Review of Bare-Tool Makita BTW450Z High Torque Impact Wrench (Tool Only, No

Customer Ratings:

I bought this to change tires at the race track. But I just keep finding uses for it. Tons of power for a cordless and decent run time on the little lithium batteries. At first the little batteries do not fit, but there is a ridge in the tool there to force you to use the big batteries. All you have to do is grind it off and the smaller kit batteries will fit. Works great for: driving in big lag bolts for a deck, changing a flat tractor tire in the middle of a field, swapping car tires.

What it does lack is variable speed, but this is a brute force tool anyway. The little led light is handy too. FYI, at the track, one battery will do almost 2 sets of tires tourqued to 100 ft/lbs.

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I used to make my living as an auto mechanic. I used a friends Dewalt cordless 1/2" impact wrench and was very impressed but when I saw the price I backed off. I own several other makita tools that use the same lithium-ion battery and have been very happy with them. When this unit came up for less than half the price of the Dewalt I jumped. I still own a 1/2" air impact and this cordless wrench appears to have as much power as the air wrench. It is heavy especially with the battery but at least there is no hose attached to it. I like the shock absorbing battery mount. I think that's a great idea.

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PRO'S:

* Extremely powerful, comparable to many of the best air-powered impact wrenches but without the hassle of a hose.

* Uses Makita's super lightweight 18V lithium battery.

* Forward and reverse are built into a single trigger. The top of 1/3 of the trigger activates reverse, while the bottom 2/3 operates the wrench in forward. No need to press a switch or button before changing directions.

* Seems very wellbuilt: Has a shock absorbing base to protect the battery, solid feel, and sockets are easy to change.

CON'S:

* It's heavy plain and simple. Although that is probably to be expected from a powerful impact wrench.

* It is unbalanced because the top is so heavy while the battery is very light.

* Dual-use trigger takes a bit of getting used to (but is a better design once you've done it a few times).

Overall, this is heavy-duty and efficient unit that makes a good addition to the already outstanding line of Makita LXT tools. We use it for lawn mower repair in my landscape business, and it is definitely the preferred tool. It would be great for automotive work and will spin the lugnuts off of a verhicle in a flash (we tried it on a trailer wheel).

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I have two of these now, one for work and one for my garage. Durable, and strong. Has all the power you could really ever need to tackle any nut or bolt. I prefer it over air impacts because its quiet and you never have to wait for the compressor.

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I hestitated to buy this as I've heard stories from friends that many of these beasts don't have much torque to them. Well, I shouldn't have waited, this model is pretty much what I was hoping to get. It's got great battery life and plenty of torque. The ergonomics are good, but be pre-warned about the weight of it, it's pretty heavy. It's built like a tank, and I guess that I wouldn't want it any other way. It is easy to use, although the toggle switch to power it does take a few minutes to get used to. The first few minutes of using it, I found myself not paying attention to which way I was pushing the toggle and going the reverse direction to that which I intended. That was my stupid mistake, with any new tool you need to pay extra close attention to it the first few times you use it.

Edit to add that if you are working on some very tough/tight bolts, make sure that your battery is fully charged. These batteries are not supposed to show that property, but apparently they do when pulling a heavy torque. Well, at least I'm seeing it. I'll have to check the manual again to see if it mentions that.