It's not so bad, we get it. Most of our videos are positive because we really like tools - so that's the community we built. Which we dig. This video is anything but positive, and sometimes we think that is for the better in the long run.
Videos like these are essential. Keeping corps honest (regardless of the color) is better for everyone, including those -52 subs, and likely even Milwaukee... Thank you TTC. Keep up the great work.
The truth sometimes hurts, but the truth is the reason 99.9% of us are here. I've lost count of the number of similar(ish) channels I've unsubbed from as they lost my trust. TTC keep up the good work, the majority of us apreciate the OCD levels of detail and impartiality... and humor :)
Why? I don't see why anyone would unsub for a transparent informational video. This is important information to get out there. Who else has this many examples and run time on all these models. Keep up the good work and being transparent with information. I appreciate these types of videos.
People can't handle constructive criticism. Even if I love a company, if they make a shit product I'm gonna say something, especially if i paid good money for it. It's how the company handles the problem that really matters
@@NIGHTMAREuki Its a really interesting bit of psychology how people's instinctual tribalism applies even to corporations, and not many are immune to it
thanks guys, Milwaukee fanboy here, im just going to hang on to my 2853 and skip this one. I appreciate you releasing videos like these even if others don't.
Wow an admitted Fanboy that still yet has some common sense I can't believe well scratch that I completely believe that there are such boneheaded people to get their panties in such a twist
Are you really a fanboy then? If you are using intelligence to discern whether the company has made something worth your money that doesn’t sound like fanboyism to me.
@@CarlYotaI guess it depends on your definition of it, but I have 30 or so Milwaukee tools, and feel very strongly that they are the best overall brand, even if they get edged out by one tool or another here or there. I was more so responding to the comments above about fanboys unsubscribing.. I appreciate videos like these because I occasionally upgrade my tools to the latest ones in the line (I did the 1/2 hammer drill last) and this PSA basically told me to keep my gen 3
The thing is, people who call themselves fanboys are usually not fanboys. Just because you’re in the Milwaukee line exclusively (because of battery constraints) and you have a bunch of good Milwaukee tools that have served you well, doesn’t make you a fanboy. Are you irrational and emotional about your Milwaukee tribe because you derive some part of your identity from it? Will you defend thier flaws and act like they neither don’t exist or are actually benefits? Will you buy bad tools and still act like they are the best in the market? No? You’re probably an intelligent consumer, not a fanboy. And if all batteries were interchangeable I bet you, like most of us, would buy whatever UA-cam testers found to be the best most affordable version of each tool. Because anyone with a three digit IQ would do that.
Definitely glad I have the gen 3 impacts. I don’t use them a lot but I’ve never had an issue. Of course I actually researched before buying and they were, at the time, probably the best impact out there so it’s no surprise. Dewalts had over heating issues and makitas never go on sale. So it was an easy choice.
I hope Milwaukee reads this: I have thousands of dollars in Milwaukee tools. Lately, I’ve been discouraged by the higher and higher prices. If I see very much more of this, the blue and yellow will overtake the red. I’m a fanboy… of what works!
I'm team makita but have some Milwaukee for stubborn bolts .. unfortunately it's also the fact Milwaukees parent company tti makes them unreasonable to repair as well most of the electrical components are sold as one part and usually cost more then just replacing the tool which is a shame what I've learned from watching tool repair channels Dean Doherty being one of the main ones it's always with Milwaukee he goes let's open it and see if I'm wasting time specially the modern tools he's cool with the older American made Milwaukee tools they usually are a easy repair if he can get the parts for it.
I'm in a similar boat as you. While I haven't had any issues with my repertoire of M18's, this is very concerning and hopefully gets a response out of Milwuakee. I have some corded Dewalt tools that I absolutely love, so it wouldn't take a lot for me to move to team yellow.
There's still time to get on the Flex Founders warranty.. can't believe I have lifetime free replacement on a table saw, miter saw, and every other tool and battery I've purchased
Same here, I have a lot of red but there the nz equivalent of HF tools.. Ozito. and they seem to hold up pretty well, there brushless bit driver even outperforms my 36v Hikoki 1/2" uggadugga that blows up its battery's every 2 months
@@schwuzidid you know that Japan made makitas have even better trigger? I got a TD173 from eBay and it is better built and smoother than the USA sold XDT16
I gave away all my old Milwaukee tools to new guys needing tools and went with all mikita. They definitely are not as strong as Milwaukee, but I much prefer them. I went through multiple Milwaukee Impacts and haven't have an issue yet with mikita. TD173 jdm Impact is the best I have ever used and it's just about as strong as the Milwaukee.
I've only ever bought makita, some are 15+ years old. my brother in law gave away his milwaukee and bought makita. my oldest brother uses a mix of both makita and milwaukee. my youngest brother seems to only buy milwaukee but he also doesn't use them beyond his own personal projects.
Milwaukee tools have had very hard gears for decades. 45 years ago, I was doing warranty and repair work on many brands at an industrial supply house. I replaced a lot of broken Milwaukee parts that appeared to be too hard for their own good, and not just gears. I own quite a few Milwaukee tools these days, but I can't imagine unsubscribing because of a video like this. Lotta butthurt out there! I love this channel, mostly because it's honest and objective. Just keep doin' whatcher doin'.
People getting feelings hurt are either just gear whores who don’t actually use tools to get work done, or people who have spent a lot of money on this particular bad tool and don’t want to face the truth. The latter makes sense because nobody want me to hear they just wasted 150$ on something that’s gonna break. The former are collectors that we, as people who actually use tools as tools, shouldn’t even care. Then, of course, there are apes who divide into tribes over the most inconsequential things and try to derive identity from it. As an evolution nerd I understand this but it’s still silly that people do it will tool companies. Sports I can kinda understand as it mimic tribal war in the Stone Age more closely. But brand loyalty to shady corporations? Kinda weird.
The harder gears are, usually, the better they are, but that also has to be balanced with more meat to handle a sufficient amount of shock. It seems like in the quest to shorten the drivers (necessarily thinning the gears) they didn't scale back that hardness to compensate.
Episode idea: Do warrantee claims with each brand. Who has the fastest turn around? Who requires insane paperwork? Who has local repair centers? I became a DeWalt guy in large part to having a local repair center that offered walk-in replacement of batteries and many tools. Sadly. however, that local repair center was shut down during C19, and the listed "repair center" was just a local tool dealer who gives you forms to send it in to DeWalt. If another brand opened a local repair center like DeWalt used to have, I might switch brands.
I've warrantied lots through Makita and Milwaukee locally at their repair shops. Zero forms. Just take your info and the tool. Never been more then about 10 days with either. Typically within the week foe Milwaukee. And once with Makita they literally called me the next day with my drill fixed because they had the part in stock.
Hard to beat walk in and swap out with a new one at HoboFreight. Maybe not the best/most durable, but for home hobbyists, when you consider purchase price and available swapout or refund... it's incredibly attractive.
I used to purchase ridgid power tools bc of the lifetime warranty. The home depot in Dayton ohio used to be a service center and have very fast turn around on fixing it or replacing it! Now they no longer fkn offer it. So now ridgid wants you to mail it into them.
@@cyrusmoser1090 The repair center that did Ridgid near me no longer takes them also. (They do every tool other brand except for Makita and Milwaukee) They told me Ridgid doesn't pay them enough to cover parts and labor and it wasn't worth it for them so they quit taking Ridgid tool claims.
Gonna have to disagree and say I think there should be a recall. I don't even own one of these, but if your comments section remotely reflects the reliability of all those impacts sold...50% failure rate is not acceptable.
Pretty sure the comments section of a tool channel isn't going to be representative. Most people are too lazy to say anything when their tool is still doing what it's supposed to.
@@bgg-jp5eiDesigned in the US. It's not where it's made, but customer demands, competition and costs. Of course there can be a swing and miss, but powertools in general are great - even cheap drills are better in every way than pro drills 15 years ago
@@bgg-jp5ei I’m glad it’s made there and not here. If American start making anything the quality will be worse than any other place in the world. Gone are the days of well paid and proud American factory worker. If you had the nightmare of trying to work with an average American low class worker that would be given the assembly job here and now, you will be thankful your tools are made someplace else. Sad, no heartbreaking, but true non the less.
Videos like these are what we all need. Thank you, i was about to purchase the milwaukee impact driver and drill set, but now i can wait until a revision. Please open more tools up! Love to see the insides.
That's one thing I do love about my Makita tools...so far I have had 0 reliability issues across a number of drills, impact drivers, belt sanders, grinders, etc. I've had multiple Makita tools now for close to, or even over 20 years, and they're still going as strong and smooth as day one. I even have some of their old school white/black brushed tools, (drill and an impact), and they're still working great. Use those all the time for stuff around the house that doesn't require uber power. Same goes for their batteries and chargers. The set of 2 x 3Ah batteries and the accompanying charger that came with that white and black set are still going strong today. I do own other brand tools, I'm fairly brand agnostic, and try to buy the best tools at the time I can afford. However I have not made the jump to another battery platform, as I have a hars time justifying the additional cost vs performance gains. The only reason I do want to get some Milwaukee stuff, is cause Makita doesn't often release new tools or batteries. For instance I love my Makita Mid-Torque, it's a beast in power and very smooth. However if I want a high torque (which I really do), i'd rather go with probably the new Milwaukee, over any of the current Makita offerings...unless Makita finally releases their new XGT High Torque in an 1/2" LXT 18V format.
My makitas may not run the best, according to the dynometer, but I've put them through some shit and they've come out of the gauntlet fighting the whole way. I honestly didn't think that anything battery powered could hold up to the abuse I put my shit through, but have been pleasantly surprised. I've had a few batteries fail because of the star protection, but as long as I remember to let them come back to room temp before I put them on the charger I haven't had any problems.
As a welder the only tools I have consistently killed have been angle grinders, and Makita's / Dewalts will surprise you with the crap they take. I tell friends / home users to buy the Makita: GA6020Y , its a corded rat tail grinder that has a safety release by your thumb so you can't accidentally pull the trigger. The grinders I use at work don't have this feature but I highly recommend it for home users. The Dewalt I recommend is DWE43066N its what I use right next to my Makita's and it works great. Both grinders from both brands do not have a trigger lock on them I have been welding for 15 years and have seen some horrific injuries caused by grinders with trigger locks on so I will never recommend tools that have that feature, so if you want one with a trigger lock search the model number without the Y or N on it and find the variant that comes with it.
This is what I like most about your channel, The honesty. You will show us the good and the bad. It is refreshing given the budgets on social marketing these days. I am positive this will upset the Milwaukee fans, though the reality is they should be thanking you the most as reviews like this are more likely to make Milwaukee take notice and hopefully make improvements in the future.
Thanks for shining light on issues, as a milwaukee user myself I appreciate it. I started due to watching one used on jobsites and its owner claimed to get a half day of tapping trees (maple country here) on a single battery. Loved that drill for about a decade, the chuck is showing signs of age and it might need some fixing now
i have 2953 for 2 years and this impact works perfect. I'm on full-time roofer and I put in 10 inch screws for the last 10 years thousands and thousands of screws zero problems with my impact
Limited experience here but while i was hobbing gears out of 4140, target hardness was around 48-52 hrc. Almost seems like they forgot to temper after hardening.
68HRC? That's ridiculous for 0,4% C steel. The ring would break like glass if you dropped it. On a hard surface, something like floor tiles. Even 52HRC is high for 40HM/42CrMo4.
Sounds about right. I have had two milwaukee drills, 4 batteries, and a polisher quit on me. Since I didn't have the receipt, I was out of luck on the warranty. My m18 gen3 impact constantly overheats during extended use.
I'm glad power tools and batteries have a 5 year warranty required by law here in Norway for private consumers. The funny thing is that Milwaukee cost almost twice as much as Dewalt with local pricing.
@@Figawi It is a kind of warranty that covers everything wrong with the product that is not caused by the user. If you have a impact gun and regular use make it break the warranty covers it, but if you dropp it or use it unreasonable it are not covered by the warranty. The rule a general consumer rule saying that all products have a 3 year warranty, and that products made to last more than 3 years have a warranty of 5 years. In practice most tools would then have a 5 year warranty as explained.
Yeah, for some reason they cost a lot more than others in many locales, like Mordor where I reside. Even before the war. But now especially - since they left the market and are only sold to aficionados by intermediaries. I guess it comes from the fact that they are perceived as a true American brand. Gotta suck for those who buy them here now since you don't get any warranty...
I'm waiting for your EU laws to force all the tool manufacturers to have common batteries. We can dream right? You all got Apple to use industry standard chargers.
I got my gen 3 2 years ago from home depot when they were getting rid of stock for half off, glad I jumped on that deal when I did. Its really too bad they could have made a great tool. My regular brushless and gen 3 fuel have never had any issues, and my previous gen m12 fuel has been my daily tool for a couple years with no issue as well. Thank you for putting out a video on how to fix it for everybody that bought one hoping for an even better impact.
I was kind of surprised by the battery issue that you mentioned in this video as well. I’m a Dewalt guy and had thought about moving to Milwaukee because I hear a lot of good stuff. This makes me happy to know I’ve stuck with Dewalt because I’m still using batteries I bought in 2013-14 for the 20V lineup without issue.
Those HRC numbers are INSANE for load bearing gears🤯😂 I’ve gotten into metallurgy the last few years, and I just gotta ask…. If I were able to take one of these apart and temper all of the overly hard gears to a happier, less brittle rating, would you guys be interested in testing it? 🤔
@@TorqueTestChannel welp dangit😆 I’ve been a tradie for most of my adult life and have this exact impact… very luckily I haven’t had issues, but admittedly I don’t beat on my impact drivers a whole lot…. My drills on the other hand 👀 I’m actually super impressed with how they’ve held up to my work
@TorqueTestChannel can you ask viewers to send in their gen 4 impacts and test HRC? Good chance there's a big variance and the reliable ones have lower hardness.
Another great and informative review. I'm still rocking the 2853, and am very happy with it. I have put it through some legit torture tests at work and at home, and found it to be one tough, reliable little beast. Thanks for curing my 3-led envy.
Great vid as always guys! And let me say as a Dewalt platform guy, no tool is perfect and no tool company is above having problems. Dewalts had its share. So im all for your great content helping us all out avoiding problem tools. And I will want to know if there is a Dewalt tool out there that I should stay away from till the company gets its issues corrected. I certianly watch your vids to see what tools I should choose over others, and this vid is just squarely in your wheelhouse of great content.
my FIL owned an early LXT impact driver for over 10 years, when they were still black/white. It wasa 2009 build date. Let's say he is not the most cautious man with his tools. It fell from a ladder, was thrown in the truck's bed and to the floor many times and one of his workers ultimately ended up throwing the tool after a framing job and the handle broke. My FIL duck taped it and carried on for a while until he got the XDT15 subcompact and it's been working great for 4 years. Bottom line: Makita will not win drag races but it will last.
My , Makita LXT set bought in the USA, in winter 2005 was "made in Japan". I added some tools in 2012 "Made in China". A few weeks ago, I purchased the XW17z impact wrench. The tool now says "Assembled in USA". All these tools still work.
I cant speak for the Milwaukee but ive been using a DeWalt DCF850 atomic impact for over 2 years now and its been an absolute champ. Lags, tapcons, automotive bolts, unibits, etc. Ive gotten it pretty smoking hot and it just keeps going. Has held up extremely well and was the best $100 tool ive ever bought
My gen 4 seized the last weekend, i popped the rotor off and smacked it on the back with a hammer, works like new but went ahead, and ordered a new rotor
That's what happens when a company outsource to Chyna. They are liars and cheats. I will not be buying anything else from milwaukee until they bring their manufacturing back to the USA
I absolutely love this channel it's one of the best information on channels on tools on the internet and I've bought many of his recommendations. I bought a lot of the newer DeWalt tools over the Milwaukee's. For some reason buying a tool brand that's made by Ryobi and uses probably some of the same Parts interchangeably is a hard pill for me to swallow
Still have it? I have a 9.6v with the short battery orange battery box, seems the stick style were more popular around here. With some patience I got the battery box open without breaking it - (3) 18650 lithium cells fit in there nicely with room for a BMS. Just bench tested so far, need to finish that. Sure, bumps the voltage up to the 12v range, but I figure it's not getting used as is so might as well let it sing out as long as it lasts. With the stick style batteries it looks like there might be room to get (6) 18650s in there in a 3S2P (three cells in series like mine, but in two parallel groups for double the capacity), then it'd work all day along side a modern tool.
Same here. Went through a few OEM batteries without a single glitch. Gave up on it when Makita batteries were NLA, and Chinese replacements were useless. That tool did it all.
Makita don’t you mean Misskita🤣 ahahah me and my buds we work construction and we been doing it for like a year and a half now.. Milwaukee all the way bruh ain’t nothing beating Milwaukee just too powerful for yall poor boys so you have to justify getting bad tools like Makita
Milwaukee: "Now that we've got enough market share and home depot is taking competing brands off the shelves, implement planned obsolescence and start putting out trash products."
@@edwardoavila7666 its home depots fault they lost Klein. when Covid hit they promised Klein impossible to achieve sales figures considering everything was closed and well... they missed 2 years in a row by a mile so Klein just moved to Lowes. I know this because I use to work at Lowes
Budding Milwaukee fan who recently bought this tool in a kit with the hammer drill. Definitely concerned by this but very thankful that you brought it to light!! Anxious to see what response (if any) Milwaukee offers.
I have had Milwaukee power tools, and more specifically the M12 sets, for over a decade now with no issues and all of my batteries still working and holding charge for the same amount of time. I have seen some hit or miss tools in the past 3-4 years but have also had similar problems with Dewalt, Ryobi, etc doing heavy scenic carpentry, low voltage install, and metal work/fabrication. They all have product cycles that have issues and that are rock solid. The biggest thing in my opinion is having independent testing and reviews available for the products without the brand trying to make them take this kind of content down. The flip side is that the reviewers and testers need to do their content like this or project farm. Where it is factual and does not vilify or attack the brand in a defamatory manner but rather presents the facts. Still love my Milwaukee tools but definitely also happy to see them called out when they deserve to be.
As the Milwaukee marketing bravado increases, the quality decreases. I haven’t had a battery case break but I’ve had many m18 batteries where they won’t charge to full bars or else, in the case of 2 of my m12 6ah batteries, they will only charge on the oldest of my 6 chargers. The newer chargers just show a red/green error. Also, they still offer very few of their tools in packout. They really need to take a look at how well festool does this.
this just reminded me I had an M12 CP 3.0 battery fail on me. It won't jump start either so it's very likely one or more of those 30Q cells (same ones used on the 6.0) died. The only batteries that have failed on me over the last decade have been an M18 2.0, that M12 3.0 and a bunch of Ryobis...
Festool, Makita, Dewalt all of the big players are doing the packout thing. I use Makita's packout for their power tools but Dewalts hard plastic packouts for my hand tools. My dad uses Dewalt tools, so I am going to be gifting him some of their tool packout kits.
I was really hoping this video would be about how the gen 4 fixes the gen 3 issues, but it looks like the gen 4 still has those, plus a lot more. I got rid of all my milwaukee tools a few years ago for reliability reasons, and I keep hoping they'll start building quality again, but apparently they're still getting worse. Glad I jumped ship when I did
Interesting video. I just built a 0 ft bu 18 ft covered deck with no use of nails as every piece of wood was glued and screwed. The number of deck screws of various lengths and size ,lag bolts and nuts had to number over a thousand ! I used a Porter Cable impact and it did fantastic !
Hey. Nice video! Thanks for making me stick to DeWalt. I was going for an impact gen 4 next week in favor of an DCF 850, even if I have more DeWalt tools already.
miluwakee has 0 competition in the 12v line. They’re so far ahead of everyone. dewalt 12v tools are the size of 18v tools and less powerful. m12 is definitely miluwakees best lineup
I am a huge Milwaukee fan boy! I am so glad to see this… like you said happens to the best of them… I try to do my research, and talk to actual users before buying any tool of upper price ranges.. this is the type of information that is most helpful IMHO… real world, (or as close as can be) testing and results data is pure gold! I try and make data driven decisions in my day to day.. Much Thanks!
Then you’re not actually a fanboy. Fanboys blindly follow thier tribe. If you’re doing research and buying intelligently then you’re a fan, not a fanboy. Milwaukee can do no wrong in the eyes of a fanboy. You just like Milwaukee tools; mainly because, like me, you research and only buy the good ones.
I’ve stuck with Dewalt, had my 20v impact for about 11 years. Used daily and under hard conditions throughout my indoor playground career till it ended in 2018 and been using it around the house since. Only one battery has quit. My Dewalts never seem to die.
Gives me a similar picture to the people over here in northern europe are saying Milwaukee is good. But not for long periods at a time ... Someone once called it a subscription like system
Mine shot sparks and gave up some magic smoke and I tried resetting it with time and a different battery and it did it again. Took it apart and the lead for the led lights wore into the motor shell from vibrating and having a bend in the housing tight against the motor. I really couldn't solder it together and fit it back into the case, so I did some crazy rewiring and adding tape for protection from the motor.
I had to return the 3692-22CT kit, non fuel M18, about a month ago. Out of the box the impact driver trigger would cut out after a couple seconds whether it was driving or not and with either battery. Tried shaking the battery a little and it didnt seem to be linked to the cutouts. However, with the charger station, I had to press the battery in really hard and let off gently or it wouldnt make connection to charge. Took it back and paid the same for a Kobalt XTR kit with more features after seeing its performance in your vid, works great.
My m12 version broke on me about 6 months in. pretty light casual use as a hobbyist and then one day drove about 30 3 inch wood screws and something seized on the inside. No issues with warranty process, they repaired and got it back to me in about a week.
Stayed away from milwaukee for the longest time due to the higher prices. Managed to snag an m12 combo drill and impact driver. The drill quit working after putting it in reverse during the first test. Also snagged the curre t m18 high torque with the impact driver and the high torque gives up a clacking noise when feathering down the trigger. Good thing they come with 5 year warranty. I'll stick with metabo hpt and bosch. Don't need the power as much as longevity since I am just a DIYer.
I have had the gen 3 for 3 years daily use. Most abuse it gets is structural screws 4-10”. For the big stuff I don’t bother impacts are slow, I use my drill or impact wrenchs for. Still works flawlessly.
Sad to see milwaukee going down the pan. I bought a packout DAB radio charger and after 3 replacements it is still not right. Keeps losing presets and randomly turns on and plays a station that I have never tuned in to. Not what you would expect from a unit that cost over £330
I ran over my makita 3/4 impact with a semi trailer (accidental of course) and with only scratching the case runs perfectly still. No internal damage. This is why i buy Makita.
I dropped a Milwaukee drill at work onto a rubber mat and it never ran again. Another broke for no reason (last 8 months for both). Milwaukee has been falling off quickly recently.
Guess I’ll be glad I have an older Milwaukee impact, it’s not as small but it’s never failed me. Works as good today as the first day I abused it, been a wonderful tool to have around the truck.
This seems like they're repeating cost cutting measures somewhere like they did with that impact wrench, even if it's not a total redesign. In this case by using a cheaper parts production process or supplier who are skipping heat treatment steps or using a cheaper metal that doesn't respond well to the process in place. Either way this is something that should be getting caught in early pre-production test runs, not on shelves.
An M12 Fuel impact was my first Milwaukee tool last fall and I’ve never been more impressed with any tool I’ve ever used in my life. It blows my mind that the M18 wouldn’t be better.
-51 now. I appreciate the testing regardless of personal feelings. Also hammer issues isnt uncommon for milwaukee. Their 3/4" after use likes to ride the hammer on top of the anvil and lock it up. Thankfully millwaukee learned from competition and you can pull them apart and unstick them now.
I've been using cordless and corded Makita tools since the early 80's.....still haven't had one fail. Just got rid of my old 7.2 volt ones a couple years ago.
That's why DeWalt has been my choice for many years. Doesnt shake, doesnt stop, almost half the price of Milwaukee in EU. Only thing I will give Milwaukee is that their impact bits and drills are the best for the price. I bought a set dcd996 with 5ah battery and a charger for equivalent power Milwaukee hammer drill body. If i wanted to spend that much money on tools id take the Hilti or Festool route
I don’t hate any tool company but with Milwaukee prices and this specific tool having the issue I really think they need to recall or drop the tool and design a better one. my dad bought one and it broke he warrantied it and it broke 4 months later. He tossed the tool all together and stopped buying Milwaukee he doesn’t have a favorite brand but is more of the “if it works I’ll use it if it breaks I’ll toss it kind of person”
I currently own a 2953-20 here in the Philippines. So far, it has lasted a year with light and medium duty work, I usually run it with a 2.0 or 5.0 battery, but I did experience my hammer getting stuck countless times. If this dies, I can not warranty my tool in any way due to my location, and it was bought from online from a 3rd party seller that is respected here I my country.
Que bueno que me he mantenido alejado de milwaukee, solo uso makita xgt y metabo(no hpt) y no he tenido ningun problema en 6 años. Gracias por la informacion @TorqueTestChannel
bearings falling apart problem in Millwaukee made me know loctite for bearings exist. Also Mill had problem with battery mount. It will not connect correctly and lose power during use as it wears out. Their plastic are trash compared to other same tier brand
As someone who bought into flex tools about 3 almost 4 years ago. Watching this video made me smile so wide haha. All the times I’ve heard yea it’s fast but it won’t last as long as my Milwaukee would… or the let’s see how long till it breaks comments. All I can say is I’m happy I went with flex over team red. With the amount of use my tools see I would have gone through them over and over again.
My Dad uses Dewalt and I use Makita, both are pretty damn good I wont complain when I have to borrow an impact from him and he doesn't mind the Makita's. That being said, I am surprised by this video I figure Team red, teal and yellow were all pretty good in their own right and it largely had to do with what batter platform you were on. Hell I bought a Milwaukee framing nailer on a coin flip over the Dewalt because both were rated/ regarded highly. That all being said the only tools I consistently kill as a welder Makita or Dewalt are their rat tailed grinders I personally prefer the dewalts because their bodies are easier to grip with your hand when you have to take the handle off. But durability wise I honestly couldn't tell you which lasts longer. I've had dewalts go for a year same with makita's and I had them also both die minutes after being out of the box and get insta warrantied.
All my cordless is DeWalt and I had my first tool fail on me about 6 months ago. 54v chainsaw that ran for about a minute out of the box, farted and let the smoke out before locking up. Hasn't given me butt hurt cos they replaced it on the spot.
Dewalt has had just as many known issues and duds as any other company. I had a Dewalt sander that broke on the first project. I’ve never had a problem with any of my Milwaukee tools but I wouldn’t be so silly as to say “I’m glad I stuck with Milwaukee because they’ve never failed me over the years.” Tribalism over tool brands is silly. We can do better than that. Save that stuff for sports. It’s still silly but at least mimics the tribal warfare of our ancestors better than modern consumerism. In the age of UA-cam the intelligent people would buy whatever tool tests the best. The reason we don’t do this is battery constraints. If you actually use your tools, Dewalt, Milwaukee, Makita, festool, hilti cordless are going to be your best option. But you should still look up the actual tool before buying. If you think it’s gonna be great just because it’s yellow you’re going to eventually get burned. Literally. Because Dewalt last gen impacts were overheating smoking and catching on fire. And Milwaukee’s were the most powerfully but had a slight issue with the collet on some of them where the bit could fall out Do your research and don’t take sides. Don’t be on team yellow. Be an intelligent consumer.
@@CarlYotaif you buy into a platform and it has proven to you to be reliable you stick with it. The guy said his Dewalt tools never breaks. It’s a smart move to stick with it. Same reason why you prefer Milwaukee. If I buy a Milwaukee tool and it happens to be just a bad batch. Too bad Milwaukee loses a customer. Some people had bad experiences with Dewalt and some had bad experiences with Milwaukee. Makita however never breaks for me. So stick with the brand you have best experience with. It’s too expensive to buy into another platform.
@@CarlYota this is the way I don't hate on any tools just went with makita cause 1) it's what I grew up around all corded stuff of course and 2) it's what felt best in my hand tried a bunch before I said hell with it . I've used dewalt Milwaukee even some harbor freight stuff what ever gets the job done I'm always confused when a person gets side ways about tools. Like got a buddy his batteries were about to die and I offered him my impact driver and he scoffed at the idea of touching a makita and I ended laughing at him cause his batteries died cause he forgot to check and charge them .
I have an M12 version and have had it go into heat protection mode twice building decks in the summer but never had it physically break. I think it may be the gearbox is designed for the M12 power and the M18 output is just enough more to cause it to start to break.
I feel the same on DCD999 chucks locking up in some cases. The motor is nothing but excellent power and torque.. But other parts are not capable of handling such power.
Does your M12 absolutely eat batteries when running? I generally use the little 3-cell M12 batteries, but it feels like the brushless M12 tools were really designed for the 3s2p expanded pack.
@@SuperSpy00bob I use the 4 amp hour ones mostly and its fine, when I occasionally use the 2 amp hour one it is noticeably weaker and goes through it fast.
I have a Milwaukee 2667 M18 Impact Driver (smaller right angle impact unit) which I use on occasion around the house/vehicle. Doesn't have the torque to remove wheel lugs but works great for light duty stuff. Used it to remove hard to reach spark plugs, quicker tightening of shock and leaf spring bolts (I would still tighten further by hand), and other light duty stuff. I don't know of any of these types that last for heavy duty commercial/industrial use.
If I wasn’t already, I’d subscribe because of this content. I’m a Milwaukee owner, maybe a fanboy at times. This puts pressure on manufacturers to put out better tools. Bad quality= bad sales
i'm on my 3rd insider ratchet. this thing came out less than a year ago. just yesterday i sent TWO 5ah M18 batteries back to Milwaukee for replacement as they stopped charging
Im a Milwaukee fan boy. If they push out garbage i want to know. So i can be informed and look out. Thesw videos are crucial to keeping corps honest and not just push out garbage
We have two Milwaukee fuel hammer drills (not the current version but the one before) we have had to warranty both. one quit right out of the box( and later the chuck stripped out) and the other died after a few months randomly, not even working it hard. we have several 1/2 and 3/8 impacts that have been great.
I'd love to see you test the $15 North Tech (oops, wrong name) being sold - with battery - at Menards. Heck, if it puts screws in it's doing the job at that price, just curious what's in there.
I would say it underperforms, just look at the motor housing. From a glance it looks smaller than even an M12 impact, and you know this Chinese-origin no-name house-brand tool is going to be a significant amount of generations old; the fact that it's a brushed motor of that size alludes to this. Reeks of Sears-Craftsman, Harbor Freight from decade's past, what Black & Decker had become relegated to decades ago, or the no-names that you find in local hardware stores and tool meets. The only potential benefit is if the spring is light and if that motor spins faster than it has any right to. It might do a light DIY project, but don't expect to be putting up a fence or shed with this tool; it's a tool for the lazy that don't want to drill properly-sized pilot holes for a screw to go into, it's for those who want to impact a few screws into a few studs for basic shelving. Honestly I wouldn't waste time looking at it, it'll likely go into a landfill after a few uses anyways, or sit in a toolbox for most of its life as its 'weekend warrior' owner only does one project a year. I mean, at that pricing, and with what you can logically conclude by how the tool looks and its spec sheet, they're selling to the type of person I've described, and there's no reasonable argument against that. It's a glorified toy for people that don't actually do work that requires a proper impact, typical father's day fodder, underperforming stocking stuffer, etc., we've seen all kinds of trash in this category for decades. I'm not even sure who OEMs/ODMs the tool, searching the one name, that isn't the house brand's name, that I know of results in nothing, though that could also be the import company that middle-mans the no-name factory and Menards; I don't immediately recognize the casing, but it likely is a no-name manufacturing plant that produces it for dirt cheap. I'm not even sure about North Tech as a house brand itself, I've always heard Menard's house brand is shittier than Husky and Kobalt, that and North Tech seemingly sells just about anything, rechargeable AA batteries, a mini bulb socket on the end of a few foot corded plug, etc.; I'd probably just stay away from the brand in general, seems like sellable landfill at best. Wouldn't even be worth TTC's time either, not even as a point and laugh situation, it'll just be a sad pile of dogshit that results in a three minute video when it fails to do anything during testing. Honestly the tool is likely taking a drill-driver's clutch and turning the nose-end into mini anvil instead, just a quick swap of clutch assembly for hammer assembly, likely uses the same spring as the same brand's drill-driver as well, y'know shared parts and all, considering they're similarly priced as well. I also wouldn't be surprised if the battery pack is some of the worst you'll find in any tool.
I am glad I never went with Milwaukee. Back in the early 2000's, around 20 years ago, I bought all Hitchi cordless tools, I think I have 12 of their tools and I still have them all today and am still using the original 20 year old original batteries and chargers, and they still work great today. I use them daily in a Body Shop.
All my milwaukee tools bought in the last 15 years work flawlessly. Outside, all destroyed but never missed a beat. Seems like the new models are having issues.
@@TorqueTestChannel I’m not sure if it’s the same as I’m in the uk but quite a few sites have it now I’ve seen a few on eBay and on websites called ffx and power tool world (I’m not sure if they are in the USA or not )
I bought their stupid inflator and returned it for the Milwaukee the next day. It's probably three to four times better than the Milwaukee. I don't like having multiple battery brands to charge, but I don't tolerate bad design, regardless of brand.
@@riba2233 Is the high tier the XGT one? I am interested in the DMP180ZX and was wondering how good it is from anyone with real world experience with it.
-52 subs so far. We're headed for the bunker to relax, boys
These fan boys really be hurt so quickly 😭
It's not so bad, we get it. Most of our videos are positive because we really like tools - so that's the community we built. Which we dig. This video is anything but positive, and sometimes we think that is for the better in the long run.
Videos like these are essential. Keeping corps honest (regardless of the color) is better for everyone, including those -52 subs, and likely even Milwaukee... Thank you TTC. Keep up the great work.
The truth sometimes hurts, but the truth is the reason 99.9% of us are here. I've lost count of the number of similar(ish) channels I've unsubbed from as they lost my trust. TTC keep up the good work, the majority of us apreciate the OCD levels of detail and impartiality... and humor :)
@@androidthumper agreed.
Why? I don't see why anyone would unsub for a transparent informational video. This is important information to get out there. Who else has this many examples and run time on all these models. Keep up the good work and being transparent with information. I appreciate these types of videos.
its like politics, and religion, its irrational
There are Milwaukee fanboys who can't stand to hear a Milwaukee is unreliable.
He's picking on the Milwaukee fanboy's who don't like hearing the truth.
People can't handle constructive criticism. Even if I love a company, if they make a shit product I'm gonna say something, especially if i paid good money for it.
It's how the company handles the problem that really matters
@@NIGHTMAREuki Its a really interesting bit of psychology how people's instinctual tribalism applies even to corporations, and not many are immune to it
thanks guys, Milwaukee fanboy here, im just going to hang on to my 2853 and skip this one. I appreciate you releasing videos like these even if others don't.
Wow an admitted Fanboy that still yet has some common sense I can't believe well scratch that I completely believe that there are such boneheaded people to get their panties in such a twist
@@MadAtMax.300Blackout you want some ice cream?
@@Goochgravysuppliers Maybe, but not from you
Are you really a fanboy then? If you are using intelligence to discern whether the company has made something worth your money that doesn’t sound like fanboyism to me.
@@CarlYotaI guess it depends on your definition of it, but I have 30 or so Milwaukee tools, and feel very strongly that they are the best overall brand, even if they get edged out by one tool or another here or there.
I was more so responding to the comments above about fanboys unsubscribing.. I appreciate videos like these because I occasionally upgrade my tools to the latest ones in the line (I did the 1/2 hammer drill last) and this PSA basically told me to keep my gen 3
Content like this is why I subbed to this channel. Im a milwaukee fan boy but like to call out any manufacturer for flaws
No kidding, it seemed this channel's reporting on the high-tq was a large part in them recalling & removing the updated units from shelves.
The thing is, people who call themselves fanboys are usually not fanboys. Just because you’re in the Milwaukee line exclusively (because of battery constraints) and you have a bunch of good Milwaukee tools that have served you well, doesn’t make you a fanboy.
Are you irrational and emotional about your Milwaukee tribe because you derive some part of your identity from it? Will you defend thier flaws and act like they neither don’t exist or are actually benefits? Will you buy bad tools and still act like they are the best in the market? No? You’re probably an intelligent consumer, not a fanboy.
And if all batteries were interchangeable I bet you, like most of us, would buy whatever UA-cam testers found to be the best most affordable version of each tool. Because anyone with a three digit IQ would do that.
Im a mechanic, full time use for 3 years now haven't had one issue with any old gen. we have warranted 4 m18 new gen.
Definitely glad I have the gen 3 impacts. I don’t use them a lot but I’ve never had an issue. Of course I actually researched before buying and they were, at the time, probably the best impact out there so it’s no surprise. Dewalts had over heating issues and makitas never go on sale. So it was an easy choice.
They dont make em like they used to. Sadly it's not just a cringe boomer saying anymore o7
I'm here for the comments section! 🔥
Yep!
👍
I hope Milwaukee reads this:
I have thousands of dollars in Milwaukee tools. Lately, I’ve been discouraged by the higher and higher prices.
If I see very much more of this, the blue and yellow will overtake the red.
I’m a fanboy… of what works!
I'm team makita but have some Milwaukee for stubborn bolts .. unfortunately it's also the fact Milwaukees parent company tti makes them unreasonable to repair as well most of the electrical components are sold as one part and usually cost more then just replacing the tool which is a shame what I've learned from watching tool repair channels Dean Doherty being one of the main ones it's always with Milwaukee he goes let's open it and see if I'm wasting time specially the modern tools he's cool with the older American made Milwaukee tools they usually are a easy repair if he can get the parts for it.
I'm in a similar boat as you. While I haven't had any issues with my repertoire of M18's, this is very concerning and hopefully gets a response out of Milwuakee. I have some corded Dewalt tools that I absolutely love, so it wouldn't take a lot for me to move to team yellow.
There's still time to get on the Flex Founders warranty.. can't believe I have lifetime free replacement on a table saw, miter saw, and every other tool and battery I've purchased
Milwaukee is a low quality DIY brand, I'm sorry you bought into that brand. You should have gone into Ryobi.
Same here, I have a lot of red but there the nz equivalent of HF tools.. Ozito. and they seem to hold up pretty well, there brushless bit driver even outperforms my 36v Hikoki 1/2" uggadugga that blows up its battery's every 2 months
I love that you use the Makita as your go to for disassembly.
It's the not strongest, but man it's smooth as silk.
Makita in a nutshell
Their triggers are something else you just can't describe it.
They are light and very maneuverable. Though I run dewalt, whenever I borrow makita it’s a pleasure, if a little underpowered
Indestructible with the most precise trigger in the game.
@@schwuzidid you know that Japan made makitas have even better trigger? I got a TD173 from eBay and it is better built and smoother than the USA sold XDT16
I gave away all my old Milwaukee tools to new guys needing tools and went with all mikita. They definitely are not as strong as Milwaukee, but I much prefer them. I went through multiple Milwaukee Impacts and haven't have an issue yet with mikita. TD173 jdm Impact is the best I have ever used and it's just about as strong as the Milwaukee.
I've only ever bought makita, some are 15+ years old. my brother in law gave away his milwaukee and bought makita. my oldest brother uses a mix of both makita and milwaukee. my youngest brother seems to only buy milwaukee but he also doesn't use them beyond his own personal projects.
Thank you! I have this Milwaukee impact and it fell apart the same way in the first month of use.
Milwaukee tools have had very hard gears for decades. 45 years ago, I was doing warranty and repair work on many brands at an industrial supply house. I replaced a lot of broken Milwaukee parts that appeared to be too hard for their own good, and not just gears. I own quite a few Milwaukee tools these days, but I can't imagine unsubscribing because of a video like this. Lotta butthurt out there! I love this channel, mostly because it's honest and objective. Just keep doin' whatcher doin'.
People getting feelings hurt are either just gear whores who don’t actually use tools to get work done, or people who have spent a lot of money on this particular bad tool and don’t want to face the truth. The latter makes sense because nobody want me to hear they just wasted 150$ on something that’s gonna break. The former are collectors that we, as people who actually use tools as tools, shouldn’t even care.
Then, of course, there are apes who divide into tribes over the most inconsequential things and try to derive identity from it. As an evolution nerd I understand this but it’s still silly that people do it will tool companies. Sports I can kinda understand as it mimic tribal war in the Stone Age more closely. But brand loyalty to shady corporations? Kinda weird.
Interesting, 70hrc is insanely hard that part genuinely surprised me
The harder gears are, usually, the better they are, but that also has to be balanced with more meat to handle a sufficient amount of shock. It seems like in the quest to shorten the drivers (necessarily thinning the gears) they didn't scale back that hardness to compensate.
Episode idea: Do warrantee claims with each brand. Who has the fastest turn around? Who requires insane paperwork? Who has local repair centers? I became a DeWalt guy in large part to having a local repair center that offered walk-in replacement of batteries and many tools. Sadly. however, that local repair center was shut down during C19, and the listed "repair center" was just a local tool dealer who gives you forms to send it in to DeWalt. If another brand opened a local repair center like DeWalt used to have, I might switch brands.
I've warrantied lots through Makita and Milwaukee locally at their repair shops.
Zero forms. Just take your info and the tool. Never been more then about 10 days with either.
Typically within the week foe Milwaukee.
And once with Makita they literally called me the next day with my drill fixed because they had the part in stock.
Hard to beat walk in and swap out with a new one at HoboFreight. Maybe not the best/most durable, but for home hobbyists, when you consider purchase price and available swapout or refund... it's incredibly attractive.
I used to purchase ridgid power tools bc of the lifetime warranty. The home depot in Dayton ohio used to be a service center and have very fast turn around on fixing it or replacing it! Now they no longer fkn offer it. So now ridgid wants you to mail it into them.
@@cyrusmoser1090 The repair center that did Ridgid near me no longer takes them also. (They do every tool other brand except for Makita and Milwaukee)
They told me Ridgid doesn't pay them enough to cover parts and labor and it wasn't worth it for them so they quit taking Ridgid tool claims.
Gonna have to disagree and say I think there should be a recall. I don't even own one of these, but if your comments section remotely reflects the reliability of all those impacts sold...50% failure rate is not acceptable.
We dont have enough data on these to determine one way or another, simply relaying what info we do have and our experaince
Made in Chyna, what do you expect?
Pretty sure the comments section of a tool channel isn't going to be representative. Most people are too lazy to say anything when their tool is still doing what it's supposed to.
@@bgg-jp5eiDesigned in the US. It's not where it's made, but customer demands, competition and costs. Of course there can be a swing and miss, but powertools in general are great - even cheap drills are better in every way than pro drills 15 years ago
@@bgg-jp5ei I’m glad it’s made there and not here. If American start making anything the quality will be worse than any other place in the world. Gone are the days of well paid and proud American factory worker. If you had the nightmare of trying to work with an average American low class worker that would be given the assembly job here and now, you will be thankful your tools are made someplace else. Sad, no heartbreaking, but true non the less.
Videos like these are what we all need. Thank you, i was about to purchase the milwaukee impact driver and drill set, but now i can wait until a revision. Please open more tools up! Love to see the insides.
This is my favourite channel on UA-cam. Thank you so much for taking the time to make and edit these videos!
Long term subscriber here: this is amazing content and what i'd love to see more of in the future. Thank you TTC!
That's one thing I do love about my Makita tools...so far I have had 0 reliability issues across a number of drills, impact drivers, belt sanders, grinders, etc. I've had multiple Makita tools now for close to, or even over 20 years, and they're still going as strong and smooth as day one. I even have some of their old school white/black brushed tools, (drill and an impact), and they're still working great. Use those all the time for stuff around the house that doesn't require uber power. Same goes for their batteries and chargers. The set of 2 x 3Ah batteries and the accompanying charger that came with that white and black set are still going strong today. I do own other brand tools, I'm fairly brand agnostic, and try to buy the best tools at the time I can afford. However I have not made the jump to another battery platform, as I have a hars time justifying the additional cost vs performance gains. The only reason I do want to get some Milwaukee stuff, is cause Makita doesn't often release new tools or batteries. For instance I love my Makita Mid-Torque, it's a beast in power and very smooth. However if I want a high torque (which I really do), i'd rather go with probably the new Milwaukee, over any of the current Makita offerings...unless Makita finally releases their new XGT High Torque in an 1/2" LXT 18V format.
My makitas may not run the best, according to the dynometer, but I've put them through some shit and they've come out of the gauntlet fighting the whole way. I honestly didn't think that anything battery powered could hold up to the abuse I put my shit through, but have been pleasantly surprised. I've had a few batteries fail because of the star protection, but as long as I remember to let them come back to room temp before I put them on the charger I haven't had any problems.
As a welder the only tools I have consistently killed have been angle grinders, and Makita's / Dewalts will surprise you with the crap they take. I tell friends / home users to buy the Makita: GA6020Y , its a corded rat tail grinder that has a safety release by your thumb so you can't accidentally pull the trigger. The grinders I use at work don't have this feature but I highly recommend it for home users. The Dewalt I recommend is DWE43066N its what I use right next to my Makita's and it works great. Both grinders from both brands do not have a trigger lock on them I have been welding for 15 years and have seen some horrific injuries caused by grinders with trigger locks on so I will never recommend tools that have that feature, so if you want one with a trigger lock search the model number without the Y or N on it and find the variant that comes with it.
This is what I like most about your channel, The honesty. You will show us the good and the bad. It is refreshing given the budgets on social marketing these days. I am positive this will upset the Milwaukee fans, though the reality is they should be thanking you the most as reviews like this are more likely to make Milwaukee take notice and hopefully make improvements in the future.
Thanks for shining light on issues, as a milwaukee user myself I appreciate it.
I started due to watching one used on jobsites and its owner claimed to get a half day of tapping trees (maple country here) on a single battery. Loved that drill for about a decade, the chuck is showing signs of age and it might need some fixing now
i have 2953 for 2 years and this impact works perfect. I'm on full-time roofer and I put in 10 inch screws for the last 10 years thousands and thousands of screws zero problems with my impact
Same, 2 years strong. Use it for various purposes, no one specific job.
Limited experience here but while i was hobbing gears out of 4140, target hardness was around 48-52 hrc. Almost seems like they forgot to temper after hardening.
That 68 HRC number on the ring gear is flat out insane. No doubt it's a mistake in heat treat.
Sintered hardened parts are usually harder than 4140, each type of material has a sweet spot
@@meanderinoranges Heat treating is probably the proximate cause, but carbon% and alloys might make it very difficult to heat treat correctly.
68HRC? That's ridiculous for 0,4% C steel. The ring would break like glass if you dropped it. On a hard surface, something like floor tiles. Even 52HRC is high for 40HM/42CrMo4.
@@TorqueTestChannel my million dollar question was this, 1 what alloy is it and 2 is it a casting, I'm assuming so.
Sounds about right. I have had two milwaukee drills, 4 batteries, and a polisher quit on me. Since I didn't have the receipt, I was out of luck on the warranty. My m18 gen3 impact constantly overheats during extended use.
I'm glad power tools and batteries have a 5 year warranty required by law here in Norway for private consumers. The funny thing is that Milwaukee cost almost twice as much as Dewalt with local pricing.
I think it's 5 and 3 for Milwaukee here, depending on the battery. So not much difference.
Isn't it a limited manufacturers warranty? Does it cover everything even accidents or breakdown and heavy wear and tear?
@@Figawi It is a kind of warranty that covers everything wrong with the product that is not caused by the user. If you have a impact gun and regular use make it break the warranty covers it, but if you dropp it or use it unreasonable it are not covered by the warranty.
The rule a general consumer rule saying that all products have a 3 year warranty, and that products made to last more than 3 years have a warranty of 5 years. In practice most tools would then have a 5 year warranty as explained.
Yeah, for some reason they cost a lot more than others in many locales, like Mordor where I reside. Even before the war. But now especially - since they left the market and are only sold to aficionados by intermediaries. I guess it comes from the fact that they are perceived as a true American brand.
Gotta suck for those who buy them here now since you don't get any warranty...
I'm waiting for your EU laws to force all the tool manufacturers to have common batteries. We can dream right? You all got Apple to use industry standard chargers.
I got my gen 3 2 years ago from home depot when they were getting rid of stock for half off, glad I jumped on that deal when I did. Its really too bad they could have made a great tool. My regular brushless and gen 3 fuel have never had any issues, and my previous gen m12 fuel has been my daily tool for a couple years with no issue as well. Thank you for putting out a video on how to fix it for everybody that bought one hoping for an even better impact.
I was kind of surprised by the battery issue that you mentioned in this video as well. I’m a Dewalt guy and had thought about moving to Milwaukee because I hear a lot of good stuff. This makes me happy to know I’ve stuck with Dewalt because I’m still using batteries I bought in 2013-14 for the 20V lineup without issue.
Yeah, same. I have several DeWalt batteries that have been through hard construction use for 8 or 9 years without a single issue.
Those HRC numbers are INSANE for load bearing gears🤯😂
I’ve gotten into metallurgy the last few years, and I just gotta ask…. If I were able to take one of these apart and temper all of the overly hard gears to a happier, less brittle rating, would you guys be interested in testing it? 🤔
It working wouldn't prove anything I'm afraid as many are working fine as is
@@TorqueTestChannel welp dangit😆 I’ve been a tradie for most of my adult life and have this exact impact… very luckily I haven’t had issues, but admittedly I don’t beat on my impact drivers a whole lot…. My drills on the other hand 👀 I’m actually super impressed with how they’ve held up to my work
@@TorqueTestChannel I think it's awesome how you guys have such a scientific "repeatable results" approach to everything
@TorqueTestChannel can you ask viewers to send in their gen 4 impacts and test HRC? Good chance there's a big variance and the reliable ones have lower hardness.
@@toolscientist This was my first thought, are the "good" Gen 4's different from the "bad" Gen 4's ??
Another great and informative review. I'm still rocking the 2853, and am very happy with it. I have put it through some legit torture tests at work and at home, and found it to be one tough, reliable little beast. Thanks for curing my 3-led envy.
I was given one that was mixed in with a bunch of scrap the other day, and its all beat to hell and still works
Great vid as always guys! And let me say as a Dewalt platform guy, no tool is perfect and no tool company is above having problems. Dewalts had its share. So im all for your great content helping us all out avoiding problem tools. And I will want to know if there is a Dewalt tool out there that I should stay away from till the company gets its issues corrected. I certianly watch your vids to see what tools I should choose over others, and this vid is just squarely in your wheelhouse of great content.
I've been using my old makita for almost 20 years for everything and it has NEVER failed me.
It has also replaced all my drills.
my FIL owned an early LXT impact driver for over 10 years, when they were still black/white. It wasa 2009 build date.
Let's say he is not the most cautious man with his tools.
It fell from a ladder, was thrown in the truck's bed and to the floor many times and one of his workers ultimately ended up throwing the tool after a framing job and the handle broke. My FIL duck taped it and carried on for a while until he got the XDT15 subcompact and it's been working great for 4 years.
Bottom line: Makita will not win drag races but it will last.
My , Makita LXT set bought in the USA, in winter 2005 was "made in Japan". I added some tools in 2012 "Made in China". A few weeks ago, I purchased the XW17z impact wrench. The tool now says "Assembled in USA". All these tools still work.
@@engineer_alv Plus they carry and make parts available easy for a very long time.
@@charlesfinnegan7930 Bummer. :(
I cant speak for the Milwaukee but ive been using a DeWalt DCF850 atomic impact for over 2 years now and its been an absolute champ. Lags, tapcons, automotive bolts, unibits, etc. Ive gotten it pretty smoking hot and it just keeps going. Has held up extremely well and was the best $100 tool ive ever bought
I actually appreciate the work you guys are doing and i only have Milwaukee tools.
I watch your content for the no-nonsense, unbiased opinions. Keep up the good work 💪🏻
I've had my gen 3 m12 and gen 4 m18 kits ever since they came out, luckily no issues with them yet
Fan boys aint gon like this one🤣
No really not one company makes the best at everything so yeah they’ll make a pos here and there. They all fucking do
Nope 😅
My gen 4 seized the last weekend, i popped the rotor off and smacked it on the back with a hammer, works like new but went ahead, and ordered a new rotor
That's what happens when a company outsource to Chyna. They are liars and cheats. I will not be buying anything else from milwaukee until they bring their manufacturing back to the USA
I'm a fan boy but love this video lol. My gen 2 and gen 3 works great
I'm a Milwaukee tool guy and I love this video. People like you are looking out for people like us. Keep up the unbiased reviews.
I absolutely love this channel it's one of the best information on channels on tools on the internet and I've bought many of his recommendations. I bought a lot of the newer DeWalt tools over the Milwaukee's. For some reason buying a tool brand that's made by Ryobi and uses probably some of the same Parts interchangeably is a hard pill for me to swallow
Over 40 years ago I had a Makita 9v ni-cad drill. It was over used well beyond what it was designed for and never failed.
Still have it? I have a 9.6v with the short battery orange battery box, seems the stick style were more popular around here. With some patience I got the battery box open without breaking it - (3) 18650 lithium cells fit in there nicely with room for a BMS. Just bench tested so far, need to finish that. Sure, bumps the voltage up to the 12v range, but I figure it's not getting used as is so might as well let it sing out as long as it lasts. With the stick style batteries it looks like there might be room to get (6) 18650s in there in a 3S2P (three cells in series like mine, but in two parallel groups for double the capacity), then it'd work all day along side a modern tool.
Same here. Went through a few OEM batteries without a single glitch. Gave up on it when Makita batteries were NLA, and Chinese replacements were useless. That tool did it all.
Makita don’t you mean Misskita🤣 ahahah me and my buds we work construction and we been doing it for like a year and a half now.. Milwaukee all the way bruh ain’t nothing beating Milwaukee just too powerful for yall poor boys so you have to justify getting bad tools like Makita
@@i_know_youre_right_but your username says it all!
They made things back then to take a beating. The weakest part of that drill was probably the battery technology.
Milwaukee: "Now that we've got enough market share and home depot is taking competing brands off the shelves, implement planned obsolescence and start putting out trash products."
Yea I was saddened when Home Depot stopped stocking Klein tools, I know the Milwaukee stuff will move right in.
@@edwardoavila7666 its home depots fault they lost Klein. when Covid hit they promised Klein impossible to achieve sales figures considering everything was closed and well... they missed 2 years in a row by a mile so Klein just moved to Lowes. I know this because I use to work at Lowes
Budding Milwaukee fan who recently bought this tool in a kit with the hammer drill. Definitely concerned by this but very thankful that you brought it to light!! Anxious to see what response (if any) Milwaukee offers.
I have had Milwaukee power tools, and more specifically the M12 sets, for over a decade now with no issues and all of my batteries still working and holding charge for the same amount of time. I have seen some hit or miss tools in the past 3-4 years but have also had similar problems with Dewalt, Ryobi, etc doing heavy scenic carpentry, low voltage install, and metal work/fabrication. They all have product cycles that have issues and that are rock solid.
The biggest thing in my opinion is having independent testing and reviews available for the products without the brand trying to make them take this kind of content down. The flip side is that the reviewers and testers need to do their content like this or project farm. Where it is factual and does not vilify or attack the brand in a defamatory manner but rather presents the facts.
Still love my Milwaukee tools but definitely also happy to see them called out when they deserve to be.
As the Milwaukee marketing bravado increases, the quality decreases.
I haven’t had a battery case break but I’ve had many m18 batteries where they won’t charge to full bars or else, in the case of 2 of my m12 6ah batteries, they will only charge on the oldest of my 6 chargers. The newer chargers just show a red/green error.
Also, they still offer very few of their tools in packout. They really need to take a look at how well festool does this.
this just reminded me I had an M12 CP 3.0 battery fail on me. It won't jump start either so it's very likely one or more of those 30Q cells (same ones used on the 6.0) died.
The only batteries that have failed on me over the last decade have been an M18 2.0, that M12 3.0 and a bunch of Ryobis...
Festool, Makita, Dewalt all of the big players are doing the packout thing. I use Makita's packout for their power tools but Dewalts hard plastic packouts for my hand tools. My dad uses Dewalt tools, so I am going to be gifting him some of their tool packout kits.
I was really hoping this video would be about how the gen 4 fixes the gen 3 issues, but it looks like the gen 4 still has those, plus a lot more. I got rid of all my milwaukee tools a few years ago for reliability reasons, and I keep hoping they'll start building quality again, but apparently they're still getting worse. Glad I jumped ship when I did
Interesting video. I just built a 0 ft bu 18 ft covered deck with no use of nails as every piece of wood was glued and screwed. The number of deck screws of various lengths and size ,lag bolts and nuts had to number over a thousand ! I used a Porter Cable impact and it did fantastic !
Hey. Nice video! Thanks for making me stick to DeWalt. I was going for an impact gen 4 next week in favor of an DCF 850, even if I have more DeWalt tools already.
I have the M12 Impact Driver that I use when I work on my cars and it works great, no problems so far.
miluwakee has 0 competition in the 12v line. They’re so far ahead of everyone. dewalt 12v tools are the size of 18v tools and less powerful. m12 is definitely miluwakees best lineup
I am a huge Milwaukee fan boy! I am so glad to see this… like you said happens to the best of them… I try to do my research, and talk to actual users before buying any tool of upper price ranges.. this is the type of information that is most helpful IMHO… real world, (or as close as can be) testing and results data is pure gold! I try and make data driven decisions in my day to day.. Much Thanks!
Then you’re not actually a fanboy. Fanboys blindly follow thier tribe. If you’re doing research and buying intelligently then you’re a fan, not a fanboy. Milwaukee can do no wrong in the eyes of a fanboy. You just like Milwaukee tools; mainly because, like me, you research and only buy the good ones.
I’ve stuck with Dewalt, had my 20v impact for about 11 years. Used daily and under hard conditions throughout my indoor playground career till it ended in 2018 and been using it around the house since. Only one battery has quit. My Dewalts never seem to die.
Good video Thanks. I don't do Milwaukee these days from past experience.
Gives me a similar picture to the people over here in northern europe are saying
Milwaukee is good. But not for long periods at a time ... Someone once called it a subscription like system
Mine shot sparks and gave up some magic smoke and I tried resetting it with time and a different battery and it did it again. Took it apart and the lead for the led lights wore into the motor shell from vibrating and having a bend in the housing tight against the motor. I really couldn't solder it together and fit it back into the case, so I did some crazy rewiring and adding tape for protection from the motor.
I had to return the 3692-22CT kit, non fuel M18, about a month ago. Out of the box the impact driver trigger would cut out after a couple seconds whether it was driving or not and with either battery. Tried shaking the battery a little and it didnt seem to be linked to the cutouts. However, with the charger station, I had to press the battery in really hard and let off gently or it wouldnt make connection to charge. Took it back and paid the same for a Kobalt XTR kit with more features after seeing its performance in your vid, works great.
My m12 version broke on me about 6 months in. pretty light casual use as a hobbyist and then one day drove about 30 3 inch wood screws and something seized on the inside. No issues with warranty process, they repaired and got it back to me in about a week.
Much appreciated. This is why TTC is so well regarded. I'm on team red. Mostly. Thanks again!
Stayed away from milwaukee for the longest time due to the higher prices. Managed to snag an m12 combo drill and impact driver. The drill quit working after putting it in reverse during the first test. Also snagged the curre t m18 high torque with the impact driver and the high torque gives up a clacking noise when feathering down the trigger. Good thing they come with 5 year warranty. I'll stick with metabo hpt and bosch. Don't need the power as much as longevity since I am just a DIYer.
Love your Channel and your unpayed opinions.
Could you please try Out the Wera Joker self adjusting wrenches together with other adjustable wrenches?
I was just about to sell my current M18 impact driver for the latest model, thank goodness I came across this video!
Perfect timing, my wife was just asking for a new one!
Can't wait til you test the DCF860
I have had the gen 3 for 3 years daily use. Most abuse it gets is structural screws 4-10”. For the big stuff I don’t bother impacts are slow, I use my drill or impact wrenchs for. Still works flawlessly.
Sad to see milwaukee going down the pan. I bought a packout DAB radio charger and after 3 replacements it is still not right. Keeps losing presets and randomly turns on and plays a station that I have never tuned in to. Not what you would expect from a unit that cost over £330
I ran over my makita 3/4 impact with a semi trailer (accidental of course) and with only scratching the case runs perfectly still. No internal damage. This is why i buy Makita.
Makita is next level quality. The viewers of this channel arent there yet.
I dropped a Milwaukee drill at work onto a rubber mat and it never ran again. Another broke for no reason (last 8 months for both). Milwaukee has been falling off quickly recently.
Thanks for making these videos
Guess I’ll be glad I have an older Milwaukee impact, it’s not as small but it’s never failed me. Works as good today as the first day I abused it, been a wonderful tool to have around the truck.
This seems like they're repeating cost cutting measures somewhere like they did with that impact wrench, even if it's not a total redesign. In this case by using a cheaper parts production process or supplier who are skipping heat treatment steps or using a cheaper metal that doesn't respond well to the process in place. Either way this is something that should be getting caught in early pre-production test runs, not on shelves.
I could see it being time saving. Factory gets behind quota so they skip heat treatment occasionally.
Ive had the same makita for 10 years. Not one problem
Earned my sub on this one. Been a causal viewer until now.
An M12 Fuel impact was my first Milwaukee tool last fall and I’ve never been more impressed with any tool I’ve ever used in my life. It blows my mind that the M18 wouldn’t be better.
-51 now. I appreciate the testing regardless of personal feelings. Also hammer issues isnt uncommon for milwaukee. Their 3/4" after use likes to ride the hammer on top of the anvil and lock it up. Thankfully millwaukee learned from competition and you can pull them apart and unstick them now.
It'll be interesting to see how the dcf860 will hold up, considering it'll be about as powerful and will be fairly compact
I've been using cordless and corded Makita tools since the early 80's.....still haven't had one fail. Just got rid of my old 7.2 volt ones a couple years ago.
Great video. Love your work :)
That's why DeWalt has been my choice for many years. Doesnt shake, doesnt stop, almost half the price of Milwaukee in EU. Only thing I will give Milwaukee is that their impact bits and drills are the best for the price. I bought a set dcd996 with 5ah battery and a charger for equivalent power Milwaukee hammer drill body. If i wanted to spend that much money on tools id take the Hilti or Festool route
I don’t hate any tool company but with Milwaukee prices and this specific tool having the issue I really think they need to recall or drop the tool and design a better one.
my dad bought one and it broke he warrantied it and it broke 4 months later.
He tossed the tool all together and stopped buying Milwaukee he doesn’t have a favorite brand but is more of the “if it works I’ll use it if it breaks I’ll toss it kind of person”
I currently own a 2953-20 here in the Philippines. So far, it has lasted a year with light and medium duty work, I usually run it with a 2.0 or 5.0 battery, but I did experience my hammer getting stuck countless times. If this dies, I can not warranty my tool in any way due to my location, and it was bought from online from a 3rd party seller that is respected here I my country.
Que bueno que me he mantenido alejado de milwaukee, solo uso makita xgt y metabo(no hpt) y no he tenido ningun problema en 6 años. Gracias por la informacion @TorqueTestChannel
This was a perfect chance for a collab with Dean Doherty.
That guy is awesome. He says overseas they call Milwaukee 'Red Ryobi'.
Mmmm we have quite a lot of issues with milwaukee high torque. The previous Gen. Electronics love to die or just bearings falling apart
Diy tools with high price tag, makes totally no sense
bearings falling apart problem in Millwaukee made me know loctite for bearings exist.
Also Mill had problem with battery mount. It will not connect correctly and lose power during use as it wears out.
Their plastic are trash compared to other same tier brand
As someone who bought into flex tools about 3 almost 4 years ago. Watching this video made me smile so wide haha. All the times I’ve heard yea it’s fast but it won’t last as long as my Milwaukee would… or the let’s see how long till it breaks comments. All I can say is I’m happy I went with flex over team red. With the amount of use my tools see I would have gone through them over and over again.
I just bought one this past weekend in a memorial day sale... hope it holds up.
Glad I stuck with Dewalt over the years. I use my power tools hard at work and never had a single problem with anything from them.
My Dad uses Dewalt and I use Makita, both are pretty damn good I wont complain when I have to borrow an impact from him and he doesn't mind the Makita's. That being said, I am surprised by this video I figure Team red, teal and yellow were all pretty good in their own right and it largely had to do with what batter platform you were on. Hell I bought a Milwaukee framing nailer on a coin flip over the Dewalt because both were rated/ regarded highly.
That all being said the only tools I consistently kill as a welder Makita or Dewalt are their rat tailed grinders I personally prefer the dewalts because their bodies are easier to grip with your hand when you have to take the handle off. But durability wise I honestly couldn't tell you which lasts longer. I've had dewalts go for a year same with makita's and I had them also both die minutes after being out of the box and get insta warrantied.
All my cordless is DeWalt and I had my first tool fail on me about 6 months ago. 54v chainsaw that ran for about a minute out of the box, farted and let the smoke out before locking up. Hasn't given me butt hurt cos they replaced it on the spot.
Dewalt has had just as many known issues and duds as any other company. I had a Dewalt sander that broke on the first project. I’ve never had a problem with any of my Milwaukee tools but I wouldn’t be so silly as to say “I’m glad I stuck with Milwaukee because they’ve never failed me over the years.”
Tribalism over tool brands is silly. We can do better than that. Save that stuff for sports. It’s still silly but at least mimics the tribal warfare of our ancestors better than modern consumerism. In the age of UA-cam the intelligent people would buy whatever tool tests the best. The reason we don’t do this is battery constraints.
If you actually use your tools, Dewalt, Milwaukee, Makita, festool, hilti cordless are going to be your best option. But you should still look up the actual tool before buying. If you think it’s gonna be great just because it’s yellow you’re going to eventually get burned.
Literally. Because Dewalt last gen impacts were overheating smoking and catching on fire. And Milwaukee’s were the most powerfully but had a slight issue with the collet on some of them where the bit could fall out
Do your research and don’t take sides. Don’t be on team yellow. Be an intelligent consumer.
@@CarlYotaif you buy into a platform and it has proven to you to be reliable you stick with it. The guy said his Dewalt tools never breaks. It’s a smart move to stick with it. Same reason why you prefer Milwaukee. If I buy a Milwaukee tool and it happens to be just a bad batch. Too bad Milwaukee loses a customer.
Some people had bad experiences with Dewalt and some had bad experiences with Milwaukee. Makita however never breaks for me.
So stick with the brand you have best experience with. It’s too expensive to buy into another platform.
@@CarlYota this is the way I don't hate on any tools just went with makita cause 1) it's what I grew up around all corded stuff of course and 2) it's what felt best in my hand tried a bunch before I said hell with it .
I've used dewalt Milwaukee even some harbor freight stuff what ever gets the job done I'm always confused when a person gets side ways about tools. Like got a buddy his batteries were about to die and I offered him my impact driver and he scoffed at the idea of touching a makita and I ended laughing at him cause his batteries died cause he forgot to check and charge them .
I have an M12 version and have had it go into heat protection mode twice building decks in the summer but never had it physically break. I think it may be the gearbox is designed for the M12 power and the M18 output is just enough more to cause it to start to break.
I feel the same on DCD999 chucks locking up in some cases.
The motor is nothing but excellent power and torque.. But other parts are not capable of handling such power.
Does your M12 absolutely eat batteries when running? I generally use the little 3-cell M12 batteries, but it feels like the brushless M12 tools were really designed for the 3s2p expanded pack.
@@SuperSpy00bob I use the 4 amp hour ones mostly and its fine, when I occasionally use the 2 amp hour one it is noticeably weaker and goes through it fast.
I have a Milwaukee 2667 M18 Impact Driver (smaller right angle impact unit) which I use on occasion around the house/vehicle. Doesn't have the torque to remove wheel lugs but works great for light duty stuff. Used it to remove hard to reach spark plugs, quicker tightening of shock and leaf spring bolts (I would still tighten further by hand), and other light duty stuff. I don't know of any of these types that last for heavy duty commercial/industrial use.
You use an impact on spark plugs? Please let us know which shop to avoid lol
A damn great video. Thank you TTC!
Tbh I love Milwaukee but I’ve had to send my grease gun back 5 times, a couple half inch impacts, air compressor and vac.
My Milwaukee driver isn't as reliable as my DeWalt, it's cutting out often.
If I wasn’t already, I’d subscribe because of this content. I’m a Milwaukee owner, maybe a fanboy at times. This puts pressure on manufacturers to put out better tools. Bad quality= bad sales
i'm on my 3rd insider ratchet. this thing came out less than a year ago. just yesterday i sent TWO 5ah M18 batteries back to Milwaukee for replacement as they stopped charging
What happened to the insider ? Bad gears ?
Im a Milwaukee fan boy. If they push out garbage i want to know. So i can be informed and look out. Thesw videos are crucial to keeping corps honest and not just push out garbage
Great video as always!
We have two Milwaukee fuel hammer drills (not the current version but the one before) we have had to warranty both. one quit right out of the box( and later the chuck stripped out) and the other died after a few months randomly, not even working it hard. we have several 1/2 and 3/8 impacts that have been great.
YIKES no wonder ive been seeing them Milwaukees for cheap on facebook marketplace. They are selling them for “get rid of them asap” prices
Dewalt ftw
@@andrestoodrip6616 Ryobi FTW, I'm still rocking my BLUE impact driver!
@@andrestoodrip6616 same 💩 low quality. Just get makita...
Naa most of them probably stolen goods sold online. If you go to NYC or Cali post on FB you see em for like $50 a box at times.
I'd love to see you test the $15 North Tech (oops, wrong name) being sold - with battery - at Menards.
Heck, if it puts screws in it's doing the job at that price, just curious what's in there.
North Tech?
I would say it underperforms, just look at the motor housing. From a glance it looks smaller than even an M12 impact, and you know this Chinese-origin no-name house-brand tool is going to be a significant amount of generations old; the fact that it's a brushed motor of that size alludes to this. Reeks of Sears-Craftsman, Harbor Freight from decade's past, what Black & Decker had become relegated to decades ago, or the no-names that you find in local hardware stores and tool meets. The only potential benefit is if the spring is light and if that motor spins faster than it has any right to. It might do a light DIY project, but don't expect to be putting up a fence or shed with this tool; it's a tool for the lazy that don't want to drill properly-sized pilot holes for a screw to go into, it's for those who want to impact a few screws into a few studs for basic shelving. Honestly I wouldn't waste time looking at it, it'll likely go into a landfill after a few uses anyways, or sit in a toolbox for most of its life as its 'weekend warrior' owner only does one project a year. I mean, at that pricing, and with what you can logically conclude by how the tool looks and its spec sheet, they're selling to the type of person I've described, and there's no reasonable argument against that. It's a glorified toy for people that don't actually do work that requires a proper impact, typical father's day fodder, underperforming stocking stuffer, etc., we've seen all kinds of trash in this category for decades. I'm not even sure who OEMs/ODMs the tool, searching the one name, that isn't the house brand's name, that I know of results in nothing, though that could also be the import company that middle-mans the no-name factory and Menards; I don't immediately recognize the casing, but it likely is a no-name manufacturing plant that produces it for dirt cheap. I'm not even sure about North Tech as a house brand itself, I've always heard Menard's house brand is shittier than Husky and Kobalt, that and North Tech seemingly sells just about anything, rechargeable AA batteries, a mini bulb socket on the end of a few foot corded plug, etc.; I'd probably just stay away from the brand in general, seems like sellable landfill at best. Wouldn't even be worth TTC's time either, not even as a point and laugh situation, it'll just be a sad pile of dogshit that results in a three minute video when it fails to do anything during testing. Honestly the tool is likely taking a drill-driver's clutch and turning the nose-end into mini anvil instead, just a quick swap of clutch assembly for hammer assembly, likely uses the same spring as the same brand's drill-driver as well, y'know shared parts and all, considering they're similarly priced as well. I also wouldn't be surprised if the battery pack is some of the worst you'll find in any tool.
@@chuckkolancz4969 Ah, yup, North Tech, not Wind. Guess I blew that.
@@xaytana So no?
I haven't had any problems with my gen 4, but glad to know this is an issue and hopefully something Milwaukee will address
Was just about to purchase one to replace my gen 3 glad to have seen this first.
Every tradesman is going to reference this issue when they see me on team red now. This is a recall, only sane option.
my bet is actually there is a mix of good and bad parts out there and they are still tracking down lot numbers.
Makita then DeWalt for actual work.
I am glad I never went with Milwaukee. Back in the early 2000's, around 20 years ago, I bought all Hitchi cordless tools, I think I have 12 of their tools and I still have them all today and am still using the original 20 year old original batteries and chargers, and they still work great today. I use them daily in a Body Shop.
All my milwaukee tools bought in the last 15 years work flawlessly. Outside, all destroyed but never missed a beat. Seems like the new models are having issues.
I've had good luck with the husky adapters. They hold up pretty decent
When are you going to test the DeWalt dcf860 it’s seems very powerful from other videos I’ve seen
Where do you see it for sale?
@@TorqueTestChannel I’m not sure if it’s the same as I’m in the uk but quite a few sites have it now I’ve seen a few on eBay and on websites called ffx and power tool world (I’m not sure if they are in the USA or not )
@@TorqueTestChannel It's on sale in Austrailia, apparently, for about $245 USD converted. I think I'll stick with my 850.
I want to see the dcf870
Gotta test that 861 bruh
Have never regretted buying Makita.
Only my push mower. Overpriced for what it is. I think i will mod it to run by remote control and have the ultimate remote mower.
Nobody has 👍
I bought their stupid inflator and returned it for the Milwaukee the next day. It's probably three to four times better than the Milwaukee. I don't like having multiple battery brands to charge, but I don't tolerate bad design, regardless of brand.
@@mediocreman2 which model, they have 4. High tier one is awesome
@@riba2233 Is the high tier the XGT one? I am interested in the DMP180ZX and was wondering how good it is from anyone with real world experience with it.