What is an impact driver

Those people who are not fond of DIY may wonder what an impact driver is, since the advantages of this type of machine are appreciated when we have spent some time placing screws.

El screwdriver of impact is a good complement to the workshop, which will be of more help if we dedicate ourselves to putting lag screws long and thick in the wood With some frequency.

What is a impact driver and what are its advantages

Although it may seem obvious, we are facing a machine to put screws in places where you have to exert a lot of force.

This machine for putting screws has an internal mechanism, which is usually in the area where we place the tips and makes a movement of hammer, but that it does not hit forward, but rather gives those blows accompanying the turn, which helps a lot to place the screws on hard surfaces.

What is an impact driver for?

Its main use is as a machine to place screws.

Of course, also serves in order to remove them and, although it is not the best device to do drills, With a specific drill of this type of machine it can be used to make holes.

If we had to say what the screwdriver of impact, a good definition would be to put that type of screws that require a greater torque than usual, that is, that require more force to be exerted.

This happens a lot in wood when it comes to locating long screws, a type of work for which a drill driver does not have enough strength.

How to use an impact driver

Using an impact driver is just as easy as using a drill.

In fact, if we remove the impact motor we are facing two practically identical machines.

This type of screwdrivers use hexagonal tips such as those that are placed in the screwdrivers manuals interchangeable tips, which are attached magnetically without the need for tools and removed in the same way.

You just have to pull the trigger

use one of these screwdrivers it is as simple as equipping it with the correct tip for the screw that we are going to place and activate the trigger.

There are those with programmable speeds, but for convenience the normal thing is that we are the ones who regulate this speed, pressing the trigger more or less depending on the torque we need.

You have to buy specific tips

Given the tightening torque of one of these screwdrivers, which can be five times higher than that of a drill, it is advisable to use specific tips, Although the ones that we use in the manual screwdriver or in the drill will work for them.

Otherwise, we run the risk of splitting or breaking the screw head, which is a problem that will force us to take a long time to remove it.

Advantages of using an impact driver versus a drill

Time saving

One of the most obvious advantages of these screwdrivers is that provide a great time saving when you have to put many lag screws.

At first it may seem the opposite, since a drill driver gives the feeling of going faster, but when we reach the final section of the screw is when we realize what the impact driver is for and its advantages.

We can use it in more types of materials

The screwdriver drill is good for us to put small screws, but if we are going to place them larger and on surfaces such as wood or some types of metal, the impact driver is unrivaled.

There are times when screwing with the drill involves making a pilot hole that facilitates the task, while with impact screwdrivers it is only to face the screw and activate the trigger so that it is in place in a moment.

We don't hurt our wrists

Among all the advantages of the impact driver compared to the screwdriver, perhaps the most important is that it prevents the tightening torque from being transmitted to our wrist.

When we put a screw with a drill and we reach the end, the torque is transmitted to our hand and the wrist “turns”, a movement that sometimes reaches our arm.

Although at that time we do not injure ourselves, if we spend a good time putting screws, when we get home we will have problems with our hands, something that avoids the impact screwdriver, whose motor prevents the torsion from passing to us.

That means we can spend hours screwing without noticing anything on the wrist or arm.

The screws are embedded in the wood

In the woodworks, aesthetics play an important role, so screws are often hidden so that they do not stand out.

An impact driver makes this a breeze, as thanks to the tightening torque it has, it manages to insert or fit the screws in the wood, which allows us to hide them with a little putty.

To know what an impact driver is, it is best to buy one and start using it.

We will realize that screwing is much more comfortable with one of them and that the arm does not hurt even if we spend hours using it.