thinking about buying some air tools....

[rusty ol ranger]

Understood Rusty...was just throwing some suggestions out. Bought a lot of tools in my 70 years and hate to see anyone get bummed out after buying cheaper tools.
Grumpaw

Im well accustomed to cheap tools lol.

I generally have good luck with them. I finally broke down and bought a set of kobalts a few years ago.

Up to that point it was only the highese quality tawianese shit money could buy lol.

 

[Dirtman]

I still have some of the first air tools I ever bought which were cheap auto parts store brand. An impact gun really isn't that complex of a tool to worry about buying inexpensive. Sure, my work tools are ingersoll but my crap at home is bargain junk and it works fine.

 

[Ramcharger90]

I love not hearing that air compressor run its annoying. I went mostly to electric. Ok the obvious air hammer/chisel but my ryobis perform just as well as air I think.

 

[sgtsandman]

I went the electric route myself but air tools are nice if you have the room for a compressor. Air tools are usually much cheaper than their electric equivalents. Either way, unless you have battery tools, you are dragging a cord or hose around to use them.

 

[adsm08]

I still have some of the first air tools I ever bought which were cheap auto parts store brand. An impact gun really isn't that complex of a tool to worry about buying inexpensive. Sure, my work tools are ingersoll but my crap at home is bargain junk and it works fine.

I used to do that too.

I am not at the point in my career though that my home tools are the ones I have deemed to still work, but not well enough to keep at work.

 

[Josh B]

You'll also learn the less expensive impacts have only one head, or hammer. Up the scale are twin hammer, four, not sure if more, but it makes a bit of difference. The single hammer will start off well but wear down faster too. Always use oil in it, some, if not most also have an oil access specifically for the hammer heads down near the anvil(drive part). Happy hammering!

I'd also like to get one of the ratchet kind but haven't yet

 

[Grumpaw]

I was taught many many years ago,
"You buy a quality tool only one time. You buy a cheap tool twice, the first time you buy it, and the second time when you replace it with a quality tool"
I still have hand tools from 1964, Craftsman and SK Wayne, from when I started working on cars. Still work, still functional, and still warrantied.
Grumpaw

 

[PetroleumJunkie412]

Be careful of this path... Next thing you know, you'll have a Kellogg American 15 hp, 100 gallon in your shop. Paid $20 for mine, and it's hooked up in tandem with a 5hp 80 gallon Ajax. Whole shop runs at 140 psi, and have yet to really run the air down. Blast cabinet will every now and then.

First time you use a needle scaler or a media blaster and realize you need a bigger set of lungs, the spiral will start.

But definitely pick up a cheapo paint gun and cutoff wheel as well.

 

[G8orFord]

I love my Milwaukee fuel impact gun but here's no replacement for air. Air is always there... batteries need to be charged. Plus as you've said, I spent more on my one battery impact set than I did on my entire compressor and 5 or 6 air tools. It's also about 3 times bigger than an air impact of the same power.

Air is always there; In the shop. Most of us do not carry around a compressor capable of running air tools. The battery tools shine in this respect. Our home shop is fully plumbed for air with about 8 different outlets and we run an Ingersoll-Rand semi-commercial compressor. Still, we rarely use our "mechanical" air tools anymore (impact guns or air ratchets). We routinely use air chisels, cut-off tools and sanders though. As far as weight goes, an air impact gun with the torque of a 18v Milwaukee isn't going to weigh a lot less and there's a hose connected to it. Batteries do die, that's why you have a spare (or two). I don't think I've ever ran any of my battery tools down prior to the spare battery being re-charged. If I did, I was working too hard and needed to take a break anyway, LOL.

I said to start with air tools are great and in some cases superior to the current crop of battery operated tools. Every shop should have a decent set, but, if you can afford it, the battery tools are much easier to work with in general. There are less expensive options than Milwaukee, DeWalt and Makita for the home shop. We have two 1/2" drive 24v Kobalt impact guns, a large one and a small one. The small one will handle pretty much anything a moderately priced air gun will and it's lighter, even with the big battery. Smaller too. It cost around $150-$200 depending on which battery you go with.

FWIW, I've also went to cordless nailers and staplers. I hate dealing with cords and hoses.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

My compressor isnt *that* hard to move around. Its on wheels and im pretty sure my fat old ass could still drag it up a set of ramps into the back of my truck if need be.

Also my 5500watt generator that never gets used.

So if i needed the tools to be mobile they could be. Wheel the generator and compressor into the back of my pickup, ratchet them down and away we go.

The things ill do to save a few bucks.

 

[G8orFord]

To each his own. My time and effort is worth something. Not much, but something.

That said, I have done exactly what you described in the past. I also have a portable compressor that I can lift into the truck. It can run an air gun in a pinch, but my 5lb Kobalt is easier to load.
There's nothing wrong with saving a buck or two either.

 

[det107]

...it's a single speed which means if your not careful you'll strip a bolt/nut very easily. The second you hit the trigger it hits 300 ft lbs.

May I add the sounds of "snap, crackle & pop" to hand/wrist bones?

 

[91stranger]

Air tools win when it comes to chiseling and doing tires all day. However, I got the 1200 ft/lb Earthquake from harbor freight and it is the SHEET! I've used it to take my wheels off an on about 10 times now and didn't need to recharge it. No cord or hose. However I have a small (big motor, small tank, 4hp but only 11 gallons) air compressor that can run air guns and chisels so I buy air tools when they are cheap at yard sales. I currently have probably 20+ different air tools and never really use them. Have found really smoking deals on air tools like $4 for a hutchins DA sander so it's hard not to buy air tools. I figure I will use them eventually. ALSO WORD OF WISDOM-----> Craftsman aint what they used to be. If it says craftsman and isn't 10-15+ years old then stay away from it. The older the better when it comes to craftsman.. Trust me, I used to work at sears so I seen the quality go down and down as the years went. Craftsman hand tools like screwdrivers, sockets and wrenches are still good bets but I wouldn't trust much more than that.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

I have most air tools and small, medium and large cfm compressors. Air tools on the jobsite plus Ryobi cordless drill and 1/4" impact. The cordless impact is my go to for mechanical work. Skip the 2.0Ah batteries, they're garbage. The 4.0Ah are great. A set of socket adapters for 1/4", 3/8", and 1/2" and a breaker bar and your set. Also get a cheap set of step drill bits from Harbor Frieght, they are worth the money. Just check that the steps are good. The largest step bit had problems with QC and don't drill the correct sizes.

 

[Ranger850]

My 2cents... I use DeWalt impact guns and Hammer drills on almost everything. While I was cleaning up my frame with a wire cup, I desperately wished I had AIR ( got tired of swapping batteries out and waiting for them to charge). So I got a compressor for the jobs that may take longer, because I didn't want to burn up my batteries and/or drills. So glad I did. Back in '04, when I worked at the brake shop, all we used was pneumatic tools and I thought that the Electric stuff was weak, BUT all the companies have gotten better at having more torque and longer lasting batteries. So a combination of both air and battery powered and maybe even corded tools will stay in my toolbox.