Cordless 3/8" Drive Ratchet

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mopowers

mopowers

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What cordless 3/8" drive ratchet do you guys have? How useful is it?

I saw this video a while back and have been wanting one for a while:

 
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I have a cheapo "Power Torque" I got from O'Reilly when I worked there. It's about 3 years old and I've abused the hell out of it and it's still going strong. I was so impressed I also got the 3/8 impact and the drill that doubles as a 1/4 impact driver. My only complaint is, even though they are lithium-ion batteries, the charge doesn't last like it should. It lasts plenty long enough to do whatever job I am doing. Once put away for a while, they lose a good bit of their charge. That's a stark contrast to my Hitachi 1/4" impact driver. I can go out months after a charge and it's still kickin ***. They are good tools though for what they cost.
 
I used my pneumatic quite often. It lacked the oomph to break bolts free but you could just use the body to break the seizure and then use the action to run the fastener out. It has the 90 on it to get into tighter spaces like header bolts and timing cover bolts.
 
I have a Husky from Home Depot. Very powerful. It will snap off 1/4" (common) bolts very quick. You have to be careful on the smaller stuff. Holds a good charge. I use mine a lot.
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pishta said:
I used my pneumatic quite often. It lacked the oomph to break bolts free but you could just use the body to break the seizure and then use the action to run the fastener out. It has the 90 on it to get into tighter spaces like header bolts and timing cover bolts.
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i can't remember the last time i used my air ratchet. it seems like the bolts i would use it on are so short it's not worth firing up the compressor, or there's nothing in the way and my M12 1/4" hex driver works well.
 
R=3's example. If the battery is garbage then it can be challenging. My brother came down with the Milwaukee impact drill he uses on salvage yard explorations on 2/3 of a charge. Used it all weekend and it never hesitated. He had added their XC battery. I plan on picking one up.
 
I have the Milwaukee as well and it’s my most used tool in the shop. I also use one at work they are kick ***!
 
Thanks guys. I appreciate the input. I have air ratchets, but I find that having the hose in the way is just a pain in the *** at times.
 
Its funny you posted this i have been looking for one the last couple days myself.
 
It's funny that Dewalt doesn't make one. I have quite a few Dewalt 20V tools, but they do not make a 3/8 ratchet. I like the looks of the Husky one with the internal battery, but the Home Depot website said it takes 1.5 hours to charge.
I'll probably go with the Milwaukee M12, but that will mean another charger and batteries.
 
The only complaint I have about mine is, it's not REAL heavy duty. I mean, I've beat the snot out of it, so it is in that respect. But if you run across a bolt for example that it will not break loose with the electric motor, It's really best if you switch to a hand ratchet and break it loose. You can kinda feel the body "give" some if you break a really tight bolt loose with it and I'm sure continued use doing THAT would be the tool's demise. It's really not made for breaking really tight fasteners loose, or tightening them past what the tool will tighten electrically. Other than that, it's a really good ratchet for the money. It's still goin strong. I used it some today.
 
I had a chance to play with the new toy today. Man, I'm not sure what I ever did without it. Time will tell though how well it holds up. So far, I'm very happy with it.

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mopowers said:
I had a chance to play with the new toy today. Man, I'm not sure what I ever did without it. Time will tell though how well it holds up. So far, I'm very happy with it.

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Oh they are plenty tough we use them on the job in construction and maintenance in high voltage switchyard work and they hold up good as a matter of fact all the Milwaukee cordless tools we have are work horses.
 
I bought the harbor freight brand a few years ago. It works great. I am a hobby guy, so I don’t use it all the time, but have used it a lot. Probably not the tool for a professional, but the price matched my use.
 
It should hold up pretty well I beat the hell out mine. Like I said before if you find you use it a lot upgrade to the M18 batteries. I used mine to remove the front end and engine on a truck got COVID and 4 weeks later went to put it back together and battery was still good for the whole install. I keep a 3/8 to 1/4 socket adapter on it and mainly use 1/4 sockets.
 
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