and have loved using it. It's lighter than the 18 volt I'm used to and easy to handle. It drives long screws no problem. There are no dials to turn, no speeds to set and the battery seems to last a long time. I've used it for setting electrical finish, which takes a light touch, to drilling holes in stucco with a masonary bit (doing what I normally would have used the "hammer drill" function for).pI do know carpenters that swear by the Makita impact driver, so I can't compare brand to brand, but if you've always used a normal driver drill and haven't yet tried out the impact driver, you're in for a treat. It really does a much better job.pAnd to think, I used a Yankee back in the day, and I'm not that old,,,,,well ok, I'm pushing forty, but still, I cut my teeth with a Yankee screwdriver,,,,,how far things have come.

I have many other 12 and 18 volt DeWalt tools. This impact wrench may not replace a compressor and air impact wrench for cars but it sure drives screws and bolts easier than all other screwguns. It makes light work of driving a 3" screw in hard maple without predrilling. It will not bust your nuckles when driving the big screws in hard woods. It dimples drywall beautifully. I will take this over any screwgun of any make.

I think 3.5 stars might be more accurate, but I'll give it the benefit of the doubt with four stars. pIt sure beats having to lug around an air compressor. I live in a second story apartment and I get tired just thinking about lugging an air compressor around, not to mention my roommates would probably kill me for cluttering the living room with a huge tank. I especially like how compact the driver is. Combined with a universal joint and some extensions, there hasn't been a bolt I couldn't get too (so far).pI am a little bit disappointed, though. It had some trouble trying to dislodge some tough, rusted bolts, but it might just be that my expectations were too high considering it isn't an 18 volt unit. Also, in my case, the batteries don't seem to store too well. I had a fully charged battery sit for 3 days...afterwards, it couldn't generate enough torque to take off lugnuts. I guess there's a reason it comes with two batteries. pAs an alternative, I've had some people suggest buying a snap-on 14.4 volt, and trimming some of the plastic so allow it to accept 18 volt batteries. The thing is, that unit isn't near as compact as the DeWalt driver.

I would only recommend this tool to someone who uses it for home. I am a contractor whom owns numerous Dewalt cordless tools and am disappointed in most. I own the 14v and the 12v impacts, and in a matter of 6 months of daily use they have both burned up arbors. The batteries will not keep a charge close to origional. BD service centers have repaired both under warrenty, but they will not admit to any design flaw. "Heavy Duty", I don't think so.

This isn't so much a review about this 14.4-Volt unit as it is a critique on DeWalts decision not to provide an 18-Volt version to their loyal customers. DeWalt markets their 12V and 14.4V Cordless Impact Wrench Kits, but what about one for their ever popular 18-Volt line??? Personally, I prefer to save and standardize whenever possible, hence my decision to stick with their 18-Volt line of cordless tools. Standardizing to a 18V battery allows all of my batteries to work with all of my cordless tools. The power of their 18V units pack enough strength to handle just about any job. Why not offer that with their 1/2" impact wrench line? Especially when you consider the work an impact wrench does. If DeWalt is testing the market to see if Cordless Impact Wrenches will sell by putting out 12 and 14.4V versions, it would seem the wrong way to go. These tools (Impact Wrenches) aren't the meat and potatoes of tool manufacturers lines, and I would hate to see DeWalt discontinue making them due to low sales, because of folks like myself who are going to wait for the real tool (an 18V version) to hit the market.