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A Gas-Powered Impact Wrench

By Chuck Cage

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Will turned us on to this wild tool from Harbor Freight that we’ve never seen in the store: a 1″ gasoline-powered impact wrench.  He writes: “When I saw this online, I thought, ‘Holy cow!’  I’ve never used one myself, but I could see using it to bust lugs on a semi.” 

This sucker’s 51.7 cc two-stroke engine delivers 406 to 1,250 ft-lbs of torque — through a massive gear reduction and hammering action, we’d guess — via a 1″ hardened anvil.  It also features electronic ignition and — be jealous, Trabant owners! — an “EPA certification.”  It ships with 1-1/2″ and 1-5/8″ impact sockets and requires a 25:1 fuel mix.

Have any of you used this or one like it?  If so, drop us a line and send us a picture of it in use — we’d love to hear about your personal experiences with it.  And if you’re in the market, HF’s got it marked down to $300 from its normal $400 price tag.

1″ Gas-Powered Impact Wrench [Harbor Freight]


7 Responses to “A Gas-Powered Impact Wrench”

  1. Roscoe Says:

    This would be sweet for drilling curbs and catch basins.

  2. Ivan Says:

    Long time ago, an utility company left a similar one on my property. Though it was equipped with a drill. Once in a while I take it out for a test drive to drill some serious holes. While the power is nice bonus, the smell of gas in the morning is to die for ;-)
    I certainly recommend it for the better outdoor jobs.

  3. eschoendorff Says:

    I don’t know what the hell I’d ever do with it, but thats’ pretty damn cool!

  4. Nate Bezanson Says:

    I know a guy who did a wireless repeater tower installation on a rocky outcropping in the middle of a remote island, using a gas-fueled drill to set the anchors in the rock.

    I’ve also seen teardown crews use similar chop saws to take down TD-2 microwave waveguide in chunks. Gasoline has a much better power-to-weight ratio than batteries, and when you’re 200 feet up, coming down to change battery packs is a long-ass climb.

  5. Donald Bradshaw Says:

    The weight on this thing has to be a killer for any reasonable amount of time, but if you don’t have the power you need on site it is a good tool.

  6. Dunc Nuggets » Blog Archive » Yeah Baby.. Says:

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  7. Pat Says:

    Holy Crap, we have some huge stuff in the Army and other than busting track on a M113, Bradley, or M1 I cant see myself using this beast. Its
    huge, and looks like it would snap a wheel stud in two like a twig. Man I
    would just love to see this thing in action!.

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