About two years ago I upgraded and purchased an 18v Makita lithium ion drill/impact driver kit. While I could make a whole separate thread about how great li-ion drills are, this one is about impact drivers. If you haven't discovered the cordless impact driver yet, you owe it to yourself. 3" screws have finally met their match. I have become a firm believer in the value of a cordless impact driver. Of course, I also just put a new motor in my 7 year old DeWalt 12v drill, for two reasons. 1) It still has better torque than the drill that came in my Makita set and 2) I'm not ready to give up that 3 speed clutch, because most drills only have two speeds.
As for all the impact bits, namely the DeWalt Impact Ready and Milwaukee Shockwave offerings, I'm still undecided as to if they are gimmicks or not. Now, certainly impact sockets are different, since they are made to resist shattering, as will happen with normal sockets when used on an impact tool. However, the impact driver bits don't seen to have a much longer lifespan than normal bits, and the DeWalt impact bits actually seem to have a shorter life (and normally I laud DeWalt accessories)
So, impact drivers, discuss.
As for all the impact bits, namely the DeWalt Impact Ready and Milwaukee Shockwave offerings, I'm still undecided as to if they are gimmicks or not. Now, certainly impact sockets are different, since they are made to resist shattering, as will happen with normal sockets when used on an impact tool. However, the impact driver bits don't seen to have a much longer lifespan than normal bits, and the DeWalt impact bits actually seem to have a shorter life (and normally I laud DeWalt accessories)
So, impact drivers, discuss.