ManMade Giveaway: Win One of Two Craftsman Impact Drivers

This week, I’m excited to be giving away two impact drivers from Craftsman! I’ve been playing with both of these models for the past few weeks, and have been plenty impressed.

A powerful cordless drill/driver is an essential tool for basically everyone, and this latest generation of dedicated drivers compliment them perfectly. They’re more lightweight than a drill, and are able to focus all their power on the torque needed to drive fasteners, rather than sharing it with another function like drilling holes. Plus, it’s great to have two tools so you don’t have to keep switching out bits. Your drill bit or counter sink can stay in the drill, and the driver can seal the deal. Neither of these are mere electric screwdrivers… they’re powerful tools that you’ll find all sorts of uses for.

The Craftsman 17338 19.2-volt C3 Cordless Impact Driver is a little beast meant for hardcore driving. Of the two, with it’s hefty weight and 19.2-volt battery, this one is definitely meant for straight-up construction…namely, securing screws into wood.

The driver includes a great hex “coupler” (it’s not a chuck if you don’t twist it closed, right?) for super fast changing and securing of bits. Unlike with a drill, the bit won’t eventually loosen, since there’s not an adjustable closure. [The Nextec right-angle driver also includes has this awesome feature.]

It fits very comfortably in my hands, and I can imagine using it for a long time without feeling worn. It doesn’t vibrate, which will really help with numbness and soreness. It’s very powerful, and works quite well with screws. I dunno if it can work with hex bolts on a deck or a tire, but that’s not what I’d ask from this sort of tool anyway.

The adjustable speed is nice, though it does jump to pretty fast from 0 to medium with only the lightest touch; there’s much less variability than in my standard 19-volt Milwaukee drill/driver that I use daily. I also love the LED light, which comes on when you press the trigger, not just when the driver is running.

Whereas the 19.2-volt C3 driver above is perfect for heavy-duty construction projects, the way lighter Nextec right-angle driver is awesome for everything else. It’s 12-volt battery is a lithium ion (the C3’s is the traditional NiCad), and charges super fast. You can tell by the design of the tool and the included attachments that this guy is meant to excel with a variety of fastners around your home, not just screws. It makes quick work out of general homeowner-y sort of jobs like changing a lawnmower blade, HVAC stuff, installing cabinet hardware, etc. That said, it also makes quick work of screws in dimensional lumber, and works will with diffrent bits, such as hex-drivers and allen wrenches, and will thusly be my new go to tool when assembling IKEA furniture. It’s small size and right angle design also makes it awesome for working on my bike and Vespa, and should save lots of banged up knuckles.

It too includes an LED light and great coupler of the C3, but lacks the adjustability of speed. It comes on super fast, and will I can hear the difference in the motor with different pressures, it spins and spins and spins, so there’s not a ton of finesse when responding to different materials.

I miss the ability to turn the LED light on without the trigger depressed. The light would really come in handy when fitting the bit into the fastener, especially in dark places where this tool is intended to excel.

The C3 retails for $150.00 and the Nextec right angle driver for $100. They’re both definitely worth having around, so I’m excited to be giving away one each.

To enter, we’re asking that you sign up for our brand new ManMade newsletter. To do so, just head to this signup page, or you can enter it the field at the bottom of this post. If you’re already a subscriber, just enter your address again; it won’t double you up. We promise not to spam you, or sell/giveaway your email. Anything you ever recieve will be from me. Promise. And, if you decide you don’t want to recieve the newsletter after the contest is over, it’s easy enough to unsubscribe. You’ll never do so, of course, but the option’s there, just in case.

You can also increase your chances of winning by tweeting about the contest, sharing it on your blog, or spreading the news via Facebook. If you do, please enter each extra entry as a comment onto this page, with a link to what you had to say. Easy enough.

The contest is open NOW and will run until 11:59 CST on Sunday, March 20th. I’ll select the two winners at random. The first name will recieve the C3, and the second the Nextec right-angle driver.

Good luck! I hope you win!