So, I have been working on my truck myself

So do you see while I was critical of the value you stated, I was more critical of the person quoting your stated value incorrectly? He had not read your post or mine completely. I was not coming at you. However the importance on being accurate on that type of service work is high. There are people that come here to learn and the info needs to be correct. We all have families and friends that travel these highways. No need for a failure from bad info.

 

This guy tested the 1” Milwaukee to see how many lug nuts it can remove with a full charge on a high output XC8.0 battery pack. He was able to remove 41 lug nuts ranging from 450 to 700 ft lbs. So in other words an entire set of drive tires as there are 10 lug nuts on each wheel or pair of wheels.

 

So I finally bought a Milwaukee 1/2” drive battery-powered impact wrench (model 2767-20). I had no problems removing 10 lug nuts. I was using a “High Output” HD12.0 battery. I also have another battery (HD9.0), but it is not high output. I haven’t tested it on this regular battery. Milwaukee claims that the “High Output” version has 50% more power and runs 50% cooler.

By the way, my plans were initially to get the 3/4” drive version, but they only sell it online, and none of the sellers on Amazon offer Prime shipping for this item. So I just went ahead and bought it at Home Depot along with the high output battery. Now I am thinking that the 1/2” is best for most people. I personally don’t have any 3/4” sockets, and I pack a lot of tools.

 

It’s possible you don’t need the high output 12.0. They also have a high output 8.0 that should work as well. My 12.0 was $200. After using it to remove 20 lug nuts and to lightly tighten 20 lugs nuts, it still had all the 4 battery bars. I should add that 10 of the lug nuts I removed I loosen them about a quarter turn with a breaker bar.

About the breaker bar, well, it’s not really necessary. Maybe it can come in handy if you ever bump into some stubborn lug nuts. You’ll need a pipe to attach onto the breaker bar. If you pull reefer, you can use a load lock, but don’t overuse it. I think I may have cracked my load lock. Hahaha. I stopped using it after hearing a few snaps. I’m not exactly sure what happened to it, though. The load lock looks intact and with no bends.

 

I've got a high output 8 battery, and I removed and replaced a tire on the trailer with it. The lug nuts were a bit stubborn, but they came off eventually. It ended up having 3 bars left when it was all finished. It looks like it might be able to handle rotating the tires before needing a recharge. Worst case scenario, it has to get recharged once.

 

Hold onto the socket and put a little counterclockwise Pressure on it until it starts turning..That seems to make an impact work a lot better..For tightening use clockwise Pressure on socket.

 

You can save some money by buying a 40-inch breaker bar and a pipe to loosen the lug nuts, and then finish it off with your gun. I can confirm that it’s easier on the impact if you loosen the lug nuts first with a breaker bar. You want the pipe to be at least 6 ft. This adds 3 ft to the 3-foot breaker bar. The load lock I used was 6 ft and 4 inches, and it was fairly easy to loosen lug nuts. In theory, a 6-foot breaker bar will allow you to apply 1080 ft lbs if you weigh 180 lbs.

The alternative is to spend $250 on a 1/2” Milwaukee impact wrench, and $150 on a high output 8.0 battery.