I bought what is apparently the most powerful 1/2" drive impact wrench available IR 2135 with 1000 ftlb or torque and am still finding it weak. The other day it would not remove the bolts that hold on my front brake caliper bracket and sometimes it wll not remove lugnuts. I am using it at 125psi with 50' of 3/8" hose and 1/4" M (milton) quick connects). Would going to 3/8" qc fittings help at all? I notived a local tire shop has the air pressure at 150 psi. Is this what is needed? How come air tools say never to go above 90 psi?
the tire shop does not likely run the tools at 150PSI but if the shop has or had air lifts or air tire changers they might be operating at
150psi. at the tool ports there is likely a secondary regulator to drop it down to 90 or thereaboutsbut the entire shop can be run off of the single two stage beast and the branch line for the tools is regulated down further than the primary machines
In theory the bigger QC will help, I am using a IR2132 (700 ft-lb rated) with 1/4 QC. Other things to check.
1) Is the tool oiled. Air tool oil not only makes them last longer it makes them work better. I put in a couple of drops every time I connect up the any of my air tools to the hose.
2) Are you using any extensions? In my experience every extension, swivel, or adapter I put on the Impact wrench seems to reduce the force applied at the bolt or nut.
3) Are all controls on the gun set to max? (sorry had to ask) On my IR2132 the power control only seems to affect the tightening function not the loosening function, your may be different.
4) is you air compressor tank at the bottom of the pressure range? On tough bolts, I run the impact wrench until the air compressor kicks on, then wait until it stops and I have max pressure in the tank. The difference in performance between 90 and 125 PSI is significant.
The only time my IR2132 has not been able move things was a harmonic balancer bolt, where I needed an extension and a 1/2 to 3/4 adapter to reach. It struggled on one very rusty set of lug nuts on a truck I bought that the previous owner appears to run on the beach every weekend. I had to use the cycle the compressor trick in that case.
Probaby going to the 3/8 fittings would help some, but you have a high air consumption tool there and though the pressure provided by your compressor may be adequate likely the air flow output is not. I have an IR 231 I use with a 2.5 HP compressor, and have had no trouble with any lugnut or caliper bolt I've used it on. It works well on the relatively low cfm of my compressor, much better than the cheapo CH one I had before it. Mind you, I've used it on nothing bigger than the lugnuts of a 3/4 ton GM van.
someone sold you an impact with a marketing torque value the 2135's top out at about 500 foot pounds in forward and 700 in reverse and that will be in ideal conditions. and ideal conditions mean that your arm doesnt twist on the impact blow
What is the difference between Nut Busting torque and traditional torque? I have an older I/R impact wrench that will break off 1/2 bolts all day long on 125psi. Gotta be carefull with the one I got. I think you need to feed it more air. larger air hose and larger fittings, shorter air hose also.
On Sat, 23 Feb 2008 11:03:19 -0600, with neither quill nor qualm, F. George McDuffee quickly quoth:
Yabbut, methinks the 1,000# figure is calculated using Searz Foot Pounds. I doubt a 1/2" gun would do better than 300, with a 3/4 or 1" drive capable of doing up to 1k.
It may sound stupid, but check the reverse lever/button. I have had occassions where my impact driver wouldn't work properly only to find that the reverse lever wasn't all the way over and air was leaking. With all the other racket you couldn't hear it.
Brent, an impact wrench doesn't impart a reverse moment to your arm or hand that equals the torque being applied to the fastener. It's the hammering that applies the elevated torque. Personally I only use the impact wrench rarely. I use my torque wrenches a lot. I torque a lot of turbine casing bolting and we heat and tension most of them. It is a very interesting process.
I was just looking at the specs for the 2135TiMAX and noticed that the specs say minimum hose size is 3/8", but the air inlet is only 1/4". Air consumption is listed as 5 cfm, but it does not give an air pressure.
Anyway, if the air inlet is 1/4", why would it help to put on 3/8" qc?
Don't bet on that! I worked at a shop years back and all the air was at 175 PSI. You had a tough time even connecting a standard QD. You sure did not want to get your hand stuck between the handle of an air ratchet and the engine block! Greg
"NoOne N Particular" wrote: (clip)Anyway, if the air inlet is 1/4", why would it help to put on 3/8" qc? ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
1.) You are aware that pipe sizes and hose sizes are not directly convertible? B.) The inlet to the tool is not as long as a hose so its size is not as critical.
The spec give average air consumption. It is like rating duty cycle on a welder. In reality the actual consumption may be two three times as much. A QD is slightly restrictive. The 1/4" inlet will probably flow more than the 1/4" QD will. I would try the impact with a larger hose and QD, or a much shorter hose. One thing you can do is to see what the pressure drop is at the tool fitting. Add a air pressure gauge at the tool and see what it reads while using the tool. If it drops very little, maybe 5 PSI, your hose and fittings are good. If it drop say 15-20 PSI you need more air, bigger hose! Greg
When you are trying to push high power through air tools, the resistance of the air line and couplers becomes critically important. It's just like trying to run a 1000 HP dragster, but feed it fuel with a stock VW Bug fuel pump - it just can't flow fast enough.
Do an experiment - try moving the compressor close to the car, or vice versa. Take all the couplings out of the system - put the 3/8" hose straight into the gun, and the other end into a 3/8 full-flow ball valve and right into the air receiver tank.
That should be nearly free (no parts) and prove the problem.
If it does, that's the time to upgrade your air piping in the shop to get from the tank to your workplace with a big pipe and as little extra crap in the way as you can.
3/4" Type K extra-heavy or Type L heavy copper pipe (Not M) with as few elbows as possible save for drip legs on each drop - your tee goes UP from the main line before going over to the wall and down. (The water stays in the main line, which is sloped to a drain valve.) 1/2" or better high-flow filter-regulator-lubricator (rated for the CFM flow of the wrench with a cushion), 1/2" QD couplings, 1/2" hoses.
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WARNING: DO NOT USE PVC PLASTIC PIPE FOR COMPRESSED AIR!! EVER!! Even as a temporary system or for experimenting, as it tends to get left in service far longer than intended. Hit or twist PVC pipe under pressure and it shatters and goes "Boom!" People get hit by the flying shrapnel and can be hurt, blinded, or occasionally killed.
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If you can't do this, consider a 5-gallon or better receiver tank as an accumulator right next to the workplace and the impact wrench - put the biggest hose you can from the wrench to the accumulator, and then plumb that to your regular compressor. It will give you a burst of full flow and full power to break the nuts loose, then you'll hit the existing air system restrictions.
And even if you have a little "2 Sears Horsepower" portable air compressor, throw as much air receiver tank gallonage on as you can. The impact only needs 5 seconds of full-flow air to get that nut moving - so what if it takes 15 minutes for the compressor to build it back up...
The tools usually say 90 PSI Max because the internal pieces of the hammers and anvils for the impact system start breaking if you use too much force. They will take being used with a moderate overpressure for a while, but do it constantly and you will see internal failures far before their time.
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