Makita BTD200SH 24 Volt, 1/4-Inch Cordless Impact Driver Kit

Features:

• Powerful 24V (1.7Ah) Ni-MH MAKSTAR battery for longer run time
• Variable speed trigger for total control operation
• Ergonomic rubberized handle for operator comfort and control
• Universal 1/4" hex shank Quick-Change chuck
• 2-speed motor (0-1,600 RPM or 0-2,000 rpm)

Accessories:
DeWalt DW2551 6 Piece 1/16-Inch to 1/4-Inch Hex Shank Twist Drill Assortment	Makita 845047-A MForce2 Heavy Duty Work Gloves - L	DEWALT DW2029 #2 Phillips Double Ended Screwdriver Bit, 5 Pack	DEWALT DW2100 4 Piece 3-1/2-Inch Power Bit Assortment	DeWalt DW2161 21 Piece Screwdriving and Nutdriving Set in Plastic Case

Customer Reviews:

Wails on lag bolts, screws, and the like. [Posted on 2004-01-05]
Don't be confused; this is not an impact wrench but an impact driver (different chuck) designed for screws and lag bolts of all types. That being said, the Makita driver is a dream. I use it for installing big 1/2" lag bolts (use a 1/4"- 1/2" socket adapter) into thick pressure treated pilings. I previously used a hammer drill, now those days of jerked wrists and rounded bolt heads are over. This one is smooth. It can easily drive a 40 Torx screw through a railroad tie, almost effortlessly. No more stripped sockets. I can drive any ware from 1000-1200, 1/2 x 12 lags before it needs a charge. It does get a little hot from extended continuous use, but this is only a minor inconvenience. If you need the power to drive and work all day, this is the tool. This tool has been dropped, left in the rain, and worked harder then any tool should be, but it comes back for more every time. The Makita driver seems almost bullet proof. The charger that comes with it is easy to understand. We have the adapter to jam Makita's 12 - 24-volt batteries. It works good on all of them. Way to go Makita!

Makita 24V impact driver BTD200SH [Posted on 2004-07-08]
This tool is a handyman's dream. The price on this tool has tumbled elsewhere because Makita is reportedly phasing out this tool for reasons I don't know (hefty price?, hefty weight?, hefty size?). Too bad the Amazon price is still very high. Note that the BTD200SH is an impact driver and not an impact wrench. An impact driver has a quick change 1/4" hex chuck, whereas an impact wrench has a 3/8" square socket drive head. Only the impact driver has been discontinued. The identically built impact wrench version is still being manufactured.

First a caveat: I am only a homeowner and not a contractor. I use my tools to fix my own home and a couple of my mother's rental properties. My views are from a novice user's/handyman's vantage point.

I bought this tool after a contractor, whom I hired for a major repair job, touted to me the benefits of impact drivers when used to drive long wood screws. The benefits are: no hand strain, dramatically reduced chances of stripping the screw heads, being able to drive screws that your regular drill/driver would not have a prayer's chance of driving in the first place.

How does an impact driver do all that? An impact driver works by combining rotational action (as on a regular drill) with a strong hammering action in the rotational direction. The hammering action doesn't kick in until the rotational resistance reaches a certain point. Here is an analogy to help you understand the impact action: if you've ever changed tires with a factory original one sided nut wrench, you'd pull the lever as hard as possible in order to loosen a nut. Sometimes the nut may be so tight that it may be stuck and the wrench won't move. What do you do? You reposition the lever of the wrench and you step hard on the lever a couple of times until the nut is suddenly loose. The stepping action is almost identical to the impact torque action of the impact driver.

The Makita BTD200SH has 1774 in-lbs. of maximum torque (or equivalently 149 ft-lbs, or 200 Newton-meters for the metrically minded). For comparison, most top-notice 18V drill drivers fall in the 475 to 550 in-lbs. maximum torque range. And most other impact drivers on the market range from only 800 in-lbs. to perhaps 1200 in-lbs. This easily makes the Makita BTD200SH the most powerful cordless impact driver by a huge margin, although Milwaukee has an 18V cordless impact wrench with an even higher torque rating (240 ft-lbs), but the Milwaukee is an impact wrench and not an impact driver. Unfortunately for the Makita BTD200SH, along with the most torque in the class title, it claims the most weight in the class title as well. It weighs a comparatively very heavy 6.3 lbs., even though most 18V and 24V drill/drivers easily weigh this much. Most impact drivers, on the other hand, weigh only 4 lbs. or less. Maybe a combination of high price, heavy weight, etc. led to poor sales, which then forced Makita to discontinue the product. The true weight aside, it doesn't feel that heavy in the hand because the T-handle is very well balance.

To use an impact driver, lay the tip of a bit firmly and perpendicularly on a screw head and press the trigger slowly at first. Because impact drivers have a very high rotational speed, it's best to start slow to prevent the tip from jumping out and stripping the screw head. Once the screw starts rotating, you can then increase the RPM. The amazing thing with impact drivers is you don't feel the reaction force. Although the impact driver is torquing the screws at 1774 in-lbs., you don't feel any opposing torque at all. It's simply amazing. Try using a drill/driver even at 500 in-lbs. and your wrist may twist off, but not so with an impact driver. The only thing you'll feel is the very loud noise of the impacting action. It will get loud enough when driving large screws that you will need ear plugs. Besides driving screws, it can also act as a drill, although it can only accept quick change drill bits with a 1/4" hex shank. I've not tried the drilling mode myself but numerous reviews from other users of impact drivers show that it can handily drill up to 3/4" diameter in wood. Larger holes may cause the tool to vibrate excessively because of the impacting action. I have a feeling this impact driver will retire my cordless drill/driver or at least relegate it to true heavy duty drilling tasks only.

Tool specs:

bare weight with one 1.7 AH battery - 6.3 lbs.
maximum torque: 1774 in-lbs.
No load speed: Low 0 - 1,600 RPM; High 0 - 2,000 RPM
Impacts per minute: Low 0 - 2,500 IPM; High 0 - 3,000 IPM

The tool comes with a hard molded case, a 1-hr. quick charger, a 1.7 AH battery. I've read someone else's review on Amazon that the 1.7 AH battery holds enough charge to drive 1000 to 1200 1/2x12 lags before needing a charge(incredible), so maybe having only 1 battery is not too much of a drawback. I've not used mine often enough to verify the battery charge life. Still I bought a second kit, mostly just to get a second battery, which costs $130 retail anyway, and also to buy a second driver, charger, and hard case almost for a song before all the current closeout stocks are gone.

Makita Cordless Impact Driver Kit BTD200SH [Posted on 2004-07-08]
This tool is a handyman's dream. I'm not sure whether this $549 price is for the impact wrench or the impact driver. The picture on this page is for the impact wrench, but the part number is for the impact driver (BTD200SH). The wrench version should have model number BTW200SH. I'd call up Amazon to confirm before ordering. I know for a fact Amazon is selling BTD200SH for $399. Do a search for BTD200SH on Amazon and you will see two entries: one 399, the other for 549. The price for the impact driver has tumbled everywhere else but Amazon, because Makita is reportedly phasing out this tool for reasons I don't know (hefty price?, hefty weight?, hefty size?). The price for the impact wrench version BTW200SH has not changed. An impact driver has a quick change 1/4" hex chuck, whereas an impact wrench has a square socket drive head. Only the impact driver has been discontinued. The identically built impact wrench version is still being manufactured and not discounted.

First a caveat: I am only a homeowner and not a contractor. I use my tools to fix my own home and a couple of my mother's rental properties. My views are from a novice user's/handyman's vantage point.

I bought this tool after a contractor, whom I hired for a major repair job, touted to me the benefits of impact drivers when used to drive long wood screws. The benefits are: no hand strain, dramatically reduced chances of stripping the screw heads, being able to drive screws that your regular drill/driver would not have a prayer's chance of driving in the first place.

How does an impact driver do all that? An impact driver works by combining rotational action (as on a regular drill) with a strong hammering action in the rotational direction. The hammering action doesn't kick in until the rotational resistance reaches a certain point. Here is an analogy to help you understand the impact action: if you've ever changed tires with a factory original one sided nut wrench, you'd pull the lever as hard as possible in order to loosen a nut. Sometimes the nut may be so tight that it may be stuck and the wrench won't move. What do you do? You reposition the lever of the wrench and you step hard on the lever a couple of times until the nut is suddenly loose. The stepping action is almost identical to the impact torque action of the impact driver.

The Makita BTD200SH has 1774 in-lbs. of maximum torque (or equivalently 149 ft-lbs, or 200 Newton-meters for the metrically minded). For comparison, most top-notice 18V drill drivers fall in the 475 to 550 in-lbs. maximum torque range. And most other impact drivers on the market range from only 800 in-lbs. to perhaps 1200 in-lbs. This easily makes the Makita BTD200SH the most powerful cordless impact driver by a huge margin, although Milwaukee has an 18V cordless impact wrench with an even higher torque rating (240 ft-lbs), but the Milwaukee is an impact wrench and not an impact driver. Unfortunately for the Makita BTD200SH, along with the most torque in the class title, it claims the most weight in the class title as well. It weighs a comparatively very heavy 6.3 lbs., even though most 18V and 24V drill/drivers easily weigh this much. Most impact drivers, on the other hand, weigh only 4 lbs. or less. Maybe a combination of high price, heavy weight, etc. led to poor sales, which then forced Makita to discontinue the product. The true weight aside, it doesn't feel that heavy in the hand because the T-handle is very well balance.

To use an impact driver, lay the tip of a bit firmly and perpendicularly on a screw head and press the trigger slowly at first. Because impact drivers have a very high rotational speed, it's best to start slow to prevent the tip from jumping out and stripping the screw head. Once the screw starts rotating, you can then increase the RPM. The amazing thing with impact drivers is you don't feel the reaction force. Although the impact driver is torquing the screws at 1774 in-lbs., you don't feel any opposing torque at all. It's simply amazing. Try using a drill/driver even at 500 in-lbs. and your wrist may twist off, but not so with an impact driver. The only thing you'll feel is the very loud noise of the impacting action. It will get loud enough when driving large screws that you will need ear plugs. Besides driving screws, it can also act as a drill, although it can only accept quick change drill bits with a 1/4" hex shank. I've not tried the drilling mode myself but numerous reviews from other users of impact drivers show that it can handily drill up to 3/4" diameter in wood. Larger holes may cause the tool to vibrate excessively because of the impacting action. I have a feeling this impact driver will retire my cordless drill/driver or at least relegate it to true heavy duty drilling tasks only.

Tool specs:

bare weight with one 1.7 AH battery - 6.3 lbs.
maximum torque: 1774 in-lbs.
No load speed: Low 0 - 1,600 RPM; High 0 - 2,000 RPM
Impacts per minute: Low 0 - 2,500 IPM; High 0 - 3,000 IPM

The tool comes with a hard molded case, a 1-hr. quick charger, a 1.7 AH battery. I've read someone else's review on Amazon that the 1.7 AH battery holds enough charge to drive 1000 to 1200 1/2x12 lags before needing a charge(incredible), so maybe having only 1 battery is not too much of a drawback. I've not used mine often enough to verify the battery charge life. Still I bought a second kit, mostly just to get a second battery, which costs $130 retail anyway, and also to buy a second driver, charger, and hard case almost for a song before all the current closeout stocks are gone.

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