We’ve learned that Makita is soon coming out with several new 18V brushless impact wrenches. The one quite a few readers emailed in about is the Makita XWT08, a 1/2″ square drive impact. Thank you to everyone who sent in tips!
The new Makita XWT08 brushless impact wrench will be joined by a 3/4″ square drive impact wrench (XWT07), and a 7/16″ hex chuck impact driver (XWT09).
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See Also: What are 7/16″ Hex Impact Tools Used For?
All 3 of the new Makita brushless impact wrenches will be available as bare tools (add a Z to the model numbers), and kits (add an M to the end of the model numbers).
The new impacts feature 3-speed power selection and an electric brake. Makita says that their new 18V brushless impact wrenches have the highest torque in their categories.
The 1/2″ drive XWT08 delivers up to 740 ft-lbs of torque. This is the max tightening torque – Makita hasn’t said what the max reverse breakaway torque might be. The 3/4″ impact delivers up to 780 ft lbs of torque, and the 7/16″ hex chuck driver drivers up to 590 ft-lbs of torque.
Additionally, all 3 models will feature dual LED worklights with “afterglow” function.
Specs (XWT08)
- 1/2″ drive chuck
- 740 ft lbs max tightening torque
- Weighs 3.7 kg (8.1 pounds!) with battery
- 9″ long x 3-5/8″ wide x 11-3/8″ tall
- Speeds: 0-900, 0-1000, 0-1800 RPM (no load)
- Impact Rate: 0-1800, 0-2000, 0-2200 IPM
- Torque Levels:???
It looks like the 1/2″ square drive has a hog ring for socket retention.
These aren’t Makita’s only brushless impact wrenches. Last year they came out with the XWT02, a compact 1/2″ impact wrench.
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Also Available Now: Dewalt 20V Max Heavy Duty Impact Wrenches
Pricing information isn’t available. The new impacts are estimated to hit the market in February of 2016.
If you don’t quite need lug-busting torque (which the new Makita should be capable of), also look at Milwaukee’s new feature-rich M18 Fuel 2nd-generation impact wrenches.
Dewalt’s DCF899 20V Max brushless impact is another option (price check), and delivers up to 700 ft-lbs of torque. It also weighs nearly a full pound lighter, at 7.2 lbs. Dewalt offers both pin detent and hog ring models.
I am much more a fan of Milwaukee cordless power tools, and Dewalt as well – sometimes my preference for the two goes back and forth – and bought into Bosch’s 18V lineup for my personal needs. But there’s no denying that the new Makita impact definitely has some appeal.
Will you be buying into Makita’s 18V lineup just to get this impact?
Makita is also coming out with a new 6Ah battery pack (so has Bosch, and so will Milwaukee), and it’ll feature an on-board battery charge level indicator that they finally decided to offer.
We’re still waiting on Makita USA to provide more details and information, but in the meantime we’ll keep an eye out on international release info to fill in the blanks.
Daniel de andrade
For the 1/2 impact the torque numbers are as follows 300Nm in setting 1, 500Nm in setting 2 and 1,000Nm in setting 3. I like the fact that the torque levels are actually more useable than milwaukees 1/2 fuel. Makita Australia was my source. If you go to their website you can also see the torque levels for the other two models.
Jason
I have to say Makita is putting out some really nice tools lately. A few years ago they were kinda lagging behind everyone is spec’s for the most part. I also like the fact that Makita has outdoor tools on their battery platform its handy to have that option.
Bill
I’m still waiting for Dewalt to come out with a brushless version of their 3/8″ Drive 20-volt max impact. I’ve been told it should be out by Christmas but I can’t hold my breath much longer.
Travis
You can take the 20v brushless 886 XR impact, remove the nose cone, and replace the 1/4″ hex quick release with the 3/8″ anvil/hammer mechanism from the 883 brushed 20v model. Buy the parts from a parts website (ie: ereplacementparts.com) for around $30.
http://www.ereplacementparts.com/anvil-assy-p-70135.html
Very simple swap, works great.
Source:
http://professional-power-tool-guide.com/power-tool-forum/index.php?/topic/7801-dewalt-20v-38-impact-wrench/
Bill
Travis, thanks for the idea, it is a nice conversion but I have some reservations. I don’t think the gearing and perhaps the electronics are going to be quite up to the specs that you would see on a new brushless 3/8″ impact version. I have the DCF886 and while the newly released DCF887 has some better numbers, even converting the 887 to a 3/8″ drive I don’t think will give you the specs of a new dedicated impact wrench. A good frame of reference would be to compare the Milwaukee M18 Fuel 1/4″ hex driver #2753 to the M18 Fuel 3/8″ impact wrench #2754. In this case the torque takes a big jump from 1800 in/lbs in the 1/4″ hex driver to 2520 in/lbs in the 3/8″ impact while the rpm and ipm take a dip. My guess is that driving screws is better accomplished at the higher rpm and ipm without so much torque while the torque is needed more in the impact wrench applications. Thus I assume that if and when Dewalt decides to produce a new brushless 3/8″ impact they will be using a similar formula as Milwaukee.
Nathan
Looks interesting – I think the decisive factor on this model (1/2 drive to other 1/2 drives) is the size and slope of the front collar. pictures can be deceiving but it would appear that this one might get a bit tighter into spots than the others. Hard to say without having it in hand.
as always competition is good. I still like the dewalt ones – but I do like this selectable power feature. I have it on my impact driver and use it often. might not be a bad idea on a impact wrench but I don’t know it’s necessary.
Bill
Nathan, I just went over to Amazon and I see they are now carrying the new Dewalt DCF887 1/4″ hex impact driver. As you may know it also has three selectable speed settings with competitive stats. Now all they need to do is take that unit and attach the 3/8″ square drive I want.
Travis
See my post above. I bet the nose cone could be removed and the 3/8″ anvil installed.
Nathan
you people suck. now I have a new items for my want list. I mean – of course it’s that simple why wouldn’t it be.
to be fair I’ve mostly used my 885 with a 1/4 to 3/8 square adapter anyway. might have to pick up another one. I bet the 885 starts to get real cheap with the 887 on the market.
Hilton
Now all I need is a 3/4″ to 1/4″ adapter and I’ll be able to install those nice brass screws in cabinets pretty quickly. 🙂
JMG
This tool is on my wish list and will most likely replace my older Dewalt impact wrench as I phase out the NiCad based Dewalt tools I currently have.
Nathan
are you moving to Makita?
JMG
I have been heavily invested in Makita since the LXT battery platform was first introduced. I also had acquired many of their cordless drills when they first introduce the 7.2 v NiCad and graduated to the 9.6v platform when it was offered. Inbetween the 9.6v and the LXT I purchased alot of Panasonic drills and a few other brands. I was not real fond of the 18v NiCad battery packs that Makita had produced prior to the LXT platform. The shift towards Dewalt happened several years back when Makita had dropped the ball and Dewalt had begun offering cordless tools that I could use that were not available in the Makita lineup. Dewalt’s shift towards their new battery platform has just pushed me back towards filling out my Makita collection wherever possible, allowing me to unhorse the older NiCad units (with exception of the cordless nail guns). As the new Dewalt battery adapter has failed to work with most of their cordless items that I have left, it has just given me more of a reason to shift back to Makita.
Aleks
Toolguyd missed a lot of the announcement! Next year we are getting 6.0 Amp hour batteries with fuel gauges, an 18 volt and 18vx2 Brushless recip saw, the dual battery brushless miter saw is nearly out (December), the impact wrenches of course, a 36v vacuum and there were a lot of bits and blades kind of stuff too in the STAFDA reveal.
Personally I am excited about every one of the new tools, they have pretty much made everything I would have liked to see, now only a brushless multi tool and cordless framing nailer on my list… maybe an in wall camera and pex cutters and the like just to match milwaukee and shut up the makita haters but I have little use for those tools myself..
Each of the newly announced tools will dominate the market as the top performers in their category…
JMG
Stuart didn’t miss the 6ah battery in his post, and I wouldn’t have been too concerned about the recips myself as they are not due out until late spring and summer of next year. Also, Amazon has a pre-order page up for the XSL02Z Miter saw, currently priced at $668.
Stuart
ToolGuyd intentionally skipped over a lot of the announcement.
There are too many missing details, and a severe lack of information. Last time I posted about a Makita Fall “announcement” ahead of time, they refused to answer reasonable questions and got really nasty about it over the phone, saying that I should count how many months away August was away from November, and that’s how long it would be before they would provide more details.
With the brushless impact wrench, Makita released enough details through their Japanese site to justify a post.
If you wanted a simply copy and paste, you came to the wrong place.
As JMG said, there’s a miter saw preorder page, and that’s going to be the subject of a following post.
Aleks
No worries, I just figured you would just mention the other stuff short on details and stick with the better announced stuff for the article.
Personally I was way more excited about the 6.0 battery and the recip saw then the wrench which was posted on makita.biz weeks ago…
Double the amps in the same size and weight battery… now that is exciting news! Oh and the first brushless makita recip sounds exciting too although no details to be found yet, people have been waiting for this tool for years… as the current makita recip saw is pretty lame…
Thetoolaholic
dont you find it odd that they dont want to promote their own tools? regardless of when they are made available I believe the public should be able to know everything about them so they can either wait or move on. stringing people along is the worst thing ever.
Rory
I Emailed toolguyd about 2-3 weeks ago about a lot of this new Makita gear and got no response – I have the data sheets from Makita… all the info you’ll ever need.
Stuart
Sorry, I’ll see if I can find the email.
I’m swamped these days, and have been unable to get back to a lot of emails.
Aleks
You have a data sheet for the new recip saws?
Stuart
Yes, I do.
Makita’s stance is that this is a pre-release announcement, and that’s why they can’t answer questions or provide more details.
adam
We knew just about everything from Milwaukee from there event, and all that was a pre-release.
Maybe Makita does have the better tool & I imagine 99% have never called a tool co. customer service, but after reading Stuart’s interaction, I’d skip Makita. Rather call Milwaukee and talk to someone friendly.
They might as well announce they have a 12Ah battery coming out (not soon, but someday)
Aleks
I don’t get the fuss, they don’t owe any details yet, they aren’t selling the tools, yet we were given a sneak peak of where things are heading and you guys just complain thay they didn’t give spec sheets with every tool…
Only the back pack vacuum and recip saws have no data sheets available, but they are months away and might not even be completely tested
Vaheh
Makita has been absolutely destroying the competition this year with their impact driver, hammer drill and circular saw. I’m glad because they fell off for awhile but seems they’ve gotten serious again. This gun and the recip saw are really impressive too, they had a controlled test of the saw against a corded one and it handily beat it. Unless you’re heavily invested in a platform team teal is the obvious choice unless they just don’t make the tool you’re looking for.
Hugh
Pretty impressive looking tools! I wonder if they will be as great as they say they will be? I guess at least all Makita fans will finally get thrown a bone other that endless waves of 1/4 inch hex impact drivers. I guess they do have the largest 18v platform because of all the clone tools they have, not to mention all the different color combos.
If they couldn’t come out with higher performing brushless tools than Milwaukee, than what have they been doing? I got off the Makita bandwagon because of their poor battery warranty and lack of fuel gauge. It took them how many years to respond to that want? How long has it taken them to respond to the brushless tools on the market?
Aleks
They were the first with brushless tools, one of the first in to lithium, they have way more selection than any other tool brand even if you take out the duplicate models… do some research you will find their selection enormous and constantly growing…
Some examples, best impact driver on market, competitive brushless saw and first to think of 18vx2, most torque in an 18v drill… most powerful leaf blower, the first with a pin nailer… the rest of their tools atleast compete, and go beyond the competition as they get upgraded to newer versions…
Most of nicer tools they make have built in fuel guages, and now new batteries have fuel guages too, but if that is your main metric for tools then ya they are way behind…
Vaheh
This post made me laugh. People seem to have forgotten about how much stuff they’ve pioneered. One thing too is they are conservative with numbers not like milwaukee whose marketing department goes crazy rounding up numbers (as does dewalt). We’ll see what happens when this thing comes out. I don’t know what milwaukee engineers are doing because their gen 2 impact that just came out is slower and less powerful than the top makita, not to mention bulkier. Same with the hammer drill but all people see is their superb marketing machine and optimistic power figures.
Jon
The Milwaukee Gen 2 is slower probably because they simply geared it slightly slower (with the same power input) to create a higher maximum torque figure.
Unfortunately for every professional user that instantly sees through the BS and knows which tool does more *work*, there are 10 casual home owner types that buy based on that maximum torque number.
They can sell more drivers by increasing the max torque even at the expense of total amount of work done!
Jon
Makita provided brushless tools for aerospace industry way back in 2003.
They were the leaders in many other innovations that we all use today like the lithium pack and the slide shaped pack.
They do have the biggest 18v tool line-up even if you don’t count all the duplicates.
They recently increased the warranty on every tool and battery to 3 years from the purchase date for free!
Hugh
Actually Milwaukee came out with slide style batteries with their nicad batteries, so not an innovation of Makita’s. Both Makita and Milwaukee came out with lithium tools the same year.
Why did it take so long for them to offer a 3 year warranty on their batteries, did they know their battery tech was garbage and passed the risk onto the consumer?
Jon
Actually Makita brought out the TD130D in February 2005 which I believe is the first lithium battery powered tool.
Milwaukee also claims to have brought the first tool to market in 2005 – I can’t find the exact details maybe it was in January and they are the first.
I will go with Makita as the first considering they also invented the first rechargeable tool ever and the first NiCad battery powered tool ever – it fits nicely to credit them with the first Li-Ion tool as well!
Hugh
Well according to the lawsuit that all companies that want the privilege to make lithium ion battery packs, it was January 05 Milwaukee.
JMG
1991 – Sony and Asahi Kasei released the first commercial lithium-ion battery.
JMG
I remember buying into that original Milwaukee abortion of a slide pack. I also remember being left with an orphan tool when they immediately changed the form factor of the batteries. The tool itself was great and my brother still uses it every now and then, but the whole mess caused me to not trust the brand for years after.
julian
As I recall, Milwaukee was easily 6-8 months ahead of any other power tool company in the release of Lithium Ion battery tools with their V-18 tool introductions.
I say that not as a Milwaukee fan, but as a Makita user….
Julian
550
Good news for Makita 18v owners ( They make very good tools , corded recip saws and Makita’s quality control is better than the bosch’s)
adam
I think I have only seen 1 set of Makita tools (drill & impact) used in the last almost 10 years (and that person received it as a gift). Obviously they are out there, but all I ever see are Milwaukee & dealt tools being used.
Maybe they are the better tool, but it doesn’t seem actually ownership matches that sentiment. If they had more competitive sales, I would have considered them. I really wanted the X2 chainsaw, but /w pricing & hearing about their battery fiasco, I figured I’d skip
Hilton
I’ve never ever seen a Milwaukee for sale in my part of the world. Just the usual suspects of Makita, Bosch (Green and Blue), Dewalt, Ryobi, AEG, Skil, Hitachi and Black & Decker. Different markets, different product offerings.
JMG
In over ten years of using Makita LXT batteries, I have had one single failure. It was replaced at no cost to me. The failure could have been construed as my fault also as I allowed it to overheat by over-stressing an SDS drill. The SDS in question was one of the early models that did not have the electronic protections that current tools enjoy. This to me says that it was not necessarily the fault of the battery, but more of a fault of tool engineering (or lack thereof) early on in the life of the platform. All tool companies have teething issues when developing new tool systems, and whether or not a customer sticks with a specific brand can be a matter of timing of those teething issues as much as anything else. I am still using the first pair of LXT batteries that I purchased over ten years ago.
JMG
By the way, I have one of the x2 chainsaws. It is an awesome small saw, but you have to drain the chain oil out of it before storing it, as otherwise it will leak most of what you leave in it.
Aleks
i have one too, doesn’t leak like that though, all though occasionally have a small drop or two after a few weeks of sitting around
Vaheh
We’ve seen all kinds of problems with milwaukee ever since they were bought out by the chinese entity TTI. In fact everywhere but the US milwaukee is considered no different than ridgid and ryobi which are manufactured under the same roof. Dewalt makes good tools but they are lower tech and under-performers. If makita had milwaukee’s marketing budget there’s no doubt they would dominate every construction site across the US.
Hugh
Thanks for bringing that up, because of the TTI backing they have been able to achieve more. They have been able to leave the competition in the dust. Companies like Makita are now only responding to what they have brought to the market.
The double battery 18v tools are just repackaged 36v tools which everyone complained were too heavy/bulky and asked for something smaller. Aren’t two 18v batteries the same weight as one 36v? It’s a cool idea but isn’t it going to have the same issue of weight? I heard people complaining about a 36v saw that weighs a little over 7 pounds was too much, but a wormdrive comes in at 15 pounds.
I have had the pleasure of talking to some of the RD guys from Milwaukee about future products, they are not Rigid and they are not Ryobe. Just because that dude in the depot trys to sell you their products doesn’t mean they are all in the same factory making tools. That would be like saying Blacken Decker and Dewalt are the same product because they are owned by the same company.
Makita is not without blemish they have made poor products as well.
JMG
In my case, the weight of the tool was never the issue. What was the issue was the ridiculous cost of a 36v battery pack vs the cost of a pair of 18v batteries. Adding to the cost factor was having to buy into yet another battery system and all that entails. It became a no-brainer to completely ignore those particular tools. An argument about weight being the only reason for a failure of the 36v Makita platform sales is a house of cards.
Hugh
Weigh is always a factor in these tools sales. That is why they aren’t solely dedicated to the X2 platform and have an identical tool that works with one battery.
Two 5.0 packs is still going to come in pretty close to what a 36v battery costs. Much less two 6.0. Is not what anyone is going to want to put in those tools for the longest run time?
It is interesting to see them finally make a bunch of brushless tools. I will keep my eyes on them. If they finally did put a three year warranty on their batteries I may even buy some of them.
Hilton
@Hugh. Makita does have a three year warranty on their batteries.
JMG
For some reason, every time you make a post in this thread, I keep seeing a straw man walking around behind your reasoning. The 5ah, and 6ah batteries were not being offered when Makita shifted towards the x2 package. The basis for determining worth or the lack thereof was based on existing product. Weight is an accepted factor of increased size and power, not a solid argument for basing the rejection of an entire platform of tools on.
Hugh
So if weight and size have no bearing on tool sales then why are they always trying to make them smaller and lighter? That is a solid point to make an argument on, just because you don’t agree with it doesn’t mean it’s wrong. That also is why people don’t buy into tool platforms, why else would the 12v platforms be so popular?
I know what I do see is a bunch of those X2 Makita saws on the clearance rack at Depot for 138 and they aren’t moving.
julian
I’ve been using Makita’s LXT 18 volt tools for at least 8 years and have probably 7-8 dead batteries floating around here. And I don’t use them till they drop; once the tool loses a bit of power, I charge the battery, I don’t charge the batteries in the sun or when they are hot, etc.
I’m a big fan of their system, but historically, battery durability hasn’t been one of their strong points. Maybe with their Star batteries, that will change…
Julian.
JMG
Out of curiosity, were any of those dead batteries ever exposed to extreme cold prior to failure?
mark
Agreed. 7 dead makita batteries, 1 dead ryobi, 1 dead bosch. And ryobi and bosch did just as much work. Scared to use makita in the chainsaw , circular saw etc, very expensive cuts. The makita range is great though. Just bought this impact wrench seems nice ot have that many NM, but it will not have to work for extended periods . New philosophy is to buy Bosch for anything with heavy power draw, that could be dropped, or is used constantly, and makita for their great niche tools. Bosch are conservative in design and unfortunately range, but what they do make seems to be the best for good life and heavy use.
Jason
From what I have read its a battery monitoring problem on older 3.0ah Makita LXT packs. If you use the pack all the way and don’t charge it right away the pack protection circuity either has a phantom draw, or natural self discharge will end up causing the pack to fail because its seen to be to under voltage to safely charge.
Julian. Tracy
I’ve always been petty anal about bringing them in from the truck in the winter and the summer and basically following all of the generally accepted guidelines of lithium ion batteries usage and charging. It would be my only complaint about the lineup.
Funny thing is, I’ve got quite a few of the 1.5amp batts that I use with all of my tools, including those that had the tabbed lockout feature to prevent their use. Most of those batteries have held up pretty well, again – paying attention to making sure they aren’t drained completely, etc.
Jt
fred
I’m guessing that we had something like a 5 to less than 10% failure (would not accept a charge) rate on over 100 Makita BL1830 batteries that we had. We did not do any root cause analysis on their failure – and could not say that they failed because of manufacturing defect or something that we inadvertently did to them. Our other lineup of M12 tools also had a number of early battery failures – some right out of the package (so returns were easier) – with the battery charger showing that little “broken” symbol. I don’t recall if we had any since the switchover to what Milwaukee calls “red lithium technology”. In both cases the failure rate was not something we liked – but we just worked it into the cost of doing business. No long term experience with M18 and none with other brands like Dewalt, Ridgid etc. – so I have no basis for comparison.
BTW – I think I’ve seen more “Yellow” tools on jobsites in my neck of the woods than “Blue”, “Red” or “Teal” – especially when it comes to jobsite miter saws and table saws – which are more visible than smaller cordless tools.
Schnittwunde
The machines are now release in Australia and all blanks could be filled:
https://sydneytools.com.au/makita-dtw1002z-18v-li-ion-cordless-brushless-1-2-impact-wrench-skin-only
I’m looking forward for the release in the USA and probably i will find a dealer that will ship one to me to Germany…
Actualy Makita Germany won’t release anything in this category … i’m very suriprised that they won’t release such a good machine in Germany, it wouldn’t have any competitors at the Germany market, not in this price segment.
If anyone has any informations about shipping one to me to Germany feel free to post it here!
Jorge
The impact wrenches have been taken off the market. Must be some major changes to newly discovered defective designs or defective components?
Stuart
Good question. I haven’t heard anything about this, but will check up on it. Thanks for letting me know.
From what I can tell, they’re in the process of being released here in the USA, or have been released and are in short supply. But I’ll still check.
Joe
Any more info on that?Source please?
I am after buying 3/4 version of this.First few Scania wheel nuts came off like with no effort at all. Then there was a weird rattling noise and looks like tool is weaker now, sounds more quiet and does undo fasteners.Just feels way weaker.I am not sure should i bring it to local Makita agent for inspection.
thanks