MAC Tools 3/8-Inch 20V Max Brushless Impact Wrench

By Adam Spafford
March 16, 2017

Mac Tools recently introduced the Mac Tools 3/8-Inch 20V Max Brushless Impact Wrench, as well as a 1/4-inch impact driver, for automotive applications. Both new tools feature a solvent-resistant glass-filled nylon housing, three speed settings, a variable trigger with an electronic brake, a brushless motor, 3-point LED worklight, overmold grip, anti-mar bumpers, and a three-year limited warranty.

The 3/8-inch impact wrench is 5.69 inches long and provides 275 foot-pounds of breakaway torque while the 1/4-inch impact driver is 5.53 inches long and provides 250 foot-pounds of breakaway torque. Both tools deliver 0-1,700, 0-1,950, and 0-2,800 rotations per minute.

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Our Take

You’ve probably seen that iconic Mac Tools truck driving around town as the company still employs the direct sales method in a time where the personal touch is often out of fashion. As a part of Stanley Black & Decker, Mac Tools now offers over 42,000 items to which they’ve now added the 20V Max (18V nominal) 3/8-inch impact wrench and 1/4-inch impact driver for automotive professionals. Since half the job is getting fasteners broken loose and tightening them up again, it makes sense that Mac Tools would offer the appropriate tools.

But since the company already offers impact wrenches in 12V and 20V in 1/4-, 3/8-, and 1/2-inch drives, where does the new 3/8-inch impact wrench fit in? Well, a quick side-by-side quickly reveals the answer: with the demand for ever-shrinking tool size. Whereas the current products had the profile of traditional pneumatic impact wrench – beefy, bulkier heads and wider bodies – the new impact wrench is stubby, narrower, and undoubtedly able to go where those bigger wrenches cannot. Likewise, the 1/4-inch impact driver has an even smaller profile and will be quite handy for the small spaces where you’ll need to access trim screws around rocker panels and wheel openings that have seized up.

We love the glass-filled nylon tool body because it’s nearly bomb-proof. But what’s even better about both of these tools are the rubberized areas to protect it from drops or general shop wear. Of course, we’re fans of brushless motors and how they extend tool life, too. And a three-point LED worklight – well, that’s a nice touch in a world where most have just one. But it looks like the the trade-off for the small size is that of power – both of these have torque ratings near the low end of the scale – and the only metric is the sometimes dubious breakaway torque. You might have guessed that impact wrench was only medium duty since it wasn’t 1/2-inch drive but rather 3/8-inch. But we’ll find out soon enough when we get an opportunity to review both new tools.

Mac Tools 20V Max Brushless Wrench and Impact Drivers