The day I tried a cordless ratchet on a timing belt job changed my mind on battery tools

I've been a die-hard air tools guy for years. Last month I had a 2010 Ford Fusion timing belt job in my bay at the station, and my compressor went down mid-morning. My buddy handed me his Milwaukee cordless ratchet and said just try it. I got the water pump bolts out and the belt routed in half the time I usually take with air. The access was way easier without the hose getting tangled on the engine mounts. But I still wonder if the battery life holds up on a full day of heavy work like pulling a transmission. Has anyone else switched over and regretted it on the long jobs?

3 comments

3 Comments

max_ross1mo ago

What kind of battery percentage were you at when you finished that job? I get what you mean about the hose being a pain, I hate trying to snake an air line around a motor mount just to get one bolt out. On the long jobs like a trans pull I usually keep two batteries on the charger so I can swap them out without stopping. I have not regretted switching over because the convenience of not dragging a hose around makes up for the occasional battery swap for me.

the_laura2d ago

One thing nobody's brought up yet is how the battery platform itself matters. @max_ross, my Milwaukee stuff holds charge way better than the old Ryobi stuff I used to run, so I end up with more runtime per battery even on heavy jobs. The other angle is battery care, I keep my batteries warm in the winter by tucking them inside my jacket before a swap, cold batteries die way faster and that's a hidden problem people overlook. Also if you're using an impact or ratchet with a lot of torque, the bigger 5.0 or 6.0 batteries actually run the tool stronger than the smaller ones, so it's not just about runtime but performance.

jamesfox1mo ago

Man, @max_ross hit the nail on the head with the two battery trick, that's a game changer for sure. Totally agree that ditching the air hose mess is worth the extra battery swaps every time.