Lets talk tools... Air vs Electric

[Mark B]

Hey everyone,
After years of living in a condo, I finally have a garage. I want to get it setup will all of the tools I need. As far as power tools go, is air really the only way to go? All of the tools I currently have are electric. I wouldnt mind replacing them with air tools if air tools are really that much better. But I dont want to put out that kind of cash if I am not going to get a good return on my investment. What do you guys who have used both think? Is it worth it?

Thanks,
Mark B

[sweetbmxrider]

electric tools are nice cause they have more portability but you can't beat the shear power of an air tool plus there are no batteries to recharge. then you can also fill up tires and run a whole bunch of other fun tools like paint guns or blow guns or air drills or cut off wheels....etc

i don't think you can top air tools 8-)

[BonzoHansen]

they make some really nice electric impacts now. Snap on makes on guys tell works awesome.

i guess it depends on what work you intend on doing.

[iroc86NJ]

If you are only working on cars then you could probably get way with buying mostly air tools. Of course there are certain electric and cordless tools that invaluable. For example a HD 1/2 chuck corded electric drill and a quality made cordless drill/screw gun.

Like bozohansen said it depends on what your working on. Tell us what your setting the shop/garage up for.

[Mark B]

I already have the corded and cordless electric drills. Im sure I will have some household related projects to do, but the majority of my time will be spent working on cars. In addition to the normal stuff like brakes, suspension & engine work, I will probably do some auto body at somepoint. So a sander will be a must. A paint gun would be nice too... So I guess air is the way to go for me.

[r0nin89]

Your biggest decision will be size IMO. Yes electric impacts pack a punch and are efficient now BUT they're f'ing huge. Good for wheels and working on large trucks thats about it.

Plus factor in that you can get right angle drills, cutoff wheels, die grinders, spray guns, etc etc for much cheaper than electric counter parts. Then factor in how much more a variable speed version of electric tools are for like die grinders and grinders and theres really no competition.

The only tools I really think that electric trumps air is a drill for a big ass hole through metal, and angle grinders.

[deadtrend1]

not to mention you WILL want a decent compressor to run air tools. One with enough CFM that after a few seconds with the impact, your not waiting for air to recharge.

[SteveR]

One thing to think about with high power electric tools is that you can't have a long extension cord to run them. You'll lose power as the length increases. I did a test last week with an electric impact gun and using a 20' extension cord or shorter, I could take off wheel lugs with no problem. over 20' and it wouldn't work too good. Over 50' and it wouldn't work at all.

[BonzoHansen]

One thing to think about with high power electric tools is that you can't have a long extension cord to run them. You'll lose power as the length increases. I did a test last week with an electric impact gun and using a 20' extension cord or shorter, I could take off wheel lugs with no problem. over 20' and it wouldn't work too good. Over 50' and it wouldn't work at all.

12g cords FTW. Whenever I plugged my old 30g oilless compressor into an typical 16g orange extension cord the breaker would pop. So I had a bunch of romex lying around so I had the stiffest 12g extension cord in town, lol But no more breaker issues. I now have 3 50' 12g cords and that old romen was used for garage outlets. :)

Of course my 80g, 2 stage IR compressor (known locally as Compressor Overkill) has it's own dedicated 40 amp circuit.

[qwikz28]

One thing to think about with high power electric tools is that you can't have a long extension cord to run them. You'll lose power as the length increases. I did a test last week with an electric impact gun and using a 20' extension cord or shorter, I could take off wheel lugs with no problem. over 20' and it wouldn't work too good. Over 50' and it wouldn't work at all.

same problem with mine. Gonna get a 12g to replace it.