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Which Cordless Impact Wrenches Brand Wins?
2020 test2 productsPower Tools

Which Cordless Impact Wrenches Brand Wins?

In our test we compared 2 cordless impact wrenches options head to head. Makita XWT11Z came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.

The verdict
Makita XWT11Z
Winner

Makita XWT11Z

Price shown in test: $138

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Budget pick

Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)

Price shown in test: just under $30

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The quick take

The short version of why each pick lands where it does, built straight from the measured results.

WinnerMakita XWT11Z$138

“So, is a $30 impact wrench, or the cheap knockoff, as good as the Makita? Absolutely not. Pretty obvious that Makita dominated the showdown.”

Budget pickCousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)just under $30

The measured results

Every number below is read straight from the test. Products are listed in the order they finished.

All measurements (24 more)+

Weight

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    1,133 grams

    made in China

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    1,132 grams

    (1 gram less than the Makita), made in China, shipped from China, took about a month to arrive

Speeds

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    3

    forward and 3 reverse speeds, plus a reverse rotation auto stop feature

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    2

    forward and 1 reverse speed, plus a reverse rotation auto stop feature

Trigger response

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench

    nearly instantaneous, no noticeable lag; completed about 4.5 rotations before Cousin Eddie even began spinning in a side by side slow motion comparison

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)

    noticeable trigger lag; the Makita completed about 4.5 rotations before this tool even began spinning

Loosening rotation count (trigger squeeze to anvil stop)

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    8 rotations
  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    10.5 rotations

    2.5 more than the Makita, enough in some cases to fully decouple a nut from a bolt

Lowest variable trigger speed

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    45 RPM

    offering much finer low speed control than Cousin Eddie

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    470 RPM

    far less fine low speed control than the Makita's 45 RPM

No-load power draw

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    2.61 amps

    / 52 watts forward, peaked at 3.4 amps / 65 watts reverse

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    1.73 amps

    / about 34 watts, both forward and reverse

Tightening torque test, low impact (ft-lb)

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    57 ft-lb

    at 650 PSI

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    78 ft-lb

    at 900 PSI

Tightening torque test, high impact (ft-lb)

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    178 ft-lb

    at 2,050 PSI, a little short of its own 210 ft-lb rating

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    91 ft-lb

    at 1,050 PSI, far short of its claimed 384 ft-lb

Loosening torque test, high impact (ft-lb)

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    159 ft-lb

    at 1,825 PSI

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    113 ft-lb

    at 1,300 PSI

Lug nut removal speed test

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    35 seconds
  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    49 seconds

Auto stop feature test

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    about25 seconds

    finished the loosening and auto stop sequence before Cousin Eddie's nut even began to rotate in 3 of 3 side by side trials

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    about34 seconds

Galled/cross-threaded nut removal, 30 second test

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    5.75 rotations

    close to twice the work Cousin Eddie did

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    2.75 rotations

10 ft drop test onto concrete

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench

    a few scratches to the casing, less bounce than Cousin Eddie, no functional damage

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)

    bounced more than the Makita, only cosmetic scratching, one rubber trim piece popped off but was reseated, no functional damage

Impact-on-anvil stress test

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench

    handle flexed near the battery under a hard blow but the tool kept working

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)

    the plastic casing broke at the base and the handle broke, though the tool kept working

Heat after repeated head-to-head runs

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench

    only about 4 degrees F cooler than Cousin Eddie

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)

    ran about 4 degrees F hotter than the Makita

Teardown

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench

    hammer weighs 297 g (heavier than Cousin Eddie's 253 g), plastic case is much more robust, anvil shows only a very small amount of wear after testing, uses a pin detent anvil design

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)

    does have a genuine brushless motor, hammer weighs 253 g (lighter than Makita's 297 g), anvil shows noticeably more wear/rounding than the Makita's, uses a friction ring anvil design

Manufacturer rated torque

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    210 ft-lb

    maximum tightening, 295 ft-lb nut busting/loosening torque

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    not tested

RPM, low impact mode

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    close to1,500

    forward, just over 1,500 reverse, about 100 RPM slower than its own rating

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    not tested

RPM, medium impact mode

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    close to2,000

    forward, 2,140 reverse (faster than its rating)

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    not tested

RPM, high impact mode

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    close to2,750

    forward, just over 3,000 reverse (faster than its rating)

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    not tested

Tightening torque test, medium impact (ft-lb)

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    100 ft-lb

    at 1,150 PSI, which already beat Cousin Eddie's high impact result

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    not tested

Manufacturer claims

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    520

    Newton meters (about 384 ft-lb) of torque claimed, 3,000 RPM no-load claimed

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    not tested

RPM, soft impact mode

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    1,800

    forward, close to 2,300 reverse

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    not tested

RPM, hard impact mode

  • 2Cousin Eddie (unbranded knockoff Makita impact wrench)
    2,300

    forward, 2,300 reverse, 700 RPM short of the 3,000 RPM claimed on its spec sheet

  • 1Makita XWT11Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 3-Speed 1/2 in Sq. Drive Impact Wrench
    not tested

How it was tested

  • maximum tightening and loosening torque (hydraulic ram test rig, PSI converted to ft-lb)
  • no-load RPM across all speed/impact modes, forward and reverse
  • no-load power draw (amps and watts)
  • lug nut removal speed test (seconds)
  • reverse auto stop feature response time (seconds)
  • galled/cross-threaded nut removal against engine brake resistance (rotations in 30 seconds)
  • head-to-head trigger response and power showdown
  • 10 ft drop test onto concrete
  • impact-on-anvil stress test
  • heat after repeated runs
  • teardown and internal component comparison (hammer weight, anvil wear, case material)

“So, is a $30 impact wrench, or the cheap knockoff, as good as the Makita? Absolutely not. Pretty obvious that Makita dominated the showdown.”

From the test video verdict.

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